My thanks to NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group for an advance copy of science fictional police procedural, body horror novella about the present day, the corruption that is all around us, muder, the future, and leaving with regrets even when we have a chance to change the outcome.

We live in a time where everything seems wrong. Like someone saw the future and skipped the benevolent part and went right into making money for a select 1%. Search engines don't give answers, the media has given up, experts are the enemy, the loudest dumb person is chosen as leader, and things are falling apart. In addition the planet is a dying and the rich seem to be getting away with everything, including a chance to flee a planet they have ruined. They powerful are never happy with all they have, always wanting more and more. Sometimes however that more has a cost, and for the characters in this book, that more might already be here. Extremity is a novella by Nicholas Binge that is equal parts a mystery, a science fiction story, and a reflection of our era, with a dark glimpse at our future.

Bruno Donaldson is a powerful man, a billionaire of billionaires, with power, prestige and lots of secrets. Until someone shot him in his London office with plenty of witnesses, but on one seeing a thing. Or shot him under a bridge, where the body of Bruno Donaldson is found, also with a bullet in the head. Both bodies share the same DNA, and fingerprints, though one body is slightly different. DCI John Grossman knows only one person can solve this crime. However she has quit in disgrace after being undercover for years among the rich and powerful, and finding all her work went to naught. Grossman brings in rookie DC Mark Cochran to run interference as the detective Julie Torgrimsen does not suffer fools gladly, nor police. A few minutes at the scene and Torgrimsen comes to a realization, there is a lot going on she doesn't understand. And that the lawyers especially the main lawyer is scared of something. Soon Torgrimsen figures enough out to know this is much bigger than a muder. Someone is playing with science, and their playing has brought something back, something that might wipe out everything.

Science fiction and mystery are the best genres to look at the current state of the world and state, we can do better. These bad people are people that one sees in the news everyday. Leaders of state, leaders in industry, and people ruining things for a few dollars more. For a novella Binge really packs the story. A network of rich human traffickers, mysterious suicides, corrupt justice, and adds a bit of science fiction to the mix. I must say when a part of the story was revealed, I did just go, hmm that tracks. Binge also uses a unique style to tell the story, switching the POV of characters who tell the story in an almost after action report. This keeps the story moving, allowing more information to be fed to readers, and also helps the story move.

I enjoyed this story quite a bit. I kind of hope there is more as I like the characters, there is a couple of good twists, that I would like to see followed up. This is my first book by Binge, I would like to read more. A perfect novella, good story, gets the reader mad at people they should be mad at, and makes one want more.

And with Extremity, Nicholas Binge officially becomes my most-read author of 2025.
(Also: Dissolution is still holding strong as my favorite book of the year.)

I was lucky enough to read Extremity early, and while it’s his shortest book to date, it absolutely delivered on what I came for: time travel. I don't know that I'm the biggest fan of "police procedurals", but — the cast of characters that provided the story's three POVs were unexpectedly HILARIOUS (poor Mark, he truly didn't sign up for this), and the pacing had me flying through the pages. Nicholas Binge is an auto-read author for me!

A billionaire is killed, then the police find another body exactly matching his at a different crime scene. Retired detective Julia Torgrimson is inveighed to rejoin the police and work on the crime since many years earlier, she was deep undercover within the billionaire's crime organization. Who is the assassin killing billionaires around London? When a secret cache of papers come to light: future stock market prices and photographs of dead clones, she reveals a time travel conspiracy going back years. However, it appears the use of the time machine has created an anomaly, the more the machine is used, the closer the human race comes to extinction. Julia and her crew, a police detective and the newest member of his squad now have to destroy the machines in order to uncover the killers and save the human race. The writing was pedestrian, but the premise was intriguing.

Thank you to TorDotCom for the free arc of this book. All opinions are my own.

Ok, let's start with the positive. This book has a killer premise. A solid murder mystery/police procedural. It's fast paced and really readable. You can bang it out in an afternoon and probably have a decent time! It was not for me, though and I'll share my critiques next. It's written as if our three main characters are giving a police testimony but all three of their voices sounded too similar. If you're doing multiple POV, I really want each character to sound different. Then, some of the ways the book was written sounded like a verbal testimony while other bits did not, dialogue given in a testimony would not just be written out normally in book form? It didn't quite make sense and that was this book's main problem. Not everything made sense. When they introduced the scifi elements the character was like "you're really not gonna believe this" and I was like "you're right, I don't" the surface level of what was happening had been figured out but no deeper details to fill it out. No rich history, world-building or backstory. I know it's a novella but it made the ending feel real empty for me. I really wanted to like the characters but they weren't developed enough for me to really enjoy it. But, you know what? If you're looking to have a fun time and are willing to not think too deeply about the details? This book does the job! While that's not really my thing, I hope the people that will love this book find it and go for a fun, wild ride!

Thank you to Samantha at Tor who provided me with an ARC copy through NetGalley.

This is a fun, quick read for anyone who likes mystery and a dash of sci-fi. Set in a presumed modern London, the story alternates between three characters often, keeping the story engaging and moving. They are all quite humors in their own ways as well.

