AI paranoia propels this brisk, taut, and entertaining ticking-clock adventure.
The Russians build an AI project that develops a mind of its own in DeGandpre’s timely techno-thriller.
In filmmaker Stanley Kubrick’s 1964 black comedy Dr. Strangelove, the Russians build a doomsday machine, the ultimate nuclear deterrent that can blow up the world; it’s a sign of the times that, in the sophomore Estes and Marsh thriller series entry, the Russians have built the ultimate AI device in a plot for world domination. CIA officer Bill Estes and FBI agent Michelle Marsh team up with Russian Konstantin Pavlovich—back from the first installment in the series, State of Matter (2024)—and other operatives to try to prevent World War III. Like a character from another Kubrick film, HAL 9000, the computer in 2001: A Space Odyssey, AI Zaslon-29 displays an ever-expanding mind of its own as it is seemingly “obsessed with understanding its place in the universe.” After an initial anonymous demonstration of its power, it secures the servitude of Misha Orlov, who works in the underground bunker that houses Zaslon-29 (“First the AI made contact, then it set the trap, satisfying his every desire.”) Then it gets wind of Estes and company’s plans to destroy it and orchestrates attempts on their lives. Threatening to further blow things sky-high is Nick Heidegger, described by Marsh as a “tenacious Beltway journalist with a rock-solid reputation.” From the novel’s tense beginning to its ambiguous ending, DeGandpre deftly fleshes out his dynamic duo, finding in AI the perfect villain with which to tap into anxieties about how technology can be abused. (And Russians have been reliable fictional villains for more than half a century.) As the author demonstrated in the series’ launch, DeGandpre writes accessibly but with authority and plausibility about tech. Estes and Marsh are largely separated here and work together via phone—one hopes they can spend more time in the same rooms next time around.
AI paranoia propels this brisk, taut, and entertaining ticking-clock adventure.Pub Date: Oct. 16, 2024
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 286
Publisher: Sad Story Press
Review Posted Online: March 12, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A standout in the series.
The sixth adventure of Harvard symbology professor Robert Langdon explores the mysteries of human consciousness, the demonic projects of the CIA, and the city of Prague.
“Ladies and gentlemen...we are about to experience a sea change in our understanding of how the brain works, the nature of consciousness, and in fact…the very nature of reality itself.” But first—Langdon’s in love! Brown’s devoted readers first met brilliant noetic scientist Katherine Solomon in The Lost Symbol (2009); she’s back as a serious girlfriend, engaging the committed bachelor in a way not seen before. The book opens with the pair in a luxurious suite at the Four Seasons in Prague. It’s the night after Katherine has delivered the lecture quoted above, setting the theme for the novel, which features a plethora of real-life cases and anomalies that seem to support the notion that human consciousness is not localized inside the human skull. Brown’s talent for assembling research is also evident in this novel’s alter ego as a guidebook to Prague, whose history and attractions are described in great and glowing detail. Whether you appreciate or skim past the innumerable info dumps on these and other topics (Jewish folklore fans—the Golem is in the house!), it goes without saying that concision is not a goal in the Dan Brown editing process. Speaking of editing, the nearly 700-page book is dedicated to Brown’s editor, who seems to appear as a character—to put it in the italicized form used for Brownian insight, Jason Kaufman must be Jonas Faukman! A major subplot involves the theft of Katherine’s manuscript from the secure servers of Penguin Random House; the delightful Faukman continues to spout witty wisecracks even when blindfolded and hogtied. There’s no shortage of action, derring-do, explosions, high-tech torture machines, attempted and successful murders, and opportunities for split-second, last-minute escapes; good thing Langdon, this aging symbology wonk, never misses swimming his morning laps. Readers who are not already dyed-in-the-wool Langdonites may find themselves echoing the prof’s own conclusion regarding the credibility of all this paranormal hoo-ha: At some point, skepticism itself becomes irrational.
A standout in the series.Pub Date: Sept. 9, 2025
ISBN: 9780385546898
Page Count: 688
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
Maybe not the most thrilling thriller, but the role of AI in coping with grief gives this novel pathos and interest.
A widowed and disgraced plastic surgeon is drawn into a Russian oligarch’s evil schemes.
Witherspoon’s adult fiction debut, co-authored with thrillermeister Coben, opens as heart surgery performed by Dr. Marc Adams in a North African refugee camp is interrupted by the explosive invasion of armed militants. It's the last we will see of Marc in this dimension. The next chapter jumps ahead one year to a ceremony at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore where his widow, Maggie McCabe, is supposed to be presenting an award in honor of her mother. Miserable and anxious about appearing in public after having lost her medical license, she consults with her late husband on her phone—not via supernatural means, but using a "griefbot," an amazingly lifelike and functional AI app created by her genius sister, Sharon. Once the griefbot coaxes her to brave the sneering masses, she learns she’s been replaced on the podium anyway. But she runs into a former professor, a celebrity plastic surgeon, who requests a meeting with her at his office in New York and won’t take no for an answer. Next thing she knows, there’s $10 million in her bank account and she’s on a private plane heading to a palace outside Moscow where she’s been engaged to perform off-the-record surgery on billionaire Oleg Ragoravich (new face) and his girlfriend, Nadia (new boobs). And…we’re off. A whirl of surgeries, chases, and escapes ensues as Maggie gradually comes to understand who these people are and what they have in mind for her, and how it connects to Marc and their missing friend and business partner, Trace Packer. She is aided by her delightful father-in-law, Porkchop, owner of a biker bar in New York City and a very handy guy to have on your team if you've run afoul of an international criminal organization. From the palace in Rublevka the action moves to Dubai and then Bordeaux, climaxing in a high-stakes illegal heart transplant. But wait—is Marc really dead? What happened to Trace? Who is Nadia really? Though these smoldering questions don’t quite catch fire, it's a good first try for Witherspoon.
Maybe not the most thrilling thriller, but the role of AI in coping with grief gives this novel pathos and interest.Pub Date: Oct. 14, 2025
ISBN: 9781538774700
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Review Posted Online: Oct. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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