Review of Terms of Service
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Vennessa Kuek
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Review of Terms of Service
[Following is a volunteer review of "Terms of Service" by Craig W. Stanfill.]
Terms of Service: Subject to Change Without Notice by Craig W. Stanfill is a thought-provoking novel that explores the notion of reality versus illusion and honest leadership. In a future world dominated by machines and virtual reality simulations, Kim, the protagonist, works at the Artificial Intelligence Company. For the first few years, she thought it was a dream come true. Now though, her work is monotonous and unfulfilling, her life outside of work is fully controlled and monitored, and she soon realizes how insane this so-called perfect world truly is. One day, she goes on a bike ride with a friend in an abandoned area and falls into a series of rule-breaking to get home. Instead of the expected punishment, however, she is given a new job — is this a good thing? Or is she about to be utilized as a pawn in a game too big for her?
Craig Stanfill brings us into a dystopian world where freedom, individuality, and everything that makes us inherently human is stripped away. Everyone here is constantly monitored, including their private lives at home, tiny interactions with strangers, and their sex lives. Everyone is meant to (or conditioned to) operate similarly, like robots — wake up at a certain time, eat the same accepted food and suppress emotions as much as possible. Privacy and individual opinions are faced with swift punishment. There is an actual social ranking present in the form of a social cohesion rating, and the social scene in this world involves drugs and physical intimacy. If you're like me, and often ponder upon society's potential pitfalls -- this world thoroughly explores that potential. Other themes explored included fanaticism, discrimination and corporate monoploy veiled in supposed compassion and care of leadership. This is indeed a big amount of heavy topics to cover, but I felt they were portrayed well by the author and were woven seamlessly into the world building. In fact, the author's ability to weave these heavy themes together without sacrificing the pace of the story or the character build is one of this book's winning points.
The storytelling was captivating, fast-paced, and it was easy to visualize the world that Kim was living in and see why she longed for freedom. I really appreciated the sarcasm and humour scattered within the story as well! (Although unlike Kim, I probably would not have been able to suppress my anger when a fridge tells me to eat only kale and tofu for breakfast). Throughout the entire book, I think what I really appreciated the most were the accuracy and realness of how technology and AI actually function. Those with a good understanding of technology will appreciate the aptness of the issues explored in this book, as I did.
Personally, there’s nothing to nitpick at all from this book. However, if technology and dystopia aren’t your thing, this is probably not going to be an enjoyable read for you. To me, it was sufficiently engaging, the themes were relevant to our current society, and the depth and delivery of the story was up to par. At times I felt quite scared and on edge while reading, because it tapped into the personal fears of technology and capitalism already present in my mind. With technology seeping into every part of our lives, listening to our conversations, and monitoring our movements… it really brings to mind how deeply dangerous our current technology could be without proper legislation.
It was exceptionally edited and a great read overall, so I have no qualms whatsoever in rating this book 5 out of 5 stars. It was one of the best dystopian young adult books I’ve read in a while and I would definitely recommend this to young adults or older who are into sci-fi worlds, thrillers and dystopian reads.
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Terms of Service
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Terms of Service: Subject to Change Without Notice by Craig W. Stanfill is a thought-provoking novel that explores the notion of reality versus illusion and honest leadership. In a future world dominated by machines and virtual reality simulations, Kim, the protagonist, works at the Artificial Intelligence Company. For the first few years, she thought it was a dream come true. Now though, her work is monotonous and unfulfilling, her life outside of work is fully controlled and monitored, and she soon realizes how insane this so-called perfect world truly is. One day, she goes on a bike ride with a friend in an abandoned area and falls into a series of rule-breaking to get home. Instead of the expected punishment, however, she is given a new job — is this a good thing? Or is she about to be utilized as a pawn in a game too big for her?
Craig Stanfill brings us into a dystopian world where freedom, individuality, and everything that makes us inherently human is stripped away. Everyone here is constantly monitored, including their private lives at home, tiny interactions with strangers, and their sex lives. Everyone is meant to (or conditioned to) operate similarly, like robots — wake up at a certain time, eat the same accepted food and suppress emotions as much as possible. Privacy and individual opinions are faced with swift punishment. There is an actual social ranking present in the form of a social cohesion rating, and the social scene in this world involves drugs and physical intimacy. If you're like me, and often ponder upon society's potential pitfalls -- this world thoroughly explores that potential. Other themes explored included fanaticism, discrimination and corporate monoploy veiled in supposed compassion and care of leadership. This is indeed a big amount of heavy topics to cover, but I felt they were portrayed well by the author and were woven seamlessly into the world building. In fact, the author's ability to weave these heavy themes together without sacrificing the pace of the story or the character build is one of this book's winning points.
The storytelling was captivating, fast-paced, and it was easy to visualize the world that Kim was living in and see why she longed for freedom. I really appreciated the sarcasm and humour scattered within the story as well! (Although unlike Kim, I probably would not have been able to suppress my anger when a fridge tells me to eat only kale and tofu for breakfast). Throughout the entire book, I think what I really appreciated the most were the accuracy and realness of how technology and AI actually function. Those with a good understanding of technology will appreciate the aptness of the issues explored in this book, as I did.
Personally, there’s nothing to nitpick at all from this book. However, if technology and dystopia aren’t your thing, this is probably not going to be an enjoyable read for you. To me, it was sufficiently engaging, the themes were relevant to our current society, and the depth and delivery of the story was up to par. At times I felt quite scared and on edge while reading, because it tapped into the personal fears of technology and capitalism already present in my mind. With technology seeping into every part of our lives, listening to our conversations, and monitoring our movements… it really brings to mind how deeply dangerous our current technology could be without proper legislation.
It was exceptionally edited and a great read overall, so I have no qualms whatsoever in rating this book 5 out of 5 stars. It was one of the best dystopian young adult books I’ve read in a while and I would definitely recommend this to young adults or older who are into sci-fi worlds, thrillers and dystopian reads.
******
Terms of Service
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Latest Review: My Brave Face by Heather Simpson
