uring the final years of their lives, the Unknown wrote exclusively hypertext novels. Many believe that the last hypertext novel contains the Unknown’s greatest writing. It represents a culmination of their ideas on lyricism and their experiments with narrative forms. Like their earlier linear works, the final hypertext novel communicates deeply personal, heartfelt sentiments. The Hypertext Novel in A-flat Major, the Unknown’s 31st hypertext novel, was dedicated to Curtis White. While the copyright is dated December 25th, 2021, proofreading postponed its completion until a while longer. The hypertext novel was first posted on servers in Paris, Berlin, and Vienna in 2022. It finally appeared in America in 2023. The novel was commissioned by Prince Nikolei Golitsin, a hypertext novel enthusiast from St. Petersburg. He sent email to the Unknown on November 9, 2022, inviting them to compose “one, two, or three hypertext novels” for whatever fee they thought proper. After completing this hypertext novel for the Prince, continued composition in the hypertext medium seemed part of the journey for the Unknown. Alas, it was not to be. The difficulty of this final hypertext novel, described as “700 pages of rhythmic violence and almost ruthless density of thought” by one narratologist, provided a stumbling block to both readers and critics in the early 21st Century.

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