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caitlincoile's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Gore, Medical content, Murder, Self harm, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Child death, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury
alexcribbs's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Suicide, Child death, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent
Minor: Drug abuse
powkaye's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
A complicated read that can sometimes be repetitive but compelling narrative keeps you engaged.
There are some dark, disturbing moments so be aware going in it’s not a book for kids.
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Car accident, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, and Mass/school shootings
keen's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is not a story I would ordinarily read. What hooked me in was the inclusion of memories and reality twisting in on itself, which was all I knew of. It took me a while to realize I was reading about tropes I generally disliked. Afterward, I found I didn't care. The story was that good. Saying what those tropes are will spoil the book, however.
When I finished Recursion, I couldn't believe it was only 327-pages long. There are arcs in the book, going from Book One to Book Five, with breaks in between each arc. The method of splitting up chapters was annoying when I needed to refer to previous chapters, but only because Kindle didn't list the sub-chapters. Aside that, it made total sense to me as I read. I could swear I read a series of books, not just one. 327 pages didn't seem nearly enough time to get me this attached to the characters while throwing so much information to me. I'm surprised I even managed to understand such complicated information. Blake Crouch was very good at showing the complexity of the science in fiction, while making it sound believable and understandable to a layman. I truly felt how much research and care he put into the story.
Another compliment to his writing: he is amazing at describing senses and emotions, something necessary to make the reader believe the story. His descriptions of the five senses surprised me by noting experiences I don't even notice in my own life. I wouldn't even think to include it in my writings. When he described grief, it made me want to cry. When he described happiness, my heart ached. I'm a fan of philosophy, and there's tons of it here. The end had me reflecting on what I value in life, how I treat my relationships, and my view of the world overall. Plenty of conversational topics for my therapist, haha.
Part of me did find myself frustrated by the end, believing the main characters had made strange and annoying decisions... until I realized that, if put in their position, my grasp on logic would have long since been shattered. If anything, they stayed extremely intelligent and resilient considering the situation they've been through and were in.
By the way, the audiobook is amazing. Great narrators who breathed extra life into already lively characters.
Spoiler warning for small details I've noticed:
"Recursive" was used about two times in the book, iirc. I'm very surprised that the snake eating its tail, or the ouroboros, was not mentioned at all. If it was, I missed it. I actually thought the front of the book was an ouroboros until I realized it was an infinite figure 8 with a maze within.
Also, I'm not sure if this was intentional, but I liked that Helena's middle name is Gray. Just like dead memories.
Graphic: Body horror, Car accident, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Genocide, Gore, Grief, and Mental illness
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault
vicanarc_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I wanna make it clear because it wasn't clear for me and had I known I wouldn't have picked it up (I hate time travelling) .
It's a bit repetitive, and some dynamics i didnt quite understand, but despite that, it was enjoyable.
If you want something that's a bit like Steins;Gate, that's the book for you.
Graphic: Car accident, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Dementia, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, and Kidnapping
Minor: Rape
janeycanuck's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Graphic: Death, Violence, Suicide, Gun violence, Grief, and Gore
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Drug abuse, and Dementia
Minor: Car accident
colleenward_'s review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I had so many questions during the mid point of the book (probably bc BLAKE CROUCH)... but I loved that the ending felt ~complete~
I found the overall premise of this story to be super interesting! It felt very creative throughout, especially how things kept *almost* aligning but never quite making it. I would say to definitely experience this book in the way you best experience them (whether that be reading, listening, etc.), because there are some technical parts and explanations of the plot that can get confusing if you drift away!
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Car accident, Child death, Death, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, and Murder
Moderate: Death of parent, Mass/school shootings, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Violence, and Dementia
Minor: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, and Vomit
thebooklifeofemilyrose's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
- Multiple POVs
- Great character development—the Barry and Helena you meet in the first few pages isn’t nearly the same ones you encounter at the end.
- Fast paced with engaging writing
- The science aspect—I’m a huge science nerd and really enjoyed how there was an even balance of science and plot throughout.
- Also the science aspect—at times I had to reread the same paragraphs a few times because I really wanted to make sense of the science Crouch was writing about. I’m not a physicist so who knows if anyone of it’s accurate, but I really wanted to be able to follow it and sometimes it felt a bit too dense (but it didn’t affect the plot).
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Blood, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Violence