06/11/2019 Recursion by Blake Crouch

This was fantastic! Absolutely amazing! More exclamation points please!
If you enjoyed Dark Matter or the Wayward Pines trilogy, definitely pick this one up. By the way, since no one asked, the Wayward Pines books lead to me binging Twin Peaks last summer and that show was so incredibly odd and I never quite knew what was going on.
Anyways.
Recursion is the story of what happens when brilliance meets desperation. Searching for a way to help stop the dementia that is slowly stealing her mother, Helena creates a device that will change the history of medicine. What was meant to be a way to preserve a person’s precious memories turns into a potential weapon that could have devastating effects.
Barry, depressed and steal grieving for his daughter a decade after her death, is investigating a woman’s suicide after he is unable to talk her down from the ledge. Plagued with FMS, False Memory Syndrome, the woman is devastated by the memories of a loving husband and son. But she was never married and has never been a mom so how does she know about this other life? Why does it feel so real? With more and more FMS cases coming to light, Barry gets swept up in a mystery so profound it’s capable of destroying the world.
This is one of the fabulous sci-fi books that are better when you know nothing about it. I went into this not knowing the plot, only the author. The characters are great, the science went way over my head, and the story moved very quickly. There are so many twists and turns and explosive events that it just got better and better the further you read. Fast paced, gripping, and emotional, Recursion is an incredible story of strength and perseverance.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions are my own.

4.5 stars! Imagine all the sudden you get a nose bleed and are hit with completely new memories. Your old memories are still there, but they are greyed out and distant. You remember two different lives. This book is about Barry and Helena, and their experiences with “false memory syndrome” and their work to help fix it.

That’s not even a very good description, I honestly don’t know where to start to try and give a synopsis on this one. Let me start by saying this is not my normal genre. However Blake Crouch just does such an amazing job writing it. I loved this book just as much as I loved Dark Matter. He truly pulls you into this world that seems crazy and absurd, but you immediately get wrapped up in it and wanting to figure out how it all works. Writing a book like Recursion takes a true gift, and Blake has it! I highly recommend picking this one up when it comes out on June 11th-even if it’s not your normal genre-you won’t regret it!

Loved it! Recursion is very fast paced, intense and creative.

The concept of the book is so interesting and complex but Crouch writes it in a way that is very understandable. The ideas are very interesting to think about and he makes them seem so real. There is a good balance between the technical science fiction parts and personal and emotional parts. It deals with some very interesting questions surrounding humanity and the moral issues of technological advancements. Even though we may have good intentions to make things better, do we have right to mess with other peoples lives and memories and make choices for them? Are there dangerous side effects that we do not yet posses the knowledge to prevent?

I like that unlike other thrillers it is a bit harder to predict what is going to happen because all of this science fiction stuff is unknown; anything goes!

If you liked Dark Matter then you will definitely enjoy this book. I absolutely recommend it.

I received a copy of Recursion through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Loved this book! I read ‘Dark Matter and didn’t think it could be topped, but the characters and storyline were spectacular. 5 stars all the way!

Recursion by Blake Crouch - Available June 11, 2019

Our memories shape how we perceive the world. When NYPD detective Barry Sutton is first on the scene of an attempted suicide he comes face to face with a woman who has a new condition called False Memory Syndrome (FMS) and he begins to investigate her life which puts him right in the middle of a world where people can jump back in time to relive memories and change their past. This is all possible thanks to Helena Smith, the inventor of the memory chair. How will changing the past affect the future and what happens if the memory chair gets into the wrong hands?

This book grabbed me immediately. I loved the idea of returning to a strong memory and reliving or changing the past. I loved how Crouch revealed how this works and the effects it would have on others. My only complaint is that I have been reading this when my life was too busy to read this from cover to cover in one sitting, I had a hard time putting it down. The changing timetables and the story lines that were evolving at a fast pace while they changed may be confusing for some readers but I found it engaging. You will be a fan of this book if you also liked Dark Matter as the style was similar. I don't normally read science fiction books (with the exception of Recursion and Dark Matter) and I still really enjoyed it so whether sci-fi is your thing or not, I encourage you to give this one a try.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for the advanced reader's copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. You purchase this book on June 11, 2019.

