Into the Storm's Heart

In March 2021, Air France flight 006 from Paris to New York is caught in a monstrous, unforecasted storm over the Atlantic. The turbulence is so severe that passengers and crew are convinced they will die. The plane is battered by hail, thrown about by violent winds, and the world outside the windows is black chaos. Suddenly, after a terrifying plunge, the aircraft emerges into calm, sunlit skies. The passengers, shaken but alive, have no idea that their ordeal is only beginning. This moment of survival, shared by a diverse group of strangers, will become the axis around which reality itself is about to twist.

The Impossible Landing

On June 24, 2021, the same Air France 006, with the same crew and passenger manifest, appears on radar and is forced to land at a U.S. military base in New Jersey. The authorities are baffled: the original flight landed safely at JFK in March, and all its passengers have gone on with their lives. Now, a second, identical plane has arrived, carrying exact duplicates—down to the smallest detail—of everyone on board. The world's most powerful governments scramble to contain the situation, detaining the passengers in secrecy and launching a desperate investigation into the nature of this impossible event.

Protocol 42 Initiated

The U.S. military and intelligence agencies activate Protocol 42, a contingency plan for events outside the bounds of known reality. Mathematicians Adrian Miller and Tina Brewster-Wang, who designed the protocol after 9/11, are summoned to lead the response. Scientists, psychologists, and military leaders gather at the airbase, struggling to comprehend the implications. DNA tests confirm the duplicates are perfect matches for their originals. The world's most brilliant minds are forced to confront the possibility that the laws of nature have been broken—or that reality itself is not what it seems.

Duplicates Among Us

As the truth emerges, the passengers realize they are not alone: their "originals" are out there, living the lives they remember up to the moment of the storm. Each duplicate must grapple with the existential horror of their own redundancy. Some are desperate to reclaim their place; others are paralyzed by the knowledge that their existence is a cosmic error. The authorities, fearing chaos, keep the duplicates isolated, but the news leaks, and the world begins to learn of the anomaly.

The Hangar of Doubt

The duplicates are held in a vast hangar, subjected to endless interviews and medical tests. Tensions rise as they demand answers and freedom. Some, like the hitman Blake, plot escape; others, like the young Sophia, are haunted by secrets too painful to share. The hangar becomes a microcosm of humanity's response to the inexplicable: fear, solidarity, anger, and the search for meaning. Scientists and psychologists observe, theorize, and debate, but no explanation satisfies the hunger for certainty.

Science and Simulation

The assembled experts propose three main theories: a wormhole in space-time, a cosmic "photocopier," or the simulation hypothesis—that all of reality is a computer program, and the anomaly is a glitch or test. The simulation hypothesis gains traction, unsettling everyone. If the world is a simulation, what does it mean to be real? Are the duplicates less authentic than their originals? The scientists' debates echo the passengers' private struggles, as both groups confront the limits of knowledge and the terror of uncertainty.

Faith Faces the Uncanny

Religious leaders from around the world are summoned to the White House to address the spiritual implications. Is the anomaly an act of God, a sign, or a blasphemy? Theologians debate the nature of the soul, the legitimacy of the duplicates, and the meaning of creation. Their discussions are as inconclusive as the scientists', but they agree on one point: the duplicates are not the work of the devil, and must be treated with compassion. Yet outside, fanaticism and fear begin to spread.

Seven Interviews, One Truth

The authorities conduct in-depth interviews with key passengers: the pilot Markle, the architect André, the child Sophia, the lawyer Joanna, the editor Lucie, the writer Victor, and the pop star Slimboy. Each reveals their unique perspective on identity, memory, and fate. Their stories—of love, ambition, regret, and trauma—are both ordinary and extraordinary, now doubled and thrown into crisis. The interviews expose the fragility of selfhood and the deep need for connection, even in the face of the inexplicable.

The World Watches

Despite government efforts, news of the anomaly leaks to the press. The world is riveted by the story of the duplicated plane and its passengers. Conspiracy theories, religious fervor, and existential dread sweep across societies. The media and public reaction fixate on the most photogenic duplicates, turning them into celebrities or targets. The authorities struggle to manage the fallout, as the anomaly becomes a global event, challenging every assumption about reality, faith, and the future.

Encounters With Ourselves

The duplicates are gradually reunited with their originals. Some meetings are tender, others violent or tragic. Lovers, spouses, and children must choose between two versions of the same person. Some duplicates are forced to disappear, taking on new identities; others negotiate uneasy truces or attempt to reclaim their lives. The most profound encounters are internal: each person must confront the question of what makes them unique, and whether their existence has meaning if it can be so easily replicated.

Choices and Consequences

The aftermath of the anomaly ripples through the lives of the duplicates and their originals. Some, like the hitman Blake, take drastic action to eliminate their double. Others, like the lawyer Joanna, choose to disappear and start anew. Families are torn apart or forced into uneasy alliances. Children, like Sophia, struggle to process trauma and secrets. The world adapts, awkwardly, to the presence of the duplicates, even as fear and violence simmer beneath the surface.

