Reviews with content warning for Suicide attempt - Recursion

3rd book I’ve read by this author, and this one is by far the best. Page turner, exciting, sad, everything you want in a scifi about time traveling & multi universes.

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zoranne's review against another edition

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mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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leegray's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional reflective tense

Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

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laurenmiller100's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

3.0

This book is really terrifying. The ideas about memory and identity are very interesting, but it gets a little preachy toward the end. I also found it a little overly sentimental by the end.

That said, the descriptions of Barry and Helena dying in a nuclear fall out are truly gruesome and horrific. It’s awful. The ”hell” that the characters get stuck in during their 30 year loop is so scary. Especially for all the people who ARENT Berry or Helena. The book doesn’t focus enough on that. It’s truly terrifying.

I agree with what others have said about the lack of chemistry between

Barry and Helena

. The story skips a lot of their love story and it leaves the reader feeling sort of left out of their connection.

3 stars

Characters: 4
Atmosphere/Setting: 5
Writing Style: 7
Plot: 5
Intrigue: 6
Logic/Relationships: 4
Enjoyment: 4

War, torture.

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ursiform's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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kathywoo10's review against another edition

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adventurous dark sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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camillac17's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

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dunecello's review against another edition

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challenging emotional fast-paced

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? It's complicated

4.5

Thrilling and thought-provoking exploration into the philosophies surrounding what memory is, what time is, and who we are if not for our memory.
I did my dissertation in neuroscience on the cellular basis of learning, and was impressed by Crouch's convincing job of describing experiments that would be on the cutting edge of this field. As for the rest of the science in this novel, suspending disbelief is required, but is certainly worth it. Keeping track of what was going on was a good brain exercise and it paid off in spades as the story became more and more complex and the stakes became incredibly high. When things got crazy, I found myself flying through the pages in excitement.
This novel reads like an action movie, and I'd love to see it on the big screen. Anyone who enjoyed PKD's We Can Remember It for You Wholesale (Total Recall) and/or Ted Chiang's Story of Your Life (Arrival) should surely check this one out.

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