In the pages of Randall Barnes’ novel I read “passion-filled protagonists: each flirting with disaster, each forging their own way, each jam-packed with romance.” However, these are pages in a novel the wispy sylph Natalie reads before her own life frays, becoming insensible. Her romance-starved friends, the scientists Davan and Alistair, try to make sense of a new and mind–and lab–shaking discovery. A pair of precocious pre-teen boys have got themselves into trouble with a tech called the ‘mingle.’ And away cross town, a cop, himself dabbling in an affair of the heart, investigates dead bodies, trying to make sense of non-sensical evidence.

Mome has no single protagonist; there is only the handful of people, some of which who know each other, some unaware of the others, all trying to understand what is going wrong. And the antagonist is hidden from us. An individual? A rogue foundation, a faceless corporation? Rogue tech? Who can you trust? In this future, half the people you meet are partially or totally synthetic, AI, “reps.”

These are everyday lives–employment, budgets, protocols, kids, quantum physics–of real people trying to navigate a technology-addled existance in the big city that suddenly has become “zerty.” In his debut novel Barnes takes pleasure in unwinding this dilemma, and transports us to a satisfying end

First, don’t be intimated by the length. Barnes doesn’t waste a page. He gives you three different storylines that are very easy to follow. Each one is full of characters that are really easy to relate to, tons of fascinating futuristic gadgets, and many exciting discoveries. On top of that, there’s a murder mystery like no other at the center of it all. Also, you won’t be disappointed when all the storylines come together. Mome definitely has a different style than some of the other science fiction books I’ve read, but for me, it’s a book you won’t regret reading.

I really enjoyed MOME. I’m a science fiction fan but not a big on space operas, so I was first grabbed by the fact that the book revolves around a realization of the future that’s completely earth-bound and very accessible. it gave the whole thing credibility. The science felt real. The new technology was totally believable. The characters read like people you could meet on the street today. It felt like a clever mixture of Philip K. Dick and William Gibson combined with Fringe and film noir police procedurals. The best thing about MOME was the world-building, especially how the author invented new words and phrases to ground you in the future. If you like imaginative stories full of gripping intrigue, unique flourishes, and persuasive settings, I’d check out MOME.

If you’re a fan of science fiction that doesn’t skimp on the hard science but still gives you fast-paced excitement you may be the perfect reader for MOME. Take some theoretical physics and mix that with threatening virtual reality for a premise that brings unlikely partners together to solve a killer mystery. Randall Barnes creates characters you care about and a near-future world that looks and sounds enough like our own to easily draw the reader in, but develops the nuances of that world with language and atmosphere so we know we are not anywhere near familiar territory. I loved how Barnes uses language and technology and culture to fill out this familiar/strange setting. And the physics mystery at the core of the book is hugely engaging and intellectually challenging. It’s a page-turner with something to say about ethics in science and the capacity for heroism in each of us. I highly recommend MOME.

An intriguing blend of science fiction and mystery, filled with complex characters, escalating murders, and a web of conspiracies. McCary and Yazdani’s anomalies lead to high-stakes tension and uncover dangerous secrets. Definitely a book I would recommend!

“Do not read MOME if you are unprepared to be entertained in a very deep and profound way. Randall Barnes guides us through the intricate depths of a high tech mystery with the extraordinary adroitness of a master storyteller. MOME is a beautifully written first novel, which creates a claustrophobic tension, that causes the reader to need to hang on so as not to be thrown off, or worse yet, to be stuck in the shadows of a nightmare forever. Barnes is a smart writer. I appreciate that. I suspect others will as well.”