In Retrospect

Set in the eastern Mediterranean in the 34th century, this carefully crafted whodunit from Larson (The Measure of the Universe) centers on former resistance fighter Merit Rafi, who, along with her tech team, is assigned to investigate the murder of her onetime military leader, Gen. Omari Zane. The general betrayed his faction, the Oku, by surrendering control to the Rasakans following a hard-fought war. After Zane is shot in his well-guarded study, Merit is tasked by her former Rasakan foes with solving the case using her special gift for Forensic Retrospection, a limited form of time travel. In addition to the challenges posed by the logistics and technology of retrospection, Merit must deal with the disconcerting involvement of her former lover, agent Eric Torre, in the case and an old rival from school, Lena Salim. Shifting timelines clearly notated in chapter headings and technological/theoretical discussions that readers can skim or chew over with equal enjoyment should make this speculative fiction mystery accessible to all closed-room murder fans. (Nov.)