Although there are some ties to a Matrix-like storyline, there is a lot of inventive imagery in this adventure. The impossibles are such fun elements - My favorite are the sheep! The backdrop of the story is a bus tour that visits and explores these impossibles, and it is like a pilgrimage that everyone should make during their lifetime. The bus full of random strangers gives you a crosscut of society, and the personalities feel so real, even though they are called just as often by their position as by their name. The repeated lifetimes seemed to have no purpose to me, and I can't say that I fully understood the ending. I still had fun on the trip alongside the Engineer for the most part. I absolutely hated Lisa Marie and not-so-secretly plotted her demise - if only the author shared my vision! I feel that there is a message that I am missing or a correlation that I overlooked that would make this book phenomenal to me. The story is a big life-changing adventure to those on the trip, and it was creative and entertaining to read!

Gregory seems endlessly inventive; this novel is set in a world with irrefutable proof that we live in a simulation, including Impossibles, which are phenomena that can’t be explained using physics (as well as a weekly text reminder that we are living in a simulation beamed to everyone’s brain—not clear what happens if the recipient can’t read). Some have responded with nihilism, considering everyone else (except perhaps fellow gun-toting, Matrix-loving incels) to be bots. On a tour of seven American Impossibles, a pregnant influencer, a rabbi, a nun (and accompanying novice), two German tourists, a would-be right-wing podcaster and his feckless son, a comic book writer, and his best friend, a retired engineer, join an inexperienced tour guide and seen-everything bus driver. But the trip gets more complicated when a fugitive joins them. Her mission is mysterious but urgent. Each of the characters has a distinctive perspective—the Engineer (“The thing is ridiculously oversized and out of scale, like a Koons Balloon Dog. He also doesn’t know how he feels when he looks at a Koons Balloon Dog.”), the Realist’s Son (“Why was anyone shocked that the world was not in our control, and that nothing we did mattered? The Simulators could hit reset at any time. Or climate change would kill us all. Same difference.”), and so on. I loved it.

I received a free e-arc of this book through Netgalley. I assume the title is referring to an earlier time because in the book's setting, it's been 7 years since everyone found out they are living in a simulation. There are a lot of layers to this book. I do like that the main characters were defined on the sightseeing bus trip to see The Impossibles which are things which couldn't exist on Earth as we know it today. The story kept my attention and I cared about many of the characters.

A wonderful combination of science fiction world creation and character development made this book a lot of fun to read. Our characters live in a world that they now know to be a simulation, and this news has affected everyone differently. We meet them as they are embarking on a bus tour of "impossible" phenomena that arose after news of the simulation was released. A lot of events occur that could only happen in this new world, which makes the book very funny and entertaining to read. At the same time, the characters feel very real and relatable. A fun and creative read!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have read everything by DG and was thrilled to get early access to this!
This is existential crisis in the matrix on a road trip with conspiracies.
Go read this!

#NetGalley

While this isn't the right fit for our libraries, it's a solid story with solid worldbuilding.

Thank you to NetGalley and Saga press for the ARC.

An existential bus trip

I loved this book. It was a captivating read and a thought provoking commentary about what is important to people and why. The premise is if the world was not “real”, would that change who you are or your behavior and if it did, how and why. Despite the existential deep questions that the book raises, it is not preachy or heavy handed. The story was well written and included engaging dialogue, three dimensional characters, and a captivating storyline amidst phenomenal world building, woven together scene by scene, layer by layer until it became a living breathing place full of three dimensional beings. Seven years ago the citizens of earth learned that they were digital citizens of an artificial world. The Announcement was followed by the Appearances of the Impossibles. This resulted in the yearslong Freakout. This book tells the story of a bus tour taken by a handful of strangers to visit the North American Impossibles which are glitches in the digital world. At each stop along the trip we learn more about the passengers and the simulation. The story is told from the multiple POVs of the bus passengers. The passengers, who are the main characters in the story, start off as generic names and people without substance (the driver, the tour guide, the nurse, the proud grandmother, the professor, the reader, the engineer, the comic book writer, the realist, the realist’s son, the rabbi, the sister, the novice, the honeymooners, the influencer, and the Octos), but as the book unfolds each of their characters, feelings, and issues are fleshed out until they become real and relatable people who are doing the best they can as messy humans. Following their individual existential journeys that parallel the Impossibles bus tour is what makes the book hard to put down. Definitely read this book. Think deep thoughts. And maybe work toward being the person you’d be if you always showed up as who you want to be. 4.5 stars.

