Who gets to decide which patients deserve a chance at treatment? Dr. Hope Kestrel works for a company that believes algorithms can make more objective decisions than humans. The death of Hope’s own mother leads her to put faith in predictive health algorithms, even as she sees that they are used to deny treatment to some patients. When Hope suspects a company coverup about the algorithm’s accuracy rate, she must put her career on the line to uncover the truth. 

Based on the title of this book, I expected the plot to revolve around an unimaginably advanced “AI” system that supplants human doctors in a distant future. Instead, the book is about slightly more advanced versions of automated decision support technologies that are currently being tested in hospitals around the globe. It’s not hard to imagine a near future where doctors must grapple with the interesting ethical questions at the heart of this book.

While I appreciated the premise and the fast-paced drama, the execution fell a bit flat for me. I was able to predict many plot points and thought the characters, especially the main antagonist, were too one-dimensional. However, I think someone interested in medical dramas might enjoy the health care aspects, as I got the impression that they were well-researched and informed by the author’s professional experience in medicine.

My thanks to NetGalley & Black Rose Writing for an ARC of this book.