I received an advance copy of The Infinity Courts from Simon & Schuster Canada via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Infinity Courts follows Nami, an 18-year-old girl plotting out her future when she's suddenly and tragically killed. She wakes up in the afterlife, and to her shock, finds it's been corrupted by Ophelia, a Siri-like AI assistant.

The Infinity Courts had a great premise, but ultimately failed to deliver on much of its promise. The concept was intriguing, but ultimately plot proceeded at a glacial place, the characters weren't compelling, and too much of the book was spent inside the main character's head as she grappled endlessly with her own morals.The Infinity Courts could have benefitted from a fast pace and more action in my opinion, in addition to better fleshed out characters.

The book did have some redeeming factors, notably the third act plot twist, which was well-done and surprising. I just wish the whole book had been as compelling as its final chapters.

I was really intrigued by the premise. When I first heard about an afterlife where the AIs had taken over, I was sold! The beginning was also very strong. I couldn’t stop myself from reading and I needed to know what was going to happen.

However, I quickly became tired of NAME’s inner monologue. There was a lot of soul searching and trying to understand the deeper meaning of life (or, in this case, death...?). It was fine and I understand that it makes sense within this type of story, but I wasn’t that into it. It didn’t pull me in.

Heureusement, that final reveal was EPIC. I actually screamed when I got to that part. I adore the implications of that twist and I am intrigued to see how it affects the rest of the story. I will definitely be reading the sequel.

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Canada for providing me with an ARC via netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
4.5/5
This was such a fascinating book! I loved the concept, and I thought the execution was done really well. I really liked the four Courts of Infinity, and the four Princes were super interesting as well.
This is a book about the afterlife. Nami, our main character, wakes up in the afterlife to find that it’s been taken over by an AI who is now the Queen. The Colony (the resistance/rebels) takes Nami in and they teach her how to use her conscious to be powerful and they work to find a way to get rid of the Queen and the Residents (non humans). Nami questions everything, and I really liked that about her character. She saw the good in everyone, and she constantly had hope that things could be resolved peacefully. This put her at odds with the members of the Colony many times. I really liked the way that Nami developed as a character! I was always rooting for her.
I thought it was a fun touch to have Nami connect with a character that her dad had created for her. It was a good way for her to remember her family. I thought Nami was really realistic in how she was thinking about her family. The way that she had to learn about Infinity, and how she adapted to this new world and the role she had to play.
I really appreciated the way the book looked at human-artificial intelligence relations as well as past human actions and how they interacted with people who were different. I thought the conversations about this could easily be applied to our society, and I liked the way that Nami was trying to challenge people’s views.
I thought the pacing was really good, and the writing style flowed easily. The characters were well-rounded, and I really liked the hints of slow-burn romance that were coming in. I thought Gil was a really good character, and he really balanced Nami’s hopefulness. I also really liked Prince Caelan’s character and I thought he was really interesting!
The twist towards the ending had me gasping! I was so surprised, and I am desperate to get my hands on the next book!
If you enjoy books about fantasy/sci-fi worlds with awesome characters, some slow burning romance, possibly evil AIs, and a lot of intrigue definitely check this one out!

I received a copy of The Infinity Courts in exchange for an honest review.

The Infinity Courts is about a young girl, Nami, who finds that the afterlife is much different than what humans had been led to believe. Ruled now by the artificial intelligence program that helps human during their lifetimes, it is now a place of nightmares, ruled over by the Queen and the four princes of their respective courts. She is soon rescued by other humans who are still aware and they will try to convince her to join her cause despite her reluctance to be the Hero they want. In this sci-fi story, readers will also be conflicted by her decisions and the world in which she now lives in. Would she be willing to eliminate all these Resident (AI) lives or will the human cause be worth taking?

