Just finished the book like 20 minutes ago and I am still trying to figure out my opinion on it.
Like the whole concept of the book as super interesting to me. Picked it up after reading Lovecraft and wishing for more weird cosmic horror type stories.
The opening got me hooked instantly. I could not drop it down for like 4 hours that day. Story was going strong, the short stories inside the main story were great SCP-esque horror stories.
But then the ending lost me for a bit. Didnt get back to it for 2 or 3 weeks.
And what was that ending? Feels like the author got bored in their own story and rushed the ending just to deliver to the publisher.
What feels weird is that the author is great at explaining unexplainable things and concepts. And I feel like they could have explored the final showdown in a much more satifying way.
Still super happy to have read it, absolutely my kind of book, but sad that it was on its way to be one of my top 5 books, and it ended just like an average time killer book
Have yoy guys read it? What are your thoughts on it?
by Howitzeronfire
4 Comments
I read something with the same title a long time ago, but it was a part of the SCP universe. I remember enjoying it. I’m curious if it’s the same story.
as a big fan of these types of stories and games like Control/Alan Wake this definitely scratched an itch and I wish I had something to read that was similar to this. Alas, couldn’t find anything else that had been written in the same style. Super easy to read as well, so a fairly easy recco if I think someone might like this
My experience was not dissimilar. It’s a very clever and original book, but I felt that the dramatic tension was undermined by how esoteric the content was. It’s hard to invest in the outcome when you can’t quite conceptualise what’s at stake.
man i felt exactly same way about that ending. was so invested in the whole antimemetic concept and marion wheeler’s journey, then it just… deflated?
like you said, the author clearly knows how to make impossible things feel real and threatening. those early chapters where you’re trying to piece together what’s happening alongside the characters were brilliant. but then everything gets resolved so quickly it felt almost anticlimactic.
still gave me some good sleepless nights thinking about the implications though. the idea that there could be threats we literally cannot remember experiencing is genuinely terrifying to me.