Welcome to Forever

Tavares (A Fractured Infinity) confounds in this jam-packed mind-bender set in an Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind–style world where memories can be altered and erased. Professional memory editor Fox was employed by mega-company NIL/E to code better memories for his customers. Then came the terror attack that killed his husband, Gabe. The trauma leaves Fox with amnesia, so he checks into the Field of Reeds Center for Memory Reconstruction, hoping to regain what he lost. However, when the memories slowly begin to return to Fox, he realizes he was a “selfish, controlling asshole” to Gabe and discovers some shocking revelations that cause him to question his reality. From the start, it’s hard to keep track of all the tech that goes into editing people’s brains, and as more levels of memory and reality are exposed, things become even more slippery. While Tavares asks intriguing questions about what’s essential to humanity, there’s too much clutter to be able to think clearly about the answers. This is tough to get a handle on. (Mar.)