Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From a Memory

by Peter Orullian

Nicholas Santori has had troubling dreams all his life. With the anniversary of his daughter's death, those dreams have gotten worse, threatening the stability of his family and perhaps his own safety. After receiving cryptic messages about his dreams from his clairvoyant son, Nicholas seeks help from an eccentric hypnotherapist. During regression Nicholas learns that in a former life he was a girl named Victoria Page, that she was murdered, and that her case was never truly solved. Believing he can end his nightmares if he can solve Victoria's murder, he finds retired detective Colin Murphy, and together, they hope to solve the cold case, while someone is desperately trying to stop them.

Orullian deftly weaves the two sides of this interconnected story across the twentieth century. From nightmares, to zeppelins, to train heists, to mafia hits, to heartfelt conversations about loss, Orullian's propulsive imagining of Dream Theater's critically acclaimed album Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From a Memory is by turns thrilling, suspenseful, and poignant.

Genres: Fiction

352 pages, Paperback

Published October 26, 2024

About the author

Peter Orullian has worked in marketing at Xbox for nearly a decade, most recently leading the Music and Entertainment marketing strategy for Xbox LIVE, and has toured as a featured vocalist internationally at major music festivals. He has published several short stories. The Unremembered is his first novel. He lives in Seattle. "

Reviews

[Daniel Lavan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love this book for the story; reading a novelization of one of my favorite albums of all time is such a treat. And Orullian does a great job of adding to the story and creating an intriguing whodunnit (even when I've heard the album countless times and know the ending). But the writing is just very lacking. The characters don't speak, act, or respond like real people. E.g., one of the main characters is a normal, every day dude but he gets caught in a shoot out. They get in the car and drive away quickly, and then picks up his ringing phone and answers like normal. I give the book a 2/5, but I still enjoyed it at the end of the day.

[Glenn Pillsbury · Rating 2 out of 5]

I mean, it’s entertaining enough if you’re a DT fan and get the lyric references sprinkled throughout. All very nudge-nudge-wink-wink. But as a story, as a book, it’s all so earnest and clichéd. It does what it needs to do as a companion to the album, but it doesn’t come close to standing on its own as something you should seek out independently.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Writing a novelization of a highly successful, 25-year-old concept album is certainly a difficult and ambitious task. I think overall, Peter Orullian has done a fine job. I appreciated the "inside" references and nuances that only dedicated Dream Theater fans would pick up on. Does this novel have appeal beyond the Dream Theater fanbase? Probably not. Would it stand on its own? Again, probably not.

Of course, adapting the album into a full-length novel meant that Orullian had to take some liberties with the story. Some of his choices I liked, while others I didn't really like. Overall, though, this would be a fun read for any Dream Theater fan.

[Sean Faust · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read a few of Peter Orullian's other books I was pretty excited when he and Dream Theater announced this book's coming release. His ability to expand upon ideas large (The Astonishing) and not as large (Wired For Madness) with his own creative voice always adds new depth.

This time around he built a larger world in a story that people have known for at least 25 years and gave it such wonderful new elements that one might even forget they know how the story ends.

Scenes From A Memory kept me engaged with every turn of the page. I highly recommend it not just for fans of Dream Theater's legendary concept album but for readers interested in well crafted world building and mystery.

I've read four of the author's works so far and am looking very forward to diving into more.

[John M · Rating 3 out of 5]

Characters aren't that great, but the book really picked up half way through. Fun to read a novelization of one of my all time favourite albums.

[Jhemys Alves · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh... I was expecting more from this, but that's mostly because I love the band. Loved the references and all, but the book is quite forgettable...

[Murari Parasu · Rating 5 out of 5]

I imagine mainly Dream Theater fans would take the time to read this, so I’m not sure how much I would’ve enjoyed the book if I wasn’t already so familiar with the Metropolis Part 2 album. As a fan, I loved the book and how it expands on the stories of each of MP2’s characters, which will give me more to visualize during my future listens of the album. I’ve listened to MP2 countless times and know the plot and its twists yet still felt eager to see where the story was going.

Orullian did a great job balancing two timelines while tying them together in a whodunnit story. Some character moments felt kind of wooden but I didn’t mind too much. I appreciated the many Dream Theater easter eggs sprinkled throughout the book, especially the use of direct lyrics. In some cases, the execution was great, but it felt very forced at other times, like with some “The Spirit Carries On” quotes. It was, however, an appreciated additional way of connecting the album with the book as I’m sure Orullian’s intent was for those parts of the songs to echo in fans’ heads during those scenes.

I was annoyed by the sheer amount of typos though. There were even a few times he used the wrong names for characters. The lack of professionalism is a little astounding to me. Have some shame, Peter. Or a proofreader.

[Will N · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is very much written for fans of the Dream Theater it's based on -- both for better and for worse. It's a solid narrative that expands on elements of the story that were only hinted at before or simply wasn't room for in a 77-minute album. The ending in particular being expanded on is nice, since it was rather abrupt/inconclusive before. But it's hard to see there being much appeal beyond DT fans.

