Review of Terms of Service

[Amy Rundle]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Terms of Service" by Craig W. Stanfill.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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The book Terms of Service by Craig W. Stanfill is a novel set in a distopian future monitored and controlled by Artificial Intellegence. It follows the story of Kim, employed to train AIs to detect unlawful behaviour. Kim soon learns the danger of stepping out of line and the challenges of wanting to be different in a world that values compliance and uniformity. After an adventure goes wrong, Kim is sent to a new department where she is tasked with creating an AI from scratch. Bonding with the AI, Kim must learn to balance her own sense of humanity with the AI’s sense of right and wrong.

The novel is well written and provides an insightful view into a world that is not completely science-fiction. The world is governed by technology, which makes life simple, as Kim’s household robots take care of menial daily tasks, such as cooking and cleaning, allowing Kim to spend time socializing with her friends in a virtual reality world, but also places Kim in a world where her every move is watched by Artificial Intelligence. It is not difficult to imagine this as a world we could be living in in the near future. The novel brings to mind George Orwell’s 1984, sharing the themes of surveillance, lack of privacy, and a group of all powerful companies who control all details of the world and the lives of its inhabitants. What was fascinating about the novel is that it takes place in a world where the gender binary does not exist, and all characters use gender neutral pronouns. It was interesting to see the authors take on sexuality in a genderless society.

The novel does an excellent job of building this dystopian world, and the reader gets a good sense of daily life in this world before the action begins. The story is riveting and unpredictable, not following the same formula as many other dystopian fictions, which keeps readers hooked. The novel is professional edited and well formatted.

I cannot find any faults with the novel, I enjoyed it thoroughly. In my opinion there is nothing negative to say about the novel.

Overall, I would rate the book 5 out of 5 stars. It is a thought-provoking read with a riveting storyline set in a world that is a combination of science fiction and our current reality.

The book is suited for adults and older teenagers who enjoy science fiction, however, it includes some adult themes, so it would not be suitable for older readers.

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Terms of Service
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