This was an amazing book. It's about Nami who is shot in the grocery store and wakes up in Infinity where Ophelia (a virtual assistant) has taken over the afterlife. Now Nami and the remaining humans have to bring the queen down so that whoever comes after them will find peace. It sounds good, doesn't it? It's like Siri taking control of Heaven. I was instantly hooked on the writing style of this book. The world-building is greatly built and this book has a beautiful map of Infinity. I did have a problem with the pacing in this book. The pacing was either fast or too slow and I think for this book it should have stayed with a fast plot. Now the characters were amazing in this book.

I loved Nami in this book who has died and knows that there is hope in the afterlife for the humans that have been taken over by Ophelia. She has special powers and acts as a spy in this book. I loved her character development in this book and how she needed to save the afterlife for the remaining humans in Infinity also for her sister whenever she comes. I also enjoyed the side characters in this book who acted like a family to Nami. They all have unique powers that take roles in the book. The one problem I had with this book was that I wished we had a little more time with Ophelia because as an antagonist she didn't really fight. Other than that I had no problem with this book.

This book has one huge plot twist that will blow your mind because it did for me. It just made more sense with it and I couldn't believe how I missed it. I didn't have any problems with this book at all and thought it was a great read. This is also a diverse POC book! I recommend this book to those who love Marie Lu and Illuminae.

This book ended up surprising me with how much I liked it. I feel like in general I don't lean too heavily towards things that are more sci-fi, but I think The Infinity Courts had a nice balance of that science fiction element mixed with an interesting and unique plot and a strong protagonist. Books involving artificial intelligence and posing the question "what does it mean to be human?" isn't new, but this book does it in a new way by situating us in this really unique idea of the afterlife. The world, created and manipulable by human consciousness, is intriguing and interesting and makes me want to learn so much more about it. It's also a very different version of the afterlife than I've seen – I'm not usually expecting the afterlife to involve growing rebellions and monsters and running for one's life, but our protagonist Nami has to deal with all of these things. That's a lot on top of grieving her own death and all her lost opportunities, worrying about her family and her little sister in particular, and still feeling trapped by all of the insecurities that bothered her before her death. I think the book touches really well on each of these. The ways that Nami struggles with them all makes her a relatable and interesting character to follow.

As I mentioned, there's also a lot of moral questions posed throughout the book. I always have to put aside my personal thoughts about humanizing AI when reading books like this, but that aside, there's a heavy emphasis on Nami questioning what gives her or any human the right to decide whether anyone, including an artificial intelligence should exist. That question isn't new or super interesting at this point. But this book expanded the question to consider things like how do we decide what is right or wrong in a time of war? Should we put aside our personal moral values in service of the greater good? Who are we willing to forgive, and at one point is there no more room for forgiveness? Nami struggles with these kinds of questions throughout the story, and though at times it's a little 'hit you over the head' with it, I did find it interesting to see how she and the other characters negotiated these concerns. Aside from the deeper questions the book poses, the overall plot was interesting. There's budding war, spying, romance, rescue missions and more. And the plot twists at the end? I've read so many books that at this point if a story is able to literally make me jaw drop with a plot twist, I know it's a great story. I definitely did not expect how the book ended, but I also really liked how it ended. It also very clearly ends as the first in a series, and I can't wait to know what happens next!

DNF @ 20%

Unfortunately this just did not work for me. There were glimpses of things that I really liked, and I've heard the end is a wild ride. But I'm not enjoying the process of reading and don't want to push through 300+ pages to get to the end only to give this an unfairly low rating.

1. I found the world to be really convoluted and confusing. Which makes sense since it's an abstract afterlife, but it was so hard to follow. I could not wrap my head around where they were going or referencing (even using the map). And it felt even more strange when the MC would reference locations like she knew what and where they were moments after hearing about them.

2. But more than that was the world building itself. This entire first 20% was just one massive info dump of world building. Within the first couple pages, the main character enters Infinity and is confronted with a group of strangers who just start defining words and giving her a brief history lesson. It just didn't work.

