Glass Houses by Madeline Ashby is a dystopian sci-fi thriller that delves into the eerie consequences of AI and emotion-mapping technology in a future world that feels disturbingly plausible. The premise is intriguing—a group of tech employees crash on what seems to be a deserted island, only to discover a mysterious glass house that holds the key to their survival.

The concept of an AI-driven world that collects and manipulates emotional data is both fascinating and terrifying, and the book does a good job of exploring the darker implications of such technology. The story unfolds through dual timelines, alternating between the present, where the characters are stranded, and the past, which gradually reveals the events leading up to the crash.

The protagonist, Kristen, is a well-developed character, and her role as the Chief Emotional Manager adds an interesting dynamic to the story. The glimpses into her past provide depth and help to explain her complex relationship with the CEO, Sumter.

While the book has its strengths, including a strong dystopian atmosphere and an engaging mystery, it does have some drawbacks. The futuristic technologies and jargon can be difficult to follow at times, which left me feeling disconnected from the story. Additionally, the narrative occasionally loses focus, with some plot points feeling underdeveloped or overly stretched out.

The pacing, while suspenseful in parts, can also be uneven, and the transitions between past and present are sometimes jarring. The novel attempts to tackle big ideas about AI, data privacy, and the potential dangers of technology, but these themes are not always fully realized, leaving me with more questions than answers.

Overall, Glass Houses is a solid read with an intriguing premise and some memorable moments, but it falls short of being a standout in the genre. Fans of dystopian thrillers and speculative fiction may find it worth their time, but it might not leave a lasting impression.

Three stars. Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group for the ARC.

Did I completely understand all the mumbo jumbo jargon of programmers working in a future version of our world? No. Did that stop me from enjoying this book? Also, no.

I understood enough to know that the technology they were developing and the technological advances of this world were absolutely terrifying. I already think we are living in a world that gathers too much personal data, and while I’m not scared of it, I don’t love it. Especially after reading stories like this that collect everything, including emotional data.

Even if AI never takes over humanity like an evil overlord, the people behind the tech are equally scary.

I received a digital ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A twisty speculative future thriller where a group of employees and their CEO crash on a not so deserted island?? Yes please. I loved the cover, I loved the premise and the AI content/aspects of the story. Recommended for fans of White Lotus and books like Storm warning by David Bell. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

Glass Houses is a dystopian sci-fi thriller that explores the effects of an emotion-mapping-AI algorithm. The concept of this book was intriguing and I was invested enough in the idea to read to the end. It left me feeling a little unsettled but mostly thinking “what the heck just happened,” much like I feel at the end of a Black Mirror episode but with less lasting effect.
This book follows the POV of Kristen, the Chief Emotional Manager of the emotion-maping-AI start-up, Wuv, on a journey of a plane crash leading to a mysterious Glass House. The house reminded me of the Disney movie, Smart House, but make it AI.
The story is told in a dual timeline of present day and before the plane crash to help us understand what Kristen was unable to remember after her alleged concussion. Some events and answers were forshadowed, which kept me interested enough to continue reading. The story explored the surface of this AI concept, including some current social issues that did not seem to provide value. I picked this up hoping it would leave me contemplating the dangers of AI and fear the impact it might have on our world. Instead, I was left more terrified of the murders and motive behind the murders than the impact of the AI technology. I am not sure the ultimate message of the story is clear. Is AI going to kill us or will we be our own killers?
Thank you NetGalley and Tor Publishing Co. for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A fascinating and intelligent thriller with commentary on modern technology and Silicon Valley. AI gives me the creeps so this book really worked for me, especially with the smart, satirical writing style.

3.5 stars. The story centers around a plane with no pilot that should fly itself. Instead, the pilotless plane crashes and a group of coworkers from a tech startup crash-land on an island. They see nothing around them until they find a black, all-glass house, only problem is is that it has no doors. They need to get inside because the house contains everything they need to survive. But why did they crash here in the first place? As things go wrong, the stranded group starts to turn on each other, unsure of who to trust. Was the crash an accident or a deliberate plan? The narrative unfolds in dual timelines: the present and the past. The chapters set in the past always provide hints relevant to the present.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Tor Books for this e=arc/*

So many twists ad turns. i was captivated the the plot and depiction of the scenery however i could not understand the scifi part.

great premise though

thanks netgalley and publisher. all thoughts and opinions are my own

Glass Houses throws you right into the story--a plane crash strands the employees of a tech company on an island with a mysterious house. The story unfolds over multiple timelines, simultaneously revealing the island's secrets and Kristen's past. Unfortunately, it feels as though parts of the story are missing, and there are way too many places where we, the readers, are expected to fill in gaps with minimal information. It's a 2.5 (rounded up to 3): 2 for the story, 0.5 for Kristen.

