The Long Earth
This first collaboration between Pratchett and Baxter is the initial offering of a proposed trilogy.
The books events are spun into motion when a scientist mysteriously disappears leaving behind him instructions on how to build a device that allows people to ‘step’ to parallel versions of the Earth.
A vital point to make is that this is a pretty straight ahead science fiction novel mostly free from Pratchett’s trademark humour. Set your expectations accordingly.
This is a promising book but it does spend a hell of a lot of time setting things up and provides not much in the way of payoff. I do like the central character of Joshua Valiente a lot and I will be keen to pick up the sequel when it comes out.
I can only recommend the book if you’re prepared to commit yourself to the full series. If you’re a fan of Pratchett or Baxter (I’m a fan of both) then I think you really should make the necessary commitment.