Time for a Change - J T McIntosh
Classified on the cover as ‘British SF at its best’, but then publishers are wont to exaggerate, aren’t they? I’m certain we produced better science fiction fare than this.
This wasn’t a brilliant book, but it was just about readable, and it was literate. If you can imagine a tame version of the ‘Midwich Cuckoos’ meet ‘Vee’ meet ‘The Time Machine’ ….
Storyline:
Manager Val Mathers, who runs the only insurance office in a relatively old and obscure middle England town (can you imagine him as an action hero?), finds that a bunch of tall young people - he calls them the Giants - have set up a camp across the river from his house. He sees one of the girls in the town, and she appears to be wearing a see-through dress, but then convinces himself it was a trick of the light (it wasn’t). He lunches at the pub, finds a group of these Giants there, and despite shorts and summer frocks - it has been the hottest summer in living memory - they are all immaculately dressed, with not a hair out of place, or a crease in their clothes. Suspicious? You bet!
On top of all this, his childhood friend returns from exile (thrown out by the Mr Action Man for attempting to seduce his wife), and appears to have some affinity for this crew of adolescents. He gets much deeper into it, as it appears that these kids are with their teacher of history (she of the see-through bits) from another time/space, and appear to want to watch the Great Fire that is about to happen in the town. All fire insurance courtesy of Mr Mathers, being the only insurance office in town, which becomes important.
How they all fare in this conflagration is the part of the plot I won’t reveal, but suffice to say that it is almost predictable that the hero ends up being just that, the hero. The complete action only covers a couple of days, so it isn’t too difficult to keep abreast of the plot.
Verdict: If I had a scoring system, I suppose three out of ten, even allowing for when it was written, 1967.
This edition published by Corgi in 1969.
Available from Alibris.co.uk and Abebooks.