Doppelbänger

by W.H. Lockwood

Taking self-love to a whole new dimension…

August Blackthorne:

Pitifully broke? Check.
Fresh from a messy breakup? Check.
The apparent object of some weirdo stalker’s affection? Unfortunately, also check.

But everything changes when I finally get the chance to confront the guy who’s been terrorising me, only to discover that he’s actually… me. From a parallel universe. A smarter, more confident, sexy quantum physicist version of me.

And for some reason, he wants my help.

You’d think a super genius like him could find a better way to say hi, wouldn’t you?


August Blackthorne (the other one):

This was supposed to be simple: find the version of me in this reality, put our two genius brains together, and fix the problem I’ve created. Only this August isn’t a quantum physicist like I am. He’s a body-building, music-loving, karate-teaching absolute sweetheart.

And I’m falling hard for him. The kind of hard that could destroy the universe. Because unless we can find a way to undo this mess, his whole existence will be torn apart, atom by atom, him included.

But when he finds out who I really am, and what I’ve done, I know he’ll never want to see me again.

How am I supposed to save the universe when doing it will destroy the one person I truly care about?

Doppelbänger is the mind-bending, world-ending, utterly outrageous, action-packed, spicy sci-fi MM rom-com of your most warped daydreams. The ultimate story of self-love, weird science, and romance that defies the barriers of time and space, HEA guaranteed.

Genres: M M Romance, Science Fiction, Romance, LGBT, Fantasy, Queer, Adult

508 pages, Paperback

First published February 5, 2026

About the author

Author of the Endymion College series, W. H. Lockwood writes gothic romance, MM action-romance, historical fiction, dark academia and cosy horror.

Raised on a diet of teen horror books and Pepsi, only willing to leave her den to attend chess club at public school, W.H. Lockwood started writing at a young age and has kept this passion throughout her life.

Always a voracious reader, she obtained an undergraduate degree in literary studies from a gorgeous sandstone university, following that with a masters in publishing and editing, then a masters in astronomy, thus uniting her two great loves of the arts and science, leaving her utterly unqualified to cope with the real world.

These days, W.H. Lockwood can often be found aimlessly wandering the coffee shops and bookstores of the beautiful city she calls home.

Reviews

[acalithas · Rating 5 out of 5]

universe: go fuck urself
august: okay!!!!!

This book. What can I say about one of my favorite books I’ve read this year???!!! Too much probably. Ugh I loved everything about this! So good. Perfect blend of spice and science. I didn’t find the storyline hard to follow with all the smarty-genius talk. I loved August & August together!!! They are absolutely everything. So the same, yet so so different. I loved the uniqueness of this book.

I really appreciated the author’s use of exclamation points where any other author would probably just gloss over it with a period. It was hard, out, in his mouth! Yes, I liked this style of writing a lot.

I will say that I did struggle sometimes with mixing up which August pov I was reading so I did have to make a point to say “good August” and “bad August” out loud before starting a new chapter so I could remember lol.

This book was everything I wanted!!! I begged the author for an arc and they graciously let me have one, and I’m definitely leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you for writing this!!! I’m obsessed

[Sandy Kay]

This is too weird to resist. Falling for yourself when yourself is another self? Sign me up.

[apolimia · Rating 3 out of 5]

realmente espectacular sobretodo porque me imagine a los protagonistas como Hudson Williams.... excelente experiencia recomiendo 10/10 yo en las partes donde te explicaban viajes en el tiempo y toda la ciencia de fondo no entendía un pito aja si si pero después se ponían a cojer asi que yo feliz un buen balance

[GCR | Book Realm]

I received this ALC from the author

DOPPELBÄNGER had one of the wildest audiobook premises I’ve immediately said yes to. MM sci-fi romance, action, adventure, parallel universes, and a man falling for an alternate version of himself? Say less.

