A good take on Romeo and Juliet with a scifi twist. This is the type of book that you'll read the first time through, and then want go back to read again as it will make more sense the second time around.

It starts with a high tech billionaire warning that the Foundation is about to develop AGI Artificial General Intelligence and the implications this will have on mankind. A book that probably deserves a second read but there are too many other books on the pile.

I will definitely read this author again.

This book was based on slightly terrifying idea in this day and age - not knowing what's AI and what is real. It was a well done storyline, but I felt like the characters/relationships could have been developed more, especially for a "Romeo and Juliet" in the modern age. The plot was definitely there - and legitimately a terrifying idea because of the technology behind AI and how you know if things are actually reality or not.

Thank you to NetGalley and J. Raventos for the advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. The opinion is my own.

So first of all: I'm not a fan of insta love. Probably should have paid more attention to the Romeo and Juliet part of the title honestly. Still, the Romeo and Juliet part of the plot isn't that prevalent in the whole? Except at the end, there was a parallel but it only became more obvious in the final chapters. There was also a lot of jumping between POVs which could be confusing at times.

Outside of that, the main plot involves two students at Stanford being accepted at an internship at the Foundation, this at the behest of Olen in order to obtain funding for their startup. A bit of corporate espionage that turns wrong when some discoveries come to light that Olen's suspicions may be more correct than expected.
A fun note is that I immediately noticed the author knows what he is describing and lo a behold the author has worked in AI and in Silicon Valley.
All in all, a compelling read I do think is worthwhile to read - as long as you are more aware of the Romeo and Juliet insta love portion when coming in.

This was an interesting and thrilling reinterpretation of Romeo and Juliet with an AI twist. The concept was well written and I thought the plot was well executed. I absolutely loved this read. It was a very captivating book that I couldn't stop reading once i started.

4.5 stars

I read this book and then immediately reread it to see what I could pick up on that I missed the first time. It is a truly fascinating book, a great take on Romeo and Juliet!

I received this as an advance copy through NetGalley in exchange for giving a review.

This was an interesting story, especially in today’s world of AI this, that, and everything. It was a decent retelling of Romeo & Juliet, (which I think it might have been better to read not knowing this in advance, especially if you’re aware of the story, but as it’s mentioned in a lot of the promotional material for the book I don’t consider it to be too much of a spoiler). There’s enough twists in the tale to make you wonder who exactly knows what, without it spoiling the somewhat inevitable outcome.

Of course, this is just my opinion, you may read it and take something very different from the story. It’s not destined to become a classic, or a story that lends itself to rereads, but it’s an enjoyable story that, at around 200 pages, is worth the read.

#TheAIFearedDeath #NetGalley

When brilliant young developer Leon and his partner Merc approach the most promiment Silicon Valley entrepreneur to fund their startup, little did they know they would be plunged headlong into a covert AI-development organisation known only as "The Foundation". At a celebratory Silicon Valley party he meets Julia, and falls deeply in love with her - only to discover she, too, is working for The Foundation.

And thus we get launched into an action-packed ride that is part high-tech thriller and leaning heavily into Romeo and Juliet, to leave you wondering who is real and who is AI and who, really, is in a simulation after all?

This was a fun read, full of twists and turns and alternating points of view that track the general path of the classic Shakespearean take with a high-tech bent.

3 1/2 stars for me, as it wasn't completely my cup of tea. I'm not a huge fan of first-person, present tense narration, but overall a good story, with an interesting premise.

~Many thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review~

Unfortunately DNF @ 27%
The book title & description sounded like something I could enjoy, hence requesting. I'm sad to say the first few chapters didn't seem to provide any coherent world building. The chapters appeared to be from different character's perspectives but no names stated to make it clear. I felt like we were just bouncing around attempting to understand what exactly was happening & why. The man (apologies as I do not recall his name) fell instantly for the woman (again, not really sure who she is or what importance she holds) but the way he thought about her irked me; it was just a bit gross to be frank; instantly obsessive in a non sexy way (& FYI I mostly read smut & dark romance - so I am commenting of the words used & way it was written).
I hope this book finds its audience but unfortunately for me I found it really difficult to follow & despite pushing myself to continue reading, I found no intrigue to continue further.
Thank you to NetGalley and J Raventos for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The way the singularity is explained is really easily digestible, making the book accessible for every kind of reader, not just sci-fi. Unfortunately, for me, the story was not gripping enough (expect maybe for the first 30%), and I think it has to do with how we switch POVs. It feels a little choppy and it takes me out of the flow of the story. Maybe if they felt more chronologically connected, then it would've been easier.
But since it's a novella, this can be overlooked by most readers.

