Science Fiction and Fantasy literature covering the topic of the multiverse are nothing new, and usually focus on using the aspect of it to create unique settings, character struggles or to hook in an audience using familiar characters. A large factor that isn’t covered by mainstream media regularly is the incomprehensible idea that everything is real, infinite possibilities and worlds exist and having fun with that idea.
“Void Jumpers: Volume 1: Between All Worlds,” written by CM Robles and released in June 2023, answers that question in a story focused on the idea that every story told is real. “Void Jumpers: Volume 1” is only the first part to this duology of novels, and is connected to the author’s wider Nova Storm Chronicles stories. A new book in this connected multiverse, “Exquisite Quantum Showdown” will be released later in 2026, and acts as a prequel story to the Void Jumpers duology.
“Void Jumpers: Volume 1” follows the story of Pel Ironleaf, a half-elf from a vaguely “Lord of the Rings” inspired world. The young half-elf embarks on a journey to destroy their world’s evil ring, however before their story can even begin, strange alien lifeforms crash into their home, stealing the ring. Pel follows, being taken from their world to a completely different universe.
Pel’s goal throughout the story is to find a way back to their home, but once Pel discovers the vastness of multiversal travel, their goal becomes much bigger. To destroy the source of true evil in the multiverse— the beings that took them from their home.
Pel is not alone. Throughout this multiversal story, they meet multiple different characters from alternate worlds very different from Pel’s: Cora, a hermit crab physicist and Pel’s first friend after being taken from their home world, Keenan Quantum, a dumb intellectual who has the ability to sense the fourth wall, Mr. Johnson, an everyday high school teacher who was chosen to protect the mysterious “Infinity Racoon” and was thrust into the multiverse.
As the story progresses, Pel and the others form an organization focused on documenting and studying the multiverse: the Void Jumpers.
Robles utilizes the grand narrative scale of “Void Jumpers Volume 1” to emphasize the focus on small character interactions, light hearted antics and the intense stakes of the plot. Robles utilizes these small scale scenes to expand the world of the Void Jumpers narrative, introducing key concepts of the novel in unique and upfront ways.
For example, Mr. Johnson is thrust into the narrative by meeting a god-like entity, the “Infinity Racoon”. Core concepts such as the holes used to travel through space and time are called “Plot Holes”. And later in the story, objects discovered in the Nova Storm are coined “Funky Squares”.
These weird and wacky terms for important pieces of the story may seem out of place, or even lazy. However, Robles utilizes the absurdity in both this type of naming scheme, as well as concepts in the multiverse of the Void Jumpers, to allow readers to vividly remember these important pieces of worldbuilding, as well as to contrast intense and darker moments of the narrative.
One downside to both the scale of Void Jumpers is that throughout the book, descriptions and dialogue can feel glossed over and basic to read, feeling as if certain parts of the story may have been skipped over. These simple descriptions can make the reader feel disconnected from the events happening in the story, like they are reading a checklist for plot points they have to understand.
Other than this criticism, “Void Jumpers” brilliantly utilizes this fast pacing and character dialogue to give information to the reader as well as illustrate heartfelt character moments; peering inside the head of many of our main characters with realistic and natural one on one dialogue that makes you care about the characters you are reading about.
“Void Jumpers: Volume 1: Between All Worlds” is a unique Sci-Fi action adventure, which uses its weirdness and large scale to craft fun and meaningful characters with depth and intrigue, as well as introduces readers to the unique multiverse of the Nova-Storm chronicles.
“Void Jumpers” can be read for free as a live audio book reading on the author’s Youtube channel.