Automaton by Cheryl Davies

A manipulated soap opera, or a controlled reality show?

It’s GameWorld, located on a remote island, sometime in the future. It’s a place where no one has to lock their doors because nothing bad ever happens. As a matter of fact, everyone must wear a sleep- mask before falling asleep, to stop bad thoughts from entering their minds.

GameWorld is an extremely successful business. The CEO, Madison, is in control, and his employees take orders. The people, or androids, are purchased for entertainment by the wealthy. To receive a birthday gift of a Character for GameWorld, is the best gift ever. Amelia receives just such a gift from her father, her name is Lily.

Lily’s husband, Dean, is really a nice guy and a good husband. But his owner, Luke, has a bad day and decides to take his anger out on his Character, Dean. He types in for Dean to cheat on Lily. Sadly, Dean has no control over his programming. Amelia won’t have her Character, Lily, hurt in this way. She talks to Madison, and Amelia becomes the first game changer in GameWorld.

To protect Lily, she wants to replace Dean. She is willing to finance the cost of owning a second Character. Madison approves the deal. He feels guilty because GameWorld is a happy place, where people fulfill their fantasies and morals, through their Characters. Very rarely do people type in something bad for their Characters to do, and this is where we realize GameWorld isn’t perfect after all. But Amelia wants a perfect man for Lily, and Madison provides her with one. Again she controls Lily’s life and her destiny with this new Character, Archie, a perfect man.

What happens to Dean? You must read Automaton to find out! Is he terminated, is he swapped for a twin, is he forced to retire, is retirement a good thing in GameWorld?

I continued to be entertained throughout, Automaton, by Cheryl Davies. I don’t know if it’s because I don’t participate in role playing games or watch reality TV, but whatever the reason, I found the story captivating.

Cheryl Davies writes in a succinct writing style. She doesn’t waste words with fluff descriptions. I appreciated reading a well written book applying this style. It served as an example of ‘less is more’ well done.  Every character and scene was flawless in description.

I recommend, Automaton, by Cheryl Davies, for readers of all ages. It will leave you pondering if a GameWorld is in our future!