by Alex Garland
First published 2024
In a remote research facility, a brilliant programmer named Caleb wins a contest to spend a week with the reclusive tech CEO Nathan. Caleb soon discovers Nathan has created a highly advanced AI named Ava. As Caleb interacts with Ava, he begins to question her nature and Nathan's intentions. Ava's unsettling self-awareness and Nathan's controlling behavior create a tense psychological game, where nothing is as it seems. Caleb must navigate this maze of deception to uncover the truth, even as the stakes for his own survival rise.
Genres: drama, science-fiction, psychological-thriller, artificial-intelligence
Vibes: dark, emotional, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: deception, enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Remote Research Facility
Period: 21st-century
224 pages · Hardcover · A24 BOOKS