Weird book. Felt like it ended two-thirds in and then just... kept going? The pacing is all over the place—like dreaming of running a marathon, to then wake up and realise it's the day of the actual marathon.

The AI themes are actually really smart, and you can tell Liu’s got a sharp mind for the philosophical side of tech and humanity. But the story itself? Not so much. It’s pretty half baked and unforgettable .

Characters were paper-thin, which was disappointing. No one really stuck with me or felt real. Hoping his fantasy stuff (which I’ve heard good things about) has more emotional depth, because this one didn’t hit on that front.

Still, props for ambition. Just didn’t quite land for me, won't continue series

A refreshingly relevant dystopian sci-fi, All That We See or Seem is about the power of community amidst a worls that prioritises convenience, possibly at the cost of privacy and reality. The main character, Julia, is a classic loner, and seeing her character arc grow throughout the book and help her develop skills that were used in the final conclusion was immesely satisfying. Piers and Eli, and the other side characters, felt realistic and well rounded to read about. There were well-written reflective themes woven through the fast-paced plot, which I won't describe for fear of spoiling it, but if you're a fan of sci-fi like Ready Player One and The Stardust Grail, this might be one to check out.

Fast paced cyberpunk from the legendary Ken Liu.

Very enjoyable story that grips you from the start. Likeable characters and some very fun, cyberpunky moments.

Much different from the authors fantasy epic, however Mr Liu does not fail to deliver another great story.

Thank you to Netgalley and Head of Zeus publishing group for the ARC!

I was so excited when I was approved for this ARC as Ken Liu is one of my all time favourite authors, and I have to say, he did not disappoint. As a major fan of his Dandelion Dynasty, this is definitely a different direction to his previous authorial works, but I honestly loved the plot and writing, which was excellent as always- you can definitely see Ken Liu's expertise in the realm of sci-fi and hi-tec from his translation work coming through here.

The story focuses around the mystery disappearance of Eli, a dream-weaver, and her husband Piers' search to find her, which leads him to request the help of Julia, our main character. Julia's own story is woven into the plot nicely, enhancing our understanding of her reactions, and I loved how she was a more realistic (if amazingly intelligent and capable) character with a deep backstory. The focus on data security and growth of AI was also fascinating here and really well drawn out- although it's not quite the world building of the Dandelion dynasty because of the different genres, the technological side of the novel was one of the parts I liked the most about it, as well as the profound questions raised about the future.

Thank you so much for the ARC and I can't wait to continue Julia's character development and story in the next instalment!

Tenía las expectativas muy altas con la nueva novela de Ken Liu, inicio de una trilogía de ciencia ficción de futuro cercano tras la mastodóntica The Dandelion Dinasty. Y, si bien All That We See or Seem me parece un thriller muy emocionante, no es menos cierto que esperaba más del autor.


Y es que después de leer los relatos de Liu, cualquier cosa que no te explote la cabeza sabe a poco y la primera entrega de la saga de Julia Z parece un poco descafeinada. Principalmente porque refleja un futuro tan cercano y tan verosímil que se pierde un poco el sentido de la maravilla, cayendo en lo mundano. No es menos cierto que la peculiar estructura de la novela, que alcanza su clímax aproximadamente en el 70% de la lectura tampoco ayuda. Con esto no quiero decir que sea una mala novela, no creo que el autor afincado en Boston sea capaz de escribir cosas malas, si no que no alcanza su, por otra parte excelso, nivel habitual.

Julia, como personaje, me parece todo un acierto. Una joven prodigio, con un pasado que se irá desgranando a lo largo de la novela, pero que sabemos que la expuso desde muy joven a la presión de las redes sociales con toda su crudeza, dejándola con una desconfianza tal hacia su entorno que apenas tiene huella digital. La verdad es que Julia se ve envuelta un poco a su pesar en un supuesto secuestro y tendrá que hacer uso de todo su arsenal informático para hacer frente al problema.

