Reviews

Full Immersion by Gemma Amor

richtate's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

A gorgeous and melancholy fever dream full of hope and monsters. 

ilaria4's review

dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

geofroggatt's review against another edition

3.0

I loved how the foreword includes a note from the author that really establishes how deeply intimate, raw, and personal this story is for her. Full Immersion, Gemma Amor’s deeply personal sci-fi horror, opens with a cry for help from the protagonist, Magpie, who pleads to be accepted into a new Virtual Experimental Therapy program to overcome her postpartum depression. Magpie has tried all traditional forms of therapy but still finds herself sinking further into despair. Her letter to the Virtual Experimental Therapy program concludes with three devastating words: “Please help me.” This book had the energy of a Cronenberg body horror movie, and I do believe that an adaptation directed by Brandon Cronenberg would make for an excellent movie. I’m not a fan of stories that follow a protagonist through their mind or memories if it spans the entire book, but this story was still impactful despite how I didn’t like the format of how it was told. It was also nice that we got perspective outside of the protagonist’s occasionally, which helped with pacing and prevented me from being too tired from one singular perspective. This is the first book I’ve read that felt like it was written for a specific niche and personal audience, and that made it special despite the fact that it wasn’t written for me. This book was so incredibly personal for the author and was meant to be read by people in her personal life, and there was a certain intimacy that permeated the story because of that, a level I’ve never truly felt before aside from memoirs and autobiographies. Despite having a few personal gripes with the storytelling format and certain tropes, I recognize that this novel is deeply personal and I respect the author for using this fictional story as a vehicle to work through personal demons and share that with the people in her life. I recommend this book for people who seek catharsis from the death of a child through fiction, but with a warning that it may be intense in certain passages when dealing with this very real trauma. There’s something to be said about a writer using their story as a vehicle to exorcise their pain, and this novel is an example of that.

onetrackmind77's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

allapaz's review

4.75

inventive, harrowing, challenging, emotional, powerful
slow-burn horror, psychological thriller, sci fi goodness, and real human emotions, what a ride

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror and Pregnancy

there's a gnarly birth-related body horror scene that like chest-bursters x1000, just fyi

read_amanda_read's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

asha_17's review

4.0

3.75*

I really loved the premise of this. The horror of PPD was explored along with this strange VR technology. Some of the scenes were genuinely creepy and creative! However, some scenes were too repetitive

emily_reyes_234's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

redrumreads's review

5.0

There are few times in my life when I see mental health portrayed in a way I say “now that is a brilliant, powerful way to give this life”… this book is one of those times.
The intrusive thoughts and the self-destruction was so raw. This was far beyond a sci-fi horror book. I think this should be read by so many people.

bookwyrm55's review

5.0

This novel is deeply complex, and entirely compelling. I listened to the audiobook, which is narrated by the author, Gemma Amor, and I can’t imagine a more perfect voice to bring such a deeply personal story to life.
Magpie, this is how we know her, has signed up for an experimental therapeutic program involving virtual reality. She wakes in a strange place and almost immediately discovers her own body, beneath a suspension bridge, clearly having jumped. A man appears shortly after – her friend – and we begin the slow, deeply detailed descent into this new world, where she tries to unravel how she died, and why she is in this strange place, with this strange man. Such a narrative could have been confusing, but the details and the research that clearly went into this render it seamless and easy to follow.
What Magpie doesn’t know is that on the other side of glass panels, a tech and his boss are monitoring progress, tweaking programs, and caring for her physical form as she makes her way through a maze of memories, experiences, and objects culled from her past in search of her solution. Their careers depend on her success.
Magpie’s mind is very dark, and powerful. Despite attempts to guide her, things topple from the rails as she grows more confident and powerful. Stalked by a dark creature from her nightmares, rediscovering memories as she goes, Magpie plunges herself, her new friend, and the program into deeper and deeper darkness, seeking a light at the end.
The narration is spot on. Characters are distinct and have their own agendas. You can feel Magpies pain, and her triumphs. Truly a wonderful book.