Book 65 of 2024: Dark Matter by Blake Crouch 

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“Are you happy with your life?” Those are the last words Jason Dessen hears before the kidnapper knocks him unconscious.  When he awakes, he finds himself strapped to a gurney, surrounded by strangers in hazmat suits. Before a man he’s never met smiles down at him and says, “Welcome back, my friend.” In this world he’s woken up to, Jason’s life is not the one he knows. His wife is not his wife. His son was never born. And Jason is not an ordinary college professor but a celebrated genius who has achieved something remarkable. Something impossible. Is it this life or the other that’s the dream? And even if the home he remembers is real, how will Jason make it back to the family he loves?

Thriller meets sci-fi in this gripping tale that challenges the boundaries of reality and imagination! This story is ultimately about all of the different paths our lives could take, and how many things would be different depending on seemingly insignificant choices. The book was super fast paced and I sped through it. It was almost like an old episode of The Twilight Zone—my mind was blown and I couldn’t look away. Jason was a super interesting character and I loved how he was able to examine different versions of his life and be grateful for the one that he had. Some of the science elements got a little complex for me but I found the premise behind the science so interesting and unique that the more scientific moments didn’t bother me. I really liked the book’s examination of the themes of the consequence of choice and the endless possibilities of existence. This book will definitely get you thinking! And hopefully appreciate the life that you have. Great read!