The sci-fi aspect isn’t apparent at first, and while it’s important to the story, you don’t get any science. There’s no how did time travel get discovered, it’s simply a statement of facts, the ultimate problem is the approaching Extremity – that’s what’s got to get averted. And you don’t need to have those answers to enjoy the story.

The characters are distinct, and very different levels of cop. Mark is so green you often wonder if he’s ever watched a cop show, John is a bureaucrat happy to be back in the thick of it, and Julia is a competent but tortured by her past decisions and also the most likely to take the wildest approach to getting things done.

I enjoyed reading this and it’s X-Files like ending and recommend it to anyone a quick mystery.

This book seemed like it would be right up my alley, and so, of course, I requested it. As sometimes happens, I waited to read it, and now that I’m finished, I wish I hadn’t. This is a fast-paced, well-written, novel told with three POVs, and man, was it frustrating, excellent, interesting, and a whole bunch of words I can’t think of right now. I was drawn in immediately, and the author didn’t let me go until the end. I can’t say much, but the end was a twist I did not see coming and left me gaping in astonishment…and frustration. I need to find out if this author has more books. Loved it. Highly recommend. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.

My thanks to NetGalley for making an eARC of this book available for my review.

Told from three points of view, this is a bit of a police procedural but with a sci-fi twist. The disgraced (and retired) police officer is called in to consult on a strange case that links back to her own past cases from when she was undercover. The rookie is roped in to act as backup to the veteran cop who is assigned the case. These three definitely imperfect individuals somehow manage to make headway on a decidedly strange case of multiple homicides and in some cases multiples of the same body. Exciting, non-stop, and thought provoking, this was definitely a fun read. And it even seemed to leave a bit of an opening for a potential sequel. Give it a try, you won't be sorry.

I could have hung out in this world for another 200 pages. Just a wild ride front to back. Pacing was excellent and the alternating narratives of the story made for a super enjoyable read.

Huge thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book. Nicholas Binge quickly becoming one of my favorites!

I love Nicholas Binge! This book was so creative, suspenseful, humorous at times and had an oh-so subtle but jaw-dropping twist at the end.

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The concept is fantastic, but the narrative style (our three protagonists seem to be recounting events as if for a case recording) did not jive with me, much as I tried. Definitely would be curious to try other titles from this author, and I will definitely be recommending this book to patrons who enjoy scifi and mysteries.

Extremity was such a fun, fast-paced read—I loved it! Julia was a standout for me, like a modern-day Sherlock Holmes, and I couldn’t get enough of her. The three-person POV worked really well, and each character brought something unique to the story.

What started as a straightforward murder mystery quickly turned into something much bigger, with time travel and wild conspiracies that kept me hooked. The sci-fi elements were smart and exciting, and the action never let up. Honestly, I didn’t want it to end—I’d love to see these characters again in a sequel or spin-off.

Big thanks to Tor Publishing and NetGalley for the gifted copy. This was a thrilling, pulse-pounding read, and I’m hoping we haven’t seen the last of this world!

If I didn't know this was written by Nicholas Binge, the author of the rather superb Ascension, I would have never guessed.
I selected the book based on the appeal of his name alone - and certainly not by that terrible cover. Turns out, neither did much for me. Granted, I don't like most time travel-themed stories, but also, I didn't care for the three-way narrative or any of the three narrators, or the action-driven plot, or it tight, slick, blockbuster-ready energy.
Binge can, appropriately enough, write very bingeable books, so it reads quickly and entertains to an extent.
Objectively speaking, it's definitely the sort of thing that will appeal to a great many readers out there, I'm just not one of them. Though I remain interested in Binge's work and his upcoming new novel and will gladly dismiss Extremity as a one off. Thanks Netgalley.

Extremity by Nicholas Binge, a thoroughly enjoyable read. Did not go in an of the directions I thought it would and kept me wanting to read it.

📖 ARC REVIEW 📖

Thank you @torbooks for an early copy of Extremity by Nicholas Binge. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. 🤍

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐/5
Release date: September 16th, 2025

Blurb: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/217388182-extremity?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=96iktQ4ugG&rank=1

🛑Read on with caution; review may contain spoilers🛑

Extremity is a police procedural, end-of-the-world mystery with a time-travelling twist. It involves three police’s POVs, Julia, forced out of retirement to investigate the murder of billionaire Bruno Donaldson whom she worked with whilst undercover years ago, John, Julia’s colleague, and Mark, a rookie in the force. The three find themselves on the hunt for an assassin who murders each wealthy individual consequently, and encounters documents and photographs seemingly from the future, and a time-travelling conspiracy that counts down to the extinction of the human race.

This book was short, fast paced, and easy to follow, but with those they take away the liberty of going in depth with time travel and the seemingly complex main protagonists. There was so much to unpack especially with Julia’s experience while undercover and her never-ending guilt for Anna, a victim she got close to and failed to keep her promise to get her out of the human trafficking group.

Extremity is an overall compelling and short read, though I would have appreciated if it were longer and didn’t feel like the entire novel was written in a rush. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the suspense and thrill as the three MCs uncovered the mysterious murders.