3. But the thing that actually made me put this down was Nami's inner dialogue. This is written in first person, which I normally enjoy (and it often helps in world building since we can learn along side the main character) but it did not work here. Since so much focus is put on describing the world, we never got any insight into who Nami is beyond basic facts. And her inner dialogue is just a stream of explaining the themes of the book. I didn't like the extensive exposition detailing her feelings and the themes.

While this premise really intrigued me and I desperately wanted to love this, sadly it just didn't work for me. I don't want to push through and it give it an unjust rating since I know this isn't going to be something I love.

This review is live on Goodreads and will be posted to my blog on April 2nd @ 9am

Akemi Dawn Bowman deep dives into her first fantasy world with The Infinity Courts, the story of Nami, an eighteen-year-old who dies unexpectedly and finds herself in a much different afterlife than she ever could have dreamed up. The afterlife, known as Infinity, has been taken over by a popular AI system in the living world called Ophelia. In Infinity, Ophelia is a vicious queen subjugates human spirits into servants and playthings for her AI “residents,” including her four “sons” created to rule over the four quadrants of the realm. Nami barely escapes and finds herself among a colony of rebel humans hidden, each having developed a set of inhuman powers within Infinity. When Nami’s own power manifests, she may be just what the humans need to destroy the royal family’s power over them.

If it sounds like there are a lot of elements in this novel, there are. AI! The afterlife! Royal courts! Spies! Powers! Morality! Unfortunately, they aren’t all fully explored. I was willing to accept the odd concept of AI taking over the afterlife, because sometimes fantasy gets wild. I loved some of the plot about Victorian style courts, Nami’s spy tactics, and big evasive moments. There’s a storyline in there involving the physical human spirit that’s fascinating. But I still needed cohesive worldbuilding and characters I care about, especially in the case of Nami.

There’s one thing you should know about Nami: She is a firm believer in radical compassion and she has a conscience, dammit! Once introduced to the world, Nami spends about 80% of her time debating whether the residents should be destroyed, the unfairness of war, what it means to truly be human, and if coexistence is possible. She’s more of a thesis being beaten over your head over and over again than an actual character. Just zero nuance. Which is especially disappointing because I’ve read other ADB books with amazing characters! Add in that Nami’s in a forced “love triangle” with a human and an AI prince without displaying much of a connection with either of them. It was very hard to get on board with her journey.

The Infinity Courts also featured a major twist that some will obsess over and others will despair. I found it more ridiculous than anything. Shocking, sure, but mainly just some bullshit. You mean to tell me that a prince of Infinity is resting his final decision about the worthiness of humanity on a single, newly initiated 18-year-old while simultaneously encouraging and negging her from two separate bodies? And the romantic tension between them will surely continue? Nonsense.

This one boils down to “interesting concepts, meh execution.” The author divines a colossal fantasy world with tons of moving elements, but fails to flesh out many of them, including the characters, to the detriment of the story. Ultimately, I septa a lot of time just trying to figure out exactly what this novel meant to achieve outside of its oversaturated philosophy. While I'm not swearing off the author’s other books, I don’t think I will be continuing with this series.

This book was everything I wanted and more! I absolutely LOVED the modern technology aspect of Ophelia the O-tech and felt that it carried really well into today's society. I loved the concept of the afterlife and the way we got to see Nami deal with such a devastating ending to her life. This book was filled with action, heart break, death, determination, and war and I was immediately sucked in from the very first chapter. I cannot wait to continue on and read other books by this author!! HIGHLY recommend this book.

