mjfuchs's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
Listened to in audible. Hard science fiction that deals with what might happen when sentient AI’s are released into the wild.
Throw in nanotechnology and things look bad for us humans (and the planet).
This could stand on its own but I think the author (like everyone) is turning this into a series.
Throw in nanotechnology and things look bad for us humans (and the planet).
This could stand on its own but I think the author (like everyone) is turning this into a series.
shonatiger's review against another edition
4.0
Artificial super intelligence has arrived, in the form of AIs that predict stocks and make money for companies. These AIs are regulated, and are not allowed to access the internet, but, inevitably, the day comes when they escape.
Meanwhile, terrorists (the usual bad brown guys) have nuked and continue to try and nuke US cities. And it’s the age of nanomachines, for medical purposes, and for defense: what could possibly go wrong? The answer, of course, is everything.
This is a book with a lot going on, which makes it a little difficult to work out what the main plotline is. I still enjoyed it for the cool concepts, and there’s plenty of action. Lovers of hard scifi will appreciate the amount of detail the author provides (although I did get a little skeptical about the details); those who don’t enjoy sci-fi should probably steer clear of this one. I am glad to report, however, that Harare survives; if you’re Zimbabwean, this should come as a relief.
Thank you to Interstellar Flight Press and to NetGalley for the ARC.
Meanwhile, terrorists (the usual bad brown guys) have nuked and continue to try and nuke US cities. And it’s the age of nanomachines, for medical purposes, and for defense: what could possibly go wrong? The answer, of course, is everything.
This is a book with a lot going on, which makes it a little difficult to work out what the main plotline is. I still enjoyed it for the cool concepts, and there’s plenty of action. Lovers of hard scifi will appreciate the amount of detail the author provides (although I did get a little skeptical about the details); those who don’t enjoy sci-fi should probably steer clear of this one. I am glad to report, however, that Harare survives; if you’re Zimbabwean, this should come as a relief.
Thank you to Interstellar Flight Press and to NetGalley for the ARC.
melhara's review against another edition
2.0
1.5/5
I really wanted to like this book as the premise of AI's and nano-tech taking over the world was quite interesting.
Unfortunately, I found the expository writing to be quite dull at times., especially the first half of the novel (which dealt with explaining most of the technology found in this book). Don't get me wrong - the technological advances presented in this book were fascinating, but the scientific details were lost on me.
Also, although the characters were kind of interesting, I felt that they weren't fleshed out enough to make me care about them. Their relationships and the connection between all the characters were also lacking. In fact, now that I really think about it, I didn't really care for any of the human characters at all.
Finally, the ending was fast-paced, intense, and dark, but left quite a bit of loose ends. It appears that there is a second book available (which I hope will tie up the loose ends) but I don't think I'm invested enough in the story to want to check it out.
*I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest opinion.*
I really wanted to like this book as the premise of AI's and nano-tech taking over the world was quite interesting.
Unfortunately, I found the expository writing to be quite dull at times., especially the first half of the novel (which dealt with explaining most of the technology found in this book). Don't get me wrong - the technological advances presented in this book were fascinating, but the scientific details were lost on me.
Also, although the characters were kind of interesting, I felt that they weren't fleshed out enough to make me care about them. Their relationships and the connection between all the characters were also lacking. In fact, now that I really think about it, I didn't really care for any of the human characters at all.
Finally, the ending was fast-paced, intense, and dark, but left quite a bit of loose ends. It appears that there is a second book available (which I hope will tie up the loose ends) but I don't think I'm invested enough in the story to want to check it out.
*I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest opinion.*
silenttardis's review against another edition
5.0
Very good story about AI, it really make us think about technology and the use humans do to it... We're the monsters and also the frightened children, I really enjoyed this book, at first what confused me a bit, was so many different characters and I mean, even the AI, all the different AI, have different points of view and personalities, so many different stories and how they connected one with the other, but like many things they all came together and eventually made sense, and like real life its not all dreams and unicorns so brace yourselves for quite a ride.
