Jordan, J: Speed of Life

What happens when a brutal crime threatens a mother’s love for her son? An old Florida family and those in their orbit get caught in a torrent of passion, a deadly legal system, and the mythology of the Everglades, which runs as deep as this story does. Propulsive, engaging, evocative, beautiful writing. Tom Holland, writer of Psycho II, writer-director of Stephen King’s Thinner, Fright Night, Child’s Play

"From the courtroom to the swamp primeval to the underpinnings of the universe, James Jordan takes us on a wild ride. A hugely ambitious and thoroughly enjoyable triumph of a first novel. All I can say is "Bravo!"

T.C. Boyle Author of The Tortilla Curtain.

"I hugely enjoyed this remarkable novel. It blends human courage & cruelties with solid astrophysics and with Seminole culture & mythology – resulting in a richness that held me tightly in its grip."

Kip S. Thorne, Winner of the 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics; Executive Producer, co-story writer, and science advisor for the movie "Interstellar."

"The Speed of Life is a fast-paced, character-rich, thought-provoking novel that takes the reader from the heart of Western philosophy and civilization to the heart of millennial America. A fine storyteller, James Jordan knows his characters and where all their secrets are buried, and something more—the hope still strong in their restless, striving hearts. A remarkable debut."

Aram Saroyan winner of the William Carlos Williams award for best poetry collection.

"The Speed of Life, by James Victor Jordan, is a ground-breaking, scientific/philosophical novel wrapped in a Carl Hiaasen-flavored thriller. Jordan relates cutting edge theoretical physics to ancient Seminole shamanic practices and produces a credible explanation of why and how old magical methods may have tangible effects in our world. At the same time, this novel is sparklingly contemporary, bright and crisp around the edges of its plot, and ingenious in braiding elaborate story lines to bring an extraordinary cast of characters together. And it fires itself forward at a break-neck velocity; this is not a book you will want to put down."

Madison Smartt Bell, winner of the Pen/Faulkner Award and National Book Award finalist for All Souls Rising.

“Impressive . . . Descriptions . . . are primarily images that Jordan sears onto the pages.” Kirkus Reviews

THE SPEED OF LIFE launches with a crime so horrific that if the first great tragedians—Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides—had imagined it, no historical record remains to prove it. From themes as modern as #MeToo to leitmotifs of Greek tragedy, Western philosophy, and modern understandings of astrophysics, the novel tells the stories of diverse characters who are brought together by the seminal crime and rewards the reader with psychological revelations worthy of Stendhal.

Praise for The Speed of Life:

"From the courtroom to the swamp primeval to the underpinnings of the universe, James Jordan takes us on a wild ride. A hugely ambitious and thoroughly enjoyable triumph of a first novel. All I can say is "Bravo!"

T.C. Boyle Author of The Tortilla Curtain.

"I hugely enjoyed this remarkable novel. It blends human courage & cruelties with solid astrophysics and with Seminole culture & mythology – resulting in a richness that held me tightly in its grip.

"Kip S. Thorne, Winner of the 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics; Executive Producer, co-story writer, and science adviser for the movie "Interstellar."

"The Speed of Life is a fast-paced, character-rich, thought-provoking novel that takes the reader from the heart of Western philosophy and civilization to the heart of millennial America. A fine storyteller, James Jordan knows his characters and where all their secrets are buried, and something more—the hope still strong in their restless, striving hearts. A remarkable debut.

"Aram Saroyan winner of the William Carlos Williams award for best poetry collection.

"The Speed of Life, by James Victor Jordan, is a ground-breaking, scientific/philosophical novel wrapped in a Carl Hiaasen-flavored thriller. Jordan relates cutting edge theoretical physics to ancient Seminole shamanic practices and produces a credible explanation of why and how old magical methods may have tangible effects in our world. At the same time, this novel is sparklingly contemporary, bright and crisp around the edges of its plot, and ingenious in braiding elaborate story lines to bring an extraordinary cast of characters together. And it fires itself forward at a break-neck velocity; this is not a book you will want to put down."

Madison Smartt Bell, winner of the Pen/Faulkner Award and National Book Award finalist for All Souls Rising.

"What happens when a horrendous crime threatens a mother’s love for her son? An old Florida family and those in their orbit get caught in a torrent of passion, a deadly legal system, and the mythology of the Everglades, which runs as deep as this story does. Propulsive, evocative, beautiful writing."

Tom Holland, screenwriter of Psycho II, writer-director of Fright Night, Child’s Play, Stephen King’s Thinner“

Impressive . . . Descriptions . . . are primarily images that Jordan sears onto the pages.”

Kirkus Reviews