I usually wait a bit to write my reviews, but I’m making an exception for this one. I almost DNF’ed this several times, but I’m not a quitter. It had so much potential. Set in a world where the afterlife has been taken over by an AI (like a Suri), humans are fighting to take the afterlife back from the AI leaders and their followers, the Residents. We follow Nami, as she dies, goes to the afterlife only to find herself thrust into a war. What follows is hearing Nami have inner dialogue that is the same every single chapter. And worrying about her sister that is still living, even though humans are suffering literally right in front of her. BUT SHE WANTS PEACE. The humans use Nami to spy on the Residents because her one superpower (everyone can do cool stuff in the afterlife) is the ability to look just like a Resident. Of course her soft heart makes her think that everyone can be saved and just live in harmony together. I found her quite annoying. There was a pretty solid twist towards the end that made me think it was worth it to stick this book out. But nope, it was then twisted back again and it lost any credibility for me. This is a hard pass for me.

Pros
Tantalizing Blend of Realities: Bowman creates a unique flavor in this book. A mix of teenage peer-pressure drama, an AI blend of robots and reality, and a fantastical sort of courtly drama ensue. The way the author shifts between these different modes of writing is interesting and compelling, and some of her descriptions are pretty cool. I wish more of this worldbuilding had been the focus instead of focusing on the rebellion, of which I personally wasn't a fan.
Mixed Generations: For good reason, most YA books focus on a cast of characters consisting of entirely teenagers. That's okay. That's part of the genre. But here there are significant characters who aren't teenagers (and who aren't parents, either), and not only does this mixed-generation cast make the book unique, it also makes sense. The afterlife isn't populated by teenagers, after all. It is interesting to follow a rebellion consisting of all sorts of people of all sorts of ages. And this young-and-old dynamic doesn't relegate the teenage protagonists to the sidelines, either. It merely creates a deeper, more realistic set of characters to follow.
Peer Pressure: Peer pressure plays a major role in this book but not in the way one might expect. Early on, Nami experiences pressure to go against her normal routine. She gives into this expectation and ultimately regrets the decision. And then this regret--this lesson-learned--plays a role later on, even when her world has been turned upside down by death. She starts to question every expectation put upon her. What if her civic duty isn't really to be part of the human rebellion? What if she's got a choice in the matter instead? What if being part of the rebellion just isn't right for her? She questions where a lot of others don't--or not to the extent that she does, anyway.
Cons
Immediate Action: As soon as Nami gets to Infinity, with little preamble, everything descends into a chase scene. I just didn't like it. I like a softer opening than immediate action. Having such an abrupt action scene makes it overwhelming and confusing. To an extent, I suppose the author meant this. Nami, after all, is confused and overwhelmed. It's just not what I like at all.
Mixed Description: This critique is one on which I have mixed feelings--play on words intended. Some of Bowman's setting descriptions are quite evocative. I wanted to be there, to see the ethereal beauty and otherworldly setting she created. Other descriptions, however, fell so flat that it was almost like another writer was writing them. There are some crazy differences between quality in these descriptive passages. Evocative setting could have saved the reader from Nami's repetitive inner monologue, but unfortunately, the lackluster world description was a bad deal all around.
Rebellion: There was, for a while, a major problem in YA books that started with the popularity of The Hunger Games. I personally called this problem "Random Rebels." Every book and any book needed to have a rebellion with the hopes that it, too, could make a big break. I really thought we had moved on from this problem (for the most part), but unfortunately, this book brought me right back to that old rebellious stage in YA literature. I mean, sure, there are reasons for the rebels in this book. There are always reasons for the rebels, but at this point, it just feels overused. With so many new, good ideas brought into the mix in this book, it made me sad that the author overshadowed all of her new contributions with something so worn out. On top of being a trope that I didn't want to see come back so soon, the rebellion is often pushed to the extreme. Nami is dealing with the after-effects of peer pressure, and the rebellion seems to play a role merely to push her to stand up for herself--unreasonably so. The rebellion often left logic behind, relying on emotion and something akin to emotional abuse in pushing Nami to help them, without giving her a reason to trust them in the least. This rebellion was a bad deal all around.
Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
6/10

Fans of Lauren Oliver's Before I Fall should check out this new peer-pressure-with-deadly-consequences book. Anyone who appreciated the mash-up of videogame and deadly reality in Eve Silver's Rush will enjoy this new fast-paced, high-stakes afterlife.

