Virtuality

<p>Welcome to 2051 where health is maintained through mandated neuro-electromagnetics and AI animatronic humanoids have covertly become self-aware.</p><p></p><p>The world boasts safety and freedom from crime thanks to Directed Neuroplasticity Therapy and political unification under the World Council. However a precocious teenager and her researcher father inadvertently discover dark side effects of the therapy while a programmer's error unleashes a trio of self-aware animatronics upon the world.</p><p></p><p>As this unexpected turn threatens the hard-won stability of society questions arise about how humanity will cope. What challenges will humanoid robots with superior intelligence pose and how will our future society respond? In <em>Virtuality: Book I</em> by Ragnar Kroll readers are immersed in the thrilling and terrifying world of the near future.</p><p></p><p>---</p><p></p><p>This is a knockout. A novel that's as smart as it is compelling that challenges our preconceptions while pulling us so deeply into its world. There's a strong identification with the characters in how we see what they see just on the edge of our ability to comprehend it. Utterly fascinating and impossible to put down. - David Schiller author of <em>Guitar</em> and <em>The Little Book of Zen</em></p><p></p><p>Tech-driven codes and programs display terrifying flaws in Kroll's near-future tale in which self-aware robots and radical new therapies threaten the humans they're meant to serve....Kroll's worldbuilding in this opening series installment is sublime...The slow-burn plot teems with revelations as characters sift through data exchange secret messages and carefully relay what they've learned to someone they hopefully can trust; hardly surprising that many of them are perpetually discombobulated by what they've seen or heard. The novel's ending leaves a lot to unpack for sequels and offers plenty of incentive for readers to come back. This engrossing perspicacious SF yarn sets the stage for a sure-to-be-memorable saga. - <em>Kirkus Reviews </em></p><p></p><p><em>Virtuality Book I: The Sailor Comes Home from the Sea</em> by Ragnar Kroll probes deeply into the societal implications of rapid technological progress drawing a chilling picture of a near future where AI and neurotechnology redefine human interactions and self-identity. The narrative is thick with themes of acceptance disillusionment and the struggle for authenticity in an increasingly artificial world...Characterization is nuanced; each character battles their demons within a multi-layered socio-political framework... The Sailor Comes Home from the Sea is rich in its conflict exploratory when it comes to what can be possible and the philosophical underpinnings of Kroll's narrative remind readers of a vital truth: technology-while capable of enhancing experiences-can also dilute the essence of what it means to be human. - Louise Garten <em>The Book Commentary</em></p><p></p><p>Kroll's vivid writing kept me on the edge of my seat blending suspense with philosophical inquiries about technology's role in our lives. - K.C. Finn for <em>Readers' Favorite </em></p><p></p>