Crouch knows how to keep readers on their toes in the best mix of science fiction and thriller. This is highly addictive! Character development takes a bit of a back seat to the action but that's really what I was reading for anyways. I'm excited to suggest this to all the thriller readers in my library that think they don't like sci-fi :)
The science behind this is what really propels the reader (think The Martian); I'm not brainy enough to read it with any kind of authority, but it all sounds like it makes sense in an ideal scenario.
I'm excited to see how the Netflix adaptation turns out!

Around 4.5. I really enjoyed this. Fast paced and creative. If you've enjoyed other Crouch novels, you will like this one. And, if you haven't read him before, it's definitely worth a try. He gets better each time.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an EARC in exchange for an honest review.

One of the first things I heard about Recursion is that it has already been optioned as a series. I will admit that I was skeptical…. Until a couple of chapters in.

Helena is a young scientist with a mother suffering from Alzheimer’s and a passion to help save her mother’s memories. She doesn’t have the time or the funding to make her breakthrough a reality until a men shows up with an offer too good to refuse.

Barry, a New York cop, shows up at the scene of a potential suicide. The woman appears to be suffering from “False Memory Syndrome”, a new medical phenomenon. What the woman says before she jumps to her death piques Barry’s interest…and down the rabbit hole he goes.

What would you do for a chance to go back, to do over, to fix things before they ever became broken. What happens when what you do for love brings you to dark places?

The book is an interesting take on the ability live a “do-over”. The wrinkle is that changing your own reality leaves shadows of old memories and changing your reality changes reality for everyone.
Timeline on timeline and twist upon twist made the book read like a GIANT sci-fi action movie. There I some beautiful writing here, some great ethical questions and some far above my head science.

This is a mind-bender of a suspenseful sci-fi. This is no beach read; your brain will be in overdrive.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Author Blake Crouch is a gifted writer with big ideas about the meaning of life and how humans experience time. As a reader, I want him to keep working away at those ideas and his expression of them. In RECURSION, they got away from him; the book starts out as a basic sci fi tale with a shape and outline that is understandable. His ideas are impactful and fascinating. By the second half, the moorings are lost and don’t really return. It feels as though Crouch didn’t know how to reel the characters and tale back in for an ending. I read the book in one sitting but became frustrated with the second half. I would not have been able to describe the book and its plot if asked. It was just too messy and convoluted. It had lost its power. The tale is somewhat like the movie INCEPTION. Perhaps in its initial appeal that morphs into bleakness. I’m still a fan of the author and will look forward to reading whatever he writes next. I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Thank you NetGalley for the free ARC.

Is memory real or can it be created from and altered? What if a traumatic event in your life simply did not happen? What if you could not rely on your memory because you don't know what the truth is. That is the essential plot in Recursion. There are two main story's Barry's and Helena's, I was much more interested in barry's dark story. Good read!

This is a review of an ARC from NetGalley.

New York police officer Barry Sutton is trying to talk a woman off of a ledge. The problem, she says is that her life - her husband, her son - has been erased. She has a life now, but she also has memories of another life, but it's all gone, and she's the only one who can remember that it ever was. And then she jumps.

The woman was suffering from False Memory Syndrome, a new illness. People experience a sharp headache, nosebleeds, and a sudden rush of memories of a life they never lived. As Sutton begins to explore the woman's claims of her past life, things start get strange. And if I say anymore, that would be massive spoilers.

This was really good - a read all in one sitting, rush to the next page page. It's an excellently plotted sci-fi puzzle of a book, but also a meditation on memories, time, and life, and how what we remember shapes who we are. Just so well done.

This is the kind of book that ironically, I wish I could read over and over again for the first time. As usual, Crouch ties reality and fiction so closely that you lose yourself in the fantasy of his alternate reality. I’m far from a scientist, and had an easier time tying together the strings of science and logic in this even more so than when I read Dark Matter. I cannot wait to read this again and again and discover more in the depths of the story.

Much better than Dark Matter. I am not always in the mood for science fiction reading, but when I saw this on Netgalley, I felt the pull. Glad I did. He fits so much into these pages. I enjoyed his Wayward Pines series, but this was even better. It is definitely the type of book you can't put down. I liked all the main characters , good guys and bad guys. Fun.

Where do I even begin with this one?

If you could place your current consciousness back into your younger self, what would you change? Would you ask out that girl? Save a loved one from tragedy? Would you pull a Biff Tannen and amass a fortune betting on horse racing? Blake Crouch’s Recursion is a look at just that scenario. Can someone truly go back and make minor changes and still avoid the ripple effect? Probably not. For Blake Crouch’s Recursion, it’s a lesson in messing with timelines and avoiding the unavoidable.

