One day, the stars disappear. It turns out that a barrier has been set up between the Earth and the rest of the universe. Research later shows that the barrier is a time discontinuity: outside it, time passes millions of times faster. Satellites sent out through the barrier seem to return within seconds, yet have weeks’ worth of data with them. But somehow there are still 24-hour days with sunshine.

It doesn’t take people long to figure out that given the size of the time differential, the Sun will soon have changed so much that the Earth would be completely uninhabitable if the barrier disappeared. An entire generation of people grows up having never seen the stars, and knowing that they might well be the last generation ever. Some go on with their lives, but as time passes, more and more of them live out their desperation and hopelessness.

Three kids happen to be out stargazing when the barrier appears. The rest of the story revolves around the three of them as they grow up. One becomes a scientist, obsessed with understanding the Spin, as the barrier is called. Another gets sucked into the various apocalyptic sects that are born out of this event. The third one observes life from the outside, never quite getting involved himself.

The SF part of the book is impressively well thought-out: all the various implications and possible effects of a time barrier are explored, everything is consistent and makes sense. Even the final explanation (yes, there is one) actually makes sense. Lots of logical but innovative side ideas are presented almost off-hand. A lesser writer using one idea per book could have built his whole career on the ideas in this book.

At the same time this is not just an idea book (as SF books can sometimes be). The human angle is all there, too. The characters are well-rounded and believable, their relationships dynamic and interesting. Humankind’s feeling of being doomed and having no future is subtly all-pervasive.

And to top it all off, the story is well told. The pacing is good, the language is smooth, and the classical flashback structure is really skilfully used. I actually want to know how the characters can get from the flashback time to the present time, and the chapters taking place in present time gradually make more and more sense as the past catches up with the present.

The end result is an intelligent and enjoyable book. Really really good.

Amazon UK, Amazon US.