Blake Crouch has done it again bringing us a new thriller involving time and memory. The concept is outstanding and really pulls readers in. The characters are relatable making it easy to imagine yourself in their position. Would you prevent a tragedy if you had the capability of traveling back in time and doing so? This is a book that will really make you think. It is fast-paced and filled will plenty of action. Highly recommended to readers looking for a fresh thriller involving time travel. If you've enjoyed Crouch's previous novels, be sure to check out Recursion today. You won't be disappointed!

2007: Spurred by her mother's dementia, Helena Smith devotes her genius to the study of human memory but is on the verge of failure when she's thrown a lifeline by a brilliant magnate. Her research flourishes, but progress comes with a cost. 2018: Dogged NYPD detective Barry Sutton fails to stop the suicide of a woman tormented by False Memory Syndrome, a mysterious ailment where people recall a life that never happened. He is drawn into a conspiracy that threatens the fabric of reality. Memory, time, identity, and reality intertwine in this delightful mind trip.

Thank you to the publisher for this copy ! This truly was epic. Out June 11th. ✨

This was a ride !

The first 50% ? A good 4⭐. Compared to the rest of the book, it was slow-ish and a bit repetitive (but still interesting). The author had to make everything come together slowly at first because there was so much. I'm not new to SciFi, but the concept of this book must have been the most complex I've ever read. I had to stop from times to times to reassess and understand. Note that it's not a bad thing, it truly was fascinating.

And then the story kept accelerating until it was exponential. The last 50% of this book was incredible (5⭐). It was fast paced and complex and my mind kept wondering about all the different things that could happen and how to try to fix everything. It truly was epic.

I liked the ending. I would have added an extra life at the end. First, because I would have wanted a bit more of it and second, because it felt a bit rushed... But finally, even though it makes a cute ending of them reuniting and Helena keeping her sanity, I'm was she wasn't part of the solution. She was the fierce scientists, but ended up being saved by a man.

This is a 4,5⭐ rounded down, because there are so many unpaved avenues that I would have loved to discover. One of them is politics. I would have believed that in one of the scenarios Russia and China wouldn't have attacked the other nations right away. I mean, at some points, they have to kinda notice that what they're triggering is awful. Other things, I would have LOVED for Helena to make her way through politics and get to higher ground and give a peace nationwide message. Work through the crisis.
Also, can we talk about how impractical the characters have been ? If you know exactly when everyone is going to remember, try to be somewhere safe in the world in very close proximity to the chair. This sounded very stupid to me. What was also stupid is that they never thought of alterning Barry and Helena going back in time so each time line one of them would have had a break. Helena could totally have teached Barry how to do the chair and then him to hair again. And finally, why did they never think about making it portative !? Like something you could wear and activate at the right time. The deprivation was a nicer way to die, but if they had a portative chair they could have been ready to reset had they uncountered any unforeseen death.

Blake Crouch did it again! He actually topped Dark Matter and left my head spinning, and my mind blown!

The book starts out with Detective Barry Sutton being called out to a jumper and while trying to talk her off the ledge, is intrigued by the fact that she is experiencing what’s being called False Memories. She remembers an entire other life with a husband and son and would prefer not to live without them. (I was hooked at False Memories!)

The book then flashes back to 2007 to a neurologist, Helen, who has been working on a memory project.

The book goes back and forth between the two timelines, and the first big twisty mind blower hits about 1/3rd of the way through. But does Crouch stop there? Nope. He just keeps zinging all the crazy mind bending cray cray at the reader page after page after page!

I seriously read this all day long from beginning to end only putting this down for sustenance or potty breaks! Thank goodness I started on a Saturday morning and had no other plans for the day.

I need to go grab Crouch’s backlist because I need more to keep me going until he comes up with his next book. This guy is brilliant!!

