The Knot

A complete novel in thirty chapters
by Matt Freeman
A pale stone castle rises from a dark, storm-lit sea beneath a black moon, its foundations carved with labyrinthine patterns; a small red boat drifts toward it.

Washed-up writer John Collier is anxious about attending his high school reunion. When a classmate announces that he has invented the means to send messages back through time, John and his oldest friends find themselves set on a race to find which of them is a murderer — and to save, or erase, the past.

The Knot is a sci-fi mystery told in a choose-your-adventure format. Subscribers on Patreon voted on the path the story took.

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Start with Chapter 1 →

Part One: Thule

  1. 01 The Invitation RR SH Listen Discuss
  2. 02 Flickers in Flight RR SH Listen Discuss
  3. 03 Hyperborean Wanderer RR SH Listen Discuss
  4. 04 Red RR SH Listen Discuss
  5. 05 Involutions RR SH Listen Discuss
  6. 06 Don't Panic RR SH Listen Discuss
  7. 07 The Last Good Night RR SH Listen Discuss
  8. 08 The Ansible RR SH Listen Discuss
  9. 09 Cellar RR SH Listen Discuss

Part Two: Amanuensis

  1. 10 No Signal RR SH Listen Discuss
  2. 11 Effigy RR SH Listen Discuss
  3. 12 Fans RR SH Listen Discuss
  4. 13 Corners RR SH Listen Discuss
  5. 14 Seven-Up RR SH Listen Discuss
  6. 15 Mixed Bag RR SH Listen Discuss
  7. 16 Gone Fishing RR SH Listen Discuss
  8. 17 Factions RR SH Listen Discuss
  9. 18 LSRDRSL RR SH Listen Discuss
  10. 19 Underworld RR SH Listen Discuss
  11. 20 Slip 'N Slide RR SH Listen Discuss

Part Three: VICTOR

  1. 21 Blip RR SH Listen Discuss
  2. 22 Ghosts RR SH Listen Discuss
  3. 23 Late RR SH Listen Discuss
  4. 24 Drawing Room RR SH Listen Discuss
  5. 25 Tsunami RR SH Listen Discuss
  6. 26 Thorns RR SH Listen Discuss
  7. 27 Ferret RR SH Listen Discuss
  8. 28 Roads RR SH Listen Discuss
  9. 29 Pinnacle RR SH Listen Discuss
  10. 30 Acorns (Final chapter) RR SH Listen Discuss

The End

Audio Drama

Every chapter is also produced as a full-cast audio drama by AskWhoCasts. The Listen links above go to the Spotify episodes; the complete run is on YouTube as a playlist.

Companion Podcast

I Think Knot is a read-along discussion of The Knot from The Methods of Rationality Podcast. Each episode talks through the chapters listed, so read those first.

  1. 01 Chapter 1
  2. 02 Chapters 2–3
  3. 03 Chapters 4–5
  4. 04 Chapters 6–7
  5. 05 Chapters 8–9
  6. B1 Interview with Matt Freeman
  7. 06 Chapters 10–11

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