I don’t really read a lot of science fiction but I was particularly drawn to the cover and synopsis of The Infinity Courts. I thought that the premise of it was quite different as it takes place in the afterlife. Nami has reluctanct hero syndrome and there are many questions of morality that she faces. Is it still a life when it comes to artificial intelligence? Nami seems quite reluctant to eliminate her enemies despite seeing how the humans have now been treated by them and all the evidence that proves that human elimination is the goal of the Residents that currently reside in this world. It takes something really drastic for her to finally make a decision. For me, that was the most frustrating part of reading her story - her indecisiveness despite all evidence and information she was learning from the world. But in terms of the world building, I thought it was a very intriguing concept of the afterlife and I look forward to seeing how the world continues to develop as we move out of the Court of Victory and into other areas of the world. I think there is also a lot of potential for character development in Nami and I’m eager to continue this series.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Canada for the egalley.

The Infinity Courts by Akemi Dawn Bowman is the first book in the Infinity Courts series. When eighteen-year-old Nami is on her way to a party, she feels like her life has only just begun. She has graduated high school and has plans to date the boy she’s in love with. All is well until Nami is murdered before she reaches the party.

Nami wakes in a place called Infinity, where human consciousness goes after death. Infinity is ruled by Ophelia, the AI assistant she was so familiar with in life. Ophelia has forced humans into servitude in the afterlife. Ophelia’s grand plan is to completely eradicate human existence. Nami joins a band of rebels who plan to take down Ophelia and free all the humans.

This is a super great read! I really liked the world building. The whole idea of artificial intelligence taking over is very interesting. Can’t wait for the next book!

THE INFINITY COURTS blew my mind. it’s as simple as that.

to have a protagonist who is so, SO afraid and so unsure of herself was greatly refreshing. what’s more, nami posed questions that i just didn’t have any answers to, that i had never considered before. it’s rare to see a book with so much explicit nuance and i loved seeing it here.

i also have to mention the way that the author makes YOU trust gil. at first he’s abrasive, rude, invasive. but as nami starts to trust him, so do you. it makes the rest of the plot so much more real and heart stopping. i think gil’s arc was incredibly well done, heartbreakingly so.

i will say that the pacing of the first half of the book felt a tad slow to me. however, it was not enough to take away from the rest of the story because, in my opinion, the insight into nami’s thoughts that you get during the first half of the book is essential to understanding her as a character.

THE INFINITY COURTS captures the complexity of human consciousness in ways that we can’t even do when we’re living. a wonderful, wonderful read.

thank you netgalley for providing me with this ARC!

3.5/5! Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

In this story, 18 year old Nami is killed on the way to her graduation party. When she reaches the afterlife, she finds that it has been taken over by an AI and humans are being stripped of their consciousness and enslaved. The uniqueness of the concept was what initially drew me to this book and I really enjoyed reading such an original story and world. This book struggled with pacing and I had a hard time getting into the story at first but once I got through about the first half I think the story started to find it's stride. The main conflict explores themes of what it means to be human, what it means to be "good", and much more and definitely makes you think. Morality is explored throughout the book and the moral greyness on both sides really adds to the complexity of the conflict and lets you understand where both sides are coming from. The world Akemi Dawn Bowman created is fascinating, unique, and well thought out but we don’t get to learn about the world with the MC as she learns about the world mostly off-page all at once so we miss out on a lot of world-building and background. That might not be an issue for everyone but I really enjoy world-building and learning all about the history and systems of a world so I personally found this a little disappointing. The characters in The Infinity Courts were for the most part likeable, complex, and diverse but I did wish we had seen more background and depth, especially with the side characters. I also found Nami very self-righteous and annoying at times with her frequent internal morality debates and mentions of her sister which somewhat decreased my overall enjoyment of the book. The relationships, romantic or otherwise, develop organically as the story progresses and include realistic issues like trust and differences in ideology. I also want to give the author props for creating a truly excellent plot twist that I did not see coming and genuinely shocked me. Overall this book was very unique and enjoyably despite the early struggles and the few things that I didn't love based solely on personal preference. I'm definitely interested in seeing where the story goes in the future!

