Dual Memory

by Sue Burke

Overview

Sue Burke, author of the acclaimed novel Semiosis, returns with Dual Memory, a standalone novel blending the hard science fiction of Her with the action adventure of The Third Man.

Antonio Moro lost everything to the Leviathan League. Now he's alone in a city on an Arctic island fighting the ruthless, global pirates with the chance to be the artist he always wanted to be. Unfortunately, he thinks it’s a cover story for his real purpose—spying on sympathizers.

When things look bleak, he discovers an unusual ally. His new personal assistant program, Par Augustus. It’s insolent, extroverted, moody, and a not-quite-legal nascent A. I.

Together they create a secret rebellion from unlikely recruits to defend the island from ideological pirates with entitlement and guns, and capitalist pirates with entitlement and money.

Other Books by Sue Burke
Semiosis
Interference
Immunity Index

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250809131
Publisher:	Tor Publishing Group
Publication date:	05/16/2023
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	616,360
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.30(h) x 1.50(d)

About the Author

Sue Burke, author of the acclaimed novels Semiosis and Immunity Index, spent many years working as a reporter and editor for a variety of newspapers and magazines before writing her critically acclaimed Semiosis. A Clarion workshop alumnus, Burke has published more than thirty short stories in addition to working extensively as a literary translator. She lives in Chicago.

Editorial Reviews

03/20/2023

Burke (Symbiosis) explores art and artificial intelligence in this clever near-future adventure. The dual narrators, one human and one computer, meet on the small arctic island of Thule, run by altruistic doctors. Antonio Moro is a Bronzewing mercenary defending the island from the Leviathon League raiders bent on enslaving its civilians when he is blasted from a rusty garbage barge. Injured, he’s left to recover ashore, and secretly ordered by Bronzewing Captain Soliana to root out raider infiltrators. He’s also linked to a personal assistant program, Par Augustus (or “Venerable Companion”), one of only four extant independent intelligent machines. Illiterate Antonio, a self-taught artist who is invariably polite to machines, and Par, a prickly manipulator capable of well-meant deceit, make an unlikely duo, but together they just might be able to save Thule from the Leviathon League. Burke loads the story with fascinating characters as she probes how humanity’s artistic capacity to inspire might interact with AI’s flexible intelligence. This playful glimpse of nonthreatening human-machine interaction is sure to charm. (May)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Dual Memory

“[W]hatever vantage you choose to appreciate this book, you will be richly rewarded with both a thrilling adventure and a reflective philosophical presentation.”—Paul Di Philipo, Locus Online

“Dual Memory confirms Sue Burke as a modern SFF master.”—Matthew Keely, Tor.com

“If Ursula LeGuin had written about AI machines, it would have looked a lot like this marvelous fable.”—Booklist (starred review)

“Sue Burke explores art and artificial intelligence in this clever near-future adventure. ...This playful glimpse of nonthreatening human/machine interaction is sure to charm.”—Publishers Weekly

“This rollicking thriller from Burke (Immunity Index) moves at a fast pace but manages to maintain its focus on the true threats of climate change and human hubris, all the while keeping readers riveted and entertained.”—Library Journal


Praise for Immunity Index

“This hits close to home.”—Publishers Weekly

“This dystopian biothriller reads like a 21st-century version of Michael Crichton’s The Andromeda Strain, crossed with George Orwell’s 1984. . . . hopeful, heartbreaking, and compelling at every turn. Highly recommended for readers of dystopian science fiction or political technothrillers.”—Library Journal, starred review

“A fast-paced hard-sf thriller… Burke imparts detailed discussions on genetics within a dramatic and thought-provoking story of inequality, humanity and family. For fans of the Orphan Black television series or Chuck Wendig’s Wanderers (2019).”—Booklist

“Prescient and powerful, this is a gut-punch of a book . . . Sue Burke only gets better and better. She is a genuine if unsung hero of our genre.”—Seanan McGuire

“Riveting world building by a rising star of science fiction.”—David Brin

Praise for Semiosis

“This is up there with Ursula K. Le Guin: science fiction at its most fascinating and most humane.“—Thrillist

“A fascinating world.”—The Verge

“A solid debut.”—SFRevu

“A magnetic meditation on biochemistry and humanity.”—Locus Online

“This first-contact tale is extraordinary.”—Library Journal (starred review)

“Sharp, evocative . . . Semiosis unfolds the old science fiction idea of first contact in ways that are both traditional and subversive.”—The Christian Science Monitor

“A clever, fascinating, fun and unique debut.”—Kirkus Reviews

"Burke’s world building is exceptional, and her ability to combine the intricacies of colonization with the science of botany and theories of mutualism and predation is astounding." —Booklist

“Impressive debut novel . . . lush . . . beautiful.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review

From the Publisher

02/01/2023

Antonio Moro, climate change refugee, undercover mercenary, and self-taught artist, teams up with a chatty rogue AI with ADHD and a whole lot of attitude in this cli-fi techno-thriller. After the "Anthropocene Tip," the economies and social networks of Earth are collapsing. The Arctic island of Thule, bastion of the wealthy and almost militantly neutral Sovereign Practitioners Association of medical oligarchs, is under attack by global pirates. Antonio and the sophisticated band of machine intelligences led by his AI will bend the laws of humans and robotics to save themselves—and save the islanders from their own selfish consequences as well. A story of human greed wrapped in a thriller, fronted by a confused and frequently petrified human who sees all too clearly that the machines are already running the world and that the best thing he can do is to strap in for a wild ride. VERDICT This rollicking thriller from Burke (Immunity Index) moves at a fast pace but manages to maintain its focus on the true threats of climate change and human hubris, all the while keeping readers riveted and entertained.—Marlene Harris

Library Journal

06/10/2024

Burke (Immunity Index) writes a timely novel that explores both artificial intelligence and the ethics of neutrality. Attempted rebel Antonio Moro finds himself on the island nation of Thule, where the Sovereign Practitioners Association of doctors practices extreme empathy and generosity. Moro's distrustful nature proves correct when it becomes apparent that the Sovereign Practitioners' philosophy leaves their society open to manipulation and abuse, even as it provides Moro the freedom to pursue his art. After he meets a sentient AI named Par Augustus, Moro realizes he can instigate change while also recognizing that an entire culture of encoded beings with desires of their own exists alongside humankind. André Santana narrates Moro with a melancholy tone through much of the novel, dolefully filling listeners' ears with his perspective born of self-isolation and trauma. Par's voice is a stark contrast, conveyed with the perfect amount of curiosity and innocence to make its powerful manipulations both alarming and heroic. Santana's decision to give Par a chipper voice in contrast to the artificially monotone voices of the nonsentient AIs is genius. VERDICT Socially conscious near-future, science fiction for listeners interested in the politics of individuality.—Matthew Galloway

Library Journal - Audio