There Is No Antimemetics Division
Ratings42
Average rating4.2
15
Ratings42
Average rating4.2
An antimeme is an idea with self-censoring properties; an idea which, by its intrinsic nature, discourages or prevents people from spreading it.
Antimemes are real. Think of any piece of information which you wouldn't share with anybody, like passwords, taboos and dirty secrets. Or any piece of information which would be difficult to share even if you tried: complex equations, very boring passages of text, large blocks of random numbers, and dreams...
But anomalous antimemes are another matter entirely. How do you contain something you can't record or remember? How do you fight a war against an enemy with effortless, perfect camouflage, when you can never even know that you're at war?
Welcome to the Antimemetics Division.
No, this is not your first day.
Reviews with the most likes.
This books just sucks you in and takes you on a rollercoaster ride that quite early leaves the tracks without you even noticing. The dry, pragmatic perspective of bureaucrats and scientists on the unspeakable cosmic nightmare they're delving into makes it funny and unsettling at the same time. And the last chapter especially is a reminder that in the end this is their perspectives through with we view and sometimes historical horrors.
One of the most mentally engaging books I've read in a while. Absolutely loved the crazy concepts, twists, and off the wall battles. It was eerie in all the right places and I can't wait to forget most of it so I can read it again!
A concept as convoluted as this could easily get bogged down and become narratively unsatisfying, but the author is skilled enough to avoid going too heavy on the mind bending aspects while still making them integral to the identity of the work. The end is not quite as strong as the middle and beginning, but does well enough as a wrap up to a delightfully unsettling journey.
Kudos to the Monomythical newsletter for convincing me to pick up a self-published book that is also based in a creative commons-shared wiki-based internet universe thingy (I won't even pretend to understand how those spaces work as it's not my scene).
This is excellent sci-fi horror that reminded me a lot of Jeff Vandermeer's Area X books - somewhat similar scares, with a love story at the centre, and metaphorically potent.
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