Some people watch the Matrix movies and go "Whoa." Some come up with this sort of thing. Let's hear it for the creatives out there.
Okay, now then ...
Let me preface this review by saying that I don't care for long books. Anything over 400 pages seldom proves worth the time and often comes across as indulgently verbose.
Yet did I hesitate picking up this 464-page book? Nope.
The reason being - Daryl Gregory.
I'm a total fan, have been for a while, since he first came out with his wildly unique nightmares before veering into the sci-fi/fantasy territory.
And sure enough, this was a really great read, though it took some time to get through. Much like Blake Crouch's recent work (another author with a similar career trajectory), it involves a grand speculative idea.
That idea here is: everyone is living in a simulation, knows about it, and has known about it for seven years. The glitches in the simulation cause a series of Impossibles (strange sights defying known laws of physics, etc.), and the novel follows a guided tour to these attractions and a colorful cast of characters on the tour bus.
The novel probably is slightly indulgent and likely could have been slightly shorter, but Gregory's too good of a writer to mind and has created too fun of a road trip to deny.
All in all, a great read. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.

A rare, easy five stars for WHEN WE WERE REAL The world building is the most creative I've read in a long time. The structure of the book flows and is easy to follow. The characters are fully formed, relatable, believable, and hysterical (mostly). And the plot: so original! Sure, there've been books on the world being just a simulation, but this one brings together a whole slew of people, their stories, how they deal with this reality of learning they are "code", all on a tour across North America to see the "Impossibles", phenomena that appeared as a way of prove the world isn't "real." How Daryl Gregory came up with such fascinating examples of these is beyond me. But it's the way each character deals with their encounters and how this effects the overarching plot that makes this book so great.

Oh, and it's hysterical. Mostly. As with all great books, there are underlying themes and lessons that apply to the "real" life we readers live in. (This review uses more quotation marks than any I've ever written!)

Thank you to Simon and Schuster for inviting me to read this advance copy. Thank you to NetGalley for the download.

The strangest book ! You cannot help but conjure up the Matrix in your. mind - even if you are not a Matrix fan.

From the beginning, we are all aware that this is a simulation - that 7 years ago, the simulation was announced to all on Earth.

Our protagonists include JP, who is suffering from a brain tumor has embarked on a tour of the North America Impossibles - reminder that it's a simulation (defying gravity for instance) with his best friend Dunlin. Also on the bus are a wide variety of characters including a professor nuns,a rabbi, an influencer, long suffering daughter and honeymooners, all who have very strong opinions and thoughts to share.

In some ways, very Tom Robbins-esque and in others, completely original. This is a fantastic book to share with a friend and argue about until...the end of time (you know, if there is one).
#sagapress #whenwewerereal #darylgregory

After reading Revelator earlier this year, I was ecstatic to get my hands on this new novel by Daryl Gregory. This story pushes the boundaries of your mind because the world is a simulation ... Think along the lines of The Matrix. How would you cope if you found that out? Would that be in itself a horror? This is a sci-fi, dystopian book but I sometimes think how some things are horrifying in and of themselves? Thank you Saga Press Books and NetGalley for this ARC! #sagssays #sagasayscrew

Check this one out when it publishes April 01, 2025!

This isn't a perfect book by any means, but I seriously loved reading it and dug the whole concept so it's getting 5 stars from me.

First of all, the title is a little confusing because no one in this story is real. Everyone in the book is (from the beginning) aware that they're living in some sort of simulation (who's running the simulation? well that's a little trickier to ascertain). One way the fact of the simulation is hammered home to its inhabitants are the "impossibles" - anomalies that define all the laws of time and space.

