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Users: A Novel
Marrying the philosophical absurdities of life, technology, start-up culture, and family, Users is for readers of Ling Ma, Dave Eggers's The Circle, and viewers of the hit Apple TV+ original series Severance
Miles, a lead creative at a midsize virtual reality company known for its "original experiences," has engineered a new product called The Ghost Lover. Wildly popular from the outset, the "game" is simple: a user's simulated life is almost identical to their reality, except they're haunted by the ghost of an ex-lover.
However, when a shift in the company's strategic vision puts The Ghost Lover at the center of a platform-wide controversy, Miles becomes the target of user outrage, and starts receiving a series of anonymous death threats. Typed notes sealed in envelopes with no postage or return address, these persistent threats push Miles into a paranoid panic, blurring his own sense of reality, catalyzing the collapse of his career, his marriage, and his relationship with his children.
The once-promising road to success becomes a narrow set of choices for Miles, who, in a last ditch effort to save his job, pitches his masterpiece, a revolutionary device code-named the Egg, which will transform the company. The consequences for Miles seal him inside the walls of his life as what was once anxiety explodes into devastating absoluteness.
In a world rife with the unchecked power and ambition of tech, Users investigates-with both humor and creeping dread-how interpersonal experiences and private decisions influence the hasty developments that have the power to permanently alter the landscape of human experience.
Miles, a lead creative at a midsize virtual reality company known for its "original experiences," has engineered a new product called The Ghost Lover. Wildly popular from the outset, the "game" is simple: a user's simulated life is almost identical to their reality, except they're haunted by the ghost of an ex-lover.
However, when a shift in the company's strategic vision puts The Ghost Lover at the center of a platform-wide controversy, Miles becomes the target of user outrage, and starts receiving a series of anonymous death threats. Typed notes sealed in envelopes with no postage or return address, these persistent threats push Miles into a paranoid panic, blurring his own sense of reality, catalyzing the collapse of his career, his marriage, and his relationship with his children.
The once-promising road to success becomes a narrow set of choices for Miles, who, in a last ditch effort to save his job, pitches his masterpiece, a revolutionary device code-named the Egg, which will transform the company. The consequences for Miles seal him inside the walls of his life as what was once anxiety explodes into devastating absoluteness.
In a world rife with the unchecked power and ambition of tech, Users investigates-with both humor and creeping dread-how interpersonal experiences and private decisions influence the hasty developments that have the power to permanently alter the landscape of human experience.
Editorial Reviews
Nylon, A Must-Read Book of the MonthNylon, A Must-Read Book of the Month
Elle, A Most Anticipated Title of the Year
The Millions, A Most Anticipated Read
"Told in refreshingly unadorned prose that lets Winnette's characters and ideas shine . . . Users is not only a book for today or a warning about tomorrow, but a timeless and moving story about fatherhood and one man's yearning for a more meaningful life." -Jessamine Chan, The New York Times Book Review
"A perceptive, subtly moving novel . . . Winnette's thoughtful depiction gives [Miles] a heart that's not beyond redemption." -Kevin Canfield, San Francisco Chronicle
"Gripping, clever, and terrifying, Users sucks you in just like a video game." -Adrienne Westenfeld, Esquire
"[A] sharp, Charlie Kauffman-esque thriller." -Leah Greenbaltt, Entertainment Weekly
"A thoughtful exploration of parasocial relationships or the way real ones can turn into odd hauntings." -Megan Crouse, Den of Geek
"This one is a mind-boggling ride . . . breathtaking and mind opening and more original than anything being produced for a semi large audience . . . The story will force you to consider the meaning of authentic experience, and it might punch you in the gut." -Mark Dago, Big Shiny Robot
"A disquieting cautionary tale for an age of virtual spaces." -Kirkus Reviews
"An engaging story of a virtual reality designer stuck in a rut . . . In Winnette's hands, the dangerous blur between the virtual and reality provides both a warning and a thrill." -Publishers Weekly
"A surreal puzzle box and page-turner from which the reader may never recover, full of the unique absurdity, dark humor, and character insight that make Colin Winnette's work such a joy." -Jeff Vandermeer, New York Times bestselling author of the Southern Reach Trilogy and Hummingbird Salamander
"Users is the best kind of book: both thrillingly old-fashioned, and utterly, daringly timely. Winnette captures the an...
Elle, A Most Anticipated Title of the Year
The Millions, A Most Anticipated Read
"Told in refreshingly unadorned prose that lets Winnette's characters and ideas shine . . . Users is not only a book for today or a warning about tomorrow, but a timeless and moving story about fatherhood and one man's yearning for a more meaningful life." -Jessamine Chan, The New York Times Book Review
"A perceptive, subtly moving novel . . . Winnette's thoughtful depiction gives [Miles] a heart that's not beyond redemption." -Kevin Canfield, San Francisco Chronicle
"Gripping, clever, and terrifying, Users sucks you in just like a video game." -Adrienne Westenfeld, Esquire
"[A] sharp, Charlie Kauffman-esque thriller." -Leah Greenbaltt, Entertainment Weekly
"A thoughtful exploration of parasocial relationships or the way real ones can turn into odd hauntings." -Megan Crouse, Den of Geek
"This one is a mind-boggling ride . . . breathtaking and mind opening and more original than anything being produced for a semi large audience . . . The story will force you to consider the meaning of authentic experience, and it might punch you in the gut." -Mark Dago, Big Shiny Robot
"A disquieting cautionary tale for an age of virtual spaces." -Kirkus Reviews
"An engaging story of a virtual reality designer stuck in a rut . . . In Winnette's hands, the dangerous blur between the virtual and reality provides both a warning and a thrill." -Publishers Weekly
"A surreal puzzle box and page-turner from which the reader may never recover, full of the unique absurdity, dark humor, and character insight that make Colin Winnette's work such a joy." -Jeff Vandermeer, New York Times bestselling author of the Southern Reach Trilogy and Hummingbird Salamander
"Users is the best kind of book: both thrillingly old-fashioned, and utterly, daringly timely. Winnette captures the an...
