Hmm. Starts out strong and intriguing but your interest gets lost a bit among too many characters. The characters are well-written, which may be the problem—just too much to juggle here for what should be a relatively simple story. ( )

Brilliant mix of thriller and science fiction, engaging with a magic moment in which an Air France Boeing and its passengers, travelling from Paris to New York, get duplicated during a storm. The one Boeing lands in March, the duplicated one in June. The duplication raises all kinds of existential problems and questions, in particular for the passengers themselves, the security apparatus and the wider human community. This anomaly is dealt with in different ways. It is treated as a threat, a sign of God, an opportunity to mend ways, or as a sign of the end of time.

The way Le Tellier relates the story is by splitting the book in three parts. In part 1 we get to know various characters that were on the plane. In part 2, the second Air France plane re-appears and is guided to a Military airbase. Here the security forces and two Princeton computer geeks have to execute their own (ludicrous) protocol dealing with such eventualities. The crew and passengers are held in isolation and questioned. Meanwhile their doppelgangers are apprehended and ferried to the air base. In part 3, the various passengers and crew are allowed to engage with their alter egos and work out a new way of dealing with the aftermath of a shared identity. Those who want, can opt for a witness protection program and continue their lives as different persons.

So what struck me, raised my interest? Le Tellier has found an interesting prism, with the duplicating plane, for exploring some existential questions, neatly elaborated in personal cases. First, there is the gimmick of the hired assassin, who goes missing from the hangar (creating a fire, escaping, taking on a different identity), travels back to Paris and kills his alter ego (chopping up his body in acid, making him disappear). Problem fixed. Second, there is the response of the security apparatus (isolation of the June flight, implementation of a silly protocol dreamed up by a couple of nerd students, mobilization of Nobel Prize winners, presidential coordination with Xi Jinping and Macron), which Le Tellier uses to analyse the banality of power (both political and scientific). Third, is the response of society as a whole and religious pundits/fanatics – le Tellier shows how the security forces try to coax consensus out of all religious leaders, crafting a uniform message of harmony and peace. But that proves futile once the religious fanatics go to town on this unusual event: an opportunity to announce the end of times, or take action, such as the futile killing of a young actress and her alter ego after presenting their case in a famous late night talk show. Fourth, and probably most interesting, are the impact of dealing with 3 missing months of life, for a number of key personalities that have been introduced in part 1. What happens if your alter ego fell pregnant, changing the dynamic of a love relationship (well, the non pregnant alter ego decides to cut loose and change her identity, despite secretly hoping to regain her lover). What happens when an obscure writer produces a master piece and kills himself, only for his alter ego to return in public life and enjoy the newly gained fame (well the latter is exactly what happens, and moreover, he exhibits a totally care free view on life while attracting a new love life). What happens when a relationship that was dead in the water anyway, is viewed upon by the disappointed party three months on? (some kind of wisdom shines thru, but also a kind of infinite sadness and a knee-jerk response to warn his alter ego for what is coming and if at all possible to behave differently to save the affair). What happens when your daughter has been abused by her PTSS afflicted dad in the three months of your absence? What happens when a boy suddenly finds himself saddled with two envious moms? (well, he simply proposes a rational time-sharing system that his mom(s) could never have devised). What happens when a patient with fatal pancreatic cancer gets a second chance at saving his own life, through a new procedure? (well, this the saddest case – the man dies again and his brother, wife and kids have to undergo the same painful process twice…). It is in the individual cases that Le Tellier can table and discuss the big questions in life. Brilliant idea. ( )

(2021) SF? Mystery? Hard to tell, but I loved it. This is one weird book about a collection of people that seem to have nothing in common except for a Air France flight they were on in March that encounters turbulence but land safely. Then in June the same plane and passengers lands again after the turbulence. Duplicates of the plane and passengers yet not in subtle ways. How do the originals and duplicates cope? Ends with the US shooting down a 3rd Air France flight with the same triplicates. And then it ends or does it?KIRKUS: A mystifying phenomenon sends shock waves through the world of an alternate 2021.The opening chapter presents a detailed portrait of a professional assassin called Blake, a man described as ?extremely meticulous, cautious, and imaginative.? The same adjectives could be applied to author Le Tellier: Trained as a mathematician and a scientific journalist, he uses these first pages to prime the reader for his methodically crafted story. The action then abruptly jumps to Victor Miesel, a disillusioned author and translator who becomes ?mired in a horrible impression of unreality? after a turbulent flight. Over the following weeks, Miesel feverishly writes a new book called The anomaly, sends it to his editor, and kills himself. Then, snap, a new chapter begins, introducing a film editor named Lucie, who, along with every subsequently introduced character (eleven, altogether), is inexplicably requisitioned by the authorities.The connection between these people soon becomes clear: They were all passengers on the same turbulent flight. What exactly happened on this airplane? Le Tellier withholds the details for long enough that revealing the mystery here would spoil the entrancing quality of the book. Hunter's brilliant translation from the French¥her fifth collaboration with Le TellierÂ¥transforms Le Tellier's distinct French voice into a distinct English one. More importantly, Hunter captures the playful exhilaration with which Le Tellier marries his audacious plot to a deep concern for existentialist philosophy. Excerpts from Miesel's The anomaly appear in epigraphs for each new section, including: ?There is something admirable that always surpasses knowledge, intelligence, and even genius, and that is incomprehension.?Humorous, captivating, thoughtfulÂ¥existentialism has never been so thrilling.Pub Date: Nov. 23, 2021ISBN: 978-1-63542-169-9Page Count: 336Publisher: Other Press

A remarkable fiction, provocative on so many levels. Disentangling the stories, I fear, could take the rest of my life, such that I would never have enough peace of mind to read another book.

It so much reminds me of Kafka’s Metamorphosis, where a man wakes up one the morning only to discover, to his dismay, that overnight he has become a cockroach.

I don’t know how else to describe it, but the universe twists in upon itself in this story, giving the characters untenable choices to continue living, in most cases, but not all.

The key conceit in this story is the invention of exact duplicates of yourself. Can you imagine how you would feel to discover there was an exact replica of yourself running around? I know I would be totally creeped out. There are just some memories rolling around in my mind I wouldn’t want anybody — even my twin — knowing. ( )

The beginning chapters move quickly from one character to the other over the course of months: a man starts his profession as a hitman; an author and translator writes a book, then kills himself for reasons unknown; an architect and his girlfriend break up; and more. As time slowly moves on, however, we realize that all of them have something in common. They were on the same flight, that hit turbulence, and landed in New York in March. But three months later, another plane with the same 200+ passengers emerges from the clouds.

A fascinating "what if" that explores the nature of reality, individuality and second chances. Exactly what caused the "anomaly" becomes less important than what each character decides to do with it. Some manage to get along with their doppelgangers, some most definitely do not. Some have to live with a similar set of circumstances all over again, while others can learn from the first person's mistakes and make other choices. And the ending... I will be pondering this one for some time, and may have to reread it to feel like I've fully comprehended it. A lot of characters and moving pieces without a lot of answers, this is a good recommendation for fans of LOST and Annihilation. ( )