Karl Alexander (1) (1938–2015)

This novel accompanies the entertaining film of the same name where H G Wells follows Jack the Ripper forward in time to 1979. The book follows the same course, but has the added bonus of both H G's reflections on and marvelling at the technological advances he sees and his disappointments and disillusionment with the crime and injustices he experiences, which tell against the Utopian ideals he had anticipated for future society. All this gives the book added depth as well as many funny and show more some horrific and disturbing moments. Well worth tracking down. show less

In 1893, H.G. Wells builds a time machine. Jack the Ripper steals it and travels to 1979 San Francisco. Wells then feels obliged to follow and bring the escaped killer to justice. It's a dumb concept, but Mr. Alexander makes an entertaining tale of it. He paints a believable picture of a temporal cross-cultural experience as Wells (and to a lesser extent, Jack) attempts to traverse 1979 San Francisco, fraught with 1893 Victorian assumptions and biases.
--J.

While I've read the book, I always think of Time After Time in terms of the movie. It's one of my enduring favorites, and three decades later I still think of the fast-food place with the golden arches as "McDougal's." So, imagine my delight at the news of a sequel. Jaclyn takes place thirty-one years later (or thirteen, depending on how you count), when a 1906 prediction of disaster sends Amy rushing back home to warn her family. Unfortunately, the trip has the side effects of show more reconstituting Jack the Ripper - as a lovely (but still-murderous) woman - and stranding both of them in 2010. H.G. Wells to the rescue! Many of my favorite notes from the previous story are reprised this time around, with the technology upgraded accordingly. We also find that the last thirteen years have not been paradise for Amy and Herbert, which adds some urgency to Wells's quest to recover his wife. Surprisingly, we also get significant insight (psychological and medical) into Jack/Jaclyn's character. All in all, this story was a fitting conclusion to the Ripper's story, and while I do not expect to see one, a third visit from H.G.'s time machine would be more than welcome. show less

Mr. Alexander wrote the original TIME AFTER TIME made into the movie about H.G. Wells and Jack the Ripper traveling through time to late 1970’s Los Angeles. In this sequel the chase through time is on again thirty years later, but with a twist. Jack the Ripper has materialized out of the time machine as a woman. It was an okay read but was basically a rehash of the original with a gender twist.