What I liked was that it never felt like the same exact person copied and pasted over and over. It reminded me loosely of We Are Legion (We Are Bob) and Dark Matter in the way different choices and experiences can turn people with the same origin into completely different people. That made the romance and character dynamics make sense and more interesting than I expected.

Grant Cartwright aka Rupert Channing absolutely nailed the audio. With this kind of story, the narration could have gotten confusing fast, but each character felt distinct and easy to follow. His performance was easily one of the strongest parts of the audiobook.

The story did start to lose some momentum for me as it went on, and I think this probably would have worked better for me as a shorter read/listen. The final wrap-up felt somewhat anticlimactic compared to how strong the premise was. There was also more spice toward the end than I expected, it felt a bit too much that close to the ending.

Overall, this was a weird, ambitious, and memorable sci-fi romance. I liked the premise, character dynamics, and narration, but the pacing and ending kept it from being a stronger listen for me.

I’d recommend it to listeners who enjoy MM sci-fi romance, parallel universes, character-driven stories, action/adventure, strong narration, and books that get weird in a way only science fiction can get away with.

[Sabina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Y’all if a hot neuroscientist version of myself showed up at my house and fell head over heels in love with me you would never see me AGAIN, REGARDLESS of whatever crimes they may or may not have committed!!!

If you’re looking for:
-compulsively consumable and addictive writing
-the answer to the eternal ‘would you fuck your clone’ question
-meditations on insecurity and the self
-an ex boyfriend named Jon Non Jovi who is the star of a Jon Bon Jovi cover band (obviously)
-hair metal
-a genuinely immersive plot
and
-sex that breaks the multiverse

Then this is for you!! Not joking when I say this immediately shot up to one of my favorite romances I’ve ever read. Insanely campy and hot. Thank you WH Lockwood for the arc!!!!

[Anna]

sounds fucking unhinged, i want it

[Brooke]

Immediately YES

[aylin ༊⋆˚࿔ ꒰ travelling rn. .ᐟ ꒱ · Rating 3 out of 5]

⸺ Doppelbänger by W.H. Lockwood ⟢
⤿ 🔬 2.75 stars ⭑⭑⭑

Reading this book reminded me of my ex-boyfriend. Why, you ask? Because he, too, presented his attributes with a positive premise, pitching himself like a seasoned salesman... only to end up as yet another tick on my ever-growing list of predictable disappointments. Which is a great memo, don't get me wrong, I love being persistently reminded of why I'm single. But if I'm allowed to ask for one thing - can we perhaps refrain from it? Especially when I'm in the middle of a romance book, of all things.

꒰ i. ⋮ my thoughts: ꒱ ⟢

Let me preface by saying: I hate raining on everyone's parade. This was a light-hearted comedy, and I know critiquing silly rom-coms earns me a special place in petty hell, but who am I, if not a hater? If I were in an equally goofy mood as the book I read, perhaps I would've loved it more, but my coffee is bitter, the weather outside sucks, and if that doesn't explain it, then I guess nothing will.

But for honesty's sake, let's draw a short list ↓

• first 150 pages? 4.5 stars
• the next 200 pages? 3.75 stars
• last 150 pages? dnf-worthy

I'm not kidding, I absolutely adored the first portion of Doppelbänger, you can even check my reading updates for proof if you don't believe me. When I started it, I thought it would be one of those rare comedies that somehow do it right for me. I was having fun: snorting, snapping the book shut for a laugh break, smiling, and reading some passages out loud. I was on board with the ridiculous concept of multiverses and falling in love with an alternate version of yourself. W.H. had me in a chokehold, which is superb.

But then... it all fell apart, somehow, and everything I liked about this story changed into the exact reason why I ended up rolling my eyes at the pages. Was it partially caused by the change in my overall mood? Maybe. Will I enjoy Doppelbänger more in the right headspace when I inevitably re-read it in the future? I'm inclined to assume so. What matters the most is the present, though, and while future me can perhaps add her own five cents when she gets to it, present me will now dive into a specifically detailed segment, listing every little reason why this disappointed her as much as it did.

