Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

Lynnie    

Amy     

science fiction, thriller

Jason Dessen is a happy man. A college professor who gave up on his scientific research to become a family man, he is in love with his wife, and devoted to his teenage son. Abducted one evening and knocked unconscious, he wakes up to a world in which his wife is not his wife, his son was never born, and he's reached the highest levels of scientific achievement.  To reclaim his life and his family, he must undertake a journey that leads him to places he never imagined in his wildest dreams or nightmares. 

Lynnie's Review

This was a fascinating book. Blake Crouch creates a gripping scenario and a story that unfolds at a pace that makes it impossible to put down. Dark Matter is about the multiverse- for every decision you make, somewhere in time there is a version of you that splinters off, making a different decision and your futures unfold accordingly. But what happens when those versions collide? That's the story that unfurls in Dark Matter. It was a quick book to read, in large part because of the pacing of the story; there are no dull moments to be found in these pages. The characters are interesting, even when you hate them, and the ending is messy and a little mind-boggling but also entirely appropriate and satisfying.

I recommend it for all my fantasy/sci-fi friends out there.

Amy's Review

Dark Matter gripped me from the beginning but I could not shake the feeling that I was going to hate the ending because how could it end in a satisfactory, quasi-believable way? Therefore, I was interested but also dreaded the ending. The premise of quantum mechanics is just so unbelievable. I decided to let myself go with it and try to enjoy it.  And I did enjoy it until we had to join Jason on his tour of the multiverse which often did nothing to move the story forward and only served to display Blake Crouch’s creative whims.  I found myself getting more and more impatient as time was wasted in these parallel places which were obviously not his desired destination.  And then a new wrinkle was introduced which was way over my head for a while until it was finally explained at a level I could comprehend. Then, the story got really interesting.  Finally, the ending was satisfying and no more/less believable than the premise.

The audiobook narrator, Jon Lindstrom, was terrific.  He’s a wonderful voice actor and had a nice arsenal of different voices. I give him an A+.