I received an advanced copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve always been fascinated with time travel. Back to the Future is usually where my mind goes when I think of one of the better uses of the idea, but there are many great examples including Stephen King’s 11/22/63, that episode of the Simpsons where Homer builds the time traveling toaster and Army of Darkness. But for all the great ones, there can be others that fall flat on their face (Kate & Leopold). Thankfully, Blake Crouch takes the premise and excels with it.

It wasn’t until a few days after I finished the book that I realized the plot – or at least the way in which time travel is executed – somewhat resembles 2004’s The Butterfly Effect. I don’t think it’s all that fair to compare the two because, honesty, Recursion is exponentially better, but the comparisons are there. Although I did find some of the sciencey stuff supporting the act of traveling difficult to follow, I understood it on a basic level and Crouch didn’t seem to spend overly long explaining the ins-and-outs of it (DMT chemical release and mind-mapping), so you’re not left like Bruce Willis in Looper slamming his fists on the table refusing to discuss time travel worried he’d be there all day talking about it, making diagrams with straws.

Don’t take that the wrong way though, I’m not dismissing Crouch’s work. It’s exceptional. It’s just that time travel is tough and once you get into the nitty gritty of it you’ll drive yourself mad trying to make sense of it sometimes (I once had a short, but very loud argument with a friend of mine about time travel in Terminator 3). Probably because it’s not possible, so you’re trying to make sense out of an impossible act.

Boy, does this one get dark. But, that’s to be expected if you’ve read Crouch’s work before. Just like having his characters mess with the multiverse in his previous novel Dark Matter, nothing good can come with screwing around with timelines in Recursion. There are some exceptionally haunting moments in this story that were written so unnervingly well. One of my biggest personal fears comes to life in the last third of the book and the way in which Crouch executed it left me speechless.

While the book isn’t out until June, I expect to spend the next four months pushing this on all my friends. I would not be surprised to see it on my 2019 year-end list.

Expected release date: June 11, 2019

***I wasn’t surprised to see that Netflix is picking this up for adaptation. I think the idea of making it into both a TV show and a movie is a tad ambitious as I’d hate to see the plot watered down to expand to a bigger story than it needs to be, but I don’t want to dismiss it before it happens.

Another solid offering from Blake Crouch. This book explores similar themes to those addressed by Dark Matter. While Dark Matter explored the idea of alternate universes, and travelling between them, Recursion explores alternate timelines within the same universe. The time travel mechanism in Recursion is unique, and while it is a bit difficult to understand at times, it by and large avoids the mind fuckery that can come with along with time travel. Crouch explores themes of memory, regret, and mindfulness, and while the book felt similar to Dark Matter, it did not feel like a rehash. I am only giving it four stars instead of five because I thought the ending was a little bit too neat and tidy. On the whole, though, a really good, exciting read.

This book will take you on a wild ride! It is full of twists and turns - the perfect blend of science fiction and thriller. I was a bit hesitant to pick this book up as I really enjoyed "Dark Matter" and was worried that "Recursion" wouldn't hold up to my expectations, but I'm glad that I decided to take a chance on it. The story line did bog down a bit in the middle for me, but I'm glad that I stuck with it.

This is one of those books where it's almost impossible to write a summary without giving anything away, so I'd rather not try on the off chance I spoil the experience for someone else. I will say that I love everything this guy writes. The Wayward Pines series and Dark Matter are right up there with some of my all-time favorite books, so I had high hopes for Recursion. And it was good. Really good. The story is like nothing I've read before. It does have that same head-spinning, over the top, crazy-scientific mumbo jumbo that is reminiscent of Dark Matter, where you just nod and smile and let Blake take you there. The plot, while a little slow at first, builds to an insanely intense pace towards the end. It's entertaining, it makes you think, it's terrifying, and it's fun.

One of the most surprising things Crouch does well is sneak beautiful romances into these books where horrifying things are happening. He does it again here, although I think not with the same success as he does in Dark Matter.

Overall, I think Mr. Crouch has another hit on his hands, and as always, I can't wait to see what's next from him.

Fans of Dark Matter rejoice! Crouch has done it again with another edge-of-your-seat sci-fi thriller - this time about memory, identity, alternate timelines, and what some people will do to have the chance to start over and do things differently - all with compelling characters that I can't stop thinking about.

What if someone could rewrite your entire life?

“My son has been erased.” Those are the last words the woman tells Barry Sutton, before she leaps from the Manhattan rooftop.

Deeply unnerved, Barry begins to investigate her death, only to learn that this wasn’t an isolated case. All across the country, people are waking up to lives different from the ones they fell asleep to. Are they suffering from False Memory Syndrome, a mysterious new disease that afflicts people with vivid memories of a life they never lived? Or is something far more sinister behind the fracturing of reality all around him?

