Tuesday, September 25, 2018

Obscura

Obscura

Obscura is a trip (and if you've read it you'll appreciate what I mean). Bad jokes aside, this was a nice surprise of a book, and a compelling read, with a neat take on a cool concept that I cannot divulge, due to spoilers. Suffice to say that it's mind- bending, thrilling and quite the read. Gillian Ryan is a world class researcher looking into a new dementia, and when NASA recruits her for help- it turns out that crew members aboard a space station are having similar problems- she has no choice but to accept. She lost her husband to the disease, and now her daughter is showing symptoms, and NASA makes her an offer she can't refuse. If she helps them, she gets unlimited funding- and a chance to save her daughter.

The catch of course is that she has to go into space and, you know, survive. She also has an opioid addiction that does not help matters, especially when things go wrong (and do they ever go wrong). It will probably surprise no one that there are secrets here and she has not been apprised of everything, so when things go south she learns quickly how in over her head she is. There are some truly chilling moments as the author explores addiction and its effects on people in high stress environments, and mixed in with the science fiction elements, it really makes for a spooky read at times. You might want the light on when you read this!

Gillian at times doesn't know what's real and what is not, and the reader doesn't either, which really ratchets up the tension. I thought this started a little slow- there's some necessary groundwork to be laid- and the middle of the book sort of drags on a little even though the aforementioned paranoia and psychological stress are off the charts. I mean part of the journey here is the trip to the space station, and I suppose I assumed they would arrive sooner, but once they do hello! Things really get crazy then.

Addiction, paranoia, the question of how much we can ever really know someone, as well as questions of mortality and memory are all addressed here, and very effectively. A thought provoking book and an absolute thriller at the end. The body count gets pretty high and while I sort of thought this might be a space zombie book, based on my reading of the blurb, it's really not- although if veers close to that. And I had a theory about what was happening, and while I was wrong it was super fun to speculate about the true reasons behind the dementia- and what made the victims go crazy.

So this starts a bit slow, gets very twisty and chilling in the middle, and by the end is a train ride through crazytown. And in a good way. I was completely hooked by the end and was very invested in the characters, especially the main ones, and the ending was perfect. 

52 comments:

  1. It sounds like I’ve read this story before but that doesn’t stop me from wanting to read it. I’m such a sucker for these type of stories.

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    1. I think I've read similar, too- Before Mars by Emma Newman has some similarities, I think.

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  2. This would definitely be too slow for me but the themes are interesting.

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    1. It takes a while to get going, but man, the end...

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  3. Oh wow, I didn't realise this dealt with such intense themes -- addiction is definitely an unexpected aspect of it.

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    1. I was surprised by how much the addiction played into the story!

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  4. Glad to hear you enjoyed this one, too! It was definitely very unique and imaginative! And yeah, I loved that ending.

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  5. This sounds great and very intriguing.
    Wonderful review.
    Lynn :D

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  6. Glad you enjoyed it. This book is new to me and I love how the title is arranged on the cover. Thanks for sharing your opinions.

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    1. I saw it a while back and have been waiting to get to it, and I'm glad I finally did!

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  7. Wow, this sounds like quite a ride. Seems like there might be a bit of an unreliable narrator thing going on with Gillian and that always adds an extra twist.

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    1. Gillian was VERY unreliable at times, especially in the middle, due to her addiction, so I was waiting for anything to happen!

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  8. Good to know it picks up after awhile. I am really curious about this one. Sounds so good!!

    -Lauren
    www.shootingstarsmag.net

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    1. I would give it a shot, it's totally worth the slightly slow beginning.

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  9. Great review - you might have just sold me! :)

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  10. I've seen this one before and thought it sounded good. Glad you confirmed it!
    sherry @ fundinmental

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  11. oh that's great that you were hooked like that! I'm not a big fan of space but why not?

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    1. I don't always read a ton of space either, even though I like SF, but this one grabbed me!