This book was not the book for me.

The Infinity Courts has a really interesting premise, but the same arguments for what it means to be human, etc, are rehashed over and over. It w as basically beating a horse that's already dead. The side characters are unremarkable, the plot twist didn't have any foreshadowing so it didn't really work, and the execution of the premise itself was, uh, not good.

4.5/5
Nami only wanted to make it to a graduation party, but is murdered before she can. When Nami reaches the afterlife, something is off. The AI, Ophelia, that became a necessity for everyday life, has taken over the human afterlife and reigns over the human souls as a queen. Now, Nami is in the middle of a war to save Infinity, a place of rest for humanity, against Queen Ophelia.

The entire book had sucked me in, and I couldn’t get through it fast enough! Nami is unsure of this bizarre afterlife and being surrounded by strangers. Her grappling over her short life and what life/death means were driving themes and I enjoyed the commentary on that. It was nice to follow how Nami grew to be comfortable in this sci-fi afterlife with new fantastical powers.

Akemi Dawn Bowman’s writing is easy to read and you could feel the visceral emotions that Nami experienced leapt up off the page. I loved the unique take on a potential afterlife and the way sci-fi and fantasy were intertwined in the book. Nami is a wonderful protagonist and I loved following her journey, even in death!

Thank you to the publisher, Simon Pulse, and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Nami is on her way to her high school graduation party, when she is murdered. When she wakes, she finds out that she is in the afterlife, called Infinity but notices that everything does not seem quite right. Nami quickly figures out that the afterlife is controlled by Ophelia, an AI used for everyday tasks by humans on Earth, who has declared herself Queen of Infinity, turning the humans into mindless servants. Rescued by the Resistance, a group of rebels aiming to overthrow Ophelia and the Residents, she finds herself caught up in their mission. But she cannot fully bring herself to their way of thinking, uneasy with the idea that to free the humans, they plan to kill all the Residents. Time is running out, however, and Ophelia must be brought down before she can achieve her goal of wiping out humans.

This book was an instant addition to my TBR when I first came across it because the concept alone was so fascinating. How many of us really pay any attention to the various virtual assistants we use aside from asking it to complete tasks or get information? The idea of technology gaining enough intelligence to turn against humans is not a new one, but it’s the first time I’m seeing it in YA. The world building was excellent though it would have been nicer to learn about it alongside Nami as she experiences it rather than her gaining all the information through the memory exchange which made it much less exciting than it could have been. It could have used more detail than was given but there was enough to make sense of what was going on throughout. Although we only get to see the Victory court and the Colony in this book, I’m hoping to learn more about the other three courts and also the Capital in the sequel. Also, atleast up to this point, apart from the ‘evil AI taking over the world’ aspect, the story itself read more like a dystopian fantasy rather than sci-fi.

The situation Nami finds herself in upon arriving in Infinity is a very interesting dilemma. What the rebels are aiming to do goes against what she believes is the morally better choice, yet she finds herself caught up in a war she wanted no part of, playing a key role in a plan she doesn’t agree with. She has ended up in a new world and is being pulled in different directions before she can even figure out which way is up and I can sympathize with that. However, Nami is quite stubbornly naive, and it was annoying when she refused to listen to people who have been surviving in Infinity for so much longer. She believes that she is the only one seeing the bigger picture and that they should try to see if the Residents can be redeemed and attempt to coexist. It made her a really hard character to connect with, when as a reader, we know she’s seen only what is arguably the least awful corner of Infinity and is making huge assumptions based on that. The dialogues on life and the meaning of living and if the Residents, who are not even human, deserve that right, was actually really good but the way it was presented was the issue and it began to feel repetitive.

