Recursion

I loved the boldness of this book, as it does what most of these types of novels shy away from, and that is to let everyone in the world in on the knowledge of the loop, eventually.

In this book, once a character has looped back in time and changed things, everyone involved in the change catches up to the knowledge of the original version through “false memory syndrome.” The result is that by the end of the novel, the whole world seems to be conspiring to stop the protagonists in the most nerve-wracking last few chapters I can remember… show more.

I binged a lot of Black Crouch this year and I actually think Dark Matter is equally as strong as his book Recursion. Both books follow an average guy thrown into a scientific experiment. Dark Matter results in our hero losing himself in multiple parallel worlds, determined to return home. Recursion is more captivating, switching between protagonists as it follows a new take on time travel and its repercussions.

The concepts aren’t anything new, but the execution was extremely compelling, his style of writing free-flowing and laidback. I found myself reading too quickly at times and forced myself to… show more.

Recursion tells a time travel story in a way we don’t often see in science fiction, focusing less on the tech, and far more on the personal impact it has on the lives of each character. This isn’t the story of time machines—though the means of time travel depicted here is quite cool and unique. It’s a story about several people who become ensnared in a scheme to misuse the technology, and how quickly matters can go off the rails—with devastating consequences—even when you’re trying to do the right thing.

The latter part of book has urban destruction on a massive scale done over and over. New York, just like a cat, has nine lives. But most of the book does not have an urban focus and it is somewhat of a misfit in this urban collection of best reads. Nonetheless, it is a sensational mind-spinning exposition on the precariousness of memory. It is the most mesmerizing and best page-turner on my list. What if your memory right now is not genuine but manufactured to feel very real? Now, suppose society at large absorbed these fabricated memories akin to a… show more.