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  12. I'm glad you enjoyed this one by the end, Greg! Slow books aren't fun, but those that make your suffering (and test your reading patience) worth it are well... worth it? (On a side that was super bad.)

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    1. It was definitely worth a slightly slow start.

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  13. Going crazy in space? Sounds kind of awesome. :)

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  14. Oh my! This sounds like an intriguing read! You're review definitely has me interested in checking it out! :)

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  15. Ooh, I like the sound of this. It sounds very twisty and a little chilling. Love when endings leave you satisfied.

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    1. Very chilling, especially in the middle when it's her alone... ack I say too much. :) Course the end is kinda chilling too.

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  16. Oh this sounds like a really good one. I will be adding this one to my wish list.

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  17. This really was a wild ride, wasn't it? It started the way I expected...and then out came the twists out of nowhere! But like you said, it's a trip to crazytown but in a good way. I'm glad you enjoyed it, I did too!

    ~Mogsy @ BiblioSanctum

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  18. Wowww this sounds good! I forgot that I already added it the first time you told me about it, and tried to add it again, so there's that. But I DID add it to my wishlist too! I love that it's twisty, and it sounds quite unique to boot! Great review!

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  19. I love that this sounds like such a wild and crazy ride. I just bought a copy a week or so ago when it was on sale at Amazon. Can't wait to get to it, especially after reading your review.

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  20. This cover is so pretty!! I didn't realize what exactly this book was about, but I'm off to add it to my TBR because it sounds amazing! Thanks for the great review!

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  21. oh this book had me at the title! WHOHOOOOO who can resist a book titled "Obscura"??? not me! and then you shad me at "mind- bending", "addiction" and "high stress environments" "twisty and chilling" "train ride through crazytown"!!! XD
    I WANT TO READ IT
    Great review Greg!

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    1. You should definitely get this one- I'd love to know what you think!

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  22. I love books like this. I hope my Overdrive has a copy!

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  23. Wow, what an amazing review! That was so detailed (and long haha). I hope you're not too stressed by how wild this book was (I know I will be).

    https://www.thereadinglifeblog.com/single-post/2018/09/14/Book-Review-To-All-the-Boys-Ive-Loved-Before-by-Jenny-Han

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  24. This is the first time that I have heard of this one and you have sold me on it! I am a little nervous about the creepy factor, but the sci-fi and addiction elements sound amazing. The TBR grows again. ;)

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  25. I have such a difficult time with thrillers but your reviews always make me want to keep trying lol

    Karen @ For What It's Worth

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  26. I read this one and really enjoyed it. I wanted more after that ending tho!

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  27. This sounds like a wonderful autumn book! I'm wary of thrillers and horror (more of a suspense and mystery girl), but I'm willing to try new things. I love that this one focuses on paranoia as well … did it make you feel paranoid, too? That would be trippy.

    Lindsi @ Do You Dog-ear?

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  28. I was excited when I first came across this. Now you've convinced me to move it up in my stack!

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  29. I feel like you read quite a few mind-bending kinda book, and maybe I should try one since I look a good mind-bender every now and then! Maybe not this one though since I'm not good with spooky lol. Glad you liked it so much though!

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  30. Brilliant review, this sounds completely awesome. A mind bending read like this sounds exactly like the kind of book I wouldn't discover for myself but now I've read about it I really want to give it a shot because it sounds so good (even if I might need the light on).

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  31. Great review Greg! Sounds like a book I'd really enjoy too...off to check it out :)
    #TalkoftheTown

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    1. I thought of you when I was reading Greg's fab review Lindsay :) It has the elements you love plus maybe push you out of your comfort zone a little?
      #TalkoftheTown

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  32. Not sure about starting a bit slow, but if I push through it to the twisty part then all is good

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  33. I have never heard of this book before but I really like the title and the cover. It sounds like a really good book and read, maybe perfect for this spooky themed month! Which is perfect. I love a good twist and it sounds like I would definitely get that with this one.

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