For me this book was a little mix of brilliant and frustrating. I’ve thought about this whole story a good deal and while it was frustrating that characterization and some of the world building fell short, with much of the focus going on the overarching theme, it was honestly, equally brilliant. The author wove everything together to create a narrative that perfectly reflects the idea “do our choices really matter”, which was pretty masterful. For me, the better aspects won out over what might’ve been missing here or there.

The book discussed plenty of other moral issues and there was a fair bit of virtue signaling that I could’ve done without but this one idea was done spectacularly, at least in how I see it. Of course I can be totally wrong about the author’s intent, after all I’m not the one who wrote the book. Taking a look back though and trying to see how everything came together, this central idea seems to fit best. Unfortunately, I can’t say exactly how because it has to do with the twist (so too many spoilers) but, in general, the whole book shows Nami as a character who believes she understands the morally better choice. However, she grapples with what to do when her choice conflicts with what others believe to be the “right choice” in their fight to end the war with the Residents. She struggles in her desire to find a moral grey middle, where she doesn’t have to choose sides and everyone can coexist but feels forced into a corner, both by circumstances and those around her. Ironically, both sides are after the same goal, the problem is they go about achieving that goal in ways that seem to make no room for a middle ground. On one side Nami is a Hero, helping a resistance to end the war. Nearing the end, however, Nami is confronted with another perspective which forces her to deal with the reality that she may not be the hero she was propped up to be, perpetuating a war she didn’t even want to play a part in through the choices she’s made and the choices of others.

It really is brilliant writing to be able to show your heroine as the villain and your villain as somewhat of a hero through the different perspectives. This unfolding narrative of both sides wanting the same end and yet which side is using the right means? Which side holds the truth? Or is it neither? That is what really holds the book together. The author brings up a lot of good, morally relevant questions. Hard part is many don’t have answers if you don’t believe in absolute truth. You just do what Nami does and tailspin through your existence, questioning everything, even sense of self. I can get how Nami might’ve been an annoying character to some, with her constant harping on her sister and need to prove she was right, but it made sense in the narrative. Nami was on a quest to prove that one life is worth the sacrifice because it’s what she died for after all. Proving that meant something to her. If one life could be sacrificed for the sake of the many than what was the purpose of her death? Of her making that choice? Truly this book makes you think, a lot.

The fantasy elements sort of float on the periphery of this philosophy center. They’re beautiful elements too and in a way it’s a shame they don’t take more focus. I enjoyed reading about Nami’s moments of trying to learn the new, somewhat magical, skills she needed in Infinity and her continual curiosity towards the fantastic elements in her afterlife existence. Those parts of the book helped to lighten the story a bit from some of the weightier material. As much as I can enjoy a book that has deep themes and takes a swing at tackling harder subjects, sometimes I think the beauty of messages in a book is in the subtext, in not being so overt about it and weaving it into the subtleties. The twist really accomplished that, it made me want to go back and reread everything I had just read. That’s why I think some of the rest of the morality focused dialogue may not have been needed because that broader idea of personal responsibility and “who’s really the monster” became clearer through the simple unfolding of the story.

While I get that there’s probably a lot of subtext going on with the romance plot in the story and my hopes are a little higher that I might get the result I want in a sequel, I’m a bit confused and skeptical about where it’s all going to go for Nami, romance-wise. I wasn’t Gil’s biggest fan and a lot of their development seemed to jump in either moments off-screen or emotional changes we weren’t privy to. I’ll admit I voted more for the prince of Victory, the star-crossed lovers plot rather than the enemies-to-lovers, although Caelan and Nami are a bit of both really. If the sequel comes back and makes those two a thing, I’ll be one million percent on board. It’s complicated beyond belief but what a turnaround that would be, plus the conversations between those two had a deeper undercurrent of authenticity.