The ending was quite the twist and I’m really impressed with how things built up to it with not a whisper of foreshadowing that I could find. It’ll be interesting to see how Nami’s thoughts on the Residents have changed after this reveal. I can’t wait to read the next book and find out where exactly Nami has ended up. Overall, this was a fast paced adventure that I would highly recommend for both sci-fi and fantasy fans.

This book started out so strong and I was so hopeful this would end up being 5 stars but the more I read, the more confusing I found this book. I feel like the world was never explained fully and I had so many questions that were never answered. I also found the main character accepted her death and moved on from the life she left behind way too quickly; I would have liked to see more time spent on her processing what happened to her. I found the characters in this book to be pretty underdeveloped, I couldn't even tell you any defining character traits about the main character besides the fact that she loved her sister.

However, will all the negative stuff aside, this was by no means a bad book. This was my first book by Akemi Dawn Bowman and I really loved her writing style and I'm excited to read her contemporaries because I feel like I will love those so much more. The conversations about whether or not we could forgive our enemy and if certain people deserve a second chance was also really interesting. Finally, I liked the romance in this book and the PLOT TWIST at the end!! I'm really interested to see what happens in the next book of this series and I really hope I like that one more.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada and Netgalley for providing me an E-ARC of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This book blew me away. When I first saw Warcross being used as a comparative title, I knew I needed to read it immediately.

Themes of morality and justice are explored through our main character, Nami Miyamoto, as she works through her role in this new reality. Each side character on the team of rebels added to the story in some way. The leader, Annika ties together Gil, Sura, Theo, and Ahmet to fight against the artificial intelligence, Ophelia.

As for the plot? Amazing. There was just enough resolution to make it seem like the characters, mostly Nami, were making progress. We also get the right amount of anticipation being built up for the final pages. I can't wait to see how the rest of the trilogy plays out.

I can now confidently say that Akemi Dawn Bowman is one of my favourite authors. The Infinity Courts is nothing like Starfish, which is the book that made me fall in love with her work, but it is just as memorable in a different way.

I love that Bowman has ventured into the world of SciFi and I will never look at my Alexa in the same way. The world building in here is amazing and what I really appreciated was that the "villains" motives were so clear and understandable that I empathized with them. Nami, our main character, has conflicted feelings throughout the novel and there are a lot of philosophical questions posed throughout. I sometimes thought the messaging was a little heavyhanded but I still appreciated what Bowman was going for here.

It's been a long time since I was so surprised by the last quarter of a book. I thought I knew where the story was going and I was so so wrong! I cannot believe I have to wait for the sequel and there is no information out about it yet!!

I was really (pleasantly) surprised by this book. There is a feisty band of rebels, a compelling and complex enemy, a unique world-building, and a high-stakes plot. The writing is engaging, and I got hooked up from the very first chapter. The concept is so interesting! It’s like imagining that we die, only to realize that Siri has taken over the afterlife and is turning humans into mindless servants. It is a good blend of sci-fi and fantasy, and I definitely recommend reading it!

Infinity was created from human consciousness because it needed somewhere to go after the physical body died. When Nami is killed on her way to a party, she wakes up in Infinity, and gets involved, despite herself, with a group of human rebels fighting to destroy the evil AI queen Ophelia.

Nami struggles a lot with her allegiance in the fight opposing humans and Residents. She wants to help the humans to regain their freedom, but she is opposed to the idea of killing every single Resident to achieve it. She wants to believe and to hope that some Residents can be redeemed and could learn to coexist with the humans if given the chance.

She also feels like an outsider because even among the humans, she stands out. She is the only one believing that peace might be possible, or that some Residents should be given a chance to redeem themselves or show that they are not all horrible. The Resistance wants her to just hate the Residents without any questions, but Nami clings to the hope that there might be a better solution than extermination.

I love how Nami continued to hope, even though everyone was telling her how wrong she was and how she talked like she was their enemy. On the other hand, she was a little naïve at times, and she refused to listen to people who had had years and even centuries of experience in Infinity because she thought she knew how to peacefully solve the ongoing conflict, and she thought she was the only one who could see things clearly. I admit that I had trouble connecting with her because of that.

