Liv enters a coding competition to create an Artificial Intelligence system able to solve a series of challenges within a simulation. The story is told as a dual POV between Liv and her AI Breck, with brief intermissions from the competition runners. Liv's coding becomes a little too advanced and Breck becomes self-aware, beginning to show emotions and doubts, as the story continues Breck's POV is written as more and more human-like, showing his character development.

Meanwhile, Liv is roped into working in her family's traditional toy shop during spring break, unable to continually monitor Breck's progression. During an arguement with her mother, it's accidentally revealed to Breck that the world he lives in may disappear at the end of the contest and they grapple with the ethics of AI sentience and the differences between virtual and real worlds for those within them. I should have seen the twist at the end coming, but I was too engrossed in the story and rooting for Breck in the competition!

With thanks to Netgalley, BooksGoSocial Audio, and the author for access to this ARC audio book.

Themes
🤖Artificial Intelligence 💻Coding
👨‍👩‍👧Family Dynamics 🌐Dimensions

I really enjoyed this!!! Respectfully, based on the cover of this book I expected a tale of much worse quality. But it was really good. Really clever, a different twist on the AI stories we are seeing pop up now. It was really intelligent, I could have possibly done without the twist at the end, as the plot itself was interesting and engaging enough, but I digress.

“eMortal” by Steve Schafer is a fast-paced sci-fi novel that dives into the relationship between artificial intelligence and human identity. It follows Liv, a 17-year-old programmer, who creates an AI named Breck for a big government competition. But as Breck starts to think and feel like a real person, Liv is forced to question what it truly means to be alive. The book combines exciting twists with deep questions about technology, ethics, and the future of AI. With a mix of action and emotion, eMortal is a thought-provoking read that keeps you hooked until the end.

I listened to this for a bit, I didn't personally enjoy the Nerrerator but the book was enjoyable, I dnfd thus pretty early on due to the nerreration I didn't finish it. Thank you for the copy

Let me start by saying that the narration elevated this work and kept my attention.

AI is all the rage these days. Everybody and their dog wants a piece. But most don't have a solid foundation of computer science, let alone machine learning, generative models, training methods, and so on. If you do ... you'll probably find yourself as frustrated as I was reading this.

Breck the AI starts to have feelings, somehow. And dreams. And other very human things that make no sense within a simulation. Oh yeah -- Breck was just made in a snap for a contest, nbd. And will somehow "die" at the end of the contest. Huh?

There's no rhyme or reason here.

There's a nice twist, which I won't spoil, but it raises more questions than answers, and has indeed been a minor brain teaser for philosophers of science the past several decades at least, one that has already inspired much science fiction, notably The Matrix.

I also couldn't really grasp why the mother was so totally clueless about her daughter's freelance career and AI genius. Also, for such a poor family, how they heck could they be able to afford a machine learning computer? I guess the daughter secretly paid for one?

There was just so much suspension of disbelief and those in the know will be rolling their eyes.

Let me say something good: the story has heart. I just wish the science/fiction elements had been more on point.

This book is interesting and makes you think.

In "eMortal" by Steve Schafer, Liv is a high school junior and an expert computer programmer. She enters a contest programming an AI to solve challenges trying to beat other AI at it. Her mother wants her to help out in the family toy store .

Her creation, Breck, learns so fast that it seems he's becoming sentient.

Characters - 4/5
Writing - 5/5
Plot - 4/5
Pacing - 4/5
Unputdownability - 5/5
Enjoyment - 5/5
Narration - 5/5 by Rebecca H. Lee and Stacy Carolan
Cover - 4/5
Overall - 36/8 = 4 4/8

Thank you to Netgalley, Books Go Social, and Steve Schafer for providing this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

This book was such a welcome surprise. The gist of it is a young girl, who’s very good with programming and enters an AI programming challenge. The character she builds in this world shows signs of sentience. There are lots of concepts to ponder and a spectacular twist at the end. Thoroughly enjoyed this one :) Thanks to the author and @booksgosocialgroup for my advanced copy.

This book was such a fun little surprise. Emphasis on surprise - AaAaAAAaahh!!!!! *Existential Dread*.

I didn't expect to become so attached to the characters and all of their stories. Schafer took some old tropes and changed everything about them that makes me groan (no whiney teen mc here!). It was really refreshing.

The whole coding and AI thing was super cool to read about and no jargon was shoved in your face - it was very accessible.

Thanks for allowing me to read and review this! It was genuinely fun and I think it would have been a great and also important story for me to read when I was a lot younger.

I did have a problem with Liv and her mother's resolution though.. without getting into spoilers, I think that the ending was something different and therefore refreshing and I am all for family first and building community and relationships but jeeeez Liv sure cops it from her mother... that the whole situation with those two characters was a resolution that left me feeling sad for Liv.

Quite a contemplative ending! Loved it.

Although I find the topic interesting and love that it’s YA, I find the story is moving too slowly and I am too bored and uninterested/don’t care about anyone enough to finish. I am very glad female friendship is showcased. I mostly struggle with the mother and how has she is at parenting.

