Review of Terms of Service
Posted: 12 Mar 2022, 21:07
[Following is a volunteer review of "Terms of Service" by Craig W. Stanfill.]
Somewhere in the distant future, the human world is under the oversight of AIs. Imagine a self-thinking piece of code deciding everything for you, starting from what you can have for your breakfast to where you live. The grasp of AIs seems to be complete. But is it truly so? Craig W. Stanfill's Terms of Service is a dystopian novel, with Kim, an assistant autobot trainer, as its protagonist. She is law-abiding, punctual, and hard-working. Hence, she seems to be the ideal UCE (Unity, Community, and Equality) citizen.
The novel begins with Kim waking up to the 'wake alert' with a throbbing headache from her bed. As she rises from her bed, her 'housebot' is activated. The robot quickly fixes up hangover meds and brews a perfect mug of coffee to get Kim started. The first chapter paints a very rosy picture of life under AIs. There are bots to take care of everything. Yet, the 'customer agreement' that the book starts with is a stark reminder. Everything is not perfect in this world. The life of each human, or a 'customer' is dictated by following the 'Terms of Service'. As mentioned in the agreement, the terms are subject to change without notice. Within the first section of this novel, a reader can see just how relevant these terms are.
Terms of Service was enthralling in several ways. I found the sectioning and arrangement to be quite interesting. The book has been sub-divided into three sections that bear the names of various phases of the seasonal cycle. These seasonal transitions represent how Kim's life slowly changes. Her longingness for her mother, her frequent nightmares, and her desire to be loved was heartwarming to read. While journeying through the pages of this book, one can not help but think of Animal Farm and 1984 authored by George Orwell.
My favourite part of this book was how Stanfill has masterfully incorporated the concept of a surveillance state into a sci-fi novel. The only impediment I faced while reading this book was when the descriptions of baseball games came up. I am unfamiliar with the game and felt out of touch with the plotline during those parts. However, it is a negligible inconvenience that failed to affect my reading experience significantly. Some instances of vulgarism came to my attention while reading this book.
Terms of Service would be well received by anyone who loved the 'Matrix' movies. Additionally, this book will be equally engrossing for both sci-fi and dystopia bibliophiles. Also, Orwell fans will surely find this book riveting. The book does not contain any grammatical or punctuation mistakes. Hence, I feel it has been exceptionally well-edited. The content of the book is much captivating. Further, I found the pace of narration to be engaging throughout the length of the text. In my opinion, Terms of Service by Craig W. Stanfill deserves 4 out of 4 stars.
******
Terms of Service
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Somewhere in the distant future, the human world is under the oversight of AIs. Imagine a self-thinking piece of code deciding everything for you, starting from what you can have for your breakfast to where you live. The grasp of AIs seems to be complete. But is it truly so? Craig W. Stanfill's Terms of Service is a dystopian novel, with Kim, an assistant autobot trainer, as its protagonist. She is law-abiding, punctual, and hard-working. Hence, she seems to be the ideal UCE (Unity, Community, and Equality) citizen.
The novel begins with Kim waking up to the 'wake alert' with a throbbing headache from her bed. As she rises from her bed, her 'housebot' is activated. The robot quickly fixes up hangover meds and brews a perfect mug of coffee to get Kim started. The first chapter paints a very rosy picture of life under AIs. There are bots to take care of everything. Yet, the 'customer agreement' that the book starts with is a stark reminder. Everything is not perfect in this world. The life of each human, or a 'customer' is dictated by following the 'Terms of Service'. As mentioned in the agreement, the terms are subject to change without notice. Within the first section of this novel, a reader can see just how relevant these terms are.
Terms of Service was enthralling in several ways. I found the sectioning and arrangement to be quite interesting. The book has been sub-divided into three sections that bear the names of various phases of the seasonal cycle. These seasonal transitions represent how Kim's life slowly changes. Her longingness for her mother, her frequent nightmares, and her desire to be loved was heartwarming to read. While journeying through the pages of this book, one can not help but think of Animal Farm and 1984 authored by George Orwell.
My favourite part of this book was how Stanfill has masterfully incorporated the concept of a surveillance state into a sci-fi novel. The only impediment I faced while reading this book was when the descriptions of baseball games came up. I am unfamiliar with the game and felt out of touch with the plotline during those parts. However, it is a negligible inconvenience that failed to affect my reading experience significantly. Some instances of vulgarism came to my attention while reading this book.
Terms of Service would be well received by anyone who loved the 'Matrix' movies. Additionally, this book will be equally engrossing for both sci-fi and dystopia bibliophiles. Also, Orwell fans will surely find this book riveting. The book does not contain any grammatical or punctuation mistakes. Hence, I feel it has been exceptionally well-edited. The content of the book is much captivating. Further, I found the pace of narration to be engaging throughout the length of the text. In my opinion, Terms of Service by Craig W. Stanfill deserves 4 out of 4 stars.
******
Terms of Service
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
