Omar Cantor, the tech giant CEO of Omicore Industries, knows the world is a month away from the day that artificial intelligence becomes self-aware and computer programs will act in their own best interests (and not humanity’s). He secretly creates a team of experts and sends them to the moon to create a set of algorithms and program defenses to keep humanity in charge of its destiny. Besides Cantor’s secret moon-based crew of the brightest from Omicore, a mysterious coder named Page appears after the CEO hires a head-hunter named Sync to help test his plans. Other compelling characters in Dean Alexandrou’s SYMUTAL include Kirby, a Pepaffeine-guzzling private detective, and Zara, a ruthless representative from the regulatory Algorithmic Security Agency, a group that is already aligned with the forces behind AI.
The story plays out in short chapters, some linked to ambiguous timelines, some from places unrelated in place, time, and setting. Problems occur with the book when the multiple characters, settings, and timelines overlap. The narrative becomes hard to follow when the reader realizes there are many multiverses at play in the book. Eventually the plot runs on so many different timelines, and in so many different universes and simulations, that it becomes disjointed. Though the author includes a detailed timeline and a “Memory Map,” neither of them does much to ease the confusion. Still, the book’s biggest weakness is the expositional passages and pages that describe abstract mathematical theory and the evolution of computer coding.
As the plot progresses, characters appear and interact—some obvious heroes, some more ambivalent forces. Alexandrou creates compelling, believable characters, even though readers can never know if they are real or a simulation. His style is straightforward and clean for the most part, with a few mixed metaphors and incomplete sentences. Alexandrou excels at describing action, and the descriptions of many fight scenes are exceptional in their power and flow. His settings—like the stark, cold moon base—are detailed and intriguing. CEO Cantor’s advanced smart home is awash in tech marvels. The book’s presentation is professional, rich, and detailed. The author includes beautiful illustrations in almost every chapter, and his section heads, chapters, and subheads are laid out with flair.
SYMUTAL author Dean Alexandrou’s dynamic tech-geek heroes and unique settings will enchant readers, eclipsing the failings of the book’s many abstract sections about computer code and algorithmic theory.
~Robin L Harvey for IndieReader