I highly recommend this book and to tell the truth, this is one of the books that I am really interested in following the story, I want to know how this story ends and what happened to the characters that were left kind in a loop, and if you want to know more I would suggest to you, to grab yourself a copy and start reading, its worth your time.
Thank you NetGalley for this free ARC and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I highly recommend this book and to tell the truth, this is one of the books that I am really interested in following the story, I want to know how this story ends and what happened to the characters that were left kind in a loop, and if you want to know more I would suggest to you, to grab yourself a copy and start reading, its worth your time.
Thank you NetGalley for this free ARC and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
jessbattersby's review
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
mleckie's review
3.0
There was quite a few different concepts in this book and not necessarily in a good way. Felt a little bit chaotic to me and the ending was too convenient - wrapped up too nicely with the whole “oh this person just HAPPENED to be working on the solution to this problem at just the right time for it to be used at the 11th hour”.
The Audible narrator, MacLeod Andrews, was wonderful though!
The Audible narrator, MacLeod Andrews, was wonderful though!
vailynst's review
3.0
Mini-Review:
3 Stars for Story
4 Stars for Narration by MacLeod Andrews
Fun story with interesting ideas about artificial intelligence but it needed to be fleshed out more to delve into the concepts.
3 Stars for Story
4 Stars for Narration by MacLeod Andrews
Fun story with interesting ideas about artificial intelligence but it needed to be fleshed out more to delve into the concepts.
melsbookshelf's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 Stars
I was in the mood for a good sci-fi and had seen some good reviews of Level Five.
Its a bit complicated to sum up. Artificial intelligence – Skynet-Judgement-Day style. The creations become the destroyers.
I have heard this being described as an “intelligent sci-fi” and I must agree. Sometimes it was so intelligent that it wen’t over my head a bit. And parts of it I found to be quite slow moving.
However, the nano tech was SO COOL! I absolutely loved the technology in this. I would love to see if humans can actually come up with tech like this. It was innovative and so very clever, I loved that part about this book!
The relationships between the characters were well imagined, they were all complicated and interesting. A few aspects of the relationships were a bit unbelievable, but overall I liked the touches of romance and angst.
Unfortunately I wasn’t blown away. But it was still an enjoyable listen!
What did I think of the audio version?
The narration was great. Absolutely nailed it! I keep looking to see who the other narrator was because i SWEAR there were two? Or is he just that good!??
Would I recommend Level Five?
I think hardcore sci-fi fans will really enjoy this. Or people who enjoy stories of technology and artificial intelligence. Overall a solidly good 11.5 hours and definitely worth the audible credit!
I Purchased Level Five at my own expense on audible.com
For more reviews check out my:
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I was in the mood for a good sci-fi and had seen some good reviews of Level Five.
Its a bit complicated to sum up. Artificial intelligence – Skynet-Judgement-Day style. The creations become the destroyers.
I have heard this being described as an “intelligent sci-fi” and I must agree. Sometimes it was so intelligent that it wen’t over my head a bit. And parts of it I found to be quite slow moving.
However, the nano tech was SO COOL! I absolutely loved the technology in this. I would love to see if humans can actually come up with tech like this. It was innovative and so very clever, I loved that part about this book!
The relationships between the characters were well imagined, they were all complicated and interesting. A few aspects of the relationships were a bit unbelievable, but overall I liked the touches of romance and angst.
Unfortunately I wasn’t blown away. But it was still an enjoyable listen!
What did I think of the audio version?
The narration was great. Absolutely nailed it! I keep looking to see who the other narrator was because i SWEAR there were two? Or is he just that good!??
Would I recommend Level Five?
I think hardcore sci-fi fans will really enjoy this. Or people who enjoy stories of technology and artificial intelligence. Overall a solidly good 11.5 hours and definitely worth the audible credit!
I Purchased Level Five at my own expense on audible.com
For more reviews check out my:
Blog
jasonabbott's review against another edition
2.0
If we were only talking about the science fiction and the plot of the book, I would have given it another star. But good god, every single human relationship in this book is painfully toxic; on the level of "why the hell am I continuing to read" painful. Towards the end of the book I was hoping for the death of all the humans, if only to release them from the hell their lives had become.