LIFEL1K3 (Lifelike #1) by Jay Kristoff
In a futuristic world where AI has become so much apart of our lives they are practically family Eve finds herself fleeing her home after it’s broadcasted that she is a deviant, and can stop machinas with just a thought.
With the help of her bestest, Lemon Fresh, her AI companion, Cricket, and the unlikely android that she just met she starts to uncover more about her past that has remained hidden from her in more ways than she realizes.
The Story
This fast-paced, action packed sci-fi YA leaves you on the edge of your seat as you learn more about Eve and the world she lives in. Who is this girl that has so many people on her tail and can bring down a robot through her anger? This book is ridden with so many twists that you will get whiplash from it. And if you’re new to Kristoff, be prepared to have your heart ripped out of your chest and stomped on.
The thing about this book is that it dapples in the morality of creating life with the AI and what it means to be one of them. The world that we are given has pets that are AI, friends that we rely on and keep us safe, and of course AI that look so much and act so much like humans.
Trigger warnings: violence, suicide
The World Building
All the geekiness that we love about Jay Kristoff in the Illuminae Files has broken out and is in another book. Kristoff does this fantastic job bringing out this world that he imagines through familiar descriptions while morphing them with slang that just fits. Often times I am not really impressed by a dystopian novel that make up their own slang and curse words, but somehow it just blends in nicely here. Instead of bestie, we get bestest, instead of an F bomb, we get fug. It stands to reason that in the future our terminology would have morphed at least a little bit if our technology has made so much advancement.
The Characters
While the story itself is incredibly entertaining, it’s the characters that really drive this book. Of course, Eve is such a strong willed and an enigma that we are unraveling. But it was her friends that really had me going. Lemon Fresh is the bestest that anyone would want. Street smart, quippy, and loyal to a fault. I don’t know what Kristoff is planning for the next book, but if she’s not in it or the main character, she will be sorely missed.
Can I just say that I absolutely adored Cricket? I love that even as an tiny AI he brought out so much flavor to the story. He’s snarky and loves Eve so much. I’m not sure if it’s because of her name, or the way he was able to express his feelings so well, but every time he spoke I imagined his voice almost like WALL-E’s, and I just found him incredibly endearing.
Soundtrack
Portishead – The Rip