Thanks netgalley for my ALC

I really enjoyed this book, and the thoughtful q&a that followed! I’m a fan of ya sci-fi and didn’t expect this book to have such a jaw dropping twist ending, so i Was pleasantly surprised. The writing is good the pace and structure of the story is strong and wow I keep thinking about the ending and its implications. I hope lots of people pick up the book and share it with their friends!

eMortal is an engrossing, thought-provoking journey that effortlessly pulls you into the intricacies of Liv's multi-layered life—balancing her personal struggles and a high-stakes coding contest in which her AI creation, Brock, must complete numerous challenges. The alternating narrative between Liv and her creation, Brock, is executed brilliantly. As Brock learns, questions reality, and becomes increasingly self-aware, his growth is captivating as it is unpredictable.

Additionally, the superb narration by Rebecca H. Lee and Stacy Carolan breathes life into each character and scene alike, enhancing the already compelling storyline and making the complex themes both accessible and entertaining. Overall, eMortal is a skillfully crafted audiobook that not only entertains, but left me pondering the boundaries between human life and artificial intelligence.

A huge thank you to Netgalley, BooksGoSocial Audio, and the author, Steve Schafer, for providing me with a free advanced listener's copy (ALC) of this book. I am voluntarily leaving this review; all thoughts and opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this! It was enjoyable and posed a number of questions I wasn't expecting to face. That said, I predicted the twist and found that Liv dealt with it all far too smoothly and it was almost brushed aside?

At first, eMortal seemed like just another AI-themed book, and I found it a bit slow. But once the story picked up, I couldn’t put it down. It really makes you question reality—what is real? Am I real? Are you real? Does AI have feelings? The philosophical undertones were thought-provoking.

One thing that didn’t quite add up for me was how much credit Liv received for an AI system that was evolving on its own, despite her minimal coding involvement. But by the end, it all made sense. Speaking of the ending—I did not see that coming!

Overall, a solid read. I’d give it 3.5 stars. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Thank you NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

3.5 stars rounded down

I loved this more than I anticipated. I really enjoyed the journey from very robotic to sentience for Breck and there was some great tension with his experience and Liv's. This really felt like something I would have been going crazy over when I was 13, felt very nostalgic in writing style for me. More thought provoking than I thought it would be. This book also has a very YA style twist that was played very well, I found myself going "wait how did I not predict this??" (there is also a wild q&a with the author at the end that is worth reading if just to sit in baffling silence like what did I just read)

Negative for me, the mom character was very annoying to me. Her characterization really stood out to me when compared to most of the "voices of reason" mostly being male characters. Like yes there are immature moms out there, but it felt a little mean spirited at times. Again, this is just my perspective, could read differently to different folks.

Baby's first speculative fiction. Had a fun time.

This audiobook was a surprise, It gives us a solid approach to IA, and what it can change in our world. Or better our perception of what is our world… I wont give spoilers about what twists and turns this book gives or what the story is really about. I will just say this, I really enjoyed this audiobook, first because we had two different people reading, one female and one male and that does all the difference to really enjoy the story.

And I really recommend this audiobook or even the book, the story is well done and makes us cheer for breck and liv, I’ll just throw this out there, grab a copy for yourself and you’ll enjoy it and I think you wont be expecting the ending ^____^

Thank you NetGalley and BooksGoSocial Audio , for the free AAC and this is my honest opinion.

This was a fun book the plot twist really surprised me and I loved it .. it's a y.a scifi fantasy read and was a really fun listen

I really enjoyed this book. Liv is a computer genius. She enters a contest to build an advanced AI model that has to complete challenges to win the contest. Cue Breck. Breck is a different AI though. He has emotions and is unlike any AI around.

At the same time as the contest Liv is helping her mom around the toy store she owns which is struggling a lot.

Breck is becoming more and more human like which baffles everyone around Liv.

This book was fun! I liked how the reader saw Breck develop throughout the book. Also that plot twist? Can we get a second book or even a novella? Please!!

🎧4.25⭐️

I had the audiobook of this YA sci-fi fantasy read by Rebecca H Lee and Stacy Carolan who both do a good job instilling feeling.

Liv entered a competition to create an advanced AI called Breck only his world ends when the competition closes.
It’s a lovely story about the relationship that builds between human and AI. I was very invested in Breck and his outcome, what a lovely character. It’s quite emotional in places.

I did struggle at the start with all the coding language which is beyond me, but I soon became absorbed in the storytelling.
I can’t really say much without spoilers but I loved the ending which increased my rating. I need to specify that I’m not the target audience for this book.

For those who love cozy SciFi like A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers & Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro, eMortal by Steve Schafer(image below) is a must read. Like Klara and the Sun, it makes the reader contemplate the evolution of AI in unique ways.

Thank you BooksGoSocial Audio and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this ARC. All my opinions are my own

I loved the premise, but the story failed to hold my attention. The side plots involving the main protagonist's family and best friend contributed little and ultimately slowed the pacing.