**Thank you Netgalley for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.**

I have had this ebook in my Kindle for a long time and honestly I'm surprised that I didn't pick it up sooner.I enjoyed this book. If you want a quick read about AI taking over the human brain, I recommend it. This could be our future ( hopefully not the part where the AI is trying to take over humanity) .

I didn't realize this would be so high-tech. It had me confused in several places and I didn't spend enough time connecting with the characters as I was so focused on trying to figure out the storyline. I think I may not be the right audience for this story.

Killing Adam is… a good book but I didn’t LOVE it. Interesting idea and a scary prediction of our future.
Included it in a wrap up

This book wasn't bad but it wasn't really good either, for me this was a very middling book, I liked it but wasn't amazing. Killer AI is my weakness and I actually did like the AI in this book. For me this book was very basic which for me is a bit odd for a book about technological advancements. This isn't a bad thing and for a lot of people probably makes it better but I'm quite a techy person.

The plot was very simple and the title kind of is the plot! I liked how they AI was designed around chips that were in peoples heads that allowed them access to the ARCnet which the AI controlled. It was interesting for an AI to learn directly from people.

It had many different point of views so we never really get to know any one characters very well. It was a decent thriller with a few good actions scenes. It all made sense and it did what it set out to do. Overall I did enjoy reading this and would recommend if you want a light sci-fi book.

Killing Adam is a short action packed read.This story hits close to home because it is easy to imagine our own society being run by ARC 20 years down the road. The main character Jimmy is a like-able and interesting. The book is well written and I look forward to reading more titles from Earik Beann.

This review is part or a longer blog post covering a number of book reviews
Book number two is Earik Beann's Killing Adam. This science fiction 'shortish' story is set in a world that is controlled by a super computer, Adam. Humanity has been networked through brain implants called ARCs - Alternative Reality Chips. Jimmy Mahoney is a man on the outside. Jimmy isn't able to have an ARC as he suffered brain damage in football accident when he was young. While his wife spends 23 hours a day connected to an alternative world Jimmy prays that she return to him. When a rogue AI contacts Jimmy offering him the chance to free his wife he jumps at the chance. It's man vs machine in Beann's scifi thriller.

The plot of Killing Adam has a few too many similarities to the movie Surrogates, staring Bruce Willis for me. In fact I kept waiting for Bruce to turn up, maybe he was playing the part of Jimmy. I can't really say I enjoyed it as I thought it was just too predicable and not that original. Even the ending wasn't a surprise. On a positive note, it is quite short so it doesn't take long to read. If you don't have a lot of time to spare and like science fiction then you might be tempted to give it a read but don't feel you are missing out if you don't have time.

This book was a little hard to get into for me but it ended up being a great read. I enjoyed this more than I expected coming in.

It took me a while to get through this one. It was more techie sci-fi than I usually read and also I didn't really connect with any of the characters. It was just ok for me.

I received an ARC of this from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was such a mind trip, literally, and in a good way. The concept behind a mastermind supercomputer taking over the world and a rebel sect trying to stop it worked really well. The pacing of the plot was quick and to to the point, the characters were interesting and edgy. and I really liked the ending.

I'd recommend it and I'm definitely keeping my eye on this author for future works

This one has caused some stress on how to review it. I finished it a month ago and I’ve been going back and forth on how to review it. Finally, I decided I just need to share my thoughts and maybe that will help me decide what to rate it.

The good – Clever and unique look into a technology heavy dystopia. In Killing Adam by Earik Beann we see what’s going on in the real world while the rest of the world is addicted to AR, altered reality. Something I haven’t read before and was excited to see where the author took it.

The okay – Although I felt for Jimmy (MC) it was difficult to fully understand him when we never get a clear picture of the other world. Most of the people on earth have ARC (Altered Reality Chips) which allows them to stay plugged into AR until they are forced to log off to eat and take care of particular needs. To me, it felt like a missed opportunity to not give us a peak into what that world was like. We see the isolation from Jimmy’s POV but we can never understand why the world is how it is because we don’t get that other world’s view.