꒰ ii. ⋮ what i disliked: ꒱ ⟢
This segment may contain tiny spoilers, but I don't necessarily consider anything I have to say too vital to the overall story, so you don't have to avert your eyes if you're planning to give this book a chance. That said, don't come for me if I'm wrong.

1.) Good August, bad August, so many Augusts. It was fine at first. Although my peanut brain isn't the sharpest tool in the shed, I could easily handle two different perspectives, even if both the main character and his love interest had the same name. It's really not that hard. In fact, having one of them titled as good and the other one as bad helped immensely, and there was no need for me to re-check anything; I wasn't confused. What did irk me, though, was not even when two became three, but when three turned into four, and then four turned into six. For one or two chapters. In an unnecessary scene, which I still don't fully understand, and I'm pretty sure could've been erased. I know W.H Lockwood tried to be clever by bringing those who we already knew existed somewhere, all in one place, but their reasoning was frankly so out of the blue and so lacklustre, I'm not surprised she dismissed it after ten pages.

2.) Good August's ex-boyfriend. This one angers me. For the whole first portion of the book, we as readers get to slowly understand good August's trauma and witness his emotional growth, just for his toxic boyfriend, the same boyfriend who was previously called a narcissist and a prick. Who manipulated August's feelings and coerced him into literal orgies, because he couldn't keep his dick in his pants, and he didn't want to outright cheat, to be forgiven, brought into both Augusts' friendship group, and be given a love interest of his own. How can you expect me to like a piece of garbage like that? How can you even attempt to justify it after you spent literally 200 pages or so, trying to tell me how wrong what he did was? I have nothing against polyamory; in fact, I have nothing against having multiple partners, even if it's an open relationship or if you're a literal swinger. People are perfectly allowed to like whoever they like and be with whoever they wish to be, as long as there is healthy communication. And Jon - good August's boyfriend - wouldn't recognise healthy communication, even if it slapped him straight in the face. In my eyes, he's not funny; he's pathetic and should be going through his own development journey as far away from August as possible.

3.) Not that other friends of good August's are any better. I dislike them all, there, I said it. Shashi and Amber are nowhere near as bad as Jon, and I don't necessarily hate them outright, but they're still Jon's groupies. They took part in the previously mentioned orgies and were literally forcing good August to interact with Jon when he wasn't comfortable and interested. If it wasn't for bad August, I think good August would still be pushed around and stuck in this infinite loop of getting hurt, breaking up, getting back with Jon, and then getting hurt once again. He deserves new friends, and no - other versions of himself don't count. Give this man a functional support system.

4.) Good August and bad August's relationship. Their love was rushed and undeveloped. While they don't exactly get into a proper relationship quickly, their attraction is immediate and frankly - weird. I don't know about you, but if I somehow fell for an alternate version of myself, it would've taken me far more than a single day to even begin to consider anything similar, let alone develop a crush. They're codependent and obsessed, and while I found it enchanting in the beginning, their mutual awe towards one another quickly became flat. Like, there's only so many poetically crafted monologues you can write before they all turn into goopy mush. After a certain point, every chapter I read was basically good August and bad August obsessively glazing, calling each other perfect, sexy, beautiful, one of a kind, handsome, kind, sweet, the best person in the entire universe, without anything seemingly interesting to add to the conversation.

5.) The second half of this book focuses solely on sex. And I'm not saying that, because there is a lot of smut. While those two are down-bad like no one else, this book literally chose sex as a reason and answer to every problem under the sun. I was cringing pretty badly when the ending came, and their friends, egging them on to bang while they were hopping through realities, weren't helping the case at all. Just get me out of here. I was going through the spice with my mouth clenched into such a straight line, not even my still-hidden-in-the-closet self from the past could compare. I like me a steamy comedy, don't get me wrong, but there's a thin gap between comedy and writing ridiculousness for the sake of it. I don't want to appear like someone who hates smut, because it's the opposite, but I need to enjoy the pair's romance for it to work. And I obviously didn't.

