The People's Library - by Veronica G Henry (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

From critically acclaimed author Veronica G. Henry comes a thought-provoking science fiction fantasy set in near-future Cleveland that follows a reluctant curator of digital human consciousness who must uncover twisted secrets and navigate ethical quandaries and dangers when anti-technology rebels attack the futuristic library.

Echo London never wanted to be the curator of the People's Library, a digital collection of human consciousness. But when she's assigned as its head librarian, Echo is entrusted with humanity's greatest minds and historical figures, all of whom have been recreated through controversial consciousness-capturing technology that lets visitors interact with the dead.

But an anti-tech rebellion is stirring. When a rebel attack results in tragedy, a mysterious woman wearing an ancient death mask leaves behind cryptic final words for Echo: It all begins with nothing. Caught between the resistance and a potentially virtual evolution, Echo begins to fear that there's more to her job than meets the eye and the mind. There are secrets here. And the People's Library may be less of a promise of things to come than a warning of the danger that lurks beneath the surface. Now the fate of humanity lies in uncovering the truth.

Review Quotes

"Henry folds prescient points about AI and censorship into a gripping and twisty mystery. It's smart, exhilarating sci-fi." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"The People's Library by Veronica Henry is a dazzling extrapolation, a brilliant riff on who we've been and who we mean to be. In a post-AI future with Universal Basic Income and marvelous tech, all should be well. Yet book libraries are being abandoned, and there's an undertow of discontent, resistance to the official narrative. Indeed, even murder afoot! Who doesn't love a hero librarian risking her life to save books, and also humanity, of course. The People's Library is a book for right now and tomorrow!" --Andrea Hairston, award winning author of Archangels of Funk