Review of Lockstep by Karl Schroeder

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January 20, 2014 by mmileti

This book managed to both catch my attention and stretch my imagination to new heights. Lockstep starts out as a typical science fiction novel: an undetermined amount of time in the future, earth has turned into a dystopian environment where a small percentage of the planet’s population are trillionairs who own over half of earth. Everyone else on the planet is starving, and living in the cramped and dirty slums. The main character is Toby McGonigal, a young man whose family had escaped from earth to colonize a small planet outside the solar system called Sedna. Toby’s life changes forever when on a routine mission to a comet his ship gets destroyed, keeping him stranded inside the ship in hibernation for 14,000 years. When Toby finally awakes, the universe is a much different place, and he has suddenly become the most important person in it.
This story is well written, and the worlds the author creates are vivid and amazing. It is much different from the typical Sci-Fi novel where everything is dark and dreary. Here we get a chance to view a universe that has come up with a fascinatingly unique and logical way to create a thriving situation. The characters are all interesting, and the author does a good job of describing Toby’s reactions to a whole new universe that for him, sprung up overnight. The book is also exciting, as Toby’s actions could change the lives of millions of people forever.
This novel had a few places where the story got a bit slow for me, and I’m not quite sure yet how I feel about the ending, as it was good but also felt as if it was rushed.
Overall, I think this was an enjoyable read that I would recommend to anyone that likes speculative fiction. It is a wonderful change of pace in a time where most of the futures we envision are dark and dreary. It is not that the world that Toby awakens to is perfect, but it is beautiful and contains plenty of hope.
Overall I would rate this book an 8/10. I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in return for an honest review.