6.) The book felt a little too long. Nothing to add here.

꒰ iii. ⋮ what i liked: ꒱ ⟢

1.) The whole idea of multiverses and the first 150 pages. As I said, the premise was really good, it's the reason I bought it, and I don't fully regret doing it. At first, the humor was genuinely disarming. I loved the silly concept of being stalked by some creepy man, only for him to reveal himself as you - an amazing quantum physicist, who's desperately asking for help in saving the multiverse. Both Augusts had entertaining levels of chemistry, and if they had perhaps remained as a duo for the whole book, I would've enjoyed it more than I did after the bigger group formed. The crumbs were there, the 'we're cousins' bit, and 'is it incest or masturbation' made cackle numerous times, but the execution lacked that tiny bit of seriousness, which would've made the entire plot feel less absurd and impactful.

꒰ iv. ⋮ on a final note: ꒱ ⟢

I know I sounded like an utter hater in this review. I had to voice my frustrations somehow, but Doppelbänger isn't all that bad. If you're looking for something that tries sounding intelligent at times, but it's honestly just pure fun, steam, and perplexed laughs, then I wholeheartedly recommend it. A lot of people liked it far more than I did, and I completely understand their perspectives, even if it wasn't a personal hit. So, who knows? You might be one of them.

[⋆★taylor★⋆ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a delightfully odd story about falling in love with yourself (literally) & then figuring out how to save the multiverse together. It was chaotic, unique & filled with lots of time & space travel. August & August were just perfect together-they’re the same but also so so different & I love their humor & how protective they are of each other. The whole book was just beautifully written!

Also, I feel like this book could have been super confusing, but the author starts each chapter off letting you know if it’s the “Good August” or “Bad August” pov. It was pretty easy to differentiate between their inner monologues as well after a few chapters. I liked that the science mostly wasn’t too difficult for me to follow (but I feel like some parts had my brain hurting a lil bit tho 🤣). Overall had a really great time reading this book!

Fav parts:
“No. No, this isn’t happening. There is no way, that of all the people in the world, I’m actually crushing on… myself.”

“What we have is beyond love, beyond time, beyond worlds. This is the most powerful force in the universe, and I feel it in my heart as much as I know it in my head. You’re my multiverse, August.”

[martina (the life of a chaotic reader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

this honestly started as the most witty and fun and intriguing thing ever.
good characters, unique plot and generally fun.
so all was really great until 85%. then we went from witty to convoluted, from fun too dumb and intriguing to honestly the most underwhelming thing ever.
maybe it should’ve been shorter, maybe the end of the world should’ve been solved by something more clever, maybe i’m simply too tired to enjoy this.
we will never know.

i will definitely read something else by this author, hoping that i’ll enjoy the last part as much as the beginning.

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 stars ...

My bad. Rating is entirely on me.
I have to stop reading anything
that's labeled "sci-fi" no matter
how intriguing the blurb sounds.
If you're a sci-fi reader,
add at least a full star.
The whole Star Trek-y, jumpin'
between alternate universes
is just not my thing and I didn't
expect there to be SO much of it!

[Katie Timmons · Rating 5 out of 5]

first off i want to thank W.H. Lockwood for the ARC of this book.

I’ll admit that i had signed up to receive an ARC because i thought the premise of this book seemed like a silly, good time. imagine my surprise when i started reading and quickly fell in love with not just the characters but the overall story, the action, the adventure, the science! i never considered myself a big sci-fi fan before but i think this book has changed that. it was so much deeper and involved and gripping than your run of the mill contemporary romance. i was so engrossed in this story by the end of the first chapter.

there were parts that had me laughing out loud, then crying, and then just being overall so impressed by the amount of work and thought the author clearly put into explaining the physics of multiverses within this story. the romance was slow burn and beautiful but even without that, the story had me hooked because it was just so interesting. i had so much fun reading this novel and would recommend it to anyone who is even slightly intrigued by it.

am i a sci-fi girly now? i think i am.

