Don't Touch the Blue Stuff! (Where the Hell is Tesla? Book 2)

Witty and Amiable Fun

There are a fair number of scifi based humorous buddy adventures out there, and lots of them are entertaining enough. But, this book, (and the series), strikes me as just right. The setup, (that Tesla left behind a portal to all of the other multiverses, our slacker heroes found it, and now they perform multiverse saving missions for the FBI), is basic, sound and only as complicated as you want it to be. The author doesn't struggle to make sense of or to justify the setup. It's just there as a frame upon which to hang an infinite number of amusingly daft and complicated plots and sequels. Along the same lines, the rom-com is mild and mostly focused on the com, the buddy angle is comfortable and taken for granted, and the adventure is always urgent, apocalyptic, and inventively silly.

What nails this for me is the characters, the dialogue, and the dry, deadpan fourth wall confidences shared by the narrator with the reader. Our heroes, Chip and Pete, are introduced as high end Beavis and Butthead types. But, the author early on drops the stoooopid aspects of their characters, and what we see are two characters who are smart, observant, and witty, but choose to present themselves to the world as slackers and mooks. That way we get some low, slapstick comedy and some very witty and clever high end stuff, and indeed we never know which we'll get in any particular situation. When faced by a purple extraterrestrial maneater we don't know if Chip will fart, quote Carl Jung, or faint, (or all three), and the unpredictability of which direction the joke will come from, (the purple maneater might drop a bon mot as well), is a big part of the fun.

And the point here is fun. None of the humor is especially edgy or political or has any point other than to make a joke, kid one of the characters, or bump the story along. There are actually some touching scenes, and they are dropped in subtly and judiciously in order to keep the story grounded, keep us invested in the characters, and make the heroes heavy enough that they don't float away into silly land. And, the author is perfectly happy to wander off and give us a very funny scene, (say, Chip's civil wedding ceremony), that is almost completely non-essential to the book, but perfectly formed to serve as a cheery break in the action. This also serves to make the whole book feel like it's a story being told over a few beers to a bunch of friends.


This book is a sequel to "Where the Hell is Tesla?", but I think it's more fun. All of the original characters have returned and the quantum multi-verse portal thingy is still where we left it. The first book was weighed down a bit by the need to introduce Chip and Pete and to set up the whole Tesla's portal premise. Here, we hop right into the laughs and the action. I was afraid that the whole thing might feel old or labored in a sequel, but for me the energy, cheerfulness, and clever humor was as fresh and engaging as before. And that's nice to know.

(Please note that I received a free ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

I just so enjoy the characters, the outrageous plot, and the snappy dialogue. The sheer exuberance displayed by lead character Chip, his damn-the-torpedoes-full-speed-ahead approach to plot twists (plus the crying, cussing, vomiting that accompany it), carry me along like a tidal wave. The underlying 'love is all' message of both books in this series never gets sappy, old, or hackneyed. And I never tire of Pete, Tesla, Gina, Bobo, and other fellow travelers as they courageously forge ahead (or bumble ahead) of troubles and catastrophes.

You never know with sequels... Fortunately, you don't have to worry about this one - Dircks' second in the Tesla series delivers every bit as well as the first (and if you haven't seen that review, look for it - I rave like a fangirl). You'll laugh out loud just as often with this sequel as with the original...

Chip and Pete and Bobo and Julie and Nikola are back - but not only are they back, they're back with a vengeance. The new adventure is even more madcap, yet still oddly relatable, than the first; somehow, Dircks' has this fantastic ability to take these guys that should, by rights, irritate the hell out of me (in real life, they would - Chip would be beyond irritating and Pete too perfect by half) and make me love them and cheer for them and hope beyond hope that they'll keep coming back for more...

The new additions to the cast - from a sanctimonious by-the-book FBI agent who turns out to have hidden depths, to a demigod cockroach with the soul of Mr. Miyagi and the voice/attitude of your best friend's Uncle Geno, to Einstein in all his wild-haired Teutonic glory - provide a slew of new opportunities for fabulously crafted snark and pratfalls. Oh, and surprisingly spot-on insights into the human condition that are delicately layered throughout in ways that you don't even notice until they're past you and the lesson is learned. And it's all delivered in the same balls-to-the-wall writing style that made the first book so entertaining.

There doesn't appear to be any mention of a third installment - I really hope that's oversight, because these characters and this world are too good to let go so soon...

My review copy was provided by SFWA (Science Fiction Writers of America) through NetGalley. Check them out - they have some seriously talented writers!

A lighthearted "Bill and Ted"-type follow-up to the first "Where the Hell is Tesla?" book. It's not going to win the Nobel prize for literature, but if you're looking for something to cheer you up on a rainy afternoon, this will do the trick no bother. Alternate universes, a touch of Narnia, adventure, and loads of laughs. What's not to like?

A fun followup to Chip's, Pete's, Nikoli's and Bobo's shenanigans across dimensions.