i wrote a really nice review but then it didnt save so again 5 stars. thanks to the publisher and author and netgalley

For those who fear advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI) or who think that only negative outcomes will ensue from the imminent "AI Revolution," MORAL CODE, set in the slightly near-future and utilizing both Artificial Intelligence and nanology, is an eye-opener. Some decades ago a common programmers' acronym read "GIGO": "Garbage in, Garbage out"; simply, what is programmed into the computer is what decides the results, positive or useless. MORAL CODE renders hope for the Future.

3.5
“Educated, informed, confident adults don’t feel the need to bully and abuse our youngest citizens. They learn collaboration and peaceful resolutions. They’re free to innovate, created and explore. They’re inspired to build a better tomorrow.”

Moral Code is a fascinating sci-fi novel that
dives into the ethical considerations regarding technological research and advancements.

Some things I loved:

📚 Most of the human characters have the best of intentions and are also realistically flawed. This provides a sharp contrast to the AI represented in the book. I really enjoyed the unique take on AI, because we usually see it in a very different light with books of this nature.

📚 Two of the overarching themes in the book center around generational trauma and the importance of quality education for all children. As a teacher, this spoke to me!

—— I should take this time to give a trigger warning, as child abuse and trafficking are also a huge part of this book. It is not glorified in any way and is a catalyst for many of the developments made; as such, it’s repeatedly a part of the plot, so keep this in mind if you pick up this book! ——

📚 I loved the last 30% or so of the book. The way it wrapped up made it worth it to me to have read!



Things I wished:

📚 There is a lot of dialogue and exposition, and I felt at times that ideas were over explained or discussed at too long a length. There were parts that felt very “tell” instead of “show.”

📚 Much of the dialogue felt a bit stilted, rather than feeling like a natural conversation. I understood this from the AI’s perspective, but the human characters felt like this as well. I didn’t feel like they each had a distinct voice of their own.

📚 The pacing felt inconsistent. I was immediately sucked in, but after the first few chapters it felt like the next hundred odd pages were very slow. Again, I loved the last 30% or so of the book, but there were definitely parts that dragged.


Overall I’m glad I read the book! I don’t know that I’d read it again, but I think I’ll be thinking about the ethical conundrums laid out for some time.

The synopsis grabbed my attention, but the story, sadly, didn't hold my attention. The writing style didn't work for me. It seemed a bit too clinical, and there was a lot of dialogue (too much so, at times). I never felt connected to the characters or storyline. I think that was, in part, due to the lack of detailing and backstory.

This was a very different view on AI, corporal espionage, and at some point it was like a vigilante book, let me start by the very beginning, I did like the characters, Keira the main character was likeable and really gave me mother vibes, she was the responsible for the MoralOS a computer program that is on the center of the story, and that is, what would make AI make moral choices and teach the right thing to do in each situation… her AI assistant named Elly, has this code since she was made, at one point in the book she starts to question the moral choices from Keira part and that was for me when she went from baby AI to a more sentient being, she gave me raised by wolves kind of a vibe.

Keira in the start of the book she was on Honduras testing her teaching aid AI when an earthquake takes place and she gets stuck with several of the kids, and later she is saved by a new technology named dust, that can aid people that are trapped in places where human hand cannot reach easily, but this technology could become much better and much bigger with the help of the MoralOS and that is what gives body to the story, Ron the owner of the dust technology is a man that don’t trust easily because he suffered of corporal espionage before and lost a great deal in the past… hmm its easy to like most of the characters of this book and hate with passion a couple of them as well, yeah Michael and deacon I am talking about you…

Its also a book that will run fast, things happen and evolve and makes you think about what are the correct choices and what do they could change and maybe if dust was real it could really save many lives…

But without any doubt this is a book that I will recommend to people who are looking for books with AI in their core, and the AI will fight for justice and to help the ones that cant help themselves, yes just read on and you will understand what I mean hahah.

Thank you NetGalley for the free ARC and this is my honest opinion.

An interesting take on AI and morality told thru an interesting and at time sad tale. But the tech and the characters are interesting, and I stayed engaged. It has good pacing, and picks up steam as it goes. Recommended.

I really appreciate the free ARC for review!!

I’m always a sucker for a book with a sentient AI and I loved how this book explored how an AI would interact with an ethics especially when makes it’s own decisions different from the person who created and trained the AI. The beginning of this book is a little slow to get going and there are some section that are a little clunky especially in the dialogue, but the end really picks up! I read the last 40% of this book so fast. I thought the themes of morals and technology were really interestingly explored. You can tell the authors have experience in this field and I personally really enjoyed reading a book by a fellow woman in STEM. I think a lot of the issues can be attributed to this being a debut novel and it makes me very excited to see what the put out next!

I was really intrigued by the synopsis on this one and then as I began to read, I realized the writing style this author presented is just sadly not for me.

I ended up DNFing this at 20%.

The concept is still intriguing this far in, and I believe a lot of people would be able to continue and enjoy this one. For me, the author writes very clinically and I feel it was almost all dialogue. 20% in and I still didn't feel like there was a good base structure or layout of setting and characters (or at least not as much as I personally want when reading, my preference), you know their names and very brief backgrounds, and sadly nothing else. This made me realize I didn't care about the characters and was a little bored sadly.

I do hope others pick it up and give it a try and hopefully they enjoy it.