[369Pages · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you’re looking for chaos, spice, and time-and-space travel, then this book is for you! An MM romance where the MC falls for … himself?? The whole premise of this book completely intrigued me!

This book has some crazy elements, including:
-universe hopping
-falling for an alternate reality version of yourself
-warm coke
-a diverse team of characters
-Bon Jovi??

I’ve got to start off by giving kudos to the author. This was a really cool idea, and definitely made me curious to read! It had the potential to be very confusing, but I never found myself confused while I was reading. The book hops between perspectives of “Good August” and “Bad August,” and their narration was distinct enough to keep you on-track.

Overall, I did enjoy this book, especially the beginning. It was so crazy, and there were definitely moments that had me laughing out loud incredulously, but in a good way! There is one side character that particularly made me enjoy the book even more.

In terms of the storyline, it was definitely all over the place, but it kept me interested and made sense. The ending was a little anti-climactic for me, and I did feel there were a few logistical things that didn’t seem to match up, but overall the content was very fun.

I’m sure you’re curious about the relationship aspect of the book! Overall I felt like the romance part of the book is what I enjoyed the least, actually. It wasn’t bad, but I think I was expecting something a little different. I was surprised by how much of their connection and attraction seemed to be physical. Like, these two doppelgängers are CONSTANTLY commenting on how beautiful or sexy the other one is in the narration. Somehow this doesn’t come across as vain though?

This was a very challenging story to write, and I really respect the author for their creativity and unique story! I enjoyed it and definitely recommend it to anyone who is looking for an MM romance that doesn’t fit ANY mould!

[Aly · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Who got you smiling like that?” Um.. this book. The biggest grin spread WIDE across my face because I loved every single second of this book. I love strange and unusual things, and I fuckin love science, but even with that, I still did not expect to love this book as much as I did. It was SO MUCH MORE! I don’t annotate or highlight often but this book has highlight after highlight after highlight because the writing and the way Lockwood was able to bring PURE, DEEP, emotional LOVE ONTO the page, it’s true talent. Not to mention, convincing me that loving yourself in such a UNCONVENTIONAL was completely acceptable lol! This book had me staying up late and laying in bed all day just because I DID not want to put it down. It was truly special and ridiculous and charming and I fuckin loved it. Thank you!

[Amelia-Jayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story was extraordinary. I loved every minute of reading it. It was mindboggling and also made sense at the exact same time. i never knew where the story was heading.

[maria ☆ · Rating 5 out of 5]

saw this on instagram. sounds absolutely ridiculous. perfect material for a buddy read.

------------------------------------------------

well, holy shit. consider my flabbers gasted.
buddy read this with catherine as always because we love to buddy read weird books together so i went into this fully expecting a regular run-of-the-mill wacky hijinks book. tell me why this is actually a literary masterpiece??! congrats author on following your dream of publishing 'crack taken seriously' while also being genuinely good at writing, because that's not an easy combination to pull off. this book has great structure, it has consistency and solid character development, it's great at using suspense, tension and foreshadowing and it is so SO funny and EXTREMELY silly. it would also work really well adapted into a comedy movie i think.

the time loops? time slips? the whole multiverse thing? figuring out a way to fix everything? the scifi references? the alan turing quote in the preface? author you had an extremely audacious vision for this story and you managed to successfully pull it off and for that i salute you 🫡

PS: i think jon might be the character ever 😂
PPS: thank god for women in stem 🙏

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a wild concept and i LOVED every bit of it.

[Andrew Smith-Mebust · Rating 5 out of 5]

DOPPLEBANG ME! 💖🤓🤣

One thing you need to know about Lockwood’s books, is that they are ALWAYS EPIC! She never plays it safe and honestly, THANK SKY DADDY for that.

It’s unhinged, deeply moving and funny af. This has one of the most epic first kiss scenes I’ve ever read. I’m telling you now, you need to read it for that scene alone!

