The Reset is a culmination of worlds colliding, timelines interweaving, and relationships that seemed indestructible, reaching dire breaking points.
Vincent gets in the midst of an international political crisis forged by his adversary, Philip Nardin. As he tirelessly works to offset the impact, Philip kidnaps Nozomi, Vincent’s daughter. In an endgame decision, Vincent relinquishes his time-correcting powers to Philip while the world leaders launch a devastating arms race to weaponize Intreton—the purest energy source that can alter reality if mishandled. The two opponents, Vincent and Philip, unite against political and military forces to save reality from crumbling. Their plan reveals a mind-bending past and the identity of a time-twisted villain Philip calls the Lunatic. Such revelation leads to a dramatic conclusion and opens the possibility of a Reset. As someone close to Vincent shows their true self, Vincent discovers that Nozomi’s complex ties to Emika and Akane may hold the key to the Reset in this time-hopping clash of love, egos, and desires.
A story of love that transcends time and reality, and the sacrifices masquerading as selfish acts, the final book of the award-winning Time Corrector series is a whirlwind of unexpected events—many questions will finally be answered.
The Reset is a culmination of worlds colliding, timelines interweaving, and relationships that seemed indestructible, reaching dire breaking points.
Vincent gets in the midst of an international political crisis forged by his adversary, Philip Nardin. As he tirelessly works to offset the impact, Philip kidnaps Nozomi, Vincent’s daughter. In an endgame decision, Vincent relinquishes his time-correcting powers to Philip while the world leaders launch a devastating arms race to weaponize Intreton—the purest energy source that can alter reality if mishandled. The two opponents, Vincent and Philip, unite against political and military forces to save reality from crumbling. Their plan reveals a mind-bending past and the identity of a time-twisted villain Philip calls the Lunatic. Such revelation leads to a dramatic conclusion and opens the possibility of a Reset. As someone close to Vincent shows their true self, Vincent discovers that Nozomi’s complex ties to Emika and Akane may hold the key to the Reset in this time-hopping clash of love, egos, and desires.
A story of love that transcends time and reality, and the sacrifices masquerading as selfish acts, the final book of the award-winning Time Corrector series is a whirlwind of unexpected events—many questions will finally be answered.
Hey stranger, will my keying find you tonight?
—Emika
(August 3, 2015—Emika’s apartment in Tokyo)
Emika
THE BACK DOOR TO CONSTANTIN Hall slams open, and a white-champagne Shih Tzu drags his leash, along with the little girl holding it. The girl in the blue frock with puffed blue sleeves shouts, “Matte, matte, Harukusan.”1 She stops and looks up at me while tapping her chin. Then she crumples her brows and looks back at the door where she entered. She turns to me and mutters, “Mum?” The moment she notices you, her eyes brighten, and she springs to you, shouting, “Papha, Papha, Papha.”
The room changes. I am sitting by the Steinway overlooking a backyard with numerous cherry trees shedding gorgeous pink blossoms. There are blurry faces in the room, all staring at me. I rub my hands together, loop my red scarf around my neck, and smile at the same Shih Tzu pup and three blurry faces—you, that little girl, and a woman. I mumble, “So perfect.” I reach for the piano keys to play Chopin’s Ballade no. 1, op. 23.
(Emika’s apartment, Tokyo)
I jolt my head at the sound of the alarm—Debussy’s “Clair de Lune.” I yawn and stretch my arms. Every other time, my dream was monochrome. Every other time, he looped that scarf around my neck. And we played the piano together. Removing the blanket, I get up and rub my eyes. What’s so special about today that the dream changed? I press my temples to fol- low the oblique lines of the morning sun hitting the f loor, peppered with moving boxes. I deeply sigh and puff while rubbing my heavy eyes. It will be a laborious move to the US.
Markus tugs on my tank top and yawns. “Half an hour more, please . . .” Wrapping my arms around his neck, I smile. “Okay.”
(Dressing room at Constantin Hall, Tokyo)
I had known the notes by heart even before I took a single lesson or saw them in print. After today’s performance, I will become an official musi- cian with Egami Grammophon. I’ll start with Chopin’s Ballade no. 1, op. 23, followed by the Andante Spianato, op. 22, which I played in one of the rounds in the Chopin Competition. I was a little shy of nineteen when I won it in 2010. I followed in Chichi’s2 footsteps, but my keying sounds nothing like his. It is like someone else’s.
And that’s why my encore will be something I’ve never played in pub- lic. It’s a song that mixes Chopin’s Raindrop Prelude, Ballade no. 4, and Nocturne op. 9, no. 2. I dreamed of this piece when I was just nine. And I
2 Father’s.
woke up and reproduced the same sound without training or notes. Since then, I’ve been chasing that sound. I have collected every single record. But nothing sounds like what I dreamed. Nothing sounds like how I play it. If I play it in public . . . just maybe . . . I join my left-hand fingers and grab them with my right hand. Hey, stranger, will my keying find you tonight? Breathing hard, I cup my hands and blow into my cold, sweaty palms. Stretching my hand, I collect tissues from the table and wipe my forehead. My shaky hands reach for the unsolved Rubik’s Cube on the makeup table. Panting, I solve it. Next stop, a red origami paper. Shutting my eyes, I fold the paper. I open my eyes—a beautiful robin. I touch the robin and ask, “Hey, will you f ly and find this stranger for me?” I squint at a knock on the door. “Come in,” I say, quickly wiping my eyes.
Markus comes in, jerking his head to f lick his blond hair out of his eyes. Sitting on the table, he picks up my hand and kisses my ring finger and the engagement ring. His eyes glinting, he asks, “Ready?”
