I came to this book the long way around. I first saw the movie Jumper and thought it was an interesting premise, marred by bad execution and a ridiculous final half. Not knowing much about the book, I wasn’t in a rush to read it. But I heard good things about the book (and how it was better than the movie), so I finally tracked it down and read Steven Gould’s Jumper. I’m happy to report that it’s much better than the movie, but still has some issues. Let’s go check it out.

Teenager Davy Rice lives with his abusive father. His mother left years ago and Davy dreams of getting out. When his latent teleportation skill shows up, Davy uses this to literally get out-of-town, all the way to New York City. After some early problems with a truck driver and making his way through the poor areas of NYC, Davy robs a bank. He jumps(teleports) in and then back out with a million dollars. Not being that world wise, he’s not sure what to do. So, he hides the money in a bricked in closet in a cheap apartment and buys himself some fake identity documents. He also starts traveling (via jumping) all around the world. He ends up with a girlfriend in Oklahoma and is starting to enjoy his life.

This changes with two plot points. First, he finds his Mom and finds out that she spent a year in the hospital recovering from the last assault from his father. Then his next door neighbor starts beating his wife. Davy helps the wife escape, but the neighbor and his mother cause him to start doing something more. Soon Davy finds himself chased by the NYPD as well as the NSA.

The last third of the book almost turns Davy into a superhero (a less blue and tailless Nightcrawler) who fights terrorism and the government. This portion of the book disappointed me greatly as it turned Davy away from his slightly naïve teen character into an action hero with little in the way of a transition. Overall, it was an enjoyable book and I’m considering checking out the sequels. The best part of the book is Davy’s characterization. The character acts and sounds like a Midwest teenager who suddenly has more freedom and power then he knows what to do with. But not in a bad way. When someone else points out how Davy could have made his life easier, Davy reacts with embarrassment and a realization that he’s not as smart as he thought. But, as mentioned above, the ending jumps Davy forward in ability and knowledge with little transition and it wraps up loose ends in the story a little too neatly. Recommended for a quick fun read.