Eternity’s Wheel – Neil Gaiman (2015)

Eternity’s Wheel by Neil Gaiman, Michael Reaves, and Mallory Reaves, published in 2015, is the explosive conclusion to the InterWorld trilogy – a dimension-hopping science fiction series that blends fantasy and adventure with deep questions about identity and sacrifice. The story follows Joey Harker, a teenager capable of traversing multiple dimensions, as he returns to a fractured multiverse threatened by the combined forces of science and magic gone rogue. In a final, desperate mission, Joey must rally alternate versions of himself to prevent the erasure of all reality.

Plot Summary

A quiet park beneath a fading sun welcomed the return of Joseph Harker, bruised and broken, to the world he once called home. He walked with fractured bones and an aching heart, his body a map of every battle fought across dimensions, his mission unyielding: to prevent the collapse of everything. Years had passed in his journey through worlds, and though only days might have ticked by on this Earth, he could no longer belong to it. Joey was a Walker, one of the rare few who could travel between dimensions, hunted by two ancient, opposing forces – HEX, who wielded magic, and Binary, who ruled with machines.

This return was not meant for reunion. He bore no hope of reclaiming family dinners or shared laughter. Instead, he sought an old ally – Jack Dimas, once his social studies teacher, now his only refuge. Dimas did not flinch at Joey’s tale. He treated his injuries, offered quiet understanding, and listened as the weary young man unraveled the tale of his war-torn years. InterWorld, the dimension-spanning base that trained versions of Joey from alternate Earths, had fallen into chaos. A new weapon, FrostNight, designed by HEX and Binary together, threatened to rewrite reality itself.

But Joey was not defeated. Though his team scattered, some captured, others lost, he carried the seeds of resistance. His plan: find more versions of himself across dimensions, train them, and rebuild the army InterWorld could no longer support. The first of these recruits waited unknowingly just blocks away – Josephine Harker, a version of Joey who lived as a girl in a dimension almost identical to his original.

Her life had unraveled ever since Joey first appeared in her world. Living on the run, hunted and alone, Josephine met Joey’s arrival with a gun aimed and her trust long since broken. But shared truths ran deeper than fear. Their faces, their pasts, their pain – all mirrored. And when shadowy agents of HEX descended, the only choice left was to flee. Hue, the shimmering, bubble-like mudluff who communicated in color and instinct, enveloped them both. With a burst through the In-Between, they vanished into the far future, to the only sanctuary Joey believed might still remain.

InterWorld, thousands of years from now, was a husk of its former self. Corridors crumbled, dust blanketed terminals, and the hum of activity had long since faded into silence. Yet within this abandoned echo, Joey hoped to find purpose. With Josephine reluctantly at his side, he began to rebuild. She was untrained, defiant, and haunted, but Joey saw in her the spark that had once defined him. Slowly, she began to trust – in the mission, in Hue, in Joey.

Together, they traversed dimension after dimension, seeking their scattered kin. Each version of Joey they found bore marks of their world – some scarred, some cynical, others naive or noble. There was Jakon, wiry and wild, a survivor from a high-magic realm; Josef, stoic and solemn from a war-ravaged Earth; and Jo, whose laughter masked loss. Each was different, but all carried the gift – the ability to Walk, the potential to fight.

With each recruit, Joey’s small army grew, but so did the danger. FrostNight was no myth. Powered by the harvested souls of fallen Walkers, the device was designed to collapse the Multiverse into a singular blank slate – a rebirth under HEX and Binary control. Lord Dogknife, HEX’s monstrous general, and The Professor, Binary’s cold intelligence, had set aside their ancient feud. Their target was no longer each other. It was InterWorld. It was Joey.

Their enemies moved swiftly. One by one, resistance cells were found and crushed. Allies turned traitor. J/O, a cyborg version of Joey corrupted by Binary, attacked from within. Joaquim, another clone crafted from Joey’s fallen mentor Jay, carried the blood of betrayal. His very existence was a mockery – powered by stolen souls, bearing Joey’s face but none of his heart.

Joey’s team was nearly shattered in one ambush, saved only by Acacia Jones, a Time Agent whose violet eyes concealed truths Joey could barely comprehend. Her arrival shifted the path of fate. With her help, they stole a moment’s advantage – a single breath of time in which to act. But even Acacia, with all her precision and fire, could not stop the assault that followed. In a final confrontation, as FrostNight’s engine roared to life, Joey faced the machine built to erase all things.

He had been captured, bound, and made into a conduit. The plan was to link him to Joaquim – two halves of one soul, one willing, the other defiant. But within the chaos, Joey reached for the invisible thread connecting him to every Walker who had ever lived. And the souls came. Not to be used. Not to be drained. But to fight.

