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paguroidea's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Kind of lost me by the end. I think it would’ve been better without the sections that had Dr. Sloane and Remy’s perspectives. Those parts were kind of distracting, and didn’t add much to the story for me. I did like the writing style a lot though and i’d probably read more from this author.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Grief, Drug abuse, and Drug use
Moderate: Cancer, Sexual harassment, Death of parent, and Sexual assault
ashleysbookthoughts's review
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I bought this book 100% because @hellalibrary loved it and included it in her “Books that made me feel things in 2021” list. She is one of my biggest reading influences, and she was not wrong here. This book made me feel things.
We shift back and forth in time, following Sophie and Lucien before and after they are admitted to an inpatient center for abusing Mem, a drug that allows you to experience others’ memories as your own.
Throughout, I was more invested in Sophie’s story than Lucien’s, but Sophie’s was at times hard to read. I could relate to her and Westgates’s writing, particularly in Sophie’s “before” chapters, was detailed and visceral to the point that I sometimes had to take breaks. I felt Sophie’s trauma so fully. Lucien, though we spend an equal amount of time with him, I felt I didn’t know as well. Even at the end of the book, he’s still a bit of an enigma, but that works, especially since I experienced so much of the story as Sophie.
The book, though it definitely has a plot (a compelling one at that), I think is really less about the plot and more about the philosophical and ethical questions of altering memory. Like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Shimmering State asks, do our memories make us who we are? Are we fundamentally changed if we remove certain memories, even if they’re bad or traumatic? Is it worth it? Who gets to choose what we keep and what we don’t? Can you ever truly make an informed choice about something like this? What are the unintended butterfly effects of removing one person or experience from your memory?
This book made me feel and it made me think. I have a feeling I’ll be thinking about these questions for a long time.
CW: death of a parent, drug use/addiction, hospitalization, sexual assault, rape, murder, car accident, disordered eating, cancer, dementia, suicide, suicide attempt, shooting, PTSD, cutting
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Murder, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Car accident, Death of parent, Eating disorder, Sexual harassment, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Rape, and Mass/school shootings
Minor: Suicide
stevie's review
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Sexism, Cancer, Dementia, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Medical content, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Medical trauma
Minor: Mass/school shootings
aimsro's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- 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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Car accident, Self harm, and Drug abuse
goodbyerachel's review
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
THE SHIMMERING STATE is a lyrical, dreamy, character-driven, not-so-dystopian novel about memory and identity. I honestly don’t have enough words to describe it, I’m still reeling a bit. This one definitely leaves you with a bit of a “WHAT IF…” mind trip. What started as a revolutionary way to treat dementia, “mem” has turned into THE exclusive party drug. Want to relive the memory of an Olympic athlete at the height of their competition? Or travel the world? What happens when you blur the lines between yourself and the memories you consume? I honestly feel like this would make a GREAT book club or discussion book on the themes alone.
This book is on the slower-paced side but I think balances two POV characters and their dual timelines in the "before" and then the "current" timeline when they are in a treatment center for taking Mem. I was instantly invested in how they got from the before to the "current" and how both characters changed in such little time. However, the prose does meander a bit through their lives and memories and makes the reader sit with these characters a bit longer to get answers. To me, this aligned well with other literary fiction or character-driven pacing and with the themes of memory in this book.
I’d recommend this to fans of character-driven, lyrical prose, Black Mirror, and Blake Crouch.
This book is on the slower-paced side but I think balances two POV characters and their dual timelines in the "before" and then the "current" timeline when they are in a treatment center for taking Mem. I was instantly invested in how they got from the before to the "current" and how both characters changed in such little time. However, the prose does meander a bit through their lives and memories and makes the reader sit with these characters a bit longer to get answers. To me, this aligned well with other literary fiction or character-driven pacing and with the themes of memory in this book.
I’d recommend this to fans of character-driven, lyrical prose, Black Mirror, and Blake Crouch.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt
Moderate: Self harm, Sexual assault, and Suicide
Minor: Cancer and Death of parent
juliannar's review
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-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
3.0
Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
First, I would like to say that I think the premise of this book is really unique. Having a pill that can provide a person their memories is not that far off in my opinion. It's not quite present day, but not quite the future; think the LA where the movie "Her" is set. Also, the cover of this book is absolutely perfect. It really captures the novel.
As for the direction the story takes, I thought there would be a more of a dramatic reason as to why Sophie and Lucien end up at the Center. The summary kind of hypes it up, but the execution of that plot line fell a bit flat for me. I appreciated seeing the development of Lucien and Sophie's character, though I wish we had more development of Angelica's. Her development seems a bit fast, and when I first read her perspectives it read a little forced.
The pacing of this novel was a bit slow for my liking, and I felt I dragged myself along here and there.
Overall, I think Westgate did a good job with her debut novel; I really appreciated the unique premise. I look forward to reading more of her work.
First, I would like to say that I think the premise of this book is really unique. Having a pill that can provide a person their memories is not that far off in my opinion. It's not quite present day, but not quite the future; think the LA where the movie "Her" is set. Also, the cover of this book is absolutely perfect. It really captures the novel.
As for the direction the story takes, I thought there would be a more of a dramatic reason as to why Sophie and Lucien end up at the Center. The summary kind of hypes it up, but the execution of that plot line fell a bit flat for me. I appreciated seeing the development of Lucien and Sophie's character, though I wish we had more development of Angelica's. Her development seems a bit fast, and when I first read her perspectives it read a little forced.
The pacing of this novel was a bit slow for my liking, and I felt I dragged myself along here and there.
Overall, I think Westgate did a good job with her debut novel; I really appreciated the unique premise. I look forward to reading more of her work.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Addiction
Moderate: Suicide, Death of parent, and Cancer
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