Synopsis:
BOBIVERSE TO-DO
· Determine who built a vast wormhole network–and why
· Investigate mysterious, derelict alien spaceship
· Crack faster-than-light travel
· Help tens of thousands of refugees find a new planet
· Confront a new threat from an old enemy
· Figure out how to save the known universe from certain destruction
So many crises, so little time. It’s really not easy being a Bob.
Review:
I suppose if you boiled down the Bobiverse books into one simple sentence it’s this — six books of a dude just talking to himself.
And yet…I can’t get enough of it.
If you haven’t discovered Dennis E. Taylor’s Bobiverse books, they can be a bit of an acquired taste. Even so, the now-six book series (with one more to come in the main series, according to Taylor) are a real treat for old-school science fiction fans with homages to many terrific books, TV series, and movies. His latest, The Infinite Extent, out now in audiobook format with the amazing Ray Porter narrating, cements the Bobiverse as perhaps the true inheritor of the optimistic outlook of the universe as presented in Star Trek.
After the first three Bobiverse books, it seemed as though Porter was potentially done with the series. After a few years off, Heaven’s River, the fourth Bobiverse book, wasn’t as successful (at least with this reviewer). But, with the last two books, Bob is back and in fine form.
Now, there are tons of Trek references all throughout the books, including naming characters after TNG characters and harkening back to many key plot points throughout the various iterations of the show. And I love it all — from the super science-y approach to nearly all the Bobs’ problems, the politics that you might expect from an episode of Deep Space Nine, and the deep space exploration from the seven seasons of Voyager. And there is even some humor that you might find from an episode of Lower Decks.
Ray Porter’s excellent narration is once again perfectly suited to Taylor’s Bobiverse novels. With the potentially infinite variations of Bob Johansson, somehow Porter keeps it entertaining. In a book where most of the characters are simply clones of one another, it would seem like the books could get boring quickly, but the one-two combo of Taylor’s writing and Porter’s narration makes the series really work.
I had a great time with The Infinite Extent, and would highly recommend Taylor’s latest, especially in audio format.
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