Love, Loss, and Double Lives

The anomaly exposes the fault lines in love and loyalty. Couples must decide which version of their partner to embrace. Parents and children are divided by impossible choices. Some find hope in second chances; others are destroyed by jealousy or grief. The story of the writer Victor, who died in one timeline and lives in another, becomes a symbol of the world's confusion and longing for meaning. The duplicates' struggles mirror humanity's eternal quest for connection and purpose.

The Children's Secret

The youngest duplicates, like Sophia, are subjected to psychological scrutiny. Their play reveals hidden traumas and secrets—most chillingly, Sophia's abuse at the hands of her father, a truth only uncovered because of the anomaly. The children's resilience and vulnerability become a focal point for the adults' anxieties and hopes. Their ability to adapt, forgive, or break under pressure is both a warning and a promise for the future.

Violence and Revelation

As the duplicates become public figures, they attract both adoration and hatred. Religious extremists, convinced the duplicates are abominations, commit acts of violence. A televised appearance by two duplicated young women ends in murder, broadcast live to a horrified world. The event crystallizes the dangers of fear and intolerance, and forces governments to take drastic measures to protect the remaining duplicates, erasing their identities and scattering them into new lives.

Erasure and Reinvention

In the wake of violence, the authorities implement Operation Hermes, erasing all traces of the duplicates and providing them with new identities. Some embrace the chance to start over; others mourn the loss of their pasts. The world, confronted with the anomaly, chooses denial and forgetfulness. The duplicates become ghosts, living among the rest of humanity, their existence a secret known only to a few. The story becomes a parable of memory, loss, and the human capacity for reinvention.

Hope, Despair, and Continuance

As months pass, the world returns to its routines. Some duplicates find happiness in new relationships or careers; others are haunted by what they have lost. The anomaly fades from public consciousness, but its impact lingers in the lives it touched. The story's characters—Victor, Joanna, André, Lucie, Sophia, Slimboy, and others—struggle to find meaning in a world that has revealed its own arbitrariness. The possibility of hope persists, even as despair and uncertainty remain.

The Last Word

In October, a third Air France 006 appears in the skies, and this time, the authorities act without hesitation, destroying the plane before it can land. The story ends with a moment of peace—a coffee in Paris, a song in Lagos, a birth in New York—interrupted by a subtle, inexplicable vibration that ripples across the world. The meaning of the anomaly remains unresolved: is it a test, a glitch, or simply the universe's way of reminding humanity of its own fragility? The last word belongs to the characters, and to the reader, left to ponder the mystery of existence.

Characters

Blake (Joe)

Blake is a professional assassin who has built a life of secrecy and compartmentalization. Under various aliases, he moves between the shadows of violence and the comforts of domesticity, running a vegetarian restaurant with his wife Flora and raising two children. Psychologically, Blake is detached, methodical, and pragmatic, yet not without a code of his own. The appearance of his duplicate forces him into a deadly confrontation with himself, exposing the impossibility of coexistence and the limits of self-preservation. Blake's arc is a meditation on identity, guilt, and the cost of survival.

Victor Miesel

Victor is a struggling novelist and translator, marked by melancholy, wit, and a deep sense of existential uncertainty. His life is shaped by loss—of parents, lovers, and recognition—and by a persistent search for significance. After surviving the storm, Victor's duplicate returns to a world where the original has committed suicide, leaving behind a book, The anomaly, that becomes a posthumous sensation. Victor's journey is both literal and metaphysical: he must confront his own irrelevance, the arbitrariness of fate, and the possibility of starting anew. His story is the novel's philosophical heart, exploring the boundaries between self and other, life and death.

Lucie Bogaert

Lucie is a film editor and single mother, fiercely independent yet vulnerable to the demands of intimacy. Her relationship with the older architect André is passionate but fraught, marked by mismatched desires and the scars of past abuse. The arrival of her duplicate intensifies her struggle for selfhood, as both Lucies vie for the love of her son and the right to her own life. Lucie's psychological complexity—her ambivalence, her longing, her capacity for both cruelty and tenderness—makes her one of the novel's most nuanced figures, embodying the dilemmas of choice, freedom, and maternal love.

André Vannier

André is successful, cultured, and deeply insecure about his age and relevance. His affair with Lucie is both a source of renewal and a reminder of his mortality. The appearance of his duplicate confronts him with the literal embodiment of his past mistakes and lost opportunities. André's psychoanalytic journey is one of self-recognition and acceptance: he must learn to let go, to share, and to find meaning beyond possession. His arc is a poignant exploration of aging, regret, and the possibility of redemption.

Sophia Kleffman

Sophia is a bright, sensitive seven-year-old, whose love for her pet frog masks a deeper vulnerability. The duplication exposes a hidden secret: Sophia has been abused by her father, a trauma only revealed because of the anomaly. Her interactions with her duplicate and the adults around her highlight the resilience and fragility of children, as well as the failures of those meant to protect them. Sophia's story is a microcosm of the novel's themes—identity, memory, and the possibility of healing.

