I wasn't sure what to expect going into this set of short stories, just that the synopsis sounded fantastic + the cover was gorgeous, and that I overall want to read more science fiction this year, no matter the form.

I absolutely loved this. Normally, most anthologies have some stories that hit and some that don't, but I genuinely enjoyed all of these. I definitely did have my favorites (that short story about free will,, I felt that), but all of them had a similar level of mind-fuckery while also just, making you think deeply about things you might not have before. I also really enjoyed that the audiobook I listened to had an author's note at the end of each story, narrated by the author himself, explaining the inspiration for each story and the topics he was trying to tackle with each one. It added an extra layer, and while I don't necessarily need to know an author's intentions behind a story to enjoy it, I did like knowing the inspiration behind different stories.

Overall, I really enjoyed this, and loved each story despite the length. There was such a variety in page length, ranging from 90+ pages to a mere 5, yet Chiang was able to write a good tale no matter the length. My favorites are probably both the longest story, dealing with AI and digital pets and how humanity could react to that, and the shortest story, the one pertaining directly to free will and what could happen to humanity if there was definitive proof it didn't exist. I seriously can't wait to read more by this author.