Review:
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher. This has not influenced my review.*
If you want to read about a lovable AI getting drunk, flirting with other AI units, learning about the fragility of humans, imparting life lessons, and making a friend, then this might be the book for you. OWEN was the best thing about this book for me. Such a lovable little artificial intelligence.
I also really enjoyed the unexpected friendship (well, unexpected to the characters) between Henry and OWEN. They were such opposites, and those types of friendships are so much fun to read about.
And there was no romance! Not that I don’t enjoy romance, but it’s refreshing to find a book now and again that doesn’t have it.
There was also an interesting mystery that unfolded as the book went along with a fair amount of fast-moving action, and the book had a mostly feel-good, light-hearted vibe, despite the gravity of the situation the characters were in. It kind of felt like a thriller with a bit of a futuristic twist.
I did have some issues though, one being there was a lot of telling-not-showing, but then sometimes there were whole pages describing a setting and the people walking around, or the history of something, though I imagine that was meant to reflect what sorts of things were important to the POV character.
I also felt that Henry, the protagonist, was somewhat emotionally flat. And by that I mean, he was this rule-following, straight-laced, pencil pusher kinda guy, and suddenly he was breaking laws and spying and punching people and sneaking around and literally putting his life at risk, and it just felt kind of off because it was like none of it even fazed him. He did at least show some growth in the end though.
But overall, I got to laugh a few times, I enjoyed getting to know OWEN, and I found this to be a quick, feel-good read.
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes quick reads, action, a bit of mystery, and lovable AI characters.
I really like the sound of this book. Will have to look out for it when it’s released.
Great review.
I hope you enjoy it 🙂
This sounds fun! I also enjoy books with no romance from time to time,
It’s nice to get a break from romance on occasion!
I didn’t really like Henry that much either, but what really made this book for me was Henry’s backstory and the grief over his parents that he can’t quite seem to shake. It made me understand him more. And yeah, all the crazy at the end was a bit too much!
There was a whole lot of dangerous, out-there stuff going on lol. But I can see why you appreciated Henry’s backstory!
I thought the world in this sounded like a lot of fun. Glad you got a few laughs out of it.
It is quite interesting, thanks 🙂
Sounds like a fun read, especially for those that love AI characters. Great review Kristen. 😁
AI characters can be so interesting! Thanks 🙂
I recently finished reading Illuminae so AI books are high on my love list at the moment because I loved that book. The friendship sounds so good and but it’s a shame about the flat main character. I am a huge fan of a good romance but I also love a refreshing book with no romance as well. Lovely review x And that’s such a great cover. So bright coloured!
AI can be so interesting, and I swear robots/androids/AI are the new vampires, I keep seeing them everywhere in books/media! It is such a great cover!
OWEN sounds like a lot of fun! I’m really enjoying reading about AI’s lately and how they struggle to fit in, or just seeing their perspective. And futuristic thrillers definitely work for me, depending on the subject matter and whatnot. Glad this one was mostly good!
AIs can be interesting! There’s a lot to explore there.