Joanna Wasserman (Woods)

Joanna is a brilliant, ambitious attorney, driven by the need to provide for her ailing sister and to prove herself in a world stacked against her. Her relationship with the cartoonist Aby is passionate but complicated by the arrival of her duplicate. The two Joannas must navigate love, jealousy, and the impossibility of sharing a single life. Joanna's psychological portrait is one of ambition, vulnerability, and the search for justice—not only in the courtroom, but in the intimate spaces of the heart.

Adrian Miller

Adrian is a probabilities expert, introverted and self-deprecating, whose life is upended when Protocol 42 is activated. Tasked with explaining the anomaly, Adrian is forced to confront the inadequacy of logic in the face of the inexplicable. His budding romance with the topologist Meredith offers a counterpoint to his intellectual anxieties, grounding him in the messy, unpredictable world of human connection. Adrian's journey is one of humility, wonder, and the acceptance of mystery.

Meredith Harper

Meredith is sharp, witty, and restless, bored by academic life and drawn to the challenge of the anomaly. Her partnership with Adrian is both professional and romantic, as they navigate the boundaries between science and emotion, certainty and doubt. Meredith's skepticism and humor mask a deep longing for meaning, which the anomaly both frustrates and fulfills. Her arc is a testament to the power of curiosity, resilience, and love.

Slimboy (Femi Ahmed Kaduna)

Slimboy is a Nigerian musician whose meteoric rise to fame is shadowed by the dangers of being gay in a homophobic society. The duplication offers him a chance at solidarity and self-acceptance, as he and his double forge a bond rooted in shared trauma and hope. Slimboy's story is one of survival, creativity, and the longing for authenticity in a world that punishes difference.

Jamy Pudlowski

Jamy is the head of Psychological Operations, tasked with managing the crisis and its human fallout. Pragmatic, empathetic, and skeptical of dogma, she navigates the intersection of science, faith, and politics with a steady hand. Jamy's role is both facilitator and observer, guiding the characters—and the reader—through the labyrinth of uncertainty. Her development reflects the novel's central question: how do we care for one another when the ground beneath us shifts?

Plot Devices

The Anomaly (Duplicated Flight)

The central plot device is the duplication of Air France flight 006 and its passengers, an event that defies all known laws of physics and logic. This anomaly serves as both a literal and metaphorical rupture, forcing characters and societies to confront the instability of identity, the arbitrariness of fate, and the constructed nature of reality. The device is used to explore themes of selfhood, free will, and the search for meaning in a world that may be fundamentally unknowable.

Multiperspectival Narrative

The novel employs a rotating cast of characters, each with their own backstory, desires, and psychological wounds. This structure allows for a rich tapestry of voices and experiences, highlighting the universality of the questions raised by the anomaly. The use of interviews, internal monologues, and shifting points of view creates a sense of intimacy and immediacy, drawing the reader into the emotional core of the story.

Simulation Hypothesis

The scientific and philosophical debates about the nature of the anomaly center on the simulation hypothesis: the idea that the world is a computer-generated construct, and the duplication is a glitch or experiment. This device serves as both a plot engine and a thematic lens, raising questions about authenticity, agency, and the possibility of transcendence. The hypothesis is never confirmed or denied, leaving the characters—and the reader—in a state of productive uncertainty.

Foreshadowing and Parallels

The novel is rich in foreshadowing and parallels, with early events and details (such as Victor's Lego brick, Sophia's frog, or Blake's dual lives) resonating throughout the multiperspectival narrative. The parallels between duplicates and originals, between past and present, create a sense of inevitability and irony. The recurrence of motifs—mirrors, doubles, secrets—reinforces the novel's exploration of identity and fate.

Media and Public Reaction

The spread of the anomaly through news reports, social media, and public debate is a key device, amplifying the personal crises of the characters into a global phenomenon. The interplay between private trauma and public spectacle highlights the pressures of modern life, the dangers of fanaticism, and the fragility of truth in an age of information overload.

Open Ending and Ambiguity

The novel concludes with a new anomaly and a sense of unresolved tension. The missile that destroys the third plane, the subtle vibration felt around the world, and the characters' ongoing struggles all point to the impossibility of closure. The open ending invites the reader to grapple with the same uncertainties as the characters, making the story a mirror for our own anxieties and hopes.

Analysis

Hervé Le Tellier's The Anomaly is a dazzling, genre-bending exploration of what it means to exist in a world where the boundaries between self and other, real and unreal, are suddenly erased. By using the device of a duplicated flight and its passengers, the novel probes the deepest questions of consciousness, agency, and meaning. The characters' struggles—with love, loss, trauma, and hope—are both intensely personal and universally resonant, reflecting the anxieties of a world facing unprecedented uncertainty. The scientific and philosophical debates about the nature of reality are balanced by a keen psychological insight and a wry sense of humor. The novel's refusal to provide easy answers is its greatest strength: it invites readers to confront the limits of knowledge, the necessity of compassion, and the enduring power of narrative to make sense of chaos. In the end, The Anomaly is less about the mystery of the duplicated plane than about the mystery of being human—fragile, flawed, and forever searching for connection in a universe that may or may not care.

Last updated: August 28, 2025