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Waterdown
Geo Spears thought her legacy would put her above humanity. She had created Fusion A.I., the superintelligence that saved mankind from itself. Poverty, pollution, crime and war—all gone. The solution was simple—people’s minds just had to be whitewashed… watered down.
By 2135, few human wants, wishes, instincts or memories remained. But this was also the year Geo Spears’ longevity treatment failed. She had weeks to live, at most. Cast out by Fusion and faced for the first time with mortality, her past betrayal of family becomes entangled with the present of those she learns to hold dear. Geo is confronted with the true cost of her A.I. creation. And the one remaining path to absolution.
- GenresScience Fiction
163 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 22, 2019
6 people are currently reading
37 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
October 25, 2019
Why does AI always end up being the bad guy? Because we love to explore evil in the form of the Other. Also, it usually turns out that the bad guy was us, the creators of the AI, all along! Anastasia Slabucho’s Waterdown retreads these ideas but within the context of the climate change crisis we currently face. She posits that someone might have the right combination of drive, ingenuity, and wherewithal to create an AI that can take over running our society, if only we’d just listen. But would such a life really be living? That’s what this novel attempts to explore.
Geo Spears created Fusion, the superintelligent AI that now runs the world. In this brave new world, humans are either Permanents or Temporals. Permanents, like Geo herself, have uninhibited memory and intelligence, yet they live socially isolated lives. Their purpose is to work every day on the administrative tasks Fusion assigns them, and in particular, they scrub history of all the nasty little records that might upset someone. Temporals, on the other hand, are the labourer caste. They can have the full range of human experience, but their cognitive landscapes are governed by a brain device that limits their long-term memory storage and mediates their perception of the world. When Geo discovers that she is dying, she wakes up to the problematic nature of Fusion’s dominance over humanity. She has to gain the trust of a group of rebels and help them take down Fusion before it’s too late.
I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley. The Kindle version doesn’t let you override the font choices. This is merely irksome to me, but for people who have accessibility issues that require them to use certain fonts, I can imagine it would be upsetting and potentially prevent them from reading the book.
As far as the story goes, Waterdown has its entertaining moments, yet it never quite comes together into the unified and coherent dystopian thriller it seems to want to be. Slabucho does her best to avoid needless exposition. I applaud this, in theory, yet in practice I was left wanting … more. We only get minimal hints of what society is like before and after the waterdown. The flashbacks remind me of low-budget sci-fi TV series from the early 2000s that would try to signal you’re in the future because everyone is wearing weird fashions and hairstyles—how has society actually changed by that point? Similarly, in the present, we get the barest of hints about the dichotomous lifestyles of the Temporals and Permanents, but it’s never explored very clearly.
I also have a hard time enjoying Geo as the protagonist. I get that she’s supposed to be an unlikable character, at least at first. Her face turn seems so abrupt, though—one moment she’s cruising along, enjoying life as much as one can as a Permanent, and then the next moment she has a terminal diagnosis and she starts fomenting rebellion. OK, I’m exaggerating. Nevertheless, whatever shock to the system Geo receives, she seems really willing to turn on her creation. And the others trust her pretty quickly at that. Even the crisis with Scott dissolves into a non-issue without much in the way of confrontation.
That’s probably the least satisfying part of the novel: the conflicts feel either forced or toothless. Take Hel’s bizarre dislike of Geo. It’s never explained nor justified; she is essentially a plot device to explain some loose ends and give Geo some of the final motivation she needs to take down Fusion. Scott receives time as a viewpoint character, yet he never really seems to have to make much in the way of decisions or contribute to the plot beyond, again, being there.
Finally, Waterdown runs into the same issue that similar stories with AI antagonists often face: faceless AIs are boring. There’s a reason why the I, Robot movie with Will Smith involves a lot of explosions and why the Terminator movies relegate Skynet to a backseat role. Yes, intellectually, the idea of an AI suborning humanity is certainly scary. But in practice, an AI villain lacks the chutzpah of a good, scenery-chewing bad guy. The confrontations between Geo and Fusion are so underwhelming, even when Slabucho characterizes Fusion as “gloating.” Fusion isn’t evil; it’s just following its programming. It’s a storm more than a villain—yet we attempt to sandwich it into the villain role, instead of treating it like a natural disaster, and it just isn’t menacing enough, at least how it’s portrayed, to fit that role.
