43 pages 1 hour read

Blake Crouch

Recursion

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2019

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Book 5Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Book 5

Chapter Summary: “BARRY - April 16, 2019”

Barry gains consciousness sitting next to Helena in the desert. They failed to erase the chair. The world will remember it today. Barry remembers this lifetime. They met in a bar, fell in love, and got married. Helena told him about the chair, and they rebuilt it. The news is full of mass suicides and political upheaval. Helena is going to try again.

Soldiers arrive at their house. Helena gets in the tank, flatlining as a grenade destroys the door.

The timeline shifts to another version of the day. They are in Denver, and they were unsuccessful again. An emergency alert warns of incoming missiles. The time shifts have been viewed as war acts. A missile decimates their home, but the lab survives. They send Helena back.

The timeline shifts. They’re in Maine. They were unsuccessful again. They send Helena back. 

The timeline shifts. Helena never came to find Barry. He married Julia and became a detective. Barry calls Jee-woon and asks about undoing dead memories. Jee-woon confirms Slade managed this once, but he doesn’t know how.

The timeline shifts. Barry wakes up with Helena in Scotland. They were unsuccessful again. They send her back.

The timeline shifts. They’re in California, and they have Slade captive.