ECHOSTAR IS ALWAYS LISTENING

This AI app is almost too good to be true.

Ruby Brookes, a 14-year-old British girl, lives for drama. She desperately wants to become a star of stage and screen and is looking forward to spending the summer at a performing arts camp with best friend Deva Shah, who’s a dancer. Ruby often draws attention to herself, which can get her into trouble at school and alienate her peers. Because her grades are abysmal in every class except drama, her mother insists that she improve academically, or she won’t be going to camp. Deva is in the same position with her mother, but recently she’s been doing surprisingly well at school. Deva confesses to Ruby that she’s been using a “super-beta version” of the AI app EchoStar, which is based on technology developed by MI6. Ruby gets the app for herself, but what follows is an ever-worsening series of calamities that threaten her friendship with Deva and violate her privacy. Salisbury presents a tense, high-stakes narrative that explores manipulation and the dangers of the internet. The book’s brevity, dyslexia-friendly font, and punchy, fast-paced chapters make this a dramatic read that supports struggling readers. Ruby is cued white, and Deva presents South Asian.

A dramatic and unsettling thriller that will draw in and maintain the attention of striving readers.