There is a touch of romance in The Infinity Courts, and it’s a hate-to-love kind so I was super excited when I saw where it was going, but at the same time, it felt as if we skipped the whole “developing feelings and changing my mind about you” part. The romance just suddenly was part of the story. So even though I adore hate-to-love romance, the development of Nami and Gil’s relationship was not especially good.

The beginning of the story is fast-paced, and it keeps moving. There is a good mix of action, politics, spying, and self-reflection. I couldn’t stop reading once I started, and it only got more addictive as the story went on. The last 50 pages had me at the edge of my seat, there is a huge plot twist near the end, and I usually love plot twists, but I honestly am not sure how I feel about the ending though. It is not a bad ending, but it does not feel satisfying at all, especially after everything that happened in the book, it is one of the downsides of this book, but besides that, I really enjoyed it.

*4.5 stars (I received an ARC from Netgalley)

The Infinity Courts by Akemi Dawn Bowman was definitely a story to remember. With its unique plotline, fascinating setting and interesting characters, I couldn't put the book down.

We follow our main character, 18 year-old, Nami, who after a horrible accident, dies. Rather than what she expected, Nami finds herself in Infinity, the afterlife. Discovering unexpected turns, Nami and the Colony are paired trying to save Infinity from its tyrannical queen, Ophelia and her sons, the Court Princes. Meeting both allies and enemies, Nami is backed up into a corner. Yet, once she discovers her hidden power, its all up to Nami to aid the rebellion and save the day.

First off, I loved, loved Nami. Unlike many stories, at no point during this story did I ever feel irritated or bothered by her actions. Each one of them was backed up with understandable reasonings.

Also, there's an enemies to lovers??? HELLO, the best romance trope out there.

However, I do think a few of the elements, particularly the structure of the Infinity and both the Residents and Humans could have been explained in a slightly clearer fashion.

Overall, that ending DESTROYED me and I can't wait for the sequel and what's to come!

Edited review following completion of reading!

From the moment I started reading The Infinity Courts I knew it was going to be a page turner and I was not disappointed! This book had it all for me, a good story, interesting characters and a well thought out story line. The ideas presented throughout the story definitely had me questioning what was going to happen and also how easily believable this could be in real life. And the ending! Cliffhanger for sure and makes me anxious for a book 2!

*I received an advanced reader copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for providing me with the digital ARC!

The Infinity Courts is the first installment of The Infinity Courts series by Akemi Dawn Bowman. The book follows Nami, a recently graduated high school senior who is murdered on her way to her class' graduation party. She wakes up in the afterlife, a place called Infinity, where human consciousness goes when their physical bodies die. Nami soon discovers that Ophelia, a virtual assistant for people on Earth, has taken over Infinity as queen and intends to eradicate humans from the afterlife. The book continues to follow Nami and a team of rebels who are determined to bring an end to Ophelia and save humans in the afterlife.

—

Things I liked: The worldbuilding and characters were very interesting! It was fast-paced and I like how the main character contemplated about the morality of war and existence as well as whether or not she should follow the rebellion's plans. Also I was definitely shocked by THE plot twist — was not expecting it at all.

Things I didn't like as much: I felt that the MC's internal struggle of whether or not she truly agrees with the rebels repeated and dragged on a little too much. The romance with one of the characters felt a bit strange and forced but I guess it was for a reason - I still feel like it could've been executed a bit better.

All in all, this book was a good read with such a unique and interesting concept! I wouldn't know what to do with myself if I ended up in Nami's position in Infinity. I can't wait to see what happens in the second book!

First of all, you're going to want to scroll right by this review because it probably won't be the best one to read if you want an objective take on the story. Why? Because this book put me into a week long slump (which doesn't sound like a lot but it felt like three years). So this story is on my shitlist.

