The Merge (2025) by Grace Walker. I was sucked in by the cover design and stayed for the content. This dystopian sci-fi and existential mystery novel follows four pairings of people who are merging under the watchful eye of the Combine company. We primarily follow 23-year-old Amelia (the Host) and her mother with early-onset Alzheimer's, Laurie (the Transfer), as they merge into one new being containing two persons, Laurie-Amelia. The first half of the book follows their journey of pre-operative preparations, and raises many questions about personhood and being. The second half of the book takes place after the surgery and quickly spirals into many levels of personal hell. The mechanics of the Merge are never fully explained, which is preferable to slogging through a lot of pseudoscience. Laurie's Alzheimer's challenges our grasp on the stories being told and shared. Is she a reliable narrator? This was a brisk read for me, with good pacing and plenty of intrigue and surprises. Recommended.
Checked out from the Puyallup Public Library
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