Also there’s a sexy new trope. I know we’ve all heard of “c*ck warming”, but have you heard of “Coke Warming”😏 nothing like a hot Coke! 😂

Laughs aside, at the core of this book we are left asking what the purest form of love is. This book asks you to learn to love yourself, and in doing so, you’ll get to experience the greatest love story of all time; The one you have with yourself. We are imperfect, flawed, and deeply unique. No one else in this galaxy or other dimension is like you. What a beautiful thing it is to fall in love with yourself 💖

[davdashaaa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was definitely something different, and I mean that in the best way 😏

The romance was unique and not quite like anything I’ve read before, which immediately made me more invested in the story. I never quite knew what to expect next, and that kept things interesting from start to finish.

There was a good balance of humor, mystery, and romance, with a plot that felt fresh and entertaining. Some moments had me smiling, others had me completely intrigued, and a few scenes brought just the right amount of heat ❤️‍🔥

I also loved that the story didn’t take itself too seriously while still delivering emotional moments when it mattered. It was quirky, fun, and surprisingly charming.

Overall, this was a refreshing read with an unusual premise, lovable characters, and a romance that kept me hooked.

⭐️ 5/5
🌶️ 4/5

[Kirsty · Rating 5 out of 5]

"We're talking the complete multiverse, billions of worlds, all shot down because you two want to fuck."

"You don't call a man beautiful beneath the stars while discussing lonely space probes and not expect it to mean something."

Have you ever thought "if only I could meet someone who knows me without me having to tell them anything? Who has all the exact same special interests, favourite foods, who just GETS ME" . . . This book takes that thought, stretches it out like pizza dough and blow it up in the best way.

It sounds insane, right? Falling for yourself? But who knows you better than you?

This whole premise was carried out BEAUTIFULLY and I got thoroughly lost in the mystery, whimsy and overall chaos this book has in spades. I laughed a LOT, I cried, I got frustrated with the characters and cringed at Jon's early bullshit. I love a book that can make me experience all the emotions.

The feeling at the start of the book was sweet, low stakes, some secrets from Bad August 👀 but very much felt like a typical meet cute romance—until it wasn't, until time was running out and we met the Jon Bon Jovi cover band ex and his groupies. From there secrets were revealed, the sky was bleeding and general world ending chaos ensued.

There's nothing I love more than when the sweet cinnamon roll character throws all his morals out the window just to keep the person he loves by his side, and Doppelbänger delivered!!

I loved both Good and Bad August so much; the tension, the feeling of being seen, the struggle with choosing between themselves and the fate of the entire universe when all they wanted was to be happy and together 😭 they deserved that HEA!

[AnnaKitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t think I can find enough words to explain how much I loved this book
I will probably create an absolute-ABSOLUTE-favourites shelf now because it was so perfect it’s just ridiculous!


I was late to this party because I was vary of a sci-fi aspect, but seriously DONT LET IT STOP YOU, It’s really not as sci-fi-y as you would think, or maybe it is, I'm not an expert, but it doesn't matter really when it is done so well

honestly, it was not even 5% that I knew I would love it

Something about the writing and August(s) was just so good it all clicked instantly and I couldn’t and didn’t stop!


I don’t even know how to review this without spoilering, because it’s best to go in blind, don’t even read the blurb, just go and read this!!


it’s a literal trap from page one, and I truly didn’t expect it to be SO EMOTIONAL, so sweet, so many times on a verge of tears.. and at the same time being stupidly hilarious and perfectly ridiculous, the number of WTF faces I made was crazy, and you truly don’t know what to expect next to the very end..


and THE CHAPTER NAMES!!!! Are another wonderful thing, seriously, it’s so rare now and here they are seriously so good 🖤



The perfect rollercoaster of a book, I loved every single thing and every single page, it has everything of WHY we all love reading so much. It’s probably one of my most idiotic reviews, but I hope it just shows how crazy and happy it made me ☺️

[˗ˏˋ mckenna ˎˊ˗ · Rating 4 out of 5]

”What we have is beyond love, beyond time, beyond worlds. This is the most powerful force in the universe, and I feel it in my heart as much as I know it in my head. You're my multiverse, August.”

