The Halcyon Dislocation chronicles the story of a University and it's society of students and professors as they're 'dislocated' from their reality and universe - transported into what appears to be a parallel reality. The cause of the dislocation is at first a commentary on the scientific community at their most reckless: an apparent lack of caution in light of making advancements in science at a rapid rate. The result being a dangerous science experiment that envelops the Island of Halcyon, it's university and infrastructure, and all it's inhabitants, cutting and pasting it from one version of Earth, as we know it, to one that is eerily similar but dangerously different. The resulting story takes the students of Halcyon on a journey that I can only best describe as civilization-building. Without any real timeframe or hope of reverting the experiment and going home, the students are forced to move forward, starting from scratch in terms of all that goes into sustaining a civilization and discovering a world completely unknown to them. The students become pioneers likened unto the early pilgrims of the Americas, albeit with modern day knowledge of science and technology.
The adventure in this novel starts as an infant discovering the world around them, and quickly matures into a hardened war veteran learning the ugly truths inherent in any world. As it matures, the plot becomes superbly intricate, revealing twists and dangers that force our heroes to make life-altering decisions, taking them further away from the past world as they knew it, and adapting to the true-reality of their new lives on this strange new world.
As the novel approaches it's climax, I can honestly say I did not see the twists coming. It was like a piece of a puzzle that you can't see, but once inserted made perfect sense - that narcotic "AH HA!, wow..." moment that everyone loves in a good story.
I give this novel 4 out of 5 stars, and highly recommend it.
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