El mundo que imagina Liu es plausible, de hecho es una especulación bastante cercana a la realidad actual, sobre todo con el auge de la IA. No creo que sea un mundo en el que nos gustar vivir, pero sí creo que puede tocarnos en suerte en los próximos años. Es todo tan convincente que resulta poco emocionante en ocasiones, aunque como todo buen thriller que se precie, tiene sus persecuciones y sus momentos de acción trepidante y estos también están muy bien narrados.

Sin ser una experta en ciberseguridad, pero con algo de barniz sobre el tema, todo lo que aparece en el libro de Liu tiene base tecnológica y científica, si bien extrapolado a unas capacidades de computación muy superiores a las actuales y con unos modelos tremendamente optimizados. No es menos cierto que algunas de las situaciones se resuelven más bien por pura chiripa que por las innegables cualidades de Julia, lo que hace que la suspensión de la incredulidad del lector se vea un poco tensionada.

Sigo interesada en todo lo que escribe Ken Liu y en la continuación de la serie, pero espero que el autor suba un poco el nivel especulativo de la saga, que al menos para mí queda un poco por debajo de lo que esperaba.

After reading the synopsis and knowing it was written by Ken Liu, my expectations for All That We See or Seem were high! While the way Liu incorporated the use of AI into a sci-fi technothriller/mystery was unique, the execution missed the mark. I enjoyed reading about the different characters and their respective backgrounds and I also took to the elements of satire, rebellion, mavericks, and how they were all woven into the AI themed storyline. But, it just felt like it was missing something. Don't get me wrong, it was certainly readable but I wasn't completely hooked. Being book one in a new series, it will be interesting to see where and how things go.

Thank you @headofzeus and @netgalley for this eARC, in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3.5/5

All That We See or Seem is a fast-paced techno-thriller about a hacker trying to track down a missing (possibly kidnapped) woman. Our hacker and main character is Julia—a young woman with a messed up a past, a deep desire for anonymity, and a knack for technology.

I found the tech in this book to be both fascinating and terrifying; it’s essentially a vision of where AI could end up and it’s not particularly pretty. The mystery of trying to find and figure out what happened to Elli—the missing woman—drives the story forward at a fast clip. But while the pace and plot really worked for me, I did find the characters to be a bit lacking. Julia was definitely the best fleshed out, but I wish there had been more characterization for the people from her past.

But I did enjoy the book and I’m definitely going to be checking out the Dandelion Dynasty series now!

This was my first Ken liu book and now I need to hunt for any and anything they’ve written!!
This book gripped me in a way not many books do. I picked it up at the start of my travels to see a friend and found myself fighting the motion sickness just too keep reading!
This book really has you the reader reflecting and questioning anything and everything

More like a 3,5 star rating. This was an enjoyable sci-fi techno thriller for the most part, but what the reader's enjoyment might come down to, is if this is their first Ken Liu book or not. Let me explain..
If this is someone's introduction to Ken Liu and reads this based only on the premise then chances are they will find a lot to like here. An interesting premise with a very fast pace, some thrilling action scenes and above all some thoughtful commentary on the future role of AI in our lives and its consequences..
If however someone grabs this because (like me) they read The Dandelion Dynasty and wanted to experience what Liu can add to this genre, then they might be a bit disappointed. While in his fantasy debut he brought unique storytelling on an epic scale, here his work feels a bit generic. Nothing stands out as excellent and his character work remains his weak point. In the Dandelion series. the adequate but not excellent character development wasn't so much an issue, due to the epicness of the story and the excellent worldbuilding. Here though it hurts the story quite a bit. The secondary characters especially feel very thin and the villains become almost caricatures. As a result here we have very small emotional impact to important events. Also some plot choices felt rushed and abrupt, like there are some pages missing..
All in all this was an ok book, that reads fast and has some exciting moments. I just expected so much more from an author like Ken Liu..
Thanks to Netgalley and Head of Zeus for providing me with an Arc for this.

If you have been following me for any amount of time, you will know Ken Liu is a favourite author.
This book just proves to me he can pull off any genre.

