A Mind-Bending Sci-Fi Fever Dream You Won’t Forget
5 out of 5 stars
Wow. Just wow. Colossus by Ryan Leslie, narrated by Craig Brewer, took me on a journey through space, memory, and the human psyche that left my head spinning—in the best way possible. It’s a wild ride that feels like a brilliant mash-up of Inception and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, but with a heavy dose of sci-fi goodness. If you’re ready to have your brain thoroughly scrambled and your heart quietly tugged at, this audiobook is for you.
From the first chapter, it was clear that this story was designed to mess with my head, and I loved every second of it. The narrative jumps around like a fever dream, yet it’s all deliberate—a reflection of Clay West’s fractured reality and the eerie false memories that plague him. The psychological depth is as fascinating as the science fiction world-building. As Clay grapples with grief, existential questions, and a sense of déjà vu that borders on paranoia, I found myself questioning everything right alongside him. Is this real? Is anything real? And yet, amidst all the chaos, a surprisingly tender romance anchors the story.
Leslie’s storytelling is meticulous yet surreal, and Craig Brewer’s narration elevates it to another level. Brewer captures Clay’s internal struggles and the unraveling tension aboard the ship with remarkable precision. His voice brought the characters to life, immersing me so deeply that I often felt like a ghost aboard the doomed vessel, watching everything unfold. (If I were to complain about one thing it would be Brewer’s timing between chapters. Since this was such a fever dream. It felt like my brain needed a longer pause to understand we were changing chapters, and, therefore, likely, changing time, place, people, etc).
It’s a story that doesn’t just entertain—it makes you think, feel, and question. I’m sure that another listen would reveal even more that I missed.
Whether you’re a die-hard sci-fi fan, a lover of psychological drama, or just someone who enjoys a story that keeps you guessing, Colossus delivers on every level. Just be prepared—you won’t come out of this journey the same person you were when you started.
Book Description:
For fans of psychological SF novels like THE GONE WORLD and SIX WAKES
Economics professor Clay West has always explained the world through the lens of his profession. But after his girlfriend Karla takes Dying Wish—a drug that supposedly reveals the nature of reality moments before it claims your life—Clay is devastated. No amount of rationalization can explain Karla’s actions.
Distraught, Clay joins a mission into the dark emptiness of space where answers are promised to reside. But when the ship begins to malfunction, Clay and the surviving crew members suspect there’s more to the mission than they’ve been told. They’ve been lied to, and they’re drifting into dead space.
Clay’s memories of Karla haunt him even more than the ship’s chaos, and there’s something wrong with his memories: he has too many. The ship’s Al tells Clay his false memories are a normal side-effect of the hibernation, but to Clay, the memories suggest something far more insidious.
He’s been on this ship before…
Colossus by Ryan Leslie
Narrator: Craig Brewer
Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
Published by Self Published on August 4th 2024
Genres: Science Fiction, Technothriller, Psychological Thriller
Format: Audiobook
Buy from Audible
I’ve loved reading since I was little when my dad would read me Dr. Suess books. Fast-forward a little and I noticed that he was always reading on his lunch breaks at work, and I wondered why.Then, I found a book that took me to another place and time, to another feeling,another sense of “being”.It was the first book that I ever fell in love with, and I’ve been chasing that feeling ever since.
