MARK ALPERT鈥橲 debut novel is not the first thriller to involve a particle accelerator 鈥� that honour probably goes to Joe Haldeman鈥檚 , or Dan Brown鈥檚 , which imagined various happenings at . But Final Theory is perhaps the first true physics thriller, where the esoteric theories themselves drive the action.
Alpert imagines a world in which Einstein discovered the ultimate 鈥渦nified theory鈥� of physics before he died, but also saw that its equations could be used to build a terrible weapon, far worse than an atomic bomb. Afraid that this knowledge would fall into the wrong hands, he shared the formulas only with a handful of trusted collaborators who, in the 21st century, are turning up dead under suspicious circumstances. And then there鈥檚 Einstein鈥檚 mysterious daughter, Lieserl, supposedly given up for adoption soon after birth鈥�
There is no need to reveal any more; anyone who reads the first few pages will be hooked, as 鈥渞egular guy鈥� hero, science writer David Swift, outwits the FBI and outruns a variety of despicable thugs and mercenaries.
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Granted, the plot is far-fetched in the extreme, with the climax, which takes place at the in Illinois, requiring a significant suspension of disbelief. Still, it鈥檚 a smart, suspenseful page-turner 鈥� perfect beach reading for the physics geek who likes a dose of action with their equations.
Final Theory
Simon & Schuster