There is No Antimemetics Division by QNTM

Rating: ★★★★★

This book has such a strong concept, and explores it so thoroughly. In the first chapter, we're introduced to the subject at hand: Antimemetics, ideas which destroy themselves. Or creatures which destroy the idea of themselves, and are impossible to remember.

From the first encounter, I was sucked in, but QNTM managed to continually outdo themselves throughout this novel. They pushed all their ideas to the furthest possible point, to incredible effect. This is that special type of sci-fi where you're absolutely certain that the author must be a genius in at least three or four fields to synthesize ideas like this.

And yet, for all that, it never comes off as pretentious or hard to follow. It keeps a fun, fast, accessible tone throughout, and never talks down to the reader.

Additionally, the characters all feel very real and well developed. And the plot-- which goes far beyond episodic run ins with one-off creatures-- is stunningly formed. And prior SCP knowledge is not required; I loved this novel without having ever read an SCP. However, my two friends who are SCP fans also loved it, and noted that there are several easter eggs for dedicated fans.

Recommendations:

Valuable Humans in Transit by QNTM. If QNTM's accessible, matter-of-fact exploration of complex science fiction ideas appeals to you, I can't recommend this short story collection enough. Once I picked it up I couldn't put it down. It is absolutely packed with unique concepts, niche scientific facts, and, of course, complex philosophical explorations of the potential impacts of things as simple as automatic breaking.

All Systems Red by Martha Wells. If you're a fan of the classic monster-of-the-week style sci-fi which There is No Antimemetics Division lovingly invokes, then you've got to read All Systems Red. In my review, I described it as reading like a brand new, especially good episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and I stand by that. It's a bonus that the Murderbot Diaries series has a lot of entries, all of which are short, bite-sized reads.