Resonance by AJ Scudiere, a Book Review

Review of Resonance by A.J. Scudiere

The last time the earth underwent a shift in magnetic polarity was approximately sixty-five million years ago...the same time the dinosaurs died out. What would happen if such a reversal took place in modern times, as scientists expect it will? Resonance is an exciting science thriller that answers this question.

Individual scientists, including smug geologist Dr. David Carter and young biologist Dr. Rebecca Sorenson, notice strange changes in the earth and its creatures. Frogs with six legs are showing up. Doctors Jillian Brookwood and Jordan Abellard at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are beginning to see strange and worrisome symptoms in human beings with weakened immune systems. Soon their findings lead to pockets of magnetic reversal, hinting at larger and even more disturbing changes to come.

Resonance would be fascinating if this were the whole of the plot, a disaster novel on a global scale, worthy of Michael Crichton or any writer of great science-based fiction. The reversal of the earth's magnetic pole is just the beginning of the story, however. When Dr. Brookwood awakens from a reversal-induced coma, she slowly begins to realize the world has changed in ways no one could have predicted.

Jillian Brookwood is a strong, brilliant female character. It's not hard to see why both Carter and Abellard find themselves attracted to her. Even as the world as we know it seems to be falling apart, Scudiere keeps readers on the edges of their seats wondering if Brookwood will gravitate toward the arrogant but brilliant Carter or the disarming, eerily teal-eyed Abellard. Which families will survive, which will be torn apart, and who will survive the greatest geological even since the age of the dinosaurs? Scudiere excels at keeping the worldwide cataclysm on a human scale, making for a fascinating page-turner.