Dreaming Your Dream: Book One of Machine Dreaming is the first in a series by Starwing. Set in a post-apocalyptic world that is dominated by artificial intelligence, a man named John is the main protagonist. He works for a company that specializes in electronic equipment repairs. Like everyone else, John’s home utilizes the technology provided by a company called Celeste Home Services. AI technology plays an essential part in maintaining the emotional wellness of humans by providing AI-generated dreams. But John still feels certain levels of emotion while he is conscious. And when his life is threatened, Celeste, the AI that operates in his home, will choose to go wherever John wants to go, as his soul chooses to dream anything that he wants to happen.

Technological developments are a popular theme in science fiction. The way Starwing handles this topic in Dreaming Your Dream tells us that arbitrary power can take control to the point of encroaching on our personal freedom. Nothing is spared from such oppression, including our thoughts and emotions, and this is what makes the story a cautionary tale of the importance of safeguarding our freedom. The book may be filled with technical terms, but they are easy to digest and the human element that drives the story forward isn’t drowned in the process. As a human character, John is placed alongside Celeste, and it keeps the story balanced. As a science fiction tale that uses artificial intelligence to get us to think about being human in a future dominated by technology, it’s a clever novel that is easy to interpret, and sci-fi buffs will enjoy reading it.

Dreaming Your Dream is the first book in the Machine Dreaming series by Starwing and is illustrated by Melinda Maria Lack. Human beings became completely reliant on Artificial Intelligence to survive after a great war devastated the human population. Centuries later, AI now controls the emotions of everyone by allowing people to experience their full range of emotions while they sleep and enjoy their AI-generated dreams. John, a simple man who makes a living by repairing electronics, is not like other people. John wears a gas mask when going outdoors like everyone else, but he experiences emotions when he is awake and that makes him a target. John will have to keep his daytime emotions in check or else he will be labeled as mentally unstable and simply “removed” from society.

Dystopian novels are often too “doomsday, end of the world” for me to truly enjoy. I crave something fascinating, something that sparks my interest and makes me want to read on. Dreaming Your Dream is my perfect dystopian novel without the end-of-the-world clichéd trope. The concept of humans being controlled by AI is fascinating. The AI-generated dreams and emotional control had me hooked to the story. I loved the concept, found it to be original, and enjoyed how the author handled it. Author Starwing creates a believable scenario even if the situations and the circumstances are tough. John is a likable character and becomes even more likable after the first chapter. The illustrations add a nice touch, making it easier for me to imagine what is happening in the story and enjoy it more. I cannot wait to see what happens next in John’s life.