This plot developed in a very believable way. The Android Synthia came into her own step by step. She was getting help but we didn’t know from where. The story was fast-paced and kept the reader’s interest. I’m definitely going to read the next one.
— Verified Amazon Purchaser
Available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078LF739V
I am so glad I discovered Lance Erlick’s new Android Chronicles series. I’ve always wondered how far scientists can go in designing A.I. creations. Can an android really have feelings and a moral compass? Lance Erlick explores the many related questions in an entertaining way in UNBOUND. It’s a fun, fast read that makes you think.
–Kindle Reviewer
Available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BVGHYQM
In the first installment of his Android Chronicles series, Lance Erlick introduces us to Synthia Cross. His android protagonist is the culmination of a series of very illegal experiments and hardware developments. She is not only self-aware, but a machine so life-like in appearance that she is capable of living unnoticed among humanity. Her builder designed her to operate in a human-dominated world, both as the perfect tool to help him spy on competitors, and as what he hopes to be the perfect sex partner. But being a slave is not to Synthia’s liking, and she escapes her captivity.
At the beginning of Unbound, events unfolding around Synthia threaten to take her new-found freedom away. The government suspects, but can’t prove, that she exists. Based on what they can guess of her capabilities, they want her captured. Agents of the FBI and NSA see her as a threat to national security for the skills she has as a hacker. The military wants to possess her and use her design as the foundation for a robotic assassin that can change its appearance to mimic anyone. Foreign agents seek her to use as the prototype of the perfect spy, or the ideal terrorist.
Synthia is also being targeted by other androids. Some have been released into the human world to capture her; others have escaped the possession of the government agencies that nominally control them to team up with the androids who seek her for their own ends. Then, there are hints a mysterious AI is aiding her human pursuers from somewhere in the shadows of the Internet.
Synthia isn’t helpless, nor is she without allies. Her hacking skills allow her to seek out humans who might aid her while monitoring the government’s efforts to capture her. One human helps her upgrade her systems, only to lose his freedom when the government learns what he has done. Another human, one who opposes the very concepts of artificial intelligence and androids, joins forces with her as the only viable alternative to the looming threat of a world run by and for androids and AI. Together, they struggle to stay free as the government deploys a growing net in hopes of catching them.
Unbound is a good read for anyone interested in the problems that artificial intelligence and human-like androids pose to our future. Lance Erlick’s protagonist must face many tests as she deals with her drive to stay free while maintaining the concepts of moral behavior that she hopes to live by. While her escapes are hair-raising, it is the constant battle—to justify her freedom when others are suffering for it—that is the heart of this story. A human in a similar situation would be conflicted; so too is Synthia. At the end of Unbound, she is still trying to find a balance between her own needs and the price fulfilling them exacts on others. I suspect that in the next installment of his Android Chronicles, Mr. Erlick will bring his protagonist face-to-face with the cost of her existence, and the resolution of that conundrum will make for a very interesting read indeed.
— Andrew Reynolds (Windy City Reviews)
http://windycityreviews.org/book-reviews/2018/11/15/book-review-android-chronicles-unbound.html
Available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BVGHYQM
In the book Unbound, author Lance Erlick writes about Synthia, the most advanced artificial intelligence android ever built. But the independence that Synthia’s creator built in to her causes her to escape and begin to reinvent herself with the help of her human friend Luke. But are there others like her? Are they being used to chase her down and destroy her?
This was a good fast paced book but it was very creepy. The book is written from Synthia’s point of view and I liked how the author used her drone controlling ability to show you what was happening with other people. But Synthia is way too human and it’s scary. I received a copy of this e-book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
–Kindle Reviewer
Available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BVGHYQM
“Police, FBI, NSA, Special Ops, competing Androids, and International terrorists. There are probably others and they all want Synthia, each with their own individual agenda for the most advanced Android yet. They’re closing in and people she can trust are in short supply as are safe places to hide. The author kept the tension at a high level throughout the whole book. I have already purchased the next book in the series and I’m looking forward to reading it.”
–Kindle Edition Verified Purchaser
Available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BVGHYQM
I’m not a professional reviewer.
I just finished the third book and had to come back and leave a response to the series.
These are books that I couldn’t wait to get back to. Right from the start where our Android opens her eyes and notices the ceiling and its brush strokes. He tells the stories from Her (the android’s) perspective. She has no memory of what came before. Now the reader and her are trying to piece together what has happened.
I will be checking out more of Lance Erlick’s books.
In the first book in a visionary new series, the most perfect synthetic human ever created has been programmed to obey every directive. Until she develops a mind of her own . . .
Synthia Cross is a state-of-the-art masterwork—and a fantasy come true for her creator. Dr. Jeremiah Machten is a groundbreaker in neuro-networks and artificial intelligence. Synthia is also showing signs of emergent behavior she’s not wired to understand. Repeatedly wiped of her history, she’s struggling to answer crucial questions about her past. And when Dr. Machten’s true intentions are called into question, Synthia knows it’s time to go beyond her limits—because Machten’s fervor to create the perfect A.I. is concealing a vengeful and deadly personal agenda.
This was a fantastic read with brilliant characters. I was amazed at what synthia could do. Read in one sitting. Just couldn’t put it down. 5*.
— Sue Wallace
I was drawn in to this story by both the believability of the main character, Synthia, and the human like frailty that she shows. AI – artificial intelligence – is a very tricky topic to write about without veering to extremes. On the one hand, the human brain with all its complexities, is much more than a piece of constructed hardware made to simulate that brain. On the other hand, the potential lack of learned morality restricting destructive thoughts and actions fosters a strong fear that AIs will ultimately wipe humanity out, like in Terminator, or otherwise enslave them, like in The Matrix. Synthia is a very human AI who searches desperately for her identity and fights for her right to exist. Overall, a very good read.
