The Soul Continuum

West-Bulford continues his mind-bending metaphysical space opera series with a massively complex story that spans billions of years. The story opens where The Soul Consortium ended, with immortal Salem Ben, the last human alive, watching the universe die and be reborn. All human souls are tucked safely into the Soul Consortium sphere, which exists in a Promethean singularity outside the cosmos. When Salem is confronted by an entity called Jagannath, which presents an unusual and alarming threat, he gathers information on his new foe by immersing himself in the lives of four souls: Diabolis Evomere, a life-form created by Salem’s longtime enemy Vieta in ancient Babylon, who can locate Jagannath; physicist Clifford Arken-Bright from Old Earth, who communicates with it; cyborg Silicant 5, who raises young Oluvia Wade to become a queen; and Salomi Deya, a little girl infected with nano-drones who holds a vital clue. With an algorithm map implanted in his brain by Queen Oluvia, Salem gathers other incarnations of himself to find and destroy Jagannath. West-Bulford peppers his expansive chronicle with vivid descriptions of cosmic creations, philosophical musings on eternal life, and an exploration of man’s hunger for enlightenment. (Sept.)