“It feels good to wash the blood off her hands. ”
Here are reasons to read the Sci Fi book:

Corporate Trip - On a corporate trip for the tech company Kristin works for
Plane Crash - their plane crashes
Island - Kristin and her team must survive the island as people are dying one by one

So I went into this book thinking it was going to be an island survivor story. And honestly from the reasons I gave, you may think that too. But unfortunately, the majority of this book was back story and exposition about the people and the companies. And also, I’m smart but this book might have been either too smart for me or written in a style I just do not understand. Many times there were references made that weren’t explained and I didn’t really like the characters either. However, if you like Sci Fi, you may really like this as many others have said they do.

Glass Houses tells the story of employees and CEO from a tech company (Wuv) that are flying to celebrate their company being sold and their plane crash on what seems to be a deserted island. They soon find out there is an odd house in the middle of this island and the employees start to die mysteriously. The main character is Kristen, who is an orphan, her parents died in a fire, and she is the Chief Emotional Manager of Wuv who has a very strange relationship with the CEO, Sumter,

I loved the dystopian feel of this book and the Lost vibes it gave. I was very invested in the story from early on and the jumping from past to present did help, in my opinion, move the story along.

I loved Kristen, I think she was a complicated and very well written character, I liked that we got glimpses from her past to see how they shaped the person she became.

The whole house functionality and the twists were very well done.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book I thought it was a very fast read and the story kept making me want to keep reading to figure out what happened.

I give this book 4.5 stars, rounded to 5 stars as there are no half stars here.

This was my first book by Madeline Ashby but certainly will not be my last.

Thank you NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group for this ARC the above review is of my own thoughts.

A futuristic novel that really has no redeeming qualities.

The story is slow, disjointed and repetitive. Phrases and trash talk thrown in to either jar the reader and try to turn it into pornography.

I just kept waiting for it to get better - it just never made it.

A recently acquired technology start-up is on their way to celebrate when their plane crashes. The l island they are on is abandoned except for a black glass house, which is hard to get in but even harder to get out.

I liked the suspense in this one and it kept the pages turning. It had a true claustrophobic feel to the story and keeps the reader anxious from start to end. Kristin is a pretty bad ass character and we get to know a lot more about it as time goes on. I do feel like a lot of the story went over my head. All of the futuristic technologies discussed were not easily understood. I feel like a lot was mentioned but not properly explained. The suspense and mystery was still there so it was an entertaining book regardless.

“I wish we’d all died on that plane. Then I’d know for sure we were in Hell.”

Glass Houses comes out 8/13.

I enjoyed the premise of a group of employees celebrating together when things go horribly wrong. Their plane crashes and they come upon a slightly bizarre abandoned palace setting up a unique locked room mystery setup. I loved the tech elements as I find new technologies frightening and it added a nice sinister quality to the storyline when people start disappearing. Kristin was the most interesting character by far. I don't why to say why for fear of giving anything away. If you like creepy, tech horror/thrillers, then you'd likely enjoy this book.

First of all, thank you for the ARC, I was hooked the moment I read the synopsis of this book as it gave whodunnit, near future, tech thriller survival mystery vibes to it as well as calling Severance & Black Mirror as well as Knives Out fans (which I am indeed) as this book might be perfect for us. In addition, I did put on some high expectation and excited to start reading.

I think it started off well - the introduction to the plot, characters, and story mood setting. Yet the more chapters I go on, the more it felt not really sticking to me. I am fine with back and forth between present & past story telling, but the way the author executes them doesn’t really do it for me, sorry. It felt too stretched out and out of focus sometimes for me, and dull the whole plot. Some part are good, yet some made me wanna skip them. The multi pov writing style aren’t really helping as well to keep my interest intact. I wish there are more thrills to the present setting, like I was expecting more punch from their present plot setting, unfortunately not much from that. I think the plot could be much better if that present setting more focused on, since the idea of that present setting is promising indeed.

Well, that just my take, perhaps it might be different for you since I can see some other does enjoy this book. As for me, I’m sorry I couldn’t really say that I enjoyed this book. I do like some part of it. Feel free to try to read it yourself, as you might have different take from me. Overall, such a good idea of the story.

