A review by angorarabbit
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Clarketech:  A working Schrodinger’s Cat Box. 
 
Bloophole:  Where was the money coming from, and why was it always barely enough? 
 
TLDR: A good thriller for those who are not thriller readers, but not much substance. 
 
The plot was interesting and the story well written. Jason was an fully rounded character. Other characters not so much. Female characters in particular seem to only follow the male character’s wishes. I was mostly satisfied with the ending, though Amanda seemed to get short shrift. 
 
The rest of this review is skirting spoiler territory and nerd ranting. 
 
The many worlds interpretation (MWI) is essential for the plot. However the book seems to theorise that the point that a world becomes real is when a human makes a choice This interpretation makes for exciting reading, but no logical sense. 
 
MWI states that ALL possible outcomes of quantum measurements are physically realised in some world. So there would be endless worlds where Janson, Daniela, Charlie, their apartment, Chicago, etc. are all exactly the same. Assuming that a Schrodinger’s Cat Box could be made, and that human desires could direct it Jason should have popped out in endless realities where everything he knew and loved was exactly the same. How would he know which Daniela and Charlie were his? 
 
This kept niggling at my brain the whole time, so rather disrupted my enjoyment of a story of a man desperately regaining what he loved and of another man’s attempt to change the consequences of his choices. 

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