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208 pages, Hardcover
First published November 24, 2014
"Not zombies," I said, feeling cold. "Cancer. You created a virus that gives people cancer."This is the second in a series of short novels about Steve, a genius who consults for various people or companies who need complex problems solved. Steve has an intriguing mental illness: he hallucinates different personae (he's up to 47 now) who each take on a particular field of knowledge or skill that Steve has. And once he passes off his knowledge about, say, computers to a particular hallucinatory character, that knowledge is utterly unavailable to him unless the character tells him about it.
"It was an unintended result that is perfectly manageable," Laramie said, "and only dangerous if used malignly. And why would anyone want to do that?"
We all stared at him for a moment.
"Let's shoot him," J.C. said.
"Thank heavens," Tobias replied. "You haven't suggested we shoot someone in over an hour, J.C. I was beginning to think something was wrong."
"No, listen," J.C. said. "We can shoot Pinhead McWedgy over there, and it will teach everyone in this room an important life lesson. One about not being a stupid mad scientist."
"Just imagine your sense of accomplishment," I said. "You’re imaginary, so imaginary accomplishment should work for you."So. The plot. It's a mystery about a man who was a pioneer in biotechnology, and developed a method for storing massive amounts of information in the cells of the human body. He's believed to have stored some ground-breaking scientific information in his body before he died. And his corpse has now gone missing.
"But if I’m imaginary, and I imagine something, it’s doubly unreal. Like using a copy machine to copy something that’s just been copied."
“I’m not crazy, I’m compartmentalized.�Stephen Leeds, 47 hallucinations, the most sensible guy you'll ever get to meet. Occupation: solving strange mysteries. A genius? No. He would tell you his aspects do all the work for him. They know everything there is to know about everything. And if they don't? No problem. Steve reads about a specific skill/topic and tada! New aspect at your service. Pretty handy huh? Well, it does get kind of crowded sometimes�
Keeping track of forty-seven hallucinations is tough enough. If I had to imagine their in-laws too, I just might end up going crazy.And it can make going on dates problematic, especially when some of your hallucinations tag along�
“Like that guy,� she said. “In that movie.� “Sure. Like that. Only he was crazy, and I’m not.� “Oh, yeah,� Ivy said. “What a great way to put her at ease. Explain in depth how not crazy you are.�So here we have Steve and his very crowded box of cats on a mission to recover a missing corpse and retrieve information from it. Said information being stored in the corpse's DNA. Now how cool is that?! Where only a few aspects tagged along in Legion, Steve has all of his forty seven hallucinations brainstorming in the "White Room" to solve this particular mystery, each one researching a particular field. Did I already say how cool this book was? Oh well.
“No, really,� Audrey said. “Shoot me. Go ahead. Then, when it doesn’t do anything because we’re both imaginary, you’ll have to admit the truth: That you’re crazy, even for a figment of a deranged man’s psyche. That he imagined you as a repository for information. That, in truth, you’re just a flash drive yourself, J.C.�Ah J.C.! Steve's security go-to guy and my favourite trigger-happy Navy SEAL turned Interdimensional Time Ranger! I think I'm in love. The guy cracks me up. He was funny enough in Legion but here he is just hilarious. He has a life of his own, doesn't necessarily follow Steve's orders and is in total denial of what he is. I love the way he keeps trying to convince himself that he isn't imaginary.
“I’ve got it figured out, Skinny. We’re all from this other place, see. And when you need some help, you reach out and snatch us. You’re some kind of physics wizard.� “A . . . physics wizard?� “Yup. And I’m no Navy SEAL. I’ve just got to accept that.� He paused. “I’m an Interdimensional Time Ranger.�What really amazed me here is how well thought-out the book is. Everything, every action, every tiny bit of information makes sense in an completely insane way. There is an implacable logic to Steve's lack of sanity. I couldn't find a single flaw in Sanderson's amazing concept. All the pieces fit perfectly: Steve's supposed mental disorder, his relationship with his aspects, his acceptance of what they are and of the way they shape his life, his control (or lack thereof) over them, the way the aspects interact with each other, the philosophical conversations they have about their existence� This really is the most original, creative plotline I have read in a long long long time. By the way, did I already say how cool this book was? Oh well.
“Who wouldn’t want to date you? You’re a steal! One body, forty people. Infinite variety.�Need more uber coolness? Sure, no problem! Here goes: murdering amphibians, Ivy, ice-cream bars, gorilla enclosures for nerds, Audrey, zombies, Pinhead McWedgy, assassins, code 876, Ngozi, imaginary sense of accomplishment, doomsday viruses, prudes, Achmed, insanity aligning with reality, smet, Rahul, viqxuixs, hostile takeovers, infinite batmans.
“Cancer. You created a virus that gives people cancer.�
Garvas winced. “Kind of?�
“It was an unintended result that is perfectly manageable,� Laramie said, “and only dangerous if used malignly. And why would anyone want to do that?�
We all stared at him for a moment.
“Let’s shoot him,� J.C. said.
“Thank heavens,� Tobias replied. “You hadn’t suggested we shoot someone in over an hour, J.C. I was beginning to think something was wrong.�
“No, listen,� J.C. said. “We can shoot Pinhead McWedgy over there, and it will teach everyone in this room an important life lesson. One about not being a stupid mad scientist.�
� I’m not crazy, I’m compartmentalized. Unfortunately, my aspects . . . well, they tend to be a little unhinged..�
“Like that guy,� she said. “In that movie.�
“Sure. Like that. Only he was crazy, and I’m not.�
“Oh, yeah,� Ivy said. “What a great way to put her at ease. Explain in depth how not crazy you are.�
“Aren’t you supposed to be a therapist?� I snapped back at her. “Less sarcasm would be delightful.� That was a tall order for Ivy. Sarcasm was kind of her native tongue, though she was fluent in “stern disappointment� and “light condescension� as well. She was also a good friend. Well, imaginary friend
“Being an imaginary person makes it difficult to feel any real sense of accomplishment.�
“Just imagine your sense of accomplishment,� I said. “You’re imaginary, so imaginary accomplishment should work for you.�
“But if I’m imaginary, and I imagine something, it’s doubly unreal. Like using a copy machine to copy something that’s just been copied.�
“Actually,� Tobias said, strolling up, “theoretically the imaginary sense of accomplishment would have to be imagined by the primary imaginer, so it wouldn’t be an iteration as you suggest.�
“Thank heavens,� Tobias replied. “You hadn’t suggested we shoot someone in over an hour, J.C. I was beginning to think something was wrong.�
“No, listen,� J.C. said. “We can shoot Pinhead McWedgy over there, and it will teach everyone in this room an important life lesson. One about not being a stupid mad scientist.