Thank you to Tor for the review copy of Glass Houses by Madeline Ashby. I was intrigued by the premise and tone of this book, with its strong setup and focus on examining male-dominated spaces, such as the tech industry, and addressing misogyny and the treatment of women and marginalized people in these environments.

I was particularly invested at the start, drawn to what seemed like a strong atmospheric read with a remote island setting and the promise of seeing obnoxious tech bros face the consequences of their behavior. The exploration of a woman as the chief emotion manager was also compelling (we can delve into the gender dynamics of that role another time—why do we always expect women to handle emotion-focused work?). However, the sci-fi thriller elements didn’t quite connect with me, perhaps because I’m not the ideal or target reader for this genre.

While the plot twists and developments were creative and occasionally thought-provoking, I found that many plot points didn’t come together as well as I’d hoped. My main challenge with connecting to the story stemmed from the writing—the style felt flat to me, and the pacing kept me from fully engaging with the narrative.

An interesting psychological thriller that gives a glimpse into the possible future with technology. By the end of this tale with its twists and turns you won't know who to believe or who is the real hero.

A sci-fi thriller novel about techie coworkers who are left stranded on an island with their strange and overly enthusiastic CEO after a plane crash.

The thought of living in a world where everything is controlled by AI scares me because almost nothing can be kept a secret. The story mainly focuses on Kristen, who is Chief Emotional Manager for an emotion analysis company called Wuv. The book flips back and forth between two main points in time - before the crash and after.

There is death and murder and betrayal which really kept things interesting. Most of the characters annoyed me though and I didn’t quite care for them (although the techie bro relationships were portrayed quite well). What really got me thinking though was how terrifying advanced technology can be and how people can use it to cause pain and harm to others as this is something that can very much happen in real life.

Thank you to netgalley and Tor Publishing Group for the ARC!

I received an eARC of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was so cringy. The premise was interesting: a plane crash on a deserted-island and a creepy AI-house. I was expecting a super dark take on Smart House. Instead, this book is giving the dollar store knock off brand of the tv show Lost. This book was set in the future or an alternate reality? No real clarity there. The characters were awful. The dialogue was cringy. The book jumped from past to present in a jarring way. I literally did not care about what was happening in the past or the present. This book felt like it was written to check off boxes. Talk about the patriarchy (check), make the world literally not built for women (check), make a reference to something sexual in almost every chapter at least once (check). The first sign this book was not going to be for me occurred at the 6% mark
"Kristen follows his gaze, up and up and up, into the glittering cum-smear arcing high above them that is the Milky Way."
I have literally read monster smut that was less jarring then that sentence in the middle of a horror/thriller. I just want to know why the Milky Way needed to be described like that out of no where in chapter three of the most boring thriller I've ever attempted to read. It felt like this book was much like its characters, trying too hard to seem smart and funny. I finally DNF'd this book at 51%.

The narrative unfolds through dual timelines, before and after the crash, narrated in the third person from Kristen's perspective. We come to know Kristen and several other characters intimately, although the more I learned about her, the less I found her likable. Indeed, most characters are rather unlikable, yet this didn't hinder my enjoyment of the tale or my curiosity about their survival chances.

The book delves into the depths of the human psyche, exploring themes such as PTSD, obsession, gender dynamics in male-dominated industries, the erosion of privacy in the age of social media, and the ramifications of broadcasting one's life to the world. I don't have a smart home system in my home, and after reading this book I won't get one...

There were parts of this that I found really enjoyable - namely Kristen getting viciously angry at tech bros being absolute misogynistic assholes - and there were parts that didn’t click for me - like the whole climax which felt like it sort of came out of left field. The other thing that I found really weird was Kristen’s use of the hypersexualized/predatory language that tech bro assholes would use to describe her and other women in the industry. It didn’t quite feel like she was using the derogatory terms ironically or to reclaim them.

We also didn’t really get a sense of the other people at Wuv (specifically the other women) Nora Mae, Sheila, Fawn, and Nadine were each very important to Kristen’s development (or at least our understanding of Kristen, as the audience) but none of them really felt like people. Nora Mae slightly more than the others, but still not enough.

The scenes with Anton were so long and while those conversations gave us more insight into Kristen’s character than anything else, it undermined the tension of being trapped on the island.

I have more (less organized) thoughts but delving too deep into those would be spoilery so I guess we’ll leave this here. Overall, I found the book to be very readable and it accompanied me through several bad-sleep nights, but I also think it could have been More.