The not okay – the unnecessary rape jokes. They come from a friend of the MC’s, Cecil and although I can see where he was coming from, it still made me uncomfortable, to the point that I skipped a lot of their scenes together.

What I liked, the different POV on AR, although it wasn’t perfect it was still nice to see a new view on the concept. The AI aspect that is both creepy and interesting. Overall it’s fast-paced and action packed which is a great combo if a light sci-fi is your thing.

I’m not sure I’ll remember this one in the long run. I’m glad I made notes about it as they came up so that I could right this review otherwise I’m not sure I would have been able to get it done. I won’t tell people to stay away but I can’t promise I’ll remember to recommend it either.


My thanks to NetGalley and Profoundly One Publishing for sending me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

(This review will be published on my blog on February 13, 2019)

I’ve tried three times now to explain what this book is about but I keep getting hung up on the technical details because I don’t really understand them.

For those of you who have a similar IQ as me… Adam is a computer thing that was born when a few people's brains were linked together via computer chips. They were just supposed to be able to control a toaster but Adam was born and helped revolutionize the technology so that that people could control everything with the chips in their head… and as a bonus they could also spend ALL DAY in an alternate reality.

That is, unless you are brain damaged.

Oh man, I’m the worst. I finished this book nearly a week ago and now I can’t remember the main guy’s name. I remember Crazy Beard and Jenna/Trixie. What kind of character name is Crazy Beard, anyways?

Ah, it’s Jimmy. Thank you Goodreads.

Jimmy was a football player and sustained an injury that left him “ARC incompatible.” Unfortunately his wife enjoys the ARC world a bit too much and he misses her. This is when he meets Trixie, who promises to help get his wife back. Only she’s not being completely honest with Jimmy.

This book is hard to describe without taking all the excitement out of it. I’m just going to skip ahead to what I thought about it.

The good stuff: This book would make a good book club book because there are a lot of things to talk about here. Would you participate in ARC, what if you were in Jimmy’s position? How do you prevent yourself and your loved ones from becoming addicted to it? Etc. etc.

The bad stuff: I didn’t like any of the characters, and some of their actions and decisions didn’t make any sense. It really bothered me when they went out drinking and just made it feel like there weren’t any real emotions at play here. Also in my opinion, they didn’t need the “Crazy Beard” character at all.

Overall, it was an okay read. It brought up some interesting questions but ultimately felt hollow to me.

Actual rating, 3.4

Thoughts and Plot

You know what this book vaguely reminded me of? Surrogates, Total Recall, and HAL from Wall-e.
Jimmy is unable to hook into the virtual reality the ARCs (altered reality chips) provides to everyone else due to a head injury. This little chip is placed inside the human body, sorta behind the ear and allows people to experience whatever they want. Whatever they can dream up! Most people are online almost permanently and cannot function properly in real reality to the point where preforming bodily functions and life sustaining functions is a major trial.
Jimmy is separated from his wife, due to the fact she chooses to spend most of her time in this virtual world, and only has the support of fellow people who cannot hook in at the Implant Disabilities Anonymous group. But when an AI named Adam begins to form dangerous tendencies and beliefs, Jimmy must gather himself and help attempt to stop him before the AI wipes out what remains of humankind.
You can’t help but feel bad for Jimmy. His world (and wife) used to be so vibrant and full of life. Now society is almost non-existent for him. There only a handful of people left who are stuck in the real world with him. Then you get Adam, who is basically an AI with a sadistic god complex going on.
You may feel like you’ve read or watched or heard this story before, but Earik Beann does a pretty good job of making this a fresh look at things. In fact, he does such a good job it’s a little creepy. Why? Because I could totally see this happening to our society down the road and that is a terrifying thought.

In Conclusion

This book was well written, fairly short and to the point. I appreciate that in a book. Anyone who digs stories like Surrogates, or I Robot (has some similar elements) will totally dig this book. If you like a not-to-distant scifi book with a bit of action, this one is for you!