*Thank you so much to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for the advance copy!*

Thanks to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for this digital ARC. Release date is 6/11/19

A widespread affliction called False Memory Syndrome is terrifying people with memories that don’t belong to them. NYC cop Barry Sutton is investigating and soon becomes more personally involved.
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Meanwhile Helen, a neuroscientist, is working on a groundbreaking new device that would let people relive their fondest memories.
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But neither of them realize all that they’re really up against or just how dangerous things will become.
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This book switches between Barry’s perspective and Helen’s perspective. One tip: keep an eye on the dates/time frames at the beginning of each chapter and keep them in mind.
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Sci-fi and thriller in one. What’s not to love?! How Blake Crouch came up with this brilliant, mind-bending storyline I’ll never know! So many times while reading this I stopped to imagine the things in this book happening in real life and it was just mind boggling. Such an immersive story.

I say that I am not a fan of science fiction, but Blake Crouch has made me wrong about that for the second time. It was only because I liked Dark Matter so much that I was interested in reading another novel by Crouch.

One thing that caught my attention about the book is that one of the main characters works on trying to find a way to help Alzheimers patients retain their memories. Alzheimers is a disease that hits close to home for many (my family included) so naturally it captured my interest.

Helena, a neuroscientist whose mother suffers from Alzheimer’s, has an opportunity to develop her device with unlimited funds. Once she proves that it’s a success, things go horribly awry because not everyone involved in the program is ethical.

Helena teams up with Barry, a NYC police officer, and they work together to stop people from using the device in ways it was not intended. This results in a nightmarish version of ground hog day or de ja vu moments, only on a more accelerated level.

Recursion is fast-paced and full of action. Don’t pass this one up because it’s science fiction. It’s also an engrossing thriller from start to finish.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for allowing me to read an advance copy and give my honest review.

From the author of Dark Matter, this is another Timey-Wimey thriller. It’s a good thing that I couldn’t put this fast-paced book down, because I’m not sure I could keep track of what was going on if I had. Crouch has become a must-read author for me.

Thank you NetGalley, Blake Crouch and Crown Publishing for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

Barry Sutton is a NYPD officer who lands upon a devastating phenomenon that the media has dubbed False Memory Syndrome; a disturbing condition that is driving people crazy by giving them an entire set of memories from a life that they’ve never lived. Helen Smith is a neuroscientist who has worked her whole life to try to some day make a chair that will help her mother keep her memories that are slowly fading from Alzheimer’s. As Barry is searching for the truth, he stumbles upon something he could have never imagined. A force that attacks the very fabric of the past and can change someone’s life in an instant. Only Barry and Helena working together can solve the problem of this force and what others want to do with it.

Wow guys! I picked this one because it sounds so completely different from all the thrillers I have been reading and I am so glad I did! I loved the characters and the completely different premise behind this one! I found almost every moment fascinating; the only problem I had with this novel was that the ending seemed to take forever to come around and I felt like it dragged a little. But I enjoyed the ending thoroughly and the characters were perfection! I would definitely recommend going into this one mostly blind and just letting the book speak for itself!

Out June 11th!

I had pretty high hopes for this book but it moved pretty slow for me & just seemed so repetitive. I struggled to get through it but have a major issue not finishing books with the hopes they will get better.

I love Blake Crouch. While Recursion was a fast read, it took work for me to really follow some of the plot and the time warps, as well as getting involved with the characters. I think it will play well to a screen adaptation, as it moves quickly. I loved the concept of time and memory "rethinking" and how it was done, very intriguing. Would I be willing to live my life over again - kept coming up in my thoughts as I read. Well done, a little fast paced for my liking with a deep concept, but very good read.

I absolutely loved this book, I read it in one sitting! I loved Crouch's previous book too, Dark Matter, so I was super excited to read this one and it did not disappoint!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Blake Crouch is a wonder. Seriously, the man has good ideas - great concepts... AND, he knows how to execute them. I loved Wayward Pines and Dark Matter, and Recursion follows in a similar vein.

Can you imagine a world in which the construct of time - that keeps us sane, and our lives and minds in order - has been circumvented? Well, Blake did, and he wrote about it and knocked it out of the park. This thrill ride of a novel starts a little slow and then rockets to the ending. It's kind of like Aerosmith's Rock 'N' Roller Coaster at Walt Disney World. The first bit, you're loading into the ride vehicle, pulling around to the waiting area, and sitting there for a few minutes waiting for the ride to start. A countdown happens, and BAM, you shoot off at 60 miles an hour, race through the darkened coaster ride, until the ride comes to a skidding halt. You get off, stumble around for a minute as you catch your breath and your balance, and then proceed to jump back in line to ride it again. That's this book. So much fun!