“No.” My voice quavers.
Jumping from the table, he looks into my eyes. “Really? Is there anyone even close to being your equal?” Crouching down, he kisses my forehead. I stand up and lower my eyes. “There’s this, but . . .” My voice trills.
A clearing of a throat grabs our attention. Looking at the door, we see a woman in a f loral dress, holding a makeup set, peeping into the room.
Bowing, she says, “Sumimasen. Yuki desu.”3 Pointing at her box, she hesitates. “May I apply makeup?”
I sit on the reclining chair. “Mochiron.”4 I shrug.
As Yuki lays out her brushes on the desk, we hear announcements from the main stage. “Do we want him here . . .” The audience cheers, even thumping their feet. All I can hear is they are cheering, “Insento, …Insento . . .” There’s something before “Insento” that I cannot make out. As the audience quiets down, Markus turns to Yuki, pointing his thumb at the door, “Wow! What’s going on?”
Lifting her brows, Yuki first mumbles in Japanese then looks up and translates. “Egami-san family is here.”
3 Excuse me, I am Yuki.
4 Of course.
I know. Akane-san is here to hand me the customary framed gold disk stamped with Emika Amari—A proud member of the Egami Galaxy. Chichi has one. But that doesn’t explain the cheering. A man’s voice f loats through the door. Squinting, I make out the f loating words. “….Let’s warm this bad boy.” A thunderous laughter and applause follow, almost shaking the furniture in the dressing room. As the crowd quiets down, piano notes gently f loat through the air. I shut my eyes. Someone is warming up the piano with Étude op. 10, no. 12, before I take over. A mere piano warmer will not attempt the Revolutionary Etude.5 My heart thumps out of my rib cage. I stretch my eyes wide and cover my mouth. Those strikes and pauses, I’ve known them since I was nine—they are mine. They are unique no matter what one plays. You are here? Was the audience cheering for you? My hands shake. Helplessly, I turn to Markus. My lips quiver as I point at the door to the dressing room. “It’s that sound.”
“What?” He squints
I lift my head and punch my left palm with my right knuckle. “The one that made me who I am.” Grabbing Yuki’s hand, I stand up. “I must find out who it is.”
Yuki bows. “Sumimansen. You mustn’t appear before your time.”
I stare into my sweaty, cold hands. My throat feels dry. “I know, but . . .” Markus helps me back to the chair. He gently holds my trembling hands. “Relax. I will find out who the piano warmer is.” He leaves after
blowing me a kiss. Yuki fans my face.
I’ve been searching for you all my life with nothing but the sound of deep, melodi- ous, time-bending, forceful notes. Why have I missed you all along, even though we never met? Why do I have flashes of an unlived life with you?6 While you remained an elusive dream, Markus came along. I stare at my engagement ring. Markus is real. I fold my fingers into a fist. I could bury that elusive dream in Markus’s deep-blue eyes. But when I shut my eyes, I see a little girl, a puppy, and you in a house with glass walls, with a backdrop of a breathtaking sakura bloom from fifteen cherry trees. Even in monochrome, the beauty is unmatched.
5 A more common name for Étude op. 10, no. 12.
6 In The Movement, Time Corrector Book 2, Emika told Tabi, “Though, I think a part of me would always look for Vince without knowing what or who I’m looking for. Even if I were content with my life.”
But your face is always hazy. After all these years, today, you are here. Is that why I saw colors in my dream today? Why did I dream of the little girl and the puppy rushing through Constantin Hall’s rear entrance today? Please don’t go. I promise I will play the best piano of my life tonight. I will delight everyone, but I will play only for you. Because that’s what I have always done. I blink, and tears leave my eyes and reach my chin. I look up at Yuki. “Gomennasai. Kore wa Hazukashī
.”7
Wiping my eyes with facial tissue, Yuki lifts her brows, worried.
Tapping the powder brush on the foundation, she assures. “Mondai janai.”8
Squinting, she stares at me and observes, “Hontoni kirei desu.”9
I bite my trembling lower lip and smile. “Arigatōgozaimasu."10
Dr. Vincent Abajian is a brilliant man who has a team of brilliant people around him. He's been able to master Intreton, a substance that allows him to travel through time and even across realities. There are moments in his life we keep revisiting as readers but each time more complexities are revealed and we can see more of what each action means. The story is complex and intricate, much like a fine watch or brilliant piece of classical music can be. The third book in The Time Corrector series manages the nearly impossible by not only tying the first two books together perfectly and concluding in a satisfying manner, it still leaves the reader wishing for more.
If you had the power to change time, to change reality, to move the world in a more peaceful direction, what would you be willing to sacrifice? Would you be able to let go of ones you love in order to protect them? Can a selfish act mask one of kindness and love? These are some of the themes in The Reset. The book continues Avi Datta's tradition of brilliant storytelling, non-linear plot making, and absolutely beautiful character development. Just when the reader thinks they have everything figured out, Datta will impress him or her with the most incredible twists and turns imaginable.
With each volume, this work becomes more and more brilliant. The intricate plot weaving is equal to the character development and as in the first two books, there are moments that completely change the reader's perspective without feeling like a gimmick.
If there are any flaws in the series it may be that at times Dr. Abajian can occasionally be portrayed as too good and too brilliant but this is forgivable given the intricacies of the people surrounding him.
This is a series you must read from the beginning in order for it to make sense. If you have not already read The Winding and The Movement, do so before picking up the third volume.
If you enjoy expansive, non-linear storytelling, with a masterful plot and beautiful character development, this book is for you. If you just enjoy great books in general, this is a must read series.