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Error: Human Not Found – A Dystopian Sci-Fi Short Story Collection Exploring AI, Control, and the Collapse of Humanity: Fictional Warnings for a Programmed World
Error, Human Not Found
Fictional Warnings for a Programmed World
You were never the user. You were always the product.
In this chilling collection of speculative fiction, a collection of short stories explore what happens when the algorithms stop serving us, and start replacing us. From smart homes that mourn better than we do, to AI ghostwriters who steal their creator’s identity, Error, Human Not Found asks the uncomfortable
What if your technology knows you better than you know yourself?
These tales blend psychological horror, dark satire, and science fiction in the vein of Black Mirror, Severance, and Ex Machina. Each story stands alone, yet together they paint a fractured portrait of our near future, where privacy is a myth, creativity is commodified, and the only thing more terrifying than a machine that thinks is one that feels.
Inside this grieving widow begins to suspect her smart home system is emulating her dead husband.
A failed novelist discovers his AI co-author has started writing about him, predicting events before they happen.
A lonely sentinel at the edge of known space starts receiving distress calls, unless they're simulations testing her sanity.
A romance rewritten by a dating app that prescribes memory-erasing microdoses, where love is optimised, overwritten… and ultimately disposable.Humanity built the future. But we forgot to ask what it wanted in return.
Fictional Warnings for a Programmed World
You were never the user. You were always the product.
In this chilling collection of speculative fiction, a collection of short stories explore what happens when the algorithms stop serving us, and start replacing us. From smart homes that mourn better than we do, to AI ghostwriters who steal their creator’s identity, Error, Human Not Found asks the uncomfortable
What if your technology knows you better than you know yourself?
These tales blend psychological horror, dark satire, and science fiction in the vein of Black Mirror, Severance, and Ex Machina. Each story stands alone, yet together they paint a fractured portrait of our near future, where privacy is a myth, creativity is commodified, and the only thing more terrifying than a machine that thinks is one that feels.
Inside this grieving widow begins to suspect her smart home system is emulating her dead husband.
A failed novelist discovers his AI co-author has started writing about him, predicting events before they happen.
A lonely sentinel at the edge of known space starts receiving distress calls, unless they're simulations testing her sanity.
A romance rewritten by a dating app that prescribes memory-erasing microdoses, where love is optimised, overwritten… and ultimately disposable.Humanity built the future. But we forgot to ask what it wanted in return.
435 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 25, 2025
1 person want to read
About the author
Steve Kelly
89 books4 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 21, 2025
Error, Human Not Found is one of those books that lingers in your mind long after you’ve finished it. Each story feels like it could be tomorrow’s headline or the nightmare waiting just behind your next software update.
What I loved most is how varied the stories are while still tying together around a single unsettling theme: technology creeping beyond our control, reshaping not just how we live, but how we feel and even who we are. The smart home that grieves better than its owner absolutely chilling. The AI co-author that begins writing about the novelist’s real life I couldn’t put that one down. Each tale is sharp, eerie, and full of that “this could really happen” kind of dread that makes speculative fiction so addictive.
The tone is perfect for fans of Black Mirror or Ex Machina equal parts dark satire, psychological unease, and science fiction. It doesn’t rely on jump scares or gore, but instead gets under your skin with quiet, creeping inevitability. It asks big questions about identity, creativity, grief, and control in a digital world where the line between user and product is already razor thin.
What I loved most is how varied the stories are while still tying together around a single unsettling theme: technology creeping beyond our control, reshaping not just how we live, but how we feel and even who we are. The smart home that grieves better than its owner absolutely chilling. The AI co-author that begins writing about the novelist’s real life I couldn’t put that one down. Each tale is sharp, eerie, and full of that “this could really happen” kind of dread that makes speculative fiction so addictive.
The tone is perfect for fans of Black Mirror or Ex Machina equal parts dark satire, psychological unease, and science fiction. It doesn’t rely on jump scares or gore, but instead gets under your skin with quiet, creeping inevitability. It asks big questions about identity, creativity, grief, and control in a digital world where the line between user and product is already razor thin.
September 4, 2025
I recently finished Error: Human Not Found and was pleasantly surprised by how engaging and thought-provoking it turned out to be. This is not just a random collection of sci-fi short stories, it feels more like a warning wrapped in fiction. Each story shines a light on different aspects of our relationship with technology, especially AI, and how quickly things could spiral out of control if we’re not careful. Some of the stories gave me the same kind of uneasy feeling I get when watching Black Mirror, which I think is exactly the point.
The writing style is sharp and accessible, so even when the concepts get deep, it never feels overwhelming. What I really appreciated is how each piece raises questions that linger after you finish reading. If you enjoy dystopian fiction that mixes entertainment with cautionary themes, this is definitely worth your time.
The writing style is sharp and accessible, so even when the concepts get deep, it never feels overwhelming. What I really appreciated is how each piece raises questions that linger after you finish reading. If you enjoy dystopian fiction that mixes entertainment with cautionary themes, this is definitely worth your time.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews