Will Compton, is a burned out, time traveling cop whose job has put his sanity on life support and he’s not sure he cared anymore. He desperately needs time to sort things out instead he gets dispatched to the most difficult case of his career. Now that criminals have time-jumped back to the day before the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King can Will set aside his personal problems long enough to stop this group of illegal time travelers before they can destroy the timeline?
Even before his last mission, Will Compton’s life was starting to unravel. His girlfriend was depressed; his best friend was crazy still the fate of the world daily depended on him doing his job and doing it right.
In spite of his issues he got up every morning and went to work. For twenty years now, day after day it was the same routine. He would travel through time to chase down crazy people and profiteers who were using black market time machines and then he would eliminate them before they could change history. It was a dirty job. Yet in a world where everybody was so disgustingly nonviolent, Will was a man of necessary violence and there are very few equipped to do what needed to be done. Nevertheless he and those like him were freaks and thus outcast in that peaceful world.
After today however, his life would never be the same because today he was assigned to time-jump back to Memphis Tennessee on the day before the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King. April 3rd, 1968 . . . of all days. . . why that day?
You see three hundred years ago mankind was on the brink of extinction following a devastating nuclear war. Eventually the remnants of America gathered in Washington DC. They arrived and saw nothing but a vast desolate wasteland. . . until they spotted the King Memorial. The thirty-foot statue, like a beacon of hope, rose from the ruins and was visible for miles.
The people saw the memorial’s survival as a sign and rebuilt their society on the philosophies of non-violence, peace and love, which were etched on the surviving memorial wall.
For two hundred years the entire world was at peace but then the discovery of time travel changed everything. Dissidents who longed for the violent ways of the past arose and it all led to his mission today.
Suddenly Will is confronted with impossible decisions. What would you do to ensure that your future survived? Could you kill your best friend, could you let your lover die? Could you take the life of the hero that the world has patterned itself after? These are some of the dilemmas facing Will Compton as he tracks down these criminals in the midst of that national nightmare.
Excerpt
It was close to midnight, and so far I had managed only a glimpse of the man I was hunting. I called out to him.
“Why in the world would you want to kill John Wayne?”
“I don’t want to kill him; I want to challenge him to a gunfight.”
“You do realize that John Wayne is an actor, right? You know he is not a real gunfighter . . . right?”
He didn’t reply right away and when he did his tone seemed both confused and frustrated.
“What are you talking about?”
That was when it hit me: this guy was nuts! How in the hell did he get his hands on a time machine?
I looked up and noticed the full moon.
That explained a lot!
The crazies were always at their worst when the moon was full.
“John Wayne is an actor,” I repeated.
“What do you mean he’s an actor? I just saw him in a documentary about the Wild West. He’s a gunfighter.”
“I don’t know what you saw, but it had to be a movie. It was fake. It wasn’t a documentary. Look around, does this look like the Wild West to you?”
Silence . . . except for the crickets.
Then I saw his head pop up as he looked around. I guess the presence of cars—not horses—wasn’t a big enough clue. He ducked back down and I lost sight of him.
At this point, I should probably explain a little about what was going on. Our world was nearly destroyed by a nuclear war that we call the “Last War.” Humankind had been on the brink of extinction, but we made a comeback. Then time travel became a reality and ever since the government has been scrambling to keep everything from spiraling out of control.
Nevertheless, there is a sincere thirst to discover our history, and every now and then a civilian stumbles upon an artifact, some snapshot of the past, or in this case, a fragment of a John Wayne movie. They can’t resist investigating history on their own, and occasionally we came face to face with this . . . someone who had moved beyond the mere investigation of history and had decided to become a part of history.
We were in the hills somewhere near Bel Air, California, in the midst of multi-million dollar homes with sculpted hedges and manicured lawns. According to my computer, John Wayne had been a movie actor from about 1950 to 1970, something like five hundred years before I was born. Right now he was inside a friend’s mansion attending a “wrap party” for one of his movies. He had no idea that this nincompoop was hiding behind the cars out front, waiting for him to come out so that he could challenge him to a gunfight.
Professional Reviews
A Storm in Memphis
“A Storm in Memphis” is Hero Jenkins second novel and a great science fiction/thriller. Will Compton lives in the 25th century and a completely different world then the one we know. After a devastating nuclear war that almost destroyed humankind, humanity decided to build their society around the teachings of Martin Luther King, Jr. Mankind is peaceful and happy, quite possibly for the first time ever. The only problem is that time travel is possible, and there is always a small minority of people who want the world different. Some want power, or money, or to right a wrong, or they are just plain crazy. No matter the reasoning, it is Will Compton’s job is to stop them before they change the past and destroy the present.
He ends up in a fight not only against is ideals, but for the existence of humanity. Compton faces betrayal, love, grief, terror, and bouts of humor. He is a deep and completely realistic character. This novel can be dark, and the humor helped to lighten the mood many times. I enjoyed his diabolical scheming on many occasions.
This novel brings to the forefront many real issues, including prejudice, equality, and whether doing a small amount of bad for the greater good is acceptable or moral. Compton faces many injustices and mysteries as he works to bring the world back as he knows it. How far would you be willing to go to save your world? Would you kill your idol, your hero, or your best friend? Could you?
This novel is full of suspense and thrills, but also delves deeply into the theories of time travel. If you are looking for a fantastic science fiction full of suspense and action, you can’t go wrong with “A Storm in Memphis.”
I received this book through Goodreads First Reads. This in no way influenced my review. I did not receive compensation for, nor was required to, write a review.
5-star Review on Amazon: "A terrific read about a very disturbing subject!! The book is exciting and interesting and chilling and alarming! A literary ride that is well worth the time and money."
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