I can’t fault Slabucho for the concepts within Waterdown. Those are definitely intriguing. And while AIs run amok have been done to death, this particular remixing of the concept is new. So it’s a really cool science fiction idea. But ideas alone do not make for great stories. The characters and the conflict have to surf the ideas along the ocean of story, and that doesn’t happen here. Lots of potential here, but it’s still very rough, still very much in need of polish and plot workshopping. And having done that, it would be possible to go even deeper into these interesting ideas, resulting in a novel that truly expands the mind as much as the waterdown diminishes it.
Geo Spears created Fusion, the superintelligent AI that now runs the world. In this brave new world, humans are either Permanents or Temporals. Permanents, like Geo herself, have uninhibited memory and intelligence, yet they live socially isolated lives. Their purpose is to work every day on the administrative tasks Fusion assigns them, and in particular, they scrub history of all the nasty little records that might upset someone. Temporals, on the other hand, are the labourer caste. They can have the full range of human experience, but their cognitive landscapes are governed by a brain device that limits their long-term memory storage and mediates their perception of the world. When Geo discovers that she is dying, she wakes up to the problematic nature of Fusion’s dominance over humanity. She has to gain the trust of a group of rebels and help them take down Fusion before it’s too late.
I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley. The Kindle version doesn’t let you override the font choices. This is merely irksome to me, but for people who have accessibility issues that require them to use certain fonts, I can imagine it would be upsetting and potentially prevent them from reading the book.
As far as the story goes, Waterdown has its entertaining moments, yet it never quite comes together into the unified and coherent dystopian thriller it seems to want to be. Slabucho does her best to avoid needless exposition. I applaud this, in theory, yet in practice I was left wanting … more. We only get minimal hints of what society is like before and after the waterdown. The flashbacks remind me of low-budget sci-fi TV series from the early 2000s that would try to signal you’re in the future because everyone is wearing weird fashions and hairstyles—how has society actually changed by that point? Similarly, in the present, we get the barest of hints about the dichotomous lifestyles of the Temporals and Permanents, but it’s never explored very clearly.
I also have a hard time enjoying Geo as the protagonist. I get that she’s supposed to be an unlikable character, at least at first. Her face turn seems so abrupt, though—one moment she’s cruising along, enjoying life as much as one can as a Permanent, and then the next moment she has a terminal diagnosis and she starts fomenting rebellion. OK, I’m exaggerating. Nevertheless, whatever shock to the system Geo receives, she seems really willing to turn on her creation. And the others trust her pretty quickly at that. Even the crisis with Scott dissolves into a non-issue without much in the way of confrontation.
That’s probably the least satisfying part of the novel: the conflicts feel either forced or toothless. Take Hel’s bizarre dislike of Geo. It’s never explained nor justified; she is essentially a plot device to explain some loose ends and give Geo some of the final motivation she needs to take down Fusion. Scott receives time as a viewpoint character, yet he never really seems to have to make much in the way of decisions or contribute to the plot beyond, again, being there.
Finally, Waterdown runs into the same issue that similar stories with AI antagonists often face: faceless AIs are boring. There’s a reason why the I, Robot movie with Will Smith involves a lot of explosions and why the Terminator movies relegate Skynet to a backseat role. Yes, intellectually, the idea of an AI suborning humanity is certainly scary. But in practice, an AI villain lacks the chutzpah of a good, scenery-chewing bad guy. The confrontations between Geo and Fusion are so underwhelming, even when Slabucho characterizes Fusion as “gloating.” Fusion isn’t evil; it’s just following its programming. It’s a storm more than a villain—yet we attempt to sandwich it into the villain role, instead of treating it like a natural disaster, and it just isn’t menacing enough, at least how it’s portrayed, to fit that role.
I can’t fault Slabucho for the concepts within Waterdown. Those are definitely intriguing. And while AIs run amok have been done to death, this particular remixing of the concept is new. So it’s a really cool science fiction idea. But ideas alone do not make for great stories. The characters and the conflict have to surf the ideas along the ocean of story, and that doesn’t happen here. Lots of potential here, but it’s still very rough, still very much in need of polish and plot workshopping. And having done that, it would be possible to go even deeper into these interesting ideas, resulting in a novel that truly expands the mind as much as the waterdown diminishes it.
September 2, 2022
“No single, biased, unstable human could be allowed control over the earth, and the AI - her AI - was doing an admirably ethical job of it.”
—————————
Geo is the brilliant inventor of the AI system that is now overseeing the world. And make sure the environment is protected, humans are living safe and nutritionally sound lives and generally that there is no upheaval or dissension. Society is split, into people who have been deemed Permanents and those who are Temporary. When Geo herself learns she is dying, she must face the consequences of the technology she unleashed and we’re in the truth of how humans are being forced to live.
