Reviews tagging 'Car accident'

Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

13 reviews

_david_'s review against another edition

dark hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

2.0

Oof to me, every part of this book missed its mark. In general I found everything in the book a bit over the top. 

First of all, Jason is supposed to be a genius. Yet it takes him ages to even think of the theory which can be figured out as a reader very quickly. If you've figured it out before Jason, there's not much joy in reading the story until he has figured it out too. You're just waiting and turning the pages until he does and you can finally continue. The way he acts is so hard to relate to. It's very hard to imagine the situations he encounters so it's hard to emphasize with his choices. However, at least after it all goes wrong once you'd think he change his behaviour right? 

Secondly, I'd like to discuss the science behind it. To me, it's very noticable that what we're reading has been written by an author who wanted to tell a story and then looked up the physic theories which would fit it best. The logic is not consistent and some of it almost works like magic. Yet the characters in the book use big words and existing theories to clarify the science behind it all. This is a very personal ick, I've barely ever encountered a piece of media that manages to do this well. The only ways I have seen this be pulled off, is to make up your own very clear very consitent rules or just pretend it's magic and do not explain it beyond what is necessary. 

My favourite part of the book beyond the very first chapter, in which Jason only talks about his family night and life choices, are the final few chapters. Yet I wish they pushed a little further. Let Jason be a little more selfish or a little more existential. I've read another review which points out a major flaw related to the inconsistent physics which did ruin these last chapters for me as well. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Blood, Physical abuse, Gore, Violence, Murder, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Forced institutionalization, Stalking, Grief, Kidnapping, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Mental illness, Abortion, Car accident, Police brutality, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Alcohol, Animal death, Drug use, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Self harm, Drug abuse, Pregnancy, and Suicidal thoughts

sierrabedwell's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

This was a great science fiction story that is extremely relatable to the average reader. Have you ever wanted to change one decision that you have made and wonder what your life would be like if you had chosen differently? This book realistically answers that question through quantum mechanics and the theory of the multiverse. It sounds insane and it really is, but it also makes you think about your morals and what you would do if you were in the situation that Jason is in. If you’re a science lover and can comprehend complex situations, such as multiple versions of the same character in the same room, then go ahead and read this. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Blood, Cursing, Death of parent, Child death, Gaslighting, Gore, Abandonment, Abortion, Violence, Gun violence, Alcohol, Car accident, Death, Grief, Infidelity, Forced institutionalization, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual content

ababytapir's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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? Yes

4.5

Like Recursion, Dark Matter is fantastically mind-bending and all too easy to read in a day. It's incredibly violent and thought provoking. If you like your sci fi thrillers tinged with horror, existential dread and romance, this is the book for you. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, Kidnapping, Gore, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Stalking, Drug use, Gun violence, Murder, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Torture, Child death, Abortion, Self harm, War, Violence, Death of parent, Suicide, Car accident, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Cancer, Pregnancy, Rape, and Terminal illness

If you struggle with derealisation, dissociation or depersonalisation, or any sort of identify disorder, this book could potentially be incredibly triggering. Proceed with extreme caution. Violence warning: There is an incredibly detailed description of a gory epidemic/pandemic. There are multiple gory descriptions of dead bodies, murder, and horrific natural disasters. There is a long kidnapping scene. There's multiple instances of stalking.

laurensm_th's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Dark Matter walked so Project Hail Mary could run 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Violence, Gun violence, Terminal illness, Pandemic/Epidemic, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Blood

Minor: Car accident

boop123's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Violence, Drug use, Blood, and Death

Moderate: Gun violence, Sexual content, Torture, and Car accident

Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic

isacarvalho91's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, Forced institutionalization, Terminal illness, Violence, Car accident, Confinement, Grief, and Kidnapping

crandall251's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Car accident, Murder, and Stalking

wickedgrumpy's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

1.75

The good:  I enjoyed the UberChat.  I felt that right when that was introduced a different ending could have spawned that turned into a lighthearted rom-com and I like to imagine that.

The bad:  I knew pretty early on that this was not going to be a favorite.  I don't read a lot of thrillers in general but I enjoy sci-fi so I figured I would give it a shot.  I couldn't stand the main character.  And thus, the book was doomed in my eyes.  The pacing was jumpy, and the plot was predictable (as in, I guessed what really happened in the first chapter and the main character didn't figure it out until the ~50% mark).  There was some promise for some thoughtful introspection but the approach was heavy-handed at best.  Some of the descriptions were vivid and others were flat out whacky.

I don't know if I will try another book by the author, but I don't think I was the intended audience for this work so who knows what the future holds.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Abandonment, Body horror, Classism, Confinement, Torture, Pandemic/Epidemic, Rape, Self harm, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Toxic friendship, Drug use, Gaslighting, Gore, Kidnapping, Medical content, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Sexism, Violence, Alcoholism, Cancer, Car accident, Child death, Infidelity, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship

katiefurms's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Not only is this an incredible concept for a story, but it is so phenomenally well written that i could not put it down. Absolutely incredible book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Cursing, Death, Forced institutionalization, Torture, Drug use, Gun violence, Grief, Gore, Kidnapping, Mental illness, and Murder

Minor: Gun violence, Infidelity, Pandemic/Epidemic, Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, Abortion, Addiction, Body horror, Car accident, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Mental illness, Medical content, Pregnancy, Vomit, Dysphoria, Gore, Suicide, and Violence

ottercorg's review against another edition

adventurous dark inspiring mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Looking for an introduction to the sci-fi genre, an Internet list pointed me to this one. 

I enjoyed the main characters and plot, felt that Crouch told the story well. The reason I've avoided sci-fi for so long is that my brain is not good at comprehending the science part. But this book made it palatable and mostly easy to understand - which made me enjoy it even more! Only a few times did risk going over my head. 

Overall, an interesting tale that kept me invested, and not just because I had nothing better to do. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content, Violence, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Grief, Infidelity, Murder, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Body horror, Car accident, Death, Medical content, Pandemic/Epidemic, Kidnapping, Blood, Gun violence, Death of parent, Gore, and Stalking