Memory makes reality.
That’s what New York City cop Barry Sutton is learning as he investigates the devastating phenomenon the media has dubbed False Memory Syndrome-a mysterious affliction that drives its victims mad with memories of a life they never lived.
That’s what neuroscientist Helena Smith believes. It’s why she’s dedicated her life to creating a technology that will let us preserve our most precious memories. If she succeeds, anyone will be able to re-experience a first kiss, the birth of a child, the final moment with a dying parent.
As Barry searches for the truth, he comes face-to-face with an opponent more terrifying than any disease—a force that attacks not just our minds but the very fabric of the past. And as its effects begin to unmake the world as we know it, only he and Helena, working together, will stand a chance at defeating it.
But how can they make a stand when reality itself is shifting and crumbling all around them?
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Really good! The concept of this story was thought-provoking. It took relatable concepts, put them into a thrilling story of questioning the what-ifs, self-identity, and who-knows of life. There was almost this unwritten internal dialogue that put an over-arching question proposing “What would you do if you could have a do-over in life?”
There were some scientific concepts that were just a bit flat in writing style and content. More one-dimensional than I felt they needed to be. I think they could have been a bit less vague or arbitrary and the author could have taken more liberty and a step further with the descriptions. Example, “web of synapses” and “neural coordinates for memory.” But I can see how it might be challenging to keep true to the hard sciences as we know it from an expert/specialist’s point of view and also incorporate a creative spin to a science fiction narrative. Still very well done though! An enjoyable read!
And I loved the literary quote references at the beginning of each chapter!