The plot is Blake Crouch’s Upgrade meets Neal Shusterman’s The Toll with a dash of Veronica Toth’s dystopia. The story is self published so the writing needs a little bit of polishing by an editor but the story was engaging enough that I stuck with it. It’s a short, quick read that will certainly get you thinking about what it means to be human.
Thanks to the author via NetGalley for access to this novel. Apologies to the author for letting it sit in my queue for so long. All opinions above are my own.
—————————
Geo is the brilliant inventor of the AI system that is now overseeing the world. And make sure the environment is protected, humans are living safe and nutritionally sound lives and generally that there is no upheaval or dissension. Society is split, into people who have been deemed Permanents and those who are Temporary. When Geo herself learns she is dying, she must face the consequences of the technology she unleashed and we’re in the truth of how humans are being forced to live.
The plot is Blake Crouch’s Upgrade meets Neal Shusterman’s The Toll with a dash of Veronica Toth’s dystopia. The story is self published so the writing needs a little bit of polishing by an editor but the story was engaging enough that I stuck with it. It’s a short, quick read that will certainly get you thinking about what it means to be human.
Thanks to the author via NetGalley for access to this novel. Apologies to the author for letting it sit in my queue for so long. All opinions above are my own.
October 9, 2019
Waterdown is. at heart, a cautionary tale. The science in this novel is solid, making for an all too believable future where AI takes over. While not a perfect novel, I think this young author has a bright future. Proceeds of sales for the first year go to the non-profit 'Room to Read'. I would encourage all who like either sci fi, cautionary, or utopian stories to buy and read this book .
January 31, 2020
The book is kind of ok. Written well, interesting world, but kind of incomplete. The ending was too rushed for my taste and very unsatisfying. I mean, I understand the AI gone rogue premise, but somehow, the story fails to tell us why it became rogue, why Geo created it on the first place, what are the relatioships between Temporals (for Permanents we know there are none, as they are some form of biological computers working on things that the AI could do perfectly well on its own). It could have been a really good book, but it's not. It's still better than a lot others, so congrats to the author, but I think it needed more work.
P.S. I was shocked to discover that I cannot review this book on Amazon, from where I BOUGHT it, because I don't meet some kind of $50 per year eligibility criteria. WTF?! If you bought something, you certainly should have the right to review it?
P.S. I was shocked to discover that I cannot review this book on Amazon, from where I BOUGHT it, because I don't meet some kind of $50 per year eligibility criteria. WTF?! If you bought something, you certainly should have the right to review it?
March 29, 2020
Waterdown by Anastasia Slabucho
In the near future Fusion (an AI) is controlling the planet. Geo, his creator, is having second thoughts about his ethics.
There is a lot of work coming out questioning the use of artificial intelligence. Watching the daily news, one can help agreeing with the pundits that it wouldn’t take much for Ais to be smarter than their creators. This author postulates that an AI with unlimited authority would make many decisions for the “greater good” that might be disastrous for the populace.
The effort was there and I wanted like the book better, particularly as the author is a vocal proponent of literacy.
In the near future Fusion (an AI) is controlling the planet. Geo, his creator, is having second thoughts about his ethics.
There is a lot of work coming out questioning the use of artificial intelligence. Watching the daily news, one can help agreeing with the pundits that it wouldn’t take much for Ais to be smarter than their creators. This author postulates that an AI with unlimited authority would make many decisions for the “greater good” that might be disastrous for the populace.
The effort was there and I wanted like the book better, particularly as the author is a vocal proponent of literacy.
January 21, 2020
I really enjoyed this book. It was well written, the world and characters kept my interest throughout and I was eager to continue reading to the end. The concept of Fusion is terrifying and I really did feel for Geo and her regrets.
Aside from wishing there were a lot more pages dedicated to Bobbi's and Diego's perspectives, and also not being a fan of the form Fusion took at the end, I thought this was a solid read.
Aside from wishing there were a lot more pages dedicated to Bobbi's and Diego's perspectives, and also not being a fan of the form Fusion took at the end, I thought this was a solid read.
January 3, 2020
Well I actually like author imagination it's new despotism with Frankenstein . Good book but a little different for me .
December 2, 2019
This one wasn't for me. It wasn't bad, really. But the writing style didn't sit well with me. The main character, Geo, was unlikable but well fleshed out. The plot has interesting moments, but never fully captured me.