At 14, Julia became infamous as the ‘orphan hacker’, a teenage prodigy. She is desperately trying to leave that life behind when a frantic lawyer begs her to find his wife (a celebrity artist who uses AI to craft dreams) who has been kidnapped by a criminal syndicate.

Julia craves anonymity, she isn’t good with people, but she cares so much. Liu is the BEST at showing not telling and he can give you an intimate picture of every character - even those not featured presently, the villains, the past.

<b>Very few artists can resist for long the relentless pressure to move from having fun to having an audience, to go from being validated by one’s own childlike wonder to craving the attention of others: awards, fame, money. There is so little certainty in art, so few ways to concretely judge where you are, that the hunger for approval, for the magic that comes from having sold, from being desired by many, becomes the polestar by which all steer.
</b>
This is a scary potential future where AI is everywhere, runs most aspects of daily life. How do we adapt? What trends take over, are shunned? What does privacy look like when so much data is collected every second everywhere? How does someone date, connect, trust?

This also had such an important messaging about artists. Very relevant right now as we see AI replacing more and more human labour.

<b>Whether you viewed it as a way for artists to expand their presence—a natural extension of the way Rodin and da Vinci used apprentices to execute more work than they could do personally—or as the ultimate cheapening and devaluation of human craft, egolets were already a big part of the modern business of art.
</b>
I did find the pacing weird as the climax seemed to occur at the 65% point and then the tone changed which felt quite jarring. The story managed to get darker.

I also occasionally experienced confusion about the focalisation which jumps from first person to third person, as well as person to person. It did create a more intimate experience of the entire story’s arc, but did sometimes pull me out.

Overall, a compelling, character-study thriller that makes you think and takes a very dark turn at the end. If you have read Liu’s short story collections, you might be more accustomed to this style.

Ultimately, this book is about belonging. Craving it, feeling alienated by it, fearing it.

Arc gifted by Head of Zeus.

All That We See or Seem is the first book in a new series. Julia Z became a teenage prodigy at age 14 as the “orphan hacker”. Years later she lives a quiet life in Boston until a man begs her to help find his wife. The wife works with AI to craft dreams and there are fears she has been kidnapped by a criminal syndicate. Julia must use her skills to dig deep into the criminal underworld but this brings out ghosts from her past.

This was interesting and very unique. It has some intriguing moments with AI, particularly the way the world works with AI and what it means for people. This did go over my head a little and I think it’s worth noting this is very different to the Dandelion Dynasty. I think people will really enjoy this. It’s interesting, fresh and has some different ideas.

After being catapulted into notoriety as a teenager thanks to her exceptional abilities as a hacker, Julia left her success and infamy behind to craft a life for herself out of the spotlight.

But now, she finds her efforts endangered by an unexpected challenge - Piers, the lawyer husband of a celebrity AI artist who has gone missing pleads with Julia to help him locate his wife Elli, who is a dream artist. Unfortunately, those responsible for her disappearance are not be kind of people you would want to meet in a dark alley...

This is a futuristic thriller with an intriguing premise. Touching on themes that include hidden agendas, art crime, incompetent authorities and the future of creativity, this was an entertaining read, and gets 3.5 stars.

All That We See or Seem was a fast paced AI mystery thriller that captivated me almost in its entirety. I was only let down by some plot threads wrapping up too quickly, but overall I had a really fun time and I absolutely flew through it.

4.5⭐

Ken Liu is a author I've been meaning to read for a while, so when I received this ARC I thought it's about time I made a start, and what a start it was.

A gripping, tense and addictive read, All That We See or Seem looks at our current fascination with generative AI and algorithm-optimised content and extrapolates a rather bleak and dystopian setting for it's story, that at times feels depressingly likely to become reality. Liu uses this to tell an engrossing mystery that makes excellent use of the dystopian super-surveillance world he's crafted. The writing is fantastic, and does a excellent job with it's commentary on digital footprints, the impact of ever improving technology and the value of human art.

I'm very impressed, this was one of the tightest, most well-paced books I've read so far this year, and has me extremely excited to read Liu's other works.