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Reviewed by Gaius Konstantine for Readers' Favorite
“And when you've been immersed in the warmth of a passionate soul for longer than you can remember. The world turns an unbearable cold the moment they are gone.” The world is a strange place in He Who Lived on the Lethe, a novel by Bella Ding. It's fascinating, beautiful, and deadly. For Alexander Skye, a talented ADA in San Francisco, it's also a sad place filled with memories of his dead husband, Li Jing. Li was a groundbreaking scientist who, along with a close friend, died in an accidental fire. Or did he? Having worked with AI and the human mind, all the evidence points to two things: the fire was not an accident, and Li also managed to digitally clone himself. However, evidence can be misleading. As Alex strives to learn the truth, he may discover that the truth can often be unkind.
Sophisticated, intricate, and constantly evolving, He Who Lived on the Lethe by Bella Ding blends light sci-fi, mystery, conspiracy, and same-sex romance into a novel that works. The main plot centers on a man trying to unravel a puzzle of personal importance in the very near future. At the same time, it is also a story of romance. Multiple themes, including grief, relationships, and the implications of AI in our future, form the backbone of the novel and actually work better than I anticipated. Character development centers on the two protagonists, and both are well-fleshed-out individuals. The pace is leisurely, and the book alternates between the present and past with every other chapter, resulting in a read that will not be finished quickly. Overall, He Who Lived on the Lethe is perfectly suited for a liberal audience seeking a blend of genres.
