Title: Time and Space: The Dark Rift
Author: Ricky Lucio
Publisher: Xlibris
ISBN: 1453588175
Pages: 324, Paperback
Genre: Science Fiction
Reviewed by: Gary Sorkin, Pacific Book Review
Book Review
Ricky Lucio makes scientific theory simultaneously educational and entertaining by using sophisticated conversational techniques within his storyline of fantasy, time travel, and Armageddon in his new novel, Time and Space: The Dark Rift.As astrophysics professor Ivan Peterson from the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, is whisked off to Area 51, known locally as Groom Lake by military officials, the unfolding of events of the not-too-distant future is revealed in the most extraordinary of ways. Mayan history has told us of the pending consequences of December 21st, 2012; the exact date of the alignment of planets in our solar system with the sun facing the “dark energy hole” in the center of the Milky Way. It is believed by some this date marks the end of civilization as we know it, or optimistically described as a new beginning. To Dr. Peterson, Colonel Harrison and a select few, the future is told to them by time traveler, coming to earth in a small time capsule-like ship, or “pod” as it is called, with the warning our planet is doomed for attack and virtual annihilation not by some gravitational anomaly, rather by a race of futuristic reptilian-like creatures known as the Annunaki. To make matters worse, those that don’t die in the mercy-less killings of the invasion, become victims and casualties of World War III as people on earth fight for survival amongst the ruins.
That might be a lot of fantasy to swallow for those of us not being die-hard Kool-Aid drinking sci-fi fans. However, it is the sheer brilliance of Ricky Lucio’s writing to spoon feed actual scientific fact and theory, page by page, citing the work of Albert Einstein, Stephen Hawking, Michio Kaku plus many accepted archaeological findings and the cult beliefs of Nostradamus. In his skillful way, he builds up a foundation of credibility and believability to his plot underpinnings and character development. Time and Space: The Dark Rift reads like a suspense sci-fi thriller, while all along becoming cleverly subliminal in providing Ricky Lucio a platform for his own scientific posture. He cleverly educates the reader with summations of the greatest minds and thinkers of our modern history, while he makes learning fun and exciting.
To me, Lucio’s handling of scores of scientific principles and theories, his acumen of physics and quantum theory, his mature sophistication of time and space make his novel stand out light years ahead of presumptuous sci-fi thrillers that dwell on action and imagery instead of credibility and imagination. Citing web links and illustrations each uniquely significant to his message, Time and Space reads half like a textbook and half like a comic book, again brilliantly interleaved into a work I’d define as required reading for all sci-fi enthusiasts. This book is further ideal for young adults wishing to address the “what if” in their own mind’s curiosity of the universe, multiverse, and dimensional relationships of the forces both known and theorized.
As humans learn more, the smartest amongst us learn how little in fact we really do understand ~ although we’re getting pretty good nowadays. Ricky Lucio helps us all understand more, leaving us with more questions than answers, as he rewards us with a memorable story that rivals the blockbusters of Hollywood and the unforgettable epic stories of H.G. Wells. “We are not all alone,” becomes apparent in the plot of Time and Space. For proof, even if we discount the existence of extraterrestrial intelligent alien life, the truth exists, for example, that you share your bed with the “you” of yesterday and the “you” of tomorrow; so that makes at least 3 of each of us.
