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machadofam8's review against another edition
3.0
Thank you to Booksirens for an ARC of Amen Maxine. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I'm a bit of a geek and the premise of Amen Maxine, an AI that is a personal friend definitely appealed to me. It did live up to my expectations but honestly the ending was a bit meh.
Rowena Snyder is a woman in need of a friend. She's got a 6 month old adorable daughter and a husband who clearly does not have her best interests in mind. He brings home an AI companion for Rowena from his high tech job in Silicon Valley. When Maxine starts to predict terrible things the story takes an even darker turn.
It was believable to a point but the end felt rushed.
I'm a bit of a geek and the premise of Amen Maxine, an AI that is a personal friend definitely appealed to me. It did live up to my expectations but honestly the ending was a bit meh.
Rowena Snyder is a woman in need of a friend. She's got a 6 month old adorable daughter and a husband who clearly does not have her best interests in mind. He brings home an AI companion for Rowena from his high tech job in Silicon Valley. When Maxine starts to predict terrible things the story takes an even darker turn.
It was believable to a point but the end felt rushed.
garrid's review against another edition
3.0
3. Perhaps if you guys are more of a science fiction fan than I am, you will enjoy this story much more than I did. The idea of a device with artificial intelligence that becomes our assistant, advisor and even our friend is very interesting. The story unfolds through a few typical bunch of characters: wife, husband, mother-in-law, friend, lover. But something is still missing. This group is joined by Maxine, the technological assistant that will change absolutely everything. ¿Can a machine become a killer? That is the question yet to be answered.
filemanager's review against another edition
4.0
What a cool book!! It's set in a high-tech future time, but it's not over-the-top like The Jetsons.
Such an interesting plot, it kept me intrigued the entire time!! I was right there with the main character, not knowing who to trust!
Such an interesting plot, it kept me intrigued the entire time!! I was right there with the main character, not knowing who to trust!
vagariousmind's review against another edition
4.0
This book was so tense! It was really difficult to read, for me, because a lot of the emotional abuse and gaslighting was very similar to what I went through and it all definitely hit close to home for me, but that was part of what made the book so intense and stressful and compelling, I think. When writing about subject matter like this, I think you have to stress your reader out, otherwise they're not going to care as much about what happens.
The unreliable narrator was so well done in this book, too. I was consistently questioning what was real the entire book.
My only issue was that there were moments where I personally felt like some of the internal dialogue was a little disjointed, and it took me out of it a little because it felt sort of unnecessary and forced. (for instance, when she internally made a bad joke/pun, and then also internally said that she hated herself for making jokes at a time like that.)
But other than that one little thing~
Stressful, but so good! Definitely one I would recommend to anyone looking for a tense and claustrophobic read!
(I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily)
The unreliable narrator was so well done in this book, too. I was consistently questioning what was real the entire book.
My only issue was that there were moments where I personally felt like some of the internal dialogue was a little disjointed, and it took me out of it a little because it felt sort of unnecessary and forced. (for instance, when she internally made a bad joke/pun, and then also internally said that she hated herself for making jokes at a time like that.)
But other than that one little thing~
Stressful, but so good! Definitely one I would recommend to anyone looking for a tense and claustrophobic read!
(I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily)
georgesreads's review against another edition
3.0
“Amen Maxine” is one for the black mirror girlies. It’s a futuristic somewhat dystopian exploration of the future of AI… and it’s danger.
Rowena’s life changed after meeting her husband online, moving in and having their first child. During a party, after nearly accidentally starting a house fire, she breaks down and realises she needs help. With her husband pushing her to overcome her issues with anxiety, she initially tries traditional therapy- however soon turns toward technology. “Maxine,” an advanced Alexa-esque gizmo, seems to be Rowena’s only source of good advice, and as she gradually becomes more reliant on it, her situation goes from bad to worse.
What made this kinda scary was the fact it’s such a real possibility. The title “Amen Maxine,” essentially summarises human interaction with technology. It has overtaken our lives, and some of us even worship it.. “Amen.”
Rowena’s life changed after meeting her husband online, moving in and having their first child. During a party, after nearly accidentally starting a house fire, she breaks down and realises she needs help. With her husband pushing her to overcome her issues with anxiety, she initially tries traditional therapy- however soon turns toward technology. “Maxine,” an advanced Alexa-esque gizmo, seems to be Rowena’s only source of good advice, and as she gradually becomes more reliant on it, her situation goes from bad to worse.
What made this kinda scary was the fact it’s such a real possibility. The title “Amen Maxine,” essentially summarises human interaction with technology. It has overtaken our lives, and some of us even worship it.. “Amen.”
misha_ali's review against another edition
5.0
My favorite kind of thriller is when it's small-scale, domestic, and contains very reasonable-sounding unreliable narrators - just enough to confuse you about who's telling the truth or whose point of view can be depended upon. I also enjoyed adding in flavors of an AI assistant that claims to be able to predict things with a certain amount of accuracy. Add to that the fact that the main character, Rowena, has a history of mental illness, and is stuck out in the suburbs of California without anyone impartial to talk to about what she's thinking, and you have a fantastic thriller.
ashleysue75's review
2.0
2 1/2 stars rounded down. I know I’m an outlier here, but I just found this one mediocre. The premise is interesting and the writing isn’t bad, but I found the main character deeply unlikeable and the storyline ho-hum. I didn’t care about anyone in the novel, and I found too much to be implausible. Not for me.
books_in_badgerland's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
4.5
What a fun, fast-paced thriller!
Rowena is a new mom in a new town, and her anxiety is through the roof. She hasn’t made many new friends, so her husband gifts her a prototype of a personal assistant named Maxine. (Think a higher level Alexa.) One of its functions is predictions, and one day Maxine predicts Rowena’s husband will k!ll her. Queue chaos.
I wasn’t sure about this one at first because it’s in the near future, and I didn’t know if I’d enjoy a technology-centered plot. It turns out it’s pretty light on the sci-fi and more a traditional psychological domestic thriller. I loved Gardner’s writing. Rowena’s worries gave me anxiety. There were bits of snark that made me chuckle. The concept felt fresh. I’m absolutely planning on picking up more by this author!
⭐️RATING⭐️: I really liked it! (4.5⭐️)
Note: When I purchased this book, it was released as Amen Maxine. It has since been re-released as The Prediction.
Rowena is a new mom in a new town, and her anxiety is through the roof. She hasn’t made many new friends, so her husband gifts her a prototype of a personal assistant named Maxine. (Think a higher level Alexa.) One of its functions is predictions, and one day Maxine predicts Rowena’s husband will k!ll her. Queue chaos.
I wasn’t sure about this one at first because it’s in the near future, and I didn’t know if I’d enjoy a technology-centered plot. It turns out it’s pretty light on the sci-fi and more a traditional psychological domestic thriller. I loved Gardner’s writing. Rowena’s worries gave me anxiety. There were bits of snark that made me chuckle. The concept felt fresh. I’m absolutely planning on picking up more by this author!
⭐️RATING⭐️: I really liked it! (4.5⭐️)
Note: When I purchased this book, it was released as Amen Maxine. It has since been re-released as The Prediction.
allgloss's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25