This story has such great bones. There are just gaps that need to be filled in. I love the world of Infinity that the author has created. Although haunting in its realization with the corruption from war, the glimpses she’s given into it and the possibilities that could spring from it are fascinating. I simply wish there had been more detail. Convenient plot insertions were made to allow for quick world-building where it would’ve been nice to have the details filled in by Nami experiencing the world herself, not just through the Exchange (where she sees someone else’s memories), or others simply telling her, which cheapened the experience for us as readers. Once Nami got the information downloaded we were later told second-hand what she knew but it felt less exciting than her describing it, like the times she was at the palace and festivals. Those were honestly the best parts of the book. I think that’s why Caelan and her interactions with him are my favorite, because they were some of the most vividly described. I will say though, even with this book being on the longer side, it never felt long. I was thoroughly entertained throughout. And while characterization is usually the most important thing to me in a book, this time I wasn’t bothered by not knowing all the side characters perfectly. I was so engrossed in Nami’s journey that the narratives of the other characters weren’t so important. They played a part in driving Nami forward but their journeys weren’t a focal point of the story and for once I actually liked not having other characters to focus on as much.

Now, the ending did throw me a bit. After everything that happened it would’ve been nice to have a little more of a resolution, even given the spectacular twist. I was left scratching my head a whole lot there at the end, wishing for at least one glimpse of an opening for possible reconciliation. Of course I know this is going to be a series but I felt like the ending was rushed in comparison to the slow calculation of the rest of the book. I’m hoping as it goes into the next book there will be a clearer understanding of what exactly happened and all hope isn’t lost for the characters involved.

Overall, a surprising and enjoyable read. I’m impressed that this is the author’s first foray into fantasy because it’s quite original and well done. While I’d love to explore more of the “magic” of Infinity, the landscapes and even the courts, my biggest hope is for the puzzle pieces to come together and for my favorite characters, Caelan and Nami, to move towards some semblance of happiness but it’s only the beginning so we’ll see where it goes. Also, that cover is gorgeous.

Love the concept and am excited to see where Bowman takes the rest of the story.

The reading experience wasn’t as enjoyable as it could have been as I had to download a specific software just to access the file but alas! I’m looking forward to the book’s release and plan on listening to the audiobook for a second read.

The book opens somewhat like a Black Mirror episode. Nami Miyamoto is enjoying life as a typical teenager. Everyone in this world relies on their Ophelia smartwatches (think Alexa or Siri). Nami talks to her smartwatch like it is a friend. She even admits that most people don’t talk to it the way she does. She judges people by how they treat AI’s and believes that they are capable of feelings.

On Nami’s way to a date with her best friend, Finn, she is asked by another friend to pick up alcohol at a local gas station. That is where things go south. An armed individual comes into the gas station to steal money. Nami jumps in the way of a young girl to protect her and gets shot. She ends up dying and going to a place called “Infinity,” basically the afterlife.

It is there when the book gets into The Matrix territory. She is met by beautiful people who ask her to take a pill. She refuses and is attacked. The reader comes to find out that the afterlife has been hijacked by the AI, Ophelia. Members of a rogue band of humans from “The Colony” step in and save Nami from the AI residents. Like The Matrix, the rebel colony members are self-aware of the facade.

The book started off strong, but sometimes YA has to spell things out a little too much like an anime. This book, at times, falls into that trap. It also gets into court intrigue 🙄, which can be a bit cringe-worthy to me. It just kind of went off the rails halfway through the book, which is unfortunate, because it started off strong, and I liked the premise. I likely won’t continue reading this series.

I did not realize this was a book that could not be uploaded onto the kindle. If I did, I would not have added it. I suffer from chronic migraines and this is often exacerbated by electronic devices so reading a book on any device not made for reading is really not ideal. This makes me so sad!!

This sounds like an amazing read and I will be keeping my eye on it once it publishes in a format I can actually read.