4 universe-destroyingly-good stars 🤩🤩

I absolutely loved every single second of this book! WH Lockwood has crafted an incredibly unique, goofy, sexy, chaotic, sciencey and beautiful inter-dimensional love
story, and if that sentence alone isn’t enough to convince you to read Doppelbänger here are a few more reasons:

✨ Imagine sex so good it transcends time and space. Literally.

✨ A whole new meaning to the term self love

✨ Masturbating in front of a mirror but when your lover is your clone it’s like you’re watching them *wink wink*

This book was an absolute pleasure to read and my ass was genuinely laughing out loud nearly every chapter! I cannot wait for the full release so I can instantly buy a physical copy and annotate the shit out of this!! The cast of characters are personable, hilarious, sexy and make for an amazing ragtag group to explore the multiverse with 🚀

Massive thank you to the author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review~

[Books_withtish · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hands down one of my fave reads!! This book just blew me away, it made me laugh cry, swoon, and then after I was just like I need a minute 😂…. “ I’m sorry for everything you’ve been through. But even if it’s selfish, I’m glad you’re here with me. I’m glad you made it to my world. Even if it’s just for a little while, I’m glad I met you and that you’re in my life” Bad August & Good August first meet when bad August hops into his world and they end up in a time loop and literally from the get go I was drawn into it. The whole plot was just absolutely brilliant and I’m not much of a science Gal but I was actually really fascinated with everything going on. For ages I was thinking how will they get through this and it all worked out just incredible like no words tbh! “ Of all the mes in all the universes, why did this one have to be walking sex” Not gonna lie could actually read about their sex life everyday , it was all poetry and cosmic bliss and chefs Kiss W.H Lockwood truly outdid themselves with this book and I’m forever grateful to be able to arc read and be apart of their team… Okay let me talk about Jon Non Jovi ,, I think you will never forget this if you read this book because it was just hilarious and I solid laughed with tears for ages… Jon ( Nigel 😂) I love you dude! Never stop being you… i loved all the side characters in this including assassin August so glad they all got their HEA! The most powerful message i got from this book was from this quote…. “ He’s me so completely and my soul is at peace for the first time. If I could stay here. If I could be him, held and made whole by him. The missing piece of myself. Me” Never stop believing in yourself and love yourself for who you are all the parts of you!!!! This isn’t 5 stars it’s ♾️ 😭😭😭🥰🥰🥰

[ʟᴀᴜʀᴀ · Rating 4 out of 5]

What. A. Journey.

gorgeous cover art - ✅
unique premise - ✅
insanely hot smut - ✅
very annoying ex-bf trope (both the trope and the ex-bf, sorry not sorry) - ✅
SO MUCH CHAOS - big fat ✅

I genuinely don’t know how to rate this.

August & August went from kind of flirty to full-on “I would die for you” faster than the speed of light. Their constant love declarations were a lot, but somehow the ride-or-die devotion lowkey worked???

The whole concept is absolutely right up my alley. The sci-fi aspect is done surprisingly thoughtfully. But oh my god… this book is messy. At many points the story felt completely over the top and around the middle the plot dragged a bit, but it was still entertaining enough that my annoyance didn’t quite manage to beat my curiosity. Side characters seemed shallow, like I wouldn’t have minded if the whole book was just a lot of Augusts. There are a million other things I’d like to say, but I’ll probably need a reread to fully process whatever this rollercoaster was.

And from now on I may never look at Jon Bon Jovi without a scowl. Hopefully time will heal that.

