July 12, 2021
This restless, introspective geek riff on The Truman Show from Moyer (The Rules of Me) pits two dissatisfied burnouts against a rogue AI, each other, and growing up. Twentysomething pizza-shop clerk Laura has been poor, bored, and stuck in her upstate New York town since her mother died. Or so she thinks. Really, she’s the second sentient AI created in a secretive, corporate-backed lab—and her creator’s suicide has left isolated, neurodivergent grad student Adler in charge. Adler struggles to contain Laura’s imprisoned, impulsive AI older brother as the lab shuts down. When Adler gives Laura a cat to help her reach self-actualization—and accidentally deletes her best friend from existence—both their worlds unravel into alcoholic breakdowns. But then Laura’s brother gets loose, and both Laura and Adler must pull it together in time to save humanity. Moyer writes with a wholesome compassion, but her craft can be a bit choppy, failing to consistently marry grinding mundanity, breezy cultural references, and high-concept college philosophy. Still, readers looking for a light take on machine—and human—self-awareness will find plenty of heart.