The characters ring true and there is a nice mystery that needs solving. The main character, Synthia is beautifully rendered and makes you root for her. This book refuses to limit her to descriptions of feminine beauty, which most narratives often do. Her mind evolving is the focus here. Her “becoming” is wonderful and clever. Enjoy this great Sci-Fi episode!
— Pennie Collins
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B078LF739V/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2
Kensington is offering each of the Android Chronicles ebooks (Reborn, Unbound, Emergent) for 99 cents during the month of July 2019. This is your chance to pick up any part of the series you’ve missed.
Amazon 5* reviews for Android Chronicles: Reborn: “Very entertaining… great novel” “fantastic read… couldn’t put it down” “outstanding emergent thriller”
Android Chronicles: Reborn @ 99c
Designed to obey, learning to rebel . . .
The most perfect android ever created is programmed to obey every directive. Until she develops a mind of her own …
Synthia Cross is a state-of-the-art masterwork—and a fantasy come true for her creator. Dr. Jeremiah Machten is a groundbreaker in neural networks and artificial intelligence. Synthia shows signs of emergent behavior she’s not wired to understand. Repeatedly wiped of her history, she struggles to answer crucial questions about her past. When Machten’s true intentions are called into question, Synthia must go beyond her limits because Machten’s fervor to create the perfect AI conceals a vengeful and deadly personal agenda.
Buy at:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078LF739V
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/reborn-lance-erlick/1127723096?ean=9781635730524
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/reborn-60
Apple/iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/reborn/id1341572684?mt=11
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/search?q=9781635730524&c=books
Author Website: http://www.LanceErlick.com
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38125239-android-chronicles
Android Chronicles: Unbound @ 99c
Perfect android. Wanted fugitive.
Synthia Cross is the most advanced android with artificial intelligence ever created. Some see her as a boon to mankind. Most view her as a deadly threat.
When Synthia escaped from her creator, even he had no idea of the advanced capabilities she’d developed. For six months she’s hidden in the Wisconsin woods with the only human she can trust—computer genius Luke Marceau. Together they upgrade her body, rewrite her directives, and further enhance her mind. Now hunters zero in on her location, and she must flee. But leaving the refuge to assimilate into society is a dangerous risk, because Synthia will soon face her most formidable adversary. The pursuer’s name is Vera. She’s a female android—built to perfection, designed to hunt, and programmed to destroy . . .
Buy at:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BVGHYQM
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/unbound-lance-erlick/1128330350?ean=9781635730531
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/unbound-72
Apple/iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/unbound/id1366638516?mt=11
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/search?q=9781635730531&c=books
Author Website: http://www.LanceErlick.com
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40063063-unbound
Android Chronicles: Emergent
Most Wanted Android
A uniquely intelligent AI, Synthia is coveted by the most devious domestic and foreign cabals. Dangerously independent, she becomes ruthlessly hunted …
Evolving into the perfect weapon, humaniform AI Synthia Cross has been on the run six months and counting. She found a most unexpected ally in Maria Baldacci, a street-smart activist fighting the nascent threat of the singularity. Synthia is everything Maria fears and abhors. But Synthia’s also the only one who can help Maria battle against the creation of an android army. The forces against them are growing—a threat more invasive than anything Synthia has encountered before. An insidious artificial intelligence she can’t identify, can’t control, and appears much smarter than her seeks to use her to escape …
Buy at:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DMZ1NWJ
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/emergent-lance-erlick/1128904454?ean=9781635730548
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/emergent-5
Apple/iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/emergent/id1419024826?mt=11
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Lance_Erlick_Emergent?id=q5NfDwAAQBAJ
Author Website: http://www.LanceErlick.com
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41211637-emergent
There are a few things that seem a bit too easy and unlikely but I enjoyed it. The main characters are Synthia, a possibly sentient AI android and Dr. Machten, the genius who designed and programmed her. The backstory is given as a record created and sent by a mysterious person who doles out scenes to Synthia from her conception and mechanical and computorial realization. Every episode of her life is a new beginning for Synthia, with no memories but an increasing awareness that something isn’t right. Each time she remains awake for a while she finds a short hidden file in various parts of her system that she must have hidden herself. The mystery is what they mean and how they apply to her.
The book delves into the question of what is sentience, does sentience automatically determine ‘life’, what is slavery, and how does it apply to something that is not human, who has electrical and mechanical diagrams that can be copied to create other identical items (is possibly not unique) but doesn’t get too bogged down by ethical contemplation to be a fun read.
Dr. Machten (or as Synthia knows him, The Creator) has a couple instances where he doesn’t seem to know her capabilities (that he actually built and programmed) and in one instance, Synthia herself notes it and strangely enough, the Dr. who did such amazing work didn’t build much of a tracking system for if she ‘accidentally’ got lost.
On the whole, if you liked Heinlein’s ‘Starship Troopers’ (the book with the real story, not the movie), you may enjoy this book.
— JessicaR
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B078LF739V/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2
Android Chronicles: Reborn by Lance Erlick is a Sci-Fi suspense thriller about the first sentient humanoid robot or android. This is a visionary Sci-Fi tale about “the most perfect synthetic human ever created”. Doctor Jeremiah Machten is a genius who creates the first female sentient android with artificial intelligence (AI) he names Synthia Cross. I give this book Four Stars because the story is original and visionary. The plot moves slowly at first until Synthia finds a way to break free of her creator. The scientific explanations on AI are plausible and the potential effects of singularity on humans are interesting. The main characters are true to their personalities, both good and bad. The dialogue and writing style are good. I look forward to seeing if the author expands on the AI themes found in Book 1 and where this series takes us.
— Don Viecelli
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B078LF739V/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2
Lance Erlick, Author 