[Kali Dempsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 ⭐ 3.5 🌶️

Who could have imagined feeling feelings while reading about some dude banging his other self? Well. Here we are. 50 chapters later and I've fallen for multiple August Blackthornes and, quite frankly, I still want more. We meet so many Augusts in this story and while Good August and Bad August will forever be my faves, I'd be remiss if I didn't say I wouldn't mind a certain August and his certain boy toy to be featured in a novella some day *giggles*

But for real. The math and physics were a perfect balance of wtf is August talking about and holy heck this sounds so cool. WH may or may not know what she's talking about, but it's sci-fi so I'm not fact checking and just enjoying the nerdy ride. And what a ride it was. So dang fun.

The spice was phenomenal. The side characters were perfect (in the most flawed ways). And the plot was emotional, thought provoking and yet still a freaking blast. I loved this one from beginning to end, thank you so much to WH for the advanced copy!

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️ Guys, I read the news every day. This universe isn’t worth saving, humanity has failed as a concept 😂 But overall, an entertaining read, if a bit drawn out.

[Tare · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating 3.5 stars rounded up

A really fun idea but this was really too long tbh

[Irrivarti · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’ve finished this book about doppelgängers and parallel realities, and unfortunately, it didn’t work for me.

I usually try not to be too demanding when it comes to books meant as pure guilty pleasure. I don’t always expect deep worldbuilding or philosophical depth from this kind of story, and that’s completely fine. However, in this case, I struggled to stay engaged and seriously considered DNF more than once.

The romantic connection between the main characters felt rushed and underdeveloped. The instant attraction didn’t feel emotionally grounded, and the speed with which their feelings escalated — declarations of eternal love and soulmate-level devotion after a very short time — made it difficult for me to believe in their relationship, especially given the supposedly catastrophic consequences tied to their actions.
Let's not forget they are identical, so I was expecting a slower development of affection, stronger guilt/shame overcoming phase, longer "accepting your feelings" period. when right from the second chapter, the narration focused around the hotteness of August's body.

The science side of the story, particularly the use of quantum physics and multiverse theory, felt inconsistent. Real concepts were taken, mixed with speculative ideas, and stretched in ways that served the plot only when convenient. I could have accepted a more fantastical interpretation if the rules had remained consistent, but the logic seemed to shift whenever more drama was needed.


Additionally, the pacing of the romance and intimacy felt unbalanced. A large amount of sexual content appears late in the book, and its narrative purpose

*SPOILER*
(particularly as a solution to the central conflict)
*END SPOILER*

didn’t feel satisfying or earned to me.

That said, this book clearly has its audience, and readers who enjoy romance with some fantastic elements and interesting kinky smut, who enjoy bold ideas and heavy emphasis on passion may have a very different experience.

While this story wasn’t for me, I appreciate the opportunity to read it early and form my own opinion.

[Angela I. · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,5🌟

Wow! Calling this story unique is honestly an understatement. The blurb hooked me instantly, because… a guy falling in love with himself from a parallel universe? Say no more.

I was really curious to see how the author would pull this off without it becoming confusing (two main characters both named August? Risky move). But it was handled brilliantly. Even with the dual POV, I always knew exactly which August I was following.

I ended up loving everything about this book: the characters, the side characters (Bon Jovi???), and all the tiny details that made the story feel so original and unforgettable. Huge kudos to the author for coming up with so many clever alternate-universe quirks... like hot Coke?? Who even thinks of that? 😂

I came for the wild premise, but I stayed for everything else.

But chaos doesn’t have to be destructive. Chaos is beautiful. You and me, we’re the patterns in the clouds of Jupiter. We’re the snow falling on Enceladus. We’re the perfect accident of a beautiful constellation stretching across the night sky. We are the beauty that comes of chaos.

[what_emmareadnext · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really unique idea for a story…and also completely unhinged which of course I loved!

The idea of meeting another you from a different universe and falling for yourself???

This book was so good! The story is complex but keeps moving and explaining and the two Augusts are completely different people despite being the same 🤣

There’s a huge message about self love (literally) and the importance of loving yourself.

Also there’s Bon Jovi 🤣 iykyk