This leads him to both his ex-girlfriend, Annika Strang, an artificial intelligence researcher, and his old college friend and sometime rival Cameron Block, whose success in tech — particularly the Knights of Skeldaria video game — has long rankled Howell.

Carly Fjeld of SciFi Bloggers observed that Quantum Deadline was "A wonderful blend of mystery, science fiction and dark comedy that keeps readers from putting the story down.

Let's call it a noirish, sci-fi-lite detective story with a heap of self-parody that's by turns poignant, witty and comic... With humor and verve, the novel takes up some of the experiences and struggles within Howell's personal and professional life.

Additionally, the genesis of Quantum Deadline was discussed with the Petaluma Argus-Courier in regard to its author having lived next door to kidnap and murder victim Polly Klaas, whose case is cited as an influence.

[4] Bruce Robinson, a host at NPR affiliate KRCB-FM, observed that Quantum Deadline "Playfully meshes stylistic conventions with a sardonic self-deprecating protagonist."

[5] In the Pacific Sun, columnist David Templeton characterized the work was a "hard-to-categorize novel, a kind of nourishing, comedic, satirical sci-fi mystery.