I was not sure how to rate this, so I am rating it based upon what I hope it will be and upon the premise alone. I took off one star because the lack of accessibility for readers is really not ideal.

I am honesty surprised by how much I enjoyed this book! I seem to forget how much I love sci-fi books until I read them. This book was incredibly imaginative and so many fun plot twists. There were many heartfelt moments and passages that made me think about things from a different perspective. I loved the cliffhanger ending and can't wait for the second book! I'm hoping we will delve a bit more into the characters' relationships and the world of Infinity.

Recommended: eh, I guess
Cool concept, weak execution. Probably come for the series / idea more than the characters or plot or world-building or moral questions....

Thoughts:
What I liked about this book is probably what everyone who reads this is drawn to: the interesting premise of a human-designed AI taking over the human afterlife. WHAT. AN AMAZING. IDEA. And probably a new fear for a lot of people. This premise is so unique and cool that I can see a lot of similar content sprouting up after people get wind of this idea. And I liked the end, and that may be it's saving grace to keep me reading this series. I'll probably give it a second chance to improve.

What I disliked about this book was almost everything else. It wasn't awful but compared to my high expectations, it was a real letdown. The main character doesn't interest me much. The "love interest" was not appealing at all, and the romance felt very poorly established to warrant the emotions they proclaim. Even the plot was very basic in a lot of ways. Most of the complexity came from the main characters' own struggles with morality and good versus evil and all of the gray area that comes with it. Some of that included interesting takes, but most was arguments and ideas posed thousands of times over thousands of years. It became an unsatisfying mix of war-book / court-book / morality-debate.

Overall, this book had a strong concept but uninteresting characters. They felt very flat and one track, which did help with beating home the themes quite clearly. The plot picked up around the end, and I'm now interested in the next book. There were a few turns that surprised me, and worked. Concept & plot are okay, the writing style is basic, and characters are simple.

I have to mention this sentence because it really turned me off and is a clear example of a problem I felt often with the writing style itself: it was just trying too hard and ended up losing any actual meaning.
"Side by side our faces are polarizing, like an enchantment of ravens lost in a sky of cotton candy."

If you love that sentence, you'll probably enjoy the book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for a free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve read and enjoyed Akemi Dawn Bowman’s previous books and was excited to read her next one. These were all contemporary, however, so I was intrigued by the announcement of her first science fiction novel. The Infinity Courts explored an afterlife where sentient technology rules over humankind.

At a gas station on her way to a high school graduation party, Nami is murdered. She wakes up in paradise, where people want her to take a pill and accept death. Her instincts tell her not to, and she tries to run away, only to be saved by a group of human rebels. It turns out that this afterlife is called Infinity, which Ophelia (a virtual assistant technology on Earth) now rules. The resistance, including Gil, Annika, and Sura, is trying to fight back against the Residents, or the manifested sentient people created by Ophelia, and to gain control of Infinity.

I liked the cast of characters. Nami clashes with most of the resistance, but especially with Gil, because she refuses to see the Residents as less than people even though they’re essentially artificial intelligence. Eventually, she befriends them as she begins to understand the stakes at risk.

The concept was really interesting, especially because it combines technology with the afterlife. However, I think the execution wasn’t as great as it could have been. The worldbuilding was a bit lacking and left me with more questions than anything. Also, I think too much of this book was exposition, or basically just Nami training. Honestly, very little happened in the first half of the book, and I think the pacing could have been a little faster, especially given that this is almost a 500-page book.

I think my biggest issue with the book is that I didn’t like the writing, but that’s just my personal opinion! The summary promises an “incisive, action-packed tale that explores big questions about technology, grief, love, and humanity,” but again, the book wasn’t really action-packed. It did ask “big questions” constantly, and fairly unprompted in my opinion, but to me, it felt like Nami already had answers to these questions. She didn’t really think about them; she just had answers ready after barely questioning these topics, and I feel like this established very little character growth.