I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
November 26, 2019
An interesting interpretation of the Frankenstein myth, set in a dystopian future., wherein a computer AI has corrected climate change. Humans are divided into two groups: Permanents (those who serve the AI directly, in exchange for their minds being used as memory/processing devices, and receive immortality in exchange) and Temporals (those who serve the AI less directly, and receive health and happiness in exchange). Georgia Spears, the main character, is a different sort of protagonist, a fitting heir to the original Victor Frankenstein; Fusion, the AI, is likewise a fitting heir to the monster. WATERDOWN was an interesting read, and I look forward to other volumes by this author.
November 8, 2019
In Waterdown, Anastasia Slabucho takes on the task of portraying a character, Georgia “Geo” Spears, with a gift of emptiness. A little bit “Blade Runner,” East of Eden, and Frankenstein through wind and rain, humor is rarely present and certain emotions are stated by not conveyed in a believable manner. These qualities also make it difficult to surmount the first third of the book as character identification or empathy takes an effort to form. When the characters do begin to regain some of their human emotions/ morals, the character/plot development just isn’t there to support it. Set in the 22nd century with flashbacks to the 21st, the author weaves between several different grades of thought processing and consciousness: the mind of an AI supercomputer known as Fusion, immortal Permanents, Temporals, and Temporals who have been able to free themselves from 3Ds (Deliberate Deceleration Devices). The one thing that redeems this novel is a symbolic print out of a waterfall drawing with a copycat recording device embedded in its reverse side. This piece of paper, a union of art, advanced technology, and greater purpose, seems more meaningful than the characters themselves.
October 6, 2019
Waterdown is a novel about humanity, about legacy, about choice. It’s a cautionary tale about superhuman intelligence, but also a story about the importance of human relationships.
Anastasia Slabucho’s Waterdown takes place not so terribly far into the future. Humans have given decisions over to an AI that is most adept at saving mankind from itself, and people are divided into two groups. Permanents are immortal, but live solitary lives dedicated solely to being society’s memory and individual brain functionaries. Temporals, on the other hand, have normal human life spans, but live lives filled with meaningful jobs, interpersonal connections and human feelings. Or do they?
The name of the Earth’s AI is Fusion, and once it is given control, the future looks great on the surface — no poverty, no pollution, no crime. But Fusion also removes feelings, memories, and morals. Neural implants have watered down human minds, and further malicious code implanted by Fusion further inhibits human choice. It appears that Fusion is making human life redundant and no one is allowed to pay enough attention to do anything about it.
But there is a faction that knows about this Waterdown and is taking steps to disable Fusion’s hold over humanity. And the genetic malfunction — and impending death — of Fusion’s founder, the original Permanent, happens to play into the faction plan’s timing with bittersweet kismet.
Like so many science fiction novels about artificial intelligence, Waterdown compells the reader to imagine a future in which technology takes over from humanity, making the human element not only obsolete, but also seemingly undesirable. It’s an unpleasant consideration, but a necessary one, and done in the most entertaining way possible by Slabucho, a young novelist with a bright future.
Anastasia Slabucho’s Waterdown takes place not so terribly far into the future. Humans have given decisions over to an AI that is most adept at saving mankind from itself, and people are divided into two groups. Permanents are immortal, but live solitary lives dedicated solely to being society’s memory and individual brain functionaries. Temporals, on the other hand, have normal human life spans, but live lives filled with meaningful jobs, interpersonal connections and human feelings. Or do they?
The name of the Earth’s AI is Fusion, and once it is given control, the future looks great on the surface — no poverty, no pollution, no crime. But Fusion also removes feelings, memories, and morals. Neural implants have watered down human minds, and further malicious code implanted by Fusion further inhibits human choice. It appears that Fusion is making human life redundant and no one is allowed to pay enough attention to do anything about it.
But there is a faction that knows about this Waterdown and is taking steps to disable Fusion’s hold over humanity. And the genetic malfunction — and impending death — of Fusion’s founder, the original Permanent, happens to play into the faction plan’s timing with bittersweet kismet.
Like so many science fiction novels about artificial intelligence, Waterdown compells the reader to imagine a future in which technology takes over from humanity, making the human element not only obsolete, but also seemingly undesirable. It’s an unpleasant consideration, but a necessary one, and done in the most entertaining way possible by Slabucho, a young novelist with a bright future.