But something has to be done about the cover. The woman on the cover is giving some sort of weird AI love story or smth. I suggest looking at new releases from 2024 such as Baby X, Annie Bot and Tchaikovsky for inspiration. I especially like Towards Eternity's cover, it's going to be very appealing to new readers in scifi

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC. Unfortunately I had a very hard time getting into this. The writing wasn’t good and the story was kinda just weird to me. I was interested because of the AI element and I do believe that if it was told a different way I would have liked this one a lot. This isn’t for everyone but I can see people liking this.

After being warned about a company coming close to Artificial General Intelligence, two students from Stanford or asked to sneak into the establishment and find out what is happening in exchange for money for their start up company.

This was an interesting read. AI is a topic that is so important now and it was interesting to read a story with it at the center.

The writing itself isn’t bad, however, this book is all about telling. The reader is told what characters are doing and what is happening, not shown. The chapters also jump around from first person to third person.

This was a quick read, which I actually didn’t mind. I just wish we had more time to connect and form some emotions towards the characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I loved the plot of this book but I didn't care for the Romeo & Juliet aspect at the end and the POV transitions were hard to follow at times. However, I read this book in one sitting because it was captivating, and I just needed to know what was going to happen. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

I found this book really hard to follow so I gave up with it. I'm sorry but thank you for giving me the chance to read it.

What a strange book - but in a good way. As someone else wrote it is Romeo and Juliet meets William Gibson.

It starts with a high tech billionaire warning that the Foundation is about to develop AGI Artificial General Intelligence and the implications this will have on mankind. A book that probably deserves a second read but there are too many other books on the pile.

Not for everyone but it worked well for me.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

What a unique read! Romeo and Juliet meets AI.

This is the type of book that you'll read the first time through, and then want go back to read again as it will make more sense the second time around.

Some of the transitions were abrupt, and I had to take a moment to figure out which perspective I was reading at times.

It is a quicker read but action packed, and it is definitely worth a read. Publishing on 6/24/24.

Thank you to J. Raventós and NetGalley for the gifted copy.

Artificial Intelligence models can create life-like simulations. Despite that, the thought that we might be living in a simulation never occurs to us. Such an existence could explain our seeming lack of control over events in our lives.

While reading “The AI that Feared Death”, I couldn’t tell that the book’s characters were largely made up of individuals in a simulated environment. The text drifted back in forth between real characters and their simulated counterparts causing me some confusion. And, not realizing there was a difference, I often wondered where the characters’ real interests lay. It wasn’t toward the end of the book that I grasped that some of the characters were AI-generated, with one, in particular, having been created as the perfect sole mate for the main character.

This modern-day tragedy left me sad. There are very few times when the perfect girl meets the perfect guy. When it happens, the world wants the relationship to succeed as it’s a wonder to see.

This well-written book was a love story with intrigue and forces tearing them apart. As in most classical tragedies, they ended their love in suicide.

Wonderful book, really well crafted. It gripped me from the beginning and I couldn't stop reading. AI meets Romeo and Juliet meets William Gibson.

A captivating reinterpretation of the Romeo and Juliet tale. The exploration of AI themes is both insightful and accessible, making it an excellent choice for those seeking to deepen their understanding of the subject. I highly recommend it!

The title of this book grabbed my attention, but unfortunately, I couldn't read past a few pages because of the writing. This book was given to me by Netgalley in exchange for my honest review

This book has a great idea for a story. It includes a few tropes that someone classically read and into technology would recognise. Parts of it reminded me of an element of the Divergence series and parts of it seemed like a Darren Brown book.
Some of the story plot unfolds very quickly, and might have been better to take some more time to graduate with the reader rather than to go from 0 to 10 as it were.
The writing was good, and I liked the main character/s. The themes within the story were good, but sometimes delivered rather bluntly. The book kept me going with the many elements of mystery and questions it brought up. For me, sadly, I did not enjoy the ending. It did not explain fully what had happened and why, and left me to figure out what 'must' have been happening based on my knowledge of the books themes. It almost seems as if the book was ending on somewhat of a cliffhanger because there will be a second or more book in a series, but I've no idea if it's a stand alone story or the first on an intended series.
I overall enjoyed reading the book, but ultimately felt disappointed in not finding resolution to the question brought up within the story that did not get answered.