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Written over 30 years ago, Replay feels very familiar, to the point that I read portions and wondered if I had read the book when it first came out. Many of the ideas and beats in this story can be found in later time-loop fictional works—using knowledge of the past to make money, to try to stop some past tragedy, or to find a more satisfying partner after a failed marriage in the original timeline.

What is odd about Replay is that there is seemingly no point to the time loops. In Groundhog Day, Bill Murray is doomed to keep repeating the same day until he becomes a better person. In Edge of Tomorrow, Tom Cruise is repeating the same day in the hope of figuring out how to defeat the alien invasion. In Replay, Jeff just keeps reliving a smaller and smaller section of his past. He lives his life differently each time, but his choices make no difference to the ultimate outcome. Nor does his extended lifespan make him a drastically different or better person.

Replay is an interesting book, and an influential one. But a consequence of that influence is that I feel like I’ve seen and read other, similar, better versions of this story elsewhere. I suspect many of the people who really love this book read it a long time ago.