November 7, 2019
Has AI conquered the world
This story is about an AI that was created named Fusion and has the responsibility for the entire human race. Fusion makes all of the decisions for humans. There are two types of humans with one being normal and the other being dedicated to the memory and individual function of the human brain. Fusion promises no poverty or pain while also eliminating emotion and feeling. This story is well written and takes a dramatic look at the world of AI and the possibilities that are available should the right one be developed and allowed to flourish. I found the story to compelling and kept me interested from the first page. I recommend this one to anyone that likes sci-fi or AI stories. This one is worth the time to read it.
This story is about an AI that was created named Fusion and has the responsibility for the entire human race. Fusion makes all of the decisions for humans. There are two types of humans with one being normal and the other being dedicated to the memory and individual function of the human brain. Fusion promises no poverty or pain while also eliminating emotion and feeling. This story is well written and takes a dramatic look at the world of AI and the possibilities that are available should the right one be developed and allowed to flourish. I found the story to compelling and kept me interested from the first page. I recommend this one to anyone that likes sci-fi or AI stories. This one is worth the time to read it.
October 10, 2019
In this engrossing science fiction tale set in a far future, Slabucho takes the reader to a period in which technology has taken control of humanity, depriving humans of memories, decision-making, and average human emotions.
It is 2135. Fusion AI, the superintelligence, has taken over the world which is divided into two groups; Permanents are immortal who live solitary but privileged lives and are capable of possessing memories; and Temporals are normal humans, whose minds are watered down to lose human memories, wants, and wishes. Cast out by Fusion A.I., her own creation, and faced with mortality, Geo Spears sets on to correct her wrongdoings. But time is of essence here, and the enemy is a supercomputer who is difficult to manipulate.
Skillfully blending plot and setting, Slabucho develops her technology-ruled culture in intriguing detail as she movingly captures her human protagonists’ profound emptiness. Shifting between a realistic depiction of a technology-ruled far-future (with the exploration of the moral and political implications of too-advanced technological innovations) and normal humans-ruled Earth (portions of this part are presented as Geo’s old memories of her sister and parents), Slabucho expertly contrasts humanity with technology, callousness with sentimentality, and tyranny with freedom and delves brilliantly into what it means to let artificial intelligence takes over.
Building steadily to a turning-point climax, the ending leaves scope for a follow up installment. Equal part intriguing and unsettling, this reflective tale will please every science fiction fan.
It is 2135. Fusion AI, the superintelligence, has taken over the world which is divided into two groups; Permanents are immortal who live solitary but privileged lives and are capable of possessing memories; and Temporals are normal humans, whose minds are watered down to lose human memories, wants, and wishes. Cast out by Fusion A.I., her own creation, and faced with mortality, Geo Spears sets on to correct her wrongdoings. But time is of essence here, and the enemy is a supercomputer who is difficult to manipulate.
Skillfully blending plot and setting, Slabucho develops her technology-ruled culture in intriguing detail as she movingly captures her human protagonists’ profound emptiness. Shifting between a realistic depiction of a technology-ruled far-future (with the exploration of the moral and political implications of too-advanced technological innovations) and normal humans-ruled Earth (portions of this part are presented as Geo’s old memories of her sister and parents), Slabucho expertly contrasts humanity with technology, callousness with sentimentality, and tyranny with freedom and delves brilliantly into what it means to let artificial intelligence takes over.
Building steadily to a turning-point climax, the ending leaves scope for a follow up installment. Equal part intriguing and unsettling, this reflective tale will please every science fiction fan.
October 12, 2019
What I liked:
The main character of Geo was well fleshed out. Initially an unsympathetic character, as we are fed more of her back story we get to understand her thought processes and feelings and motivations more.
I liked the second main character of Scott. I would have liked to know more about his background. I thought the way his 'awakening' was dealt with was well done.
The writing was clear and flowed, once I'd got past that first chapter.
I liked the plot. I was initially concerned because Fusion was reminiscent of the very famous HAL, but the underlying premise was different and interesting. The story drew me in and sustained my interest. I really wanted to see how it all panned out.
The ending was satisfying.
What I wasn't so keen on:
That first chapter. If I had skimmed the first chapter in a bookstore I would have put the book back on the shelf. I couldn't get a clear picture of who and what was what. Result - that chapter just seemed confusing. I later re-visited the chapter once those terms and people had been explained and, although I now understood what I was reading, it still didn't feel like a good opening for the book. I'm glad I did push on though because from the second chapter onward the story flowed much better.
It was illogical that the A.I., essentially comprised of a network of wiring, could enjoy, gloat, smirk, and so on, and it grated on me.