Like fireflies drawn to a beacon, they surged into him, their essence fusing with his own. With their strength, he shattered the bindings and redirected the very force of FrostNight inward. The machine convulsed, turned upon itself, and collapsed into silence. The Multiverse shuddered but held.

Joey awoke to rubble. Acacia was gone, lost in the fray, her fate uncertain. InterWorld remained scattered, its coordinates lost, its people running. But he had Josephine. He had Jakon, Jo, Josef. A new family. A new InterWorld, forged not from stone or steel but resolve.

He walked through the shifting haze of dimensions, Hue bobbing gently beside him, Josephine at his back, and a thousand echoes of himself whispering through the fabric of space. The war was not over. But the wheel of eternity had not yet crushed them beneath its weight.

They would build again.

Main Characters

• Joey Harker: Joey is the central protagonist and narrator – a nearly seventeen-year-old interdimensional traveler, or Walker, who has matured from a confused runaway to a battle-hardened leader. His journey is one of sacrifice, loyalty, and leadership. Joey grapples with the weight of his past failures and the lives lost under his command, yet continues to fight for the multiverse with relentless resolve. His wit, compassion, and internal conflict make him a deeply human anchor in a fantastical plot.
• Acacia Jones: Acacia is a fierce, capable Time Agent who plays a key role in helping Joey resist the destruction of the multiverse. Her violet eyes and sharp intellect are as formidable as her combat skills. While their relationship is layered with tension and unresolved affection, Acacia challenges Joey emotionally and ideologically, representing a more pragmatic and experienced worldview.
• Josephine Harker: A female version of Joey from an alternate Earth, Josephine is initially distrustful and traumatized, having lived on the run from HEX. Her journey from a hostile loner to a committed ally reflects themes of self-discovery and redemption. Her existence reinforces the book’s core idea: different circumstances forge different people from the same essence.
• Mr. Dimas (Jack): Joey’s former social studies teacher and one of the few adults he trusts, Mr. Dimas offers both physical aid and emotional grounding. He represents a tie to Joey’s past and the ordinary world he’s left behind, grounding the story with moments of quiet humanity amid the chaos.
• Hue: Hue is a multidimensional life-form or “mudluff” – a floating, color-changing companion with uncanny intelligence and loyalty. Though it doesn’t speak, Hue’s presence is essential to Joey’s survival and missions, often serving as an emotional and logistical lifeline.
• Lord Dogknife and The Professor: These two represent the apocalyptic forces threatening the multiverse. Lord Dogknife rules the magical tyranny of HEX, a monstrous figure of cruelty and domination. The Professor is a sentient AI leading the BINARY collective, a cold, calculated force of technological oppression. Their alliance signals the ultimate collapse of balance, which Joey must prevent.

Theme

• Identity and Multiplicity: At the heart of the InterWorld series is a meditation on the self. Joey’s encounters with countless versions of himself, including Josephine and J/O, challenge the notion of a singular identity. This multiplicity examines how environment and choice shape the individual, and what remains consistent across realities.
• Sacrifice and Responsibility: Joey’s role as a leader weighs heavily on him. The theme of sacrifice – of comfort, safety, relationships, even his sense of self – is explored deeply. Leadership is not glamorized but portrayed with all its costs, especially in moments where Joey must choose between loyalty to friends and the greater good.
• The Struggle Between Magic and Science: The conflict between HEX (magic) and BINARY (science) encapsulates a larger tension between emotion and logic, chaos and order, the spiritual and the empirical. Their eventual alliance in the form of the universe-resetting FrostNight suggests the dangers of extremes, whether technological or mystical, when unchecked by ethical grounding.
• Freedom vs. Control: The book critiques authoritarian control, whether through HEX’s mystical enslavement of souls or BINARY’s mechanized conformity. Joey and his team fight for freedom – not just of movement through dimensions, but of thought, choice, and identity.
• Time and Mortality: The inclusion of Time Agents and time travel forces characters to confront the impermanence of their lives and the weight of legacy. The future Joey visits is bleak and abandoned, underscoring the urgency of action in the present and the fleeting nature of all victories.

Writing Style and Tone

The narrative voice in Eternity’s Wheel is intimate, urgent, and laced with dry humor. Told in first person through Joey’s perspective, the language captures the thoughts of a teenager burdened with immense responsibility. His inner monologue is conversational, occasionally sardonic, but always emotionally sincere. This voice balances exposition-heavy science fiction concepts with the emotional weight of the character’s journey.

The tone is a delicate interplay of high-stakes intensity and introspective melancholy. While the overarching plot deals with cosmic-scale threats and breakneck dimension-hopping action, the tone is grounded in personal grief, determination, and moments of adolescent wonder. The pacing is brisk, with terse chapters and cliffhanger endings that reflect the breathless nature of Joey’s mission. The prose is clear, cinematic, and efficient, often veering into poetic resonance when describing the surrealities of multiverse travel or the aching losses endured by the characters.