When the enigmatic industrialist Palmer Eldritch returns from the Proxima system with a mysterious substance, the fragile boundary between reality and hallucination begins to collapse for the desperate colonists of the Solar System. Barney Mayerson, a precognitive draft dodger, finds himself caught in a corporate and existential power struggle as Eldritch’s drug, Chew-Z, threatens to replace the established, state-sanctioned reality of Can-D. The narrative utilizes a shifting, multi-perspective framework to track the erosion of the characters' sanity as they navigate a world where physical presence and subjective experience are no longer reliable. Opposed by the pervasive influence of Eldritch and the crushing weight of a colonized solar system, the protagonists must determine if their perceptions are genuine or merely manufactured by a malevolent force.

This novel is widely regarded as a seminal work in the exploration of ontological instability within science fiction. Critics frequently highlight the text's ability to mirror the author's own preoccupations with the nature of existence and the potential for technological manipulation of the human mind. Readers often note the disorienting, claustrophobic atmosphere that defines the experience of the characters as they lose their grip on what is real. The work remains a cornerstone of the author's bibliography, frequently cited for its early and complex integration of religious themes into a futuristic setting. Its influence persists in discussions regarding the intersection of consciousness and artificial environments.