The book takes a bunch of random (dare I say "zany?") characters and puts them on a tour bus to see the impossibles. These people quickly become the story--the Impossibles are merely a framing device. How these characters all begin to interact and the greater mystery that is afoot is the true plot, and it's fun one to follow. Everyone ends up playing an important role in the story--which of course makes sense since it's part of the simulation.

In particular I loved Sister Janet and how she uses the whole tour to explore some very interesting ideas related to faith. (If you're living in a simulation, what room is there for God? Shouldn't you be worshipping the simulators instead? If you aren't, then is worshipping God equally silly?)

This perhaps all sounds confusing, and the book can be at times (shifting from second to third person, etc.) But, once you get into the groove, it all starts to make sense. Everything on the page is serving a purpose in this story and it's a delight to watch all of the threads weave together.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for granting me the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.

this was such a good book!!! I love the concept, the way that these people were in a matrix/ multiverse. It was so surreal and I cannot imagine how I would have acted or felt. I love this dystopian book. I enjoyed this read, it kept me entertained with its fast pace starting from page 1. I was a big fan!!!


Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for this complimentary ARC in exchange for an honest review!!

Everything I've read by Daryl Gregory I've loved. He has a gift for writing great characters and dialogue. His new novel is a good mind-bender in that we find out the world is a mere simulation. How do people living in it cope? An interesting thought exercise that I enjoyed. I do with that it had gotten into the weeds a bit more about the parallel simulations and the people in charge, not to mention the person able to jump from sim to sim.

What a strange and interesting read. Imagine if you find out that you are living in the Matrix or something similar, a simulation. Further you know that you are dying in addition to not being real. This is the reality of JP, as Dunlin plans one last grand roadtrip. With a whole host of characters both strange and wonderful, the pacing starts fast and doesn't slow down. While exploring the idea of what it means to be both human and real, this novel questions everything in a playful but thought provoking manner. It's strange, funky and absolutely worth checking out.

I enjoyed the detail of this story. The author paints his characters vividly and I felt that I was on their trip with them. Mr Gregory has created a universe that is part Matrix part Multi-verse and fully engaging. You feel invested with the characters and that is a hard thing to do with so many characters on the bus. Always exciting and thrilling I loved it from beginning to end.

A big thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book. What a wild and strange ride. As someone married to a conspiracy lover, this book checked all the boxes. Creepy in all the best ways, definitely makes you wonder.

I found the blend of sci-fi elements with the tour bus confusing, and difficult to picture. While I loved the cast of characters, the story itself moved at a snail like pace.

When We Were Real by Daryl Gregory is a novel about a bus trip across the United States after it is discovered or “Announced” that humanity is living in a simulation. In fact, humanity is a simulation. God is still God, or is he the simulator?

At any rate, the bus takes off to see the new landmarks including a gravity defying Zipper, and 6 other new mysteries or wonders of the world. The characters on the bus make it hard to put the book down. There are the men who have been best friends all their lives, the nurse and her cranky mother, two nuns and a rabbi, a very pregnant internet influencer, a father and son pair who are always looking for conspiracies (at least the father is), as well as other memorable characters.

As the bus is ready to leave, there is a woman who gives one of the best friends cash to use his credit card to get on the tour after it has already started. Her addition to the tour makes it chaotic, and that is saying a lot because the others are quite memorable.

By the time the bus gets to the second to last destination, things have gotten so far out of hand that it is questionable if they go on to the last one. The story is a fun read, especially for video gamers and those who love computers.

I was invited by the publisher to review this book. This book was very intriguing. It takes place in a world in which everyone is aware they are in a simulation. Two main characters in the book are lifelong friends, who go on a tour of the "Impossibles" in North America, which are essentially these glitch-type occurrences in the programming. Secondary characters come into play while on this tour, although a lot of them felt like main characters, as well. Even with all of the people to remember, the characters never got confusing. I loved the creativity in all of the stops, as well. This is a good book for laughter, propulsive plotlines, and a well-developed idea.

Thank you to NetGalley and S&S/Saga Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.