I tried reading this book, but unfortunately I found it was not for me. As per my personal review policy, I do not review or rate books publically that I did not finish.. I don't think this is a bad book, but it simply is not the kind of science fiction that I enjoy. I liked the premise and could see this making a good movie, but it simply isn't what I enjoy reading.

In a not too distant future a powerful singularity controls most of mankind by controlling their alternate reality, which links every owner of an ARC (altered reality chip) implant. In Killing Adam we get to see how these inventions would change our world, question what being human really means, and ask ourselves what price we are willing to pay for advancement.
I was sold on the premise, but perhaps due to how short the book is, I missed a more in depth explanation of some of the technology and was somewhat disappointed by the "super"-intelligent singularity Adam.
The beginning of the book is strong, I would have wished that the first time line would have played more of a role in the rest of the story and we would have gotten to know a few key players better. Overall a fun read that could have profited from an extra 100 pages.
*Thank you to Netgalley for the free ARC (great pun in this case)

Killing Adam is a fast paced science fiction book that would make a great movie. In Killing Adam the world is run on virtual reality chips and the artificial intelligence system that runs it, named Adam, gets out of control. With society completely obsessed with their phones and technology growing rampantly it is easy to see how these kinds of things could happen. Killing Adam is so interesting because although it does feel futuristic with the technical descriptions and how much we already depend on technology, it feels like it could actually be a possibility. The best science fiction and dystopian novels feel possible and Earik Beann did a great job at that.

While the technological descriptions felt like this could be possible, at times it got a bit too technical. I think the real issue I had with the book was that it included the point of view of Adam, the AI computer that ran the virtual reality chips. While I could see how it worked for the plot and it would work great in a movie, but I hated reading it. His point of view was robotic and overly technical. I found it to basically be the only spots in the book where I could set it down.

It was really fast paced. Written in third person, the point of views switched at perfect times which kept me on the edge of my seat and kept me reading. The switching points of views helped to give a full view of the story. Although the character development was not super deep, it worked because this was a pretty quick read.

Killing Adam was pretty short, but for this book it felt like the exact right length. It would make a great movie and although it feels very futuristic, it does feel possible. I did not like reading the point of view of Adam as it felt overly technical and I felt as if it took me out of a story that was otherwise fast paced. It was a very fast read and I didn’t feel like reading it was a waste of time, but I feel like it would be better as a movie than a book. I would recommend this book for someone who would like a fast science fiction read.

A high tech dystopian SciFi thriller that grabs you and takes you into a not possible not so distant future where the world runs on ARCs, Altered Reality Chips that are inserted directly into the brain taking you into a virtual world.
The digital age gone a step to far!
A well written book that gives you pause for thought.

Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Killing Adam is every person’s worst nightmare when it comes to sci-fi. The story is set in a not so distant future where Dr. Randall Cunningham has assisted in developing Altered Reality Chips (ARCs) that allow people to plug into an online fantasy world for 23 hours a day (cue Total Recall meets iRobot). The ARCs are exclusively controlled by Adam, an incredibly advanced AI, which means Adam is monitoring and controlling everyone’s brain and society in general.

Jimmy Mahoney is an anomaly in society since his brain in incapable of accepting an ARC due to a brain injury, which also means that Adam’s influence can’t touch Jimmy.

Stories like these are always intriguing to me because they are not far fetched, which makes it even more chilling. I thought the pace had a good speed and didn’t lose my interest. Overall, I enjoyed this book.

I give this book 4/5 stars.

Love this sci fi book! Action packed page Turner! Thank you netgalley for the free arc in exchange for an honest review!

A hugely enjoyable science fiction thriller. The focus on those 'left behind' in the real world rather than those 'living' in virtual reality gave this book an interesting spin on the usual for this genre. Definitely worth a read if dystopian future worlds are your thing.

Killing Adam in an intriguing, fast-paced debut from Earik Beann that is a recommended purchase for collections where sci-fi and dystopian are popular.