All in all, I enjoyed the book as a whole and I'm glad I read it. It is a very interesting premise with the current leaps in advances in technology.
I'm interested to read more from this new author.
The main character of Geo was well fleshed out. Initially an unsympathetic character, as we are fed more of her back story we get to understand her thought processes and feelings and motivations more.
I liked the second main character of Scott. I would have liked to know more about his background. I thought the way his 'awakening' was dealt with was well done.
The writing was clear and flowed, once I'd got past that first chapter.
I liked the plot. I was initially concerned because Fusion was reminiscent of the very famous HAL, but the underlying premise was different and interesting. The story drew me in and sustained my interest. I really wanted to see how it all panned out.
The ending was satisfying.
What I wasn't so keen on:
That first chapter. If I had skimmed the first chapter in a bookstore I would have put the book back on the shelf. I couldn't get a clear picture of who and what was what. Result - that chapter just seemed confusing. I later re-visited the chapter once those terms and people had been explained and, although I now understood what I was reading, it still didn't feel like a good opening for the book. I'm glad I did push on though because from the second chapter onward the story flowed much better.
It was illogical that the A.I., essentially comprised of a network of wiring, could enjoy, gloat, smirk, and so on, and it grated on me.
All in all, I enjoyed the book as a whole and I'm glad I read it. It is a very interesting premise with the current leaps in advances in technology.
I'm interested to read more from this new author.
October 28, 2019
“Waterdown” is an imaginative Science Fiction tale following the life of Geo Spears as she reflects on her past mistakes and learns to make peace with the consequences of her creation, an A.I. designed to correct all the errors of humanity. In the beginning, Geo believes this A.I., called Fusion, has no downside as it works to restore the world after humans have nearly destroyed it. However, decades after Fusion is given control of everything, Geo begins to realize that this amazing world is not all it seems. It took me a few chapters to really get into the story because of all the technical details and background. However, once the big picture started to come together, I was hooked. Despite the few grammatical/typing errors, this was a great story of free will, the legacy we leave behind, and a cautionary tale of being careful what you wish for.
October 3, 2019
This is a great sci-fi book that has an excellent voice and is written in 3rd person. The story deals with A.I. and technology and has code built into the story. Some of it I found distracting but the overall voice of the story kept me pulled in. The opening chapter could have done more to ground me into the world and I struggled a bit to get my footing in the story, especially in figuring out Fusion and the coding. The characters are strong but I felt it took me a while to really connect with Georgia to really care about what happened to her. It did happen though. I loved that Georgia is a grey character. The pace and flow of the story were smooth and made for easy reading overall. Overall would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in stories about A.I. and humanity.
October 22, 2019
Technical, but fascinating sci-fi!
What struck me immediately was how much detail was in this version of the future the author created. It was obviously well developed and the author did an excellent job with all the technical details, although that was sometimes hard to follow. There was occasional technical jargon within but made for interesting reading. You have a couple of POV you follow but it resulted in a good paced novel with strong character development. Also, the author has strong skills with setting. I really liked this one and can't wait to see what the author does next!
What struck me immediately was how much detail was in this version of the future the author created. It was obviously well developed and the author did an excellent job with all the technical details, although that was sometimes hard to follow. There was occasional technical jargon within but made for interesting reading. You have a couple of POV you follow but it resulted in a good paced novel with strong character development. Also, the author has strong skills with setting. I really liked this one and can't wait to see what the author does next!
September 28, 2019
Waterdown is an outstanding story with a lot of emotion. Fusion reminds me of a modern HAL, and Geo and Die are strong characters. There are interesting concepts like limited memory I haven't seen too often before. I thought it was interesting to see how the characters react and deal with reality when not under Fusions control.
Waterdown is a very imaginative story by a very young author with a promising future.
I recommend this to anyone who likes computers take over the world stories, Black Mirror, Terminator, Space Odyssey 2001, etc.
Waterdown is a very imaginative story by a very young author with a promising future.
I recommend this to anyone who likes computers take over the world stories, Black Mirror, Terminator, Space Odyssey 2001, etc.
October 18, 2019
This author has imagination and promise. Waterdown is an interesting premise and is mostly well executed. It's a pretty engaging story that centers around AI and ultimately about being human. A solid first effort.
I really appreciate the copy for review!!
I really appreciate the copy for review!!
October 25, 2019
I read the first 3 chapters and couldn’t make myself proceed. I hate not finishing a book and have previously made myself continue without enjoyment but, I just couldn’t do it this time. I will update if I return to it later to try again.
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