Agency

Verity Jane is a thirty-three-year-old tech genius grasping for a reboot in life. Recently she ended a long-term and high-profile relationship with a business impresario. She has an enticing employment offer from a large tech firm. She has been tasked with testing a new product, but mustn’t reveal anything about the product until she next meets with her prospective employer for her opinion. The product slowly unveils itself to Verity. Eunice is AI technology with scary potential; she talks to Verity and with her budding self-awareness. Verity is intrigued yet worried. Eunice is making moves, alerting Verity only moments before the action. Meanwhile in London, plans are being hatched; Eunice and Verity’s progress are being monitored. The world is unsafe, hanging on a precipice, and the use of AI in human hands might make all the difference.

William Gibson writes the cyber world in an elaborate yet obtainable way. The characters are complex, the action cleverly sketched. There is an overarching paranoia as a theme of the story, but this makes the story even more readable. Gibson’s take on the ever-expanding tentacles of technology and its capacities captivate the reader and may keep more than a few awake at night. A stellar release from an accomplished author.