Book Title: Multiverse
Insert Cover image
ISBN 978-1-920659-95-0
Part of Series: Alive!
Author: Nicole Stuart
Available at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Y5L39M2
Number of words (approximately): 257346
Star Rating (of five) 5
Summary This book brings
together the themes of most of Nicole Stuart’s books, wrapping many separate
stories neatly into one master-tale that satisfies most possible questions.
Extract: The members of the Council
sat quietly as they received the information. At the end of the summary, Angela
spoke.
“Your information is
disturbing, but not unexpected. We have believed for some time that the overtures
between China and Russia were mainly opportunistic, with the intention of
forcing the United States to relent in their trade war with China and their
sanctions against Russia. There was always a possibility that the rapprochement
would develop into a permanent improvement in relations between them, but that
did not seem likely, as they have both been working hard to gain a dominant influence
in the Third World, at the same time as the American President seemed to be
determined to abdicate any influence his country had built up there. It is
possible that our notice of intention to wind down our purchases of natural gas
from Russia was a factor in precipitating the current situation. The question
is what we can do about it. We can increase the readiness of NATO to take defensive
action, but that will be perceived by Russia as a threat to them, causing them
to divert troops from the Chinese front, and that would almost certainly
encourage the Chinese to attack.”
“We’ve found that the best way
to avert a war is to paralyze the ability of the countries involved to attack. Our
first effort should be directed against the nuclear weapons, particularly the
long-range rockets. That is relatively easy to do, using the particles to disable
the electronics,” replied Scott. “We could use the same measures against their
means of communication, to disrupt their chain of command, and also disable their
vehicles.”
“That would be a large
effort,” observed Angela.
“We could train a number of people
from NATO to do the work. Of course, we would need NATO to buy into the plan.”
“What would be our ultimate
objective for this action?”
“I believe that the objectives
should be threefold.” replied Scott. “The first is to prevent a situation
developing that could lead to a war. The second would be to introduce an element
of instability in the political stranglehold the respective governments have
over their people, with the intention of giving the citizens an opportunity to
demand a more democratic form of government. Flowing from that, the third objective
would be to open the opportunity to introduce to those peoples the advantages of
becoming members of the Universal Community, and the requirements for that.”
“May I suggest that we treat
Hong Kong as a special case, separate from China? The people of Hong Kong have
demonstrated very clearly over the past year that they have no desire to be
absorbed into the greater Chinese political and legal systems. I believe that
it would be relatively easy to convince them of the benefits of membership of the
Community, and, if they were to become members, it would be a very persuasive
argument to the rest of China.”
“I agree with that,” added
Sally, suddenly realizing that she was a member of the Council, and so entitled
to speak. “I’d like to include Taiwan in that thinking, and also South Korea
and Japan. Those four are very important countries in the region, and would be
a powerful inducing factor for the other countries of the region.”
Jirgt glanced at the faces of
the members of the Council. It had been enlarged considerably with the
representatives of the new member nations, and he did not yet know them well
enough to be able to predict their views. Their thoughts, coming through their
communication bracelets told him of their support for what had been said.
“I take it that we are in
agreement. Angela, I would appreciate you facilitating the discussions with
NATO. Geoffrey and Sorpe, please coordinate the actions of all parties. Simon,
please work with Scott to designate the targets for our actions, working with
NATO. Jan and Sally, please work with Hera and Jarl to design a public
relations campaign, as well as a plan to make the benefits of the Community
known to the people of the countries we have mentioned. I suspect that you will
be best served by working closely with Integra.” Jirgt confirmed that the
delegation of duties was acceptable to all, and then wrapped up the meeting.
The parties transported back to their offices to begin the work.
Structure: The book
complies with the standard formatting requirements for eBooks, as well as
having a good use of language and grammar.
Content:
This book covers a wide sweep of subjects, taking them
forward from where they were in earlier books and integrating them into a cohesive
whole. It is credible, sensible in how problems arise and are resolved, and
entertaining, with lifelike characters, many of whom arouse a strong liking or
dislike in the reader, with an interest in how it can all pan out in the end.
The main characters, Sally and Jan, two writers who were introduced in an
earlier book, ‘Predictions’, work with members of the Council of the Universal
Community to bring new planets and civilizations into the Community, including
their own, where the venal politicians seem determined to hold onto their own
versions of ‘democracy’ in order to protect their positions of power and
wealth. The maneuvering of the politicians generally ring bells with observers
of the political and business scenes, often bring that ‘aha’ moment as the
devious motives are stripped bare.
Although the book refers to elements of about another
thirty Nicole Stuart books, the story flows easily, and does not require knowledge
of those other books. As each episode progresses, Sally’s character develops,
her self-confidence grows, and her relationships with others, initially
suffering from a considerable uncertainty in her capability to handle the tasks
she takes on, become more self-assured and productive.
Reviewer’s Comments
I love reading Nicole Stuart’s books. They are informative
and thought-provoking. She has an ability to predict the future in a credible
way. I have, several times, seen that what she wrote in one of her books,
sometimes several years earlier, proved to be incredibly accurate. Whether she
is simply very good at reading the signs that others miss, or she actually has
an insight into the future is not clear to me, although I think that both
explanations are at least partially valid.
Although Nicole Stuart’s books are not written for
youngsters, they could certainly be useful reading for young men and
particularly young girls, providing wholesome and informative encouragement, a
wide range of facts and information in fields that are sure to become
enormously important in years to come, and the credible assurance that the
application of hard work, intelligent forethought and good principles will
carry one through.
I strongly recommend this book to anyone with an open
mind.