MIND BLOWN!!! ......AGAIN!!! Blake Crouch has done it again. He is definitely in a different league. A literary genius. How his mind works like it does is beyond my comprehension. Parts of his books are beyond my comprehension and I feel like a meager peasant not really worthy of reading them.

I read Dark Matter and absolutely loved it. I have not stopped recommending it every chance I get. When I saw Blake had another book coming out I cleared my schedule and read it in less than 24 hours.

Recursion is a mind bending thriller that moves at the speed of light. Jumping through timelines, memories, past, present and future. It is told from two points of view. One in 2007 and one in 2018 until the two meet up and the story takes on a whole new momentum. Buckle up and hang on because it is a wild ride.

I almost don't even know what to say. I hesitate to post my review so early since the book doesn't pub for another few months, but I really don't want to lose my train of thought or emotion since I finished the book today.
Really, since the Wayward Pines trilogy, my mind has been bent and it has been Blake Crouch's fault. Dark Matter nearly broke me and now I feel like I have a PhD in... something... after reading Recursion.
Crouch can write the HECK out of some alternate life/alternate reality and... I haven't read much but Im just gonna say, from my literally nonexistent experience, I haven't read better. RIP to my brain if I ever do.
This is as much a love story as it is a scifi futuristic fantastical fantasy thriller. I'm not sure what it was supposed to be, but the deeper I got, the deeper I wanted to be. The ending was a smidge confusing... but then things all came together for me at the end. Mostly. I kept wondering why she didn't go back and just not INVENT the thing... but someone would have, right? That is the dilemma. Do you do good things and control the outcome as best you can, or not do good things and let a dangerous tool fall into evil hands.
Superb read. I know some don't enjoy Crouch, but... another great read.

I stepped into Recursion and instantly got lost in the loop. I couldn't get out, and didn't want to. A mind-bending novel that will make you reconsider everything you think you know about time. Terrifying, thrilling, and stick-in-your-dreams riveting.

4.5 stars.

It's always challenging to explain a Blake Crouch novel and this one is no exception. If you've read Dark Matter, you have some idea what you're expecting in this book. His books are fast-paced, "keep you on your toes and wildly confuse yourself as you try to keep track of things that are happening" books.

Recursion is about physics, the science of the human mind, memory generation, politics, and so much more. It's also about grief, our desire to set things right, connection, greed, and so much more. And most of all, it has character development that's rich which is rare in books with the kind of plot and pacing his books have.

I've read a bunch on quantum physics and I studied a bunch of computer science and have even taken classes on the human brain but I can't really tell you which of his ideas in the book are possible and which are pushed well outside the realm of possibility and which are just completely made up. Partly because they are a bit mixed up together but mostly because I don't really care. If you're a complete stickler for accurate science, this book might frustrate you, but if you take it for what it is, a fast-paced, very entertaining, though-provoking book that uses science as its story source, then you will enjoy it thoroughly and find that not only is your mind blown during reading it but that you think about it well after you're done. And if that's not the sign of a good book, I don't know what is.

[thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.]

Fans of Blake Crouch’s other works, the Wayward Pines trilogy and Dark Matter, will greatly appreciate his newest mind bender, Recursion. This book is set to come out on June 11th and you will want a copy. It seamlessly blurs the lines between reality and the metaphysical, leaving the reader astonished. It reminded me of a Black Mirror episode and it is actually being adapted to both a Netflix series by Shonda Rhimes (writer of Grey’s Anatomy, How to Get Away with Murder, Scandal) and a feature film! This book is addicting and mind blowing. I was left pondering the power of memories, quantum physics, and the human mind. Go ahead and Google the “Mandela Effect” and have a little ponder for yourself. When the concept of Deja vu was brought up, I was shook. Blake Crouch has become one of my favorite authors. Recursion had my mind whirling and it was so fun to read. This sci fi novel has ALOT going for it; action, love, suspense in abundance. You’ll want to read it, and then you’ll want to talk about it, and by then you’ll be that much closer to watching it on screen. Enjoy!

What if you could relive a moment? A memory? Make it better? Make it disappear? Could you?
When I read my first by Blake Crouch (Dark Matter), I couldn’t read it fast enough, until, Recursion. And then, I wanted to read slower, to make it last, to make time stand still, to NOT have it end.
Thought provoking, lovely and hold onto your seatbelts here we go again, take your breath away story. Read and believe, and close your eyes, it’s a very bumpy ride.

If you are done reading a book and think about it long after it’s over, that’s the mark of a good storyteller and a good book. I can’t thank the publisher and NetGalley enough for an ARC of this book. Other reviews are spot on and the only thing I’ll add is it felt a bit like my all time favorite from Stephen King 11/22/63.
Read the book and hang with it in the slow spots. That’s all I can say.