While there is a death at the very beginning of THE STARS TURNED INSIDE OUT, Nova Jacobs has much more in store for readers than a typical murder mystery. This very sophisticated novel takes place in Switzerland. In the CERN facility, physicists try to divide atoms into smaller and smaller pieces in an effort to find dark matter, a mysterious concept that most of us don't fully understand, where the death takes place. And while the cause of death is clear, how it happened is not.

The story is told in pieces, perhaps a nod to the pieces of matter that the physicists at CERN study. We learn about the "Now," when the death is being investigated, and the "Before," with both clearly labeled as to dates. We eventually realize that many of the players here are not who they appear to be.

Eve Marsh works closely with fellow CERN physicist Arnav Bose, but she is torn. While she loves her job, she wonders how important it is when the world is in a climate crisis. In her few spare moments, she works on climate science, but the physicists' lives are pretty much devoted to being in the lab.

"[T]he ending is perfect and exceptionally touching. THE STARS TURNED INSIDE OUT certainly will leave you thinking about our world, the possibility of other worlds, and what really is important in life."

As the novel progresses, we learn about the social lives of those who work at CERN, their happy hours, their coffee breaks, and the mysterious chateau in the woods where Stephen Hawking stayed. Most of the physicists are postdocs who are working there through the auspices of different universities, like Howard Anderby, to whom Eve is immediately drawn. Howard also has experienced loss --- in his case, the loss of not just one parent like Eve, but both. There's something a bit off about him, and it's important to find out exactly why he’s different. Because it’s his death that is featured in the book’s opening pages.

In addition to Eve's point of view, we learn about the events through Sabine Leroux’s eyes. Sabine is a private investigator who has close ties to Yvonne Faye, who runs CERN, and Chloé Grimaud, who is one of the heads of a group. These three women were close friends at university, and those ties still bind. Another brilliant character is Niels Thorne, a flamboyant, extremely well-dressed physicist of means whose desperate goal is discovering dark matter. The other scientists are derisive about the fact that he spends more time giving tours than actually doing scientific work, but he's a likable man nonetheless in his immaculate jackets and scarves.

Unlike most murder mysteries, this one doesn't leave clues dropped about like Gretel's scattered breadcrumbs. Instead, the story develops gradually as we find out more about the characters and particle physics. It's a subject that many of us know nothing about, so put on your researcher shoes and be prepared to learn at least something about the science that happens at CERN.

Then there is a fascinating link between the study of physics and the metaphysical as Jacobs presents us with ideas relating to a universal consciousness and infinite alternate universes. When you finish the book, you might just do what I did and go back to reread some parts of it because of the information we didn't know until the end of the novel. A few crumbs scattered, after all.

Between the scientific information, the buildup of the characters, a love story, the metaphysical and the mystery, there's a lot to digest. But the ending is perfect and exceptionally touching. THE STARS TURNED INSIDE OUT certainly will leave you thinking about our world, the possibility of other worlds, and what really is important in life.