In Our Likeness: A Novel

4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars | 15 ratings

Price: 5.99

Last update: 08-04-2024


About this item

The wonders and chaos of AI converge in a powerful and thrilling novel about rewriting history, identity, love, and what it means to be human.

Graham Gooding is a leader at a tech start-up when his brilliant coworker—and work crush—Nessie Locke asks for help testing a new algorithm. Graham jumps at the chance to impress her, and to improve his floundering personal life. He soon discovers that the algo is more powerful than Nessie—or anyone—realizes. It was built to detect lies on the internet, but when Graham makes a small edit to Nessie’s online profile, hoping to see if the program will catch the lie, Nessie changes in real life. The algo can alter the real world. Now, so can Graham.

No one knows what Graham has done, except his boss, enigmatic tech guru David Warwick. Graham is racked with guilt, but Warwick thrills to the possibilities of what they can do next. This promises to be the innovation that will make Warwick a household name. Drawn by the power of the algo but terrified by its potential for chaos, Graham must decide what to do and whom to trust in a world where one true reality no longer exists.

As love, trust, memories, and what it means to be human begin to slip away, Graham and Nessie work together to restore the past—before it’s lost to the anarchy of a world without truth.


From the Publisher

In a world where reality can be altered, who keeps track of the truth?

Top reviews from the United States

William de Rham
5.0 out of 5 stars Tech lovers, rejoice!
Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2024
If you’re a fan of modern tech, you’re definitely going to want to read “In Our Likeness.”

The promotional materials do a fine job of summarizing the plot, so I won't duplicate that effort here.
Suffice it to say that author Bryan Vandyke has imagined and introduced into our world and time a new piece of Artificial Intelligence (AI), an algorithm (or “algo”) that can change reality. Not virtual reality. Real reality.

Don’t like the tattoos on someone’s body? If you know how to work the algo, you can erase them. Are the trees or traffic noises outside your window bothersome? Changing them instantaneously isn’t simple, but it’s definitely doable. Just imagine what else one might accomplish. The possibilities abound, astound, and frighten.

In addition to this very original idea, Mr. Vandyke gives readers well-drawn characters playing for high personal stakes and beset by internal and external conflicts, some of them quite poignant. The issues he addresses are topical and timely. The settings are well-described and range from Manhattan and Brooklyn to the Hamptons to the worlds of hi-tech, fine art, medical science, and elder care.

And to top it all off, Mr. Vandyke’s writing is excellent. His dialogue is natural. His prose is clear and sometimes borders on the literary (but never in an off-putting way). Some of the phrases he turns convey surprising “pearls of wisdom” I thought worthy of underlining.

This is Mr. Vandyke’s debut novel. I am eager to read his next.
Susan R.
5.0 out of 5 stars A riveting tale
Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2024
This novel kept me questioning what if AI could be written to change the past and dictate the future. A scary scenario. I love a fictional read that keeps me pondering long after I've read the last page. I sometimes wondered why this was happening and not that , so I hope Mr. VanDyke will consider writing a series. I recommend this book.
Claire E. Alexander
5.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing and Resonant
Reviewed in the United States on August 2, 2024
Tech bros-meets-Memento in this surprisingly touching exploration of “the truth” in an environment where tech enables the world to be manipulated around you.

Impelled by hopeful longing, the plot takes a few appropriately hallucinatory turns to reveal the potential upside of accepting unavoidable loss… and points to the agency each of us must decide to embrace if we are to become fully human.

I enjoyed the author’s imaginative and (dare I say it?) truthful perspective on life in a world where algorithms can run amok.
Erin Rericha
5.0 out of 5 stars Timely, Thrilling, Funny, and Thoughtful Page Turner!
Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2024
I devoured the book in one day, and I had an absolute blast! Now, I want friends to read it too, so we can talk about it.

The first-person narrative draws you right into the leadership team of a modern startup. The company is amid a major pivot from “chatbot” to “truthbot.” I laughed out loud at the contemporary office culture tasks of business plan development, offsites, product launches, and all-hands meetings. Plus, the author portrays the AI training, building, and QA testing with such plausibility that the story’s subsequent thrill ride is well-grounded and believable. This novel delivers on the task of fantastic fiction. It holds up a mirror to our reality while providing a compelling and entertaining story.

We get to know the main character, Graham, through his heart. He deeply loves his ailing mother. He respects and cares for his colleagues and cherishes their professional abilities and friendship. He has a workplace crush and can’t figure out what to do. Similarly, he is squeamish about some of the charismatic CEO’s requests but is reluctant to pass them off to others. Besides, who hasn’t fantasized about altering that neighborhood left turn that backs up traffic? Graham is a modern, relatable character that you root for to grow into his courage.

As the story progresses, Graham generates a breakthrough for the CEO. The last half of the book is full of excitement and dread as the world experiences the consequences of what he built.

I loved the narrative delivery. It has style and wit. The author references classic literature, beloved movies, and nerdy tech details in a charming and thought-provoking way. This book raises those classic literature themes of what it is to be human and our responsibilities with our creations but does so in modern context and with humor and nostalgia.

Friends, please read it, so we can share our thoughts and laugh together at the coding jokes. I had some of those bumper stickers :)

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