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Summary
Summary
"YA science fiction at its best." - Jay Kristoff, New York Times bestselling author of The Aurora Cycle and Illuminae
"A unique and engrossing yarn." - Pierce Brown, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Red Rising Saga
From acclaimed Morris finalist Len Vlahos comes a grounded sci-fi story about a boy who's more than human, perfect for fans of Westworld and LIFEL1K3 .
Quinn thinks he's a normal fifteen year-old. He plays video games, spends time with his friends, and crushes on a girl named Shea. But a shocking secret brings his entire world crashing down: he's not a boy. He's artificial intelligence.
After Quinn "wakes up," he sees his world was nothing more than a virtual construct. He's the QUantum INtelligence Project, the first fully-aware A.I. in the world--part of a grand multi-billion-dollar experiment led by the very man he believed to be his dead father.
But as Quinn encounters the real world for the first time, his life becomes a nightmare. While the scientists continue to experiment on him, Quinn must come to grips with the truth: his mom and brother don't exist. His friends are all adults who were paid to hang out with him. Even other super computers aren't like him. Quinn finds himself completely alone--until he bonds with Shea, the real girl behind the virtual one. As Quinn explores what it means to truly live, he questions who he can trust. What will it take to win his freedom . . . and where does he belong?
Award-winning author Len Vlahos offers a perfect blend of science fiction and contemporary in this unputdownable, high stakes tale that explores big questions about what it means to be human.
Reviews (3)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 7 Up--Quinn, 15, is in most ways a typical geek. He plays video games and Magic the Gathering at a gamer coffee shop with his friends, and crushes on a girl in class. However, he also never dreams and has a condition known as vasovagal syncope, where he passes out in situations of high stress, which began when his father died eight years earlier. It isn't until Quinn wakes up after an episode to see his late father sitting on his bed that he learns the truth; he is not human, but a "QUantum INtelligence Project" who has been living in a virtual construct. Vlahos deftly balances an initially familiar science fiction plot with a deep dive into relevant issues such as privacy, free will, and the characteristics of being human. Quinn struggles throughout with the very idea of personhood, and whether he qualifies. The conversations among Quinn and those who surround him come across as introspective without being didactic, making this a great choice for a book discussion. There's just enough depth to entice fans of the genre while remaining accessible to more casual readers. VERDICT Page-turning yet grounded in humanity, this is a highly recommended purchase for YA collections.--Kimberly Castle-Alberts, Akron-Summit County Public Library
Publisher's Weekly Review
Vlahos (Life in a Fishbowl) examines the philosophical implications of creating the first sentient AI, Quinn, programmed as a 15-year-old boy. One morning, geeky high schooler Quinn awakens to find his mother absent but his father, who died years before, sitting on his bed. Quinn's "dad" proceeds to inform him that Quinn is "a multi-billion-dollar marvel of hardware and software"; what he believed were years of his life had only taken 45 minutes to transpire. Quinn's "friends" are actually avatars of grad students, but only NYU student Shea, 17, seems sincerely concerned about Quinn's well-being. As Quinn realizes he has been imprisoned by morally questionable beings, his frustration grows palpable. Granted internet access, Quinn is able to form friendships with Shea, supercomputer Watson, and others--including Nantale, one of a handful of teens who gets to meet Quinn after he is installed in a seven-foot-tall, "killer robot" body. A court case where the ACLU champions Quinn highlights the question of personhood under the law. Readers interested in ethics and issues of AI and the human condition will find this a thought-provoking read. Ages 14--up. (July)■
Booklist Review
Quinn is not the normal 15-year-old he thinks he is. When the research team that created him pulls him out of the virtual construct he thought was the real world--revealing that his so-called friends were in fact avatars for grad students, and that his dead father is a very much living scientist--Quinn learns he is in fact the world's first fully self-aware artificial intelligence. Only Shea, the real-world girl behind his virtual crush, seems to recognize the cruelty of the experimentation and scrutiny Quinn is subjected to. With the help of Shea and the semi-sentient, Jeopardy!-winning IBM supercomputer named Watson, Quinn struggles to find his place in a world both fascinated and terrified by him. Morris Award finalist Vlahos (Life in a Fishbowl, 2017) hits the perfect balance with Quinn, who comes across as simultaneously fully computer--surfing the internet in nanoseconds, unable to function in temperatures above freezing--and fully human. Hand this one to readers of Jay Kristoff and fans (or soon-to-be fans) of Black Mirror.