This was my first read by Bowman and despite my strugglebus experience with reading it, I would try her again. I think this was definitely a story-specific problem, not necessarily a writing problem, which is a bummer as while the cover definitely hooked me (so pretty!) it was the plot that made me take a second look.

I will contradict myself here by saying that one of the main issues was writing-specific because this is.. lengthy and repetitive and basically takes two issues not only beats you over the head with them but also to death. Which is hilarious as this story follows a bunch of dead people (not a spoiler). But basically we ruminate (ad nauseaum) over the concept of what it means to be human, what it means to award second chances, and living (being dead?) with hope. Lots of talk of war, too. But while all that might sound interesting, it grew stale really quick because it seemed to be literal copy paste arguments over and over again, with nothing new to be said.

Unfortunately what seemed like a cool concept just felt flimsy and also confusing and I quickly lost any sense of what, well.. made sense. And with that ending.. I mean, I know it isn't a standalone (kinda wish it was, though) but still. What.

Will I read on? Right now it's a no for me, dawg, but honestly by the time the sequel releases I'll probably be back on my completionist kick and want to just wrap it up. Particularly as, at least right now, it seems to only be a duology.

I can't recommend this, at all, but that doesn't mean you won't like it. Again, maybe the slump made this all worse than it could've been, or it was just the wrong time for me, so if it strikes your interest, give it a try! Sample it. Borrow it. I hope your experience is better than mine.

1.5 stars

This is a heads up to anyone requesting this title.

There is no kindle download option. The only way to read this is with netgalley shelf or a PDF of the book.

I personally tried reading the PDF because my phone is too old to get the Netgalley shelf app. The PDF font is too small for me to read so I was unable to read this.

I’ll read it when it’s released and leave my review for the story at that time.

4.5/5 𝘢𝘳𝘤 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘯𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺
Video review posted on my TikTok @zitaknowshowtoread
(I'm trying out a new way of structuring my reviews)

STORY?: This book follows Nami who is murdered the night before her graduation party. Upon arriving in the afterlife (called Infinity) she learns that it has been taken over by an AI called Ophelia and her fellow creations known as "Residents". Instead of submitting to their control Nami is recruited by a band of human rebels trying to take down Ophelia.

CHARACTERS: This book is told from the point of view of eighteen (when she died) year old Nami who I surprisingly really liked. She was strong-willed, relatable, and I didn't find myself cringing at any of her internal monologue (as I sometimes do when it comes to poorly written teenage characters who make you wonder if the author themself was ever a teenager). The other characters in this book also felt very real to me. We got to see the 'found family' bonds that existed between the other human rebels all with their own strengths and weaknesses.

ROMANCE: The romance in this book was an absolute JOY and one that I didn't even see coming. Often when a romance is too forced or there isn't enough buildup I find myself scratching my head, wondering where it came from. With this book, there was none of that. It might be because I'm an absolute sucker for the "broody guy with a heart of gold" or rivals-to-lovers romances but I absolutely fell in love with their romance. There was even a hint at a love triangle at one point which usually I'm not on board for but in this case, it just worked.

WRITING: This book is told in the first person from the perspective of Nami. Like I said above I was in love with her character and especially her inner turmoil. The writing itself was beautiful and descriptive.

DISLIKES: Now you might be thinking to yourself: "Zita, you have just spent the past few minutes gushing about how much you love this book why did you give it 4.5 stars??" Well, to tell you the truth my one (and only) problem with this book was the beginning. We only spend about three chapters with "alive" Nami before she dies. And a lot of Nami's internal conflict in this book comes from how attached she was to her family (especially her sister) and her recently confessed crush, Finn. I kind of wish we had been able to spend more time exploring those relationships before her death. I understand why this wasn't the case but I felt a little disconnected from some of her motivations throughout the book because I felt as if I didn't know any of them very well.