I could probably go on, but I think I didn’t enjoy this book mostly because of the writing. Again, that’s just me! Please don’t let this deter you from reading this book if you’re interested. I will say that there was a really good plot twist or two that caught me off guard and that made up for some of my issues with the worldbuilding. Unfortunately, good as they were, they occurred too late in the book and didn’t quite make up for my irritation throughout the rest of the book.

The Infinity Courts had an intriguing premise but fell flat to me. This book is the first of a trilogy though, so maybe the sequels will be better with the pacing and character development. If you’re interested in this book, please still give this book a try and don’t let my opinions deter you from picking it up!

In this story, Nami wakes up in the afterlife. But this isn't really a normal afterlife - this afterlife is run by AI. And guess what? The AI isn't so benevolent. This book was enjoyable to read, although it had some overly fast parts and some parts that dragged a bit. This book has some interesting moments but I didn't really mesh with the main character. I liked the somewhat sci-fi/fantasy mashup but there was such a focus on identity that I didn't really connect with. I think there are quite a few readers who would really enjoy this book and it's themes, especially if they enjoy science fiction.

What an emotional roller coaster of an adventure! Nami was a great MC, both full of heart and fear but also compassion and spark. I loved the questions about humanity and monsters and what it means to be a hero. I wasn't fully invested in the triangle but I did love the twist. I will be furiously searching for book 2 as soon as it's out!

Nami is on her way to what she hopes is one of the best nights of her life when is murdered in a gas station robbery gone wrong. She wakes up in Infinity, an afterlife world ruled by the AI from her living world. Ophelia (think omnipresent Siri) has manipulated the afterlife to a world of her liking, and created four courts, each with a focus on reaching the ultimate goal for all AI life in Infinity - the eradication of humans.

Nami is now on the run, working with a hidden group of conscious humans to take back the afterlife and release humanity from its deathly grip. Will their team of misfits be enough to take down the ultimate computer?

This was a little slow in the story for me, but there was some necessary world building that needed to take place, and I felt that was well executed. There were a few twists at the end that will make moving to the next installment a complete guess on where this story is going.

Please offer different download options, the file was hard to read and not cooperating with my computer for some reason. I won't leave a review anywhere else in the meantime so as to not drag down the score.

Cool premise though.

Thanks the ARC gods for blessing me with an advanced galley to review this book, my Black Mirror crazy self keeps on asking when will I finish this ever since I read that peculiar synopsis.

I've only read Starfish from Akemi Dawn Bowman and this one is still a recommended read. This didn't beat Starfish as one of my favorite authora but its a great book with a refreshing storyline so there you go 😍

Author Akemi Dawn Bowman (https://www.akemidawnbowman.com) will publish the novel “The Infinity Courts” in 2021 (April). This is Ms. Bowman's fifth publication. This novel is the first in her "Infinity Courts" series.

I categorize this novel as ‘PG’ because it contains mild violence and mature language. The primary character for this young adult novel is 18 -year-old Nami Miyamoto.

Miyamoto is just graduating from High School when she dies. She awakens in a place referred to as Infinity. She finds that others who have passed before her are in conflict with Ophelia an AI. Ophelia has somehow traveled to Infinity and is attempting to take over. Ophelia was popular as a personal assistant (think Siri or Alexa) when Miyamoto was alive on Earth. Miyamoto had spent hours talking to Ophelia before she died.

Now Ophelia is trying to rule Infinity with a population of androids. The people there are becoming their unwilling servants. Miyamoto becomes part of a resistance group. She has taken on an Android-like appearance enabling her to move among Ophelia's minions.

I enjoyed the 10+ hours I spent reading this 480-page young adult novel. The book follows the typical teen thrown into an apocalyptic environment of many young adult novels. There are a few good plot twists and of course some romance. I do like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a 4.4 (rounded down to a 4) out of 5.

You can access more of my book reviews on my Blog ( https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/).

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).