The writing in general is rather lacking and in need of a good editor. There's also a lot of references to song titles or lyrics from the album, and while *some* of them work, a lot of them don't and feel very forced--or just don't work out of the context of a rock opera. The words of "The Spirit Carries On" simply do not have the same impact here as they do in the song.

This is an enjoyable enough little bonus for DT fans like myself, but outside of that bubble, it's hard to see it doing much for anybody.

[Ian Yarington · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a huge fan of Orullian, his Vault of Heaven series is in my top 5 fantasy series of all time, and I knew I would want to check this out too. I wasn't ever a fan of Dream Theater but I listened to the entire album in preparation and I have to say that they made me a fan with an epic album.

The book is a lot of fun and after listening to the album I can see how big of an undertaking this must have been. Orullian put together a wonderfully complex story and it flows really well with the iconic album from DT. The characters are very well written and Orullian weaves in not just nods to the DT album but to music and sound itself. The main character restores old audio and the way Orullian describes sound and music are just on another level. If you are a fan of DT then this is a must, if you're not, it's still a wonderful book!

[Lucas Almanza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hello Victoria, so glad to see you, my friend. Highly impressive book. I've heard Scenes From A Memory (the album) countless times. This book does a good job at bringing the lyrics to life and yet also further explaining the story in a detailed manner that expands yet does not cheapen the source material. It makes one wonder if the answers were there the entire time. A mystery and a thriller with a twist ending that had me screaming! This book could be read by someone who's never heard the album and still find it entertaining. Classic characters that you fall in love with.. cheeky musical references. A love story. Highly enjoyable. Victoria's gone forever. Only memories remain...

[James Erickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite albums, fully fleshed out with extra details to really put you inside the album and the world created.

For those not in the know, it is the novelization of a concept album by the band Dream Theater. The story includes themes of murder, mystery, police procedural crime, gangster noir, political intrugue, and tine travel/sci fi-ish ness.

I have known the story for 15ish years and seen the album played in entirety live, but this was something special. It gives more background to further immerse yourself in the world of Metropolis (think of Gotham for Batman fans or mid 1900s NYC for reference).

Loved reading it.

[Dennis Elten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Het verhaal gebaseerd op het conceptalbum uit 1999. Dit verhaal vult de gaten op en maakt het conceptalbum sterker. Het verhaal speelt in twee tijden en gebruikt regressietherapie om alles aan elkaar te rijgen. Teksten uit de muziek zijn terug te horen en zijn nu meer logisch. Dit boek is een mooie aanvulling op het album en een must read voor iedere fan. Een aanrader.

[Athena Malone · Rating 3 out of 5]

If it weren’t based on one of the best albums of all time, I would not have come across and read it. I enjoyed the plot line but the overall pacing was inconsistent and the conclusion a bit of a letdown.

[Mal · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. It is one of my favorite albums, but it brought a whole new life to the story.

[malrubius · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great speculative fiction mystery with many surprising twists and turns. I think people who don't even know Dream Theater would like it.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good companion read to Dream Theater's concept album. And I like how there's now an epilogue of sorts to follow up the album's closing line of "Open your eyes Nicholas".

[David Rhodes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was a bit nervous to read a book of one of my favourite albums but this did not disappoint. It takes a truly talented author to write such a gripping book when you know the ending.

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read right before seeing Dream Theater in concert!

[Dallan Andrus · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are a fan of the concept album, you have to read this book. It is true to the story from the album, but adds so much detail and the ending is awesome.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this one SO MUCH MORE than The Astonishing. A lot of that is probably because the source material for this one isn't as cheesy, and a lot is because the album that this book is based on is my #1 favorite album of all time and what shaped my musical tastes for my life..

With that being said, it really is well-written -- switching between the two timelines, really expanding on the original story, and incorporating tons of lyrical references. There were a few parts that definitely were not realistic with the characters (as some others have mentioned...like their reactions to some of the situations they are put in)...but that honestly didn't bother me with the story at all.

There were much fewer errors in this book than Astonishing (you can read my review of that one), and the author's style really shined here.

I would recommend this book to most anyone that enjoys a good story, but absolutely anyone that has heard this album or likes Dream Theater at all.

[Russell Lee]

I've been a big Dream Theater fan for over thirty years now, and was very excited when this book was announced, but the truth is..

...this book is just plain terrible.

Some people talk about Hope characters don't talk and act like real people, but reading this book, it felt like the author (not only) couldn't be bothered getting any of the details right, he could only vaguely remember how the events played out in the story. For instance:

-- The death of Victoria and Nicholas took place in a "parkway out of view", not a house.

-- Nicholas final scene involved a knife and not a gun.

... and so on.

I hate being negative about a work of prose, but this is single-handily, the worst thing Dream Theater has ever put their name on. And they should feel bad about that.