Sean Williams’ “Face Value” is a light-hearted and deliciously twisty police mystery. In this reality, everything (except certain illegal substances) can be fabbed and duplicated without limit, leaving the world without want, and novelty. Obscure inventor, Felix Frey, has announced to the world that he has a breakthrough that will overturn society, then abruptly disappears. Peacekeeper Sargent’s boss tells him that he had arrested Frey, then drops a bombshell—he needs Sargent’s help determining what Frey had actually done that was wrong. Together they interview Frey who reveals that he'd created a new element, something that could not be duplicated by a fabber and, therefore, by definition, would have value as a scarce item. Except Sargent thinks Frey’s efforts are all pointless, and, in fact, a scam, because Frey is after something even more ephemeral.

The ideas of this story appealed to me, but something about its conclusion left me wanting. Frey’s crimes seemed a bit too amorphous for me and Sargent’s sense of outrage vastly underplayed. Yes, I understand that this isn’t meant to be a “hit-you-in-face” type of story. Still . . . I wanted more.