Rating: 4.5 stars rounded down to 4 mind-boggling stars

This latest release from Blake Crouch, author of the mind-bending, ‘Dark Matter’, is another one of those, “Wait, what just happened?” type of books. It’s a bit trippy. I had to really concentrate to follow the logic, and sometimes I still think it eluded me once in awhile. The ride was fantastic though! This is could be categorized as a time-travel book that has simply been wrapped in a memory re-do storyline. What if you had a chance to pick a time in your past to travel back to, and make different choices? Would you do it?

At first blush I think that most folks would gladly go back and make different choices. But as Barry Sutton and Helena Smith soon find out, those different choices could have unforeseen consequences not only for themselves, but potentially for all of humanity. The book is told primarily in dual storylines. Barry is a New York City police detective. He’s trying to understand if this newly identified ‘False Memory Syndrome’ could have induced a woman to jump her death despite his offer to help her. Helena Smith is a neuroscientist who is working on how to help save memories for Alzheimer’s patients.

As the story unfolds we learn about Barry’s hunt for the location that might be involved in implanting false memories. Or are they false memories? What exactly IS happening? From the other side of the world, we learn about Helena’s research and how it may have been misappropriated for less than idealistic purposes.

The book moves along at a break-neck pace in the beginning, but it flagged a bit towards the end, or perhaps it became too convoluted at the end. I had to slow my reading speed, and really try to process what was happening in the scenes as I got deeper into the book. The technology of the memory ‘jump’ process was fully explained. I suspect die hard Sci-Fi fans (which I don't really consider myself to be) will enjoy all the technical discussion. For me it sometimes got in the way of the story once in awhile.

This was a suspenseful ride that surprised me on several levels. It also made me pause and wonder about the choices I’d made, and their long-term effects. This is another stellar writing effort from Blake Crouch.

‘Thank-You’ to NetGalley; the publisher, Crown Publishing; and the author, Blake Crouch; for providing a free e-ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I’m not a fan of sci-fi, but I loved Dark Matter and am fascinated by issues involving memory. So this one was a no brainer to read. In 2007, Neuroscientist Helena Smith is devoting her life to creating a technology to preserve our memories. Meanwhile, folks in 2018 are suffering from False Memory Syndrome, an affliction in which a person literally has memories of living an entirely different life. Barry Sutton is a detective that attempts to save a woman from suicide when she is suffering from FMS.

This book just grabbed me from the get go. It really makes you think. “There are so few things in our existence we can count on to give us the sense of permanence, of the ground beneath our feet. People fail us. Our bodies fail us. We fail ourselves, he’s experienced all of that. But what do you cling to, moment to moment, if memories can simply change. What, then, is real. And if the answer is nothing, where does that leave us?” OMG, that had my mind in a whirl. Because, really, if you take away our memories, then just who the hell are we?

This one totally messes with you. Initially, it is very fast paced and you have to work to keep on top of everything. This is a thriller with a capital T. Woosh, woosh, woosh. But it’s a thriller that asks some interesting questions about what makes us human, is progress always good, should we attempt to play God? It drags a little toward the end, a little too Groundhog Day for my taste. But I liked the finish and how it finally plays out. Overall, it’s one I can recommend.

Thanks to netgalley and Crown Publishing for an advance copy of this book.

I was thrilled to receive an uncorrected, electronic copy of this book to read! Thank you to Crown Publishing Group and NetGalley for approving my request.
I am a huge fan of this author and Recursion did not disappoint! It is a fast paced book dealing with quantum physics and time. If you enjoyed Dark Matter, which dealt with different dimensions, you will love this new book.
The story is told between alternating points of view: NYC cop Barry Sutton in 2018 and neuroscientist Helena Smith in 2007. In 2018, the public becomes aware of False Memory Syndrome. Without warning, some people find that they have their expected memories plus memories of a completely different life, perhaps a different spouse, different career, a child where they had none. What is causing this? Can it be fixed?
This book will be released on June 11. I recommend it highly!