Henry a reclusive engineer has just built his first AI robot that he names William but there's something wrong with him. The way he looks at and speaks about Henry's pregnant wife Lily and soon Henry knows he needs to be destroyed. But destroying William doesn't help they can still hear him muttering in the locked attic the can still feel him watching their every move and he slowly begins to take over the house and take control of Henry.

This was really good full of twists and turns and was pretty creepy in some places. Henry was a great character to read about watching as he suffered with agoraphobia and how he manages that as he loses control of his safe space. If you enjoy creepy ghost stories or Sci fi thrillers this is for you highly recommend.

I read this book in just a few hours - I found it really gripping and hard to put down! It was relatively short but the fast pace and short chapters made it easy to read. The writing was great and it was a very atmospheric book. It was creepy, tense and weird which I loved. I also really liked the exploration of AI and human consciousness - it felt relevant to the world today. The plot was actually pretty dark and there were definitely some moments that shocked me. Robots are scary and William was no exception; I genuinely felt scared at times. The imagery and descriptions were vivid which added to the fear factor. The twist did surprise me and I was mad at myself for not guessing it! I loved it but I wish the ending had been a little longer - we got the big reveal and it all ended too fast. Overall, it was an amazing little book that will make a perfect Halloween read!

Henry is a man suffering from agoraphobia who lives with his pregnant wife in their voice activated smart home. Henry creates an AI robot human called William. A robot that completely to his surprise has grown wiser, stronger and even more terrifying evil. When Henry introduces William to his wife and her former colleagues, things take a turn for the worse, resulting in a fight for survival in a house that is no longer under their control.

I liked this book a lot. It was fast paced, spooky, tense and has a sense of foreboding from cover to cover. The characters were well written, and the idea of puppets being controlled by a malevolent force was pure nightmare fuel. I liked how chaotic this book was and, the way the author creates a world of sheer terror in such a short book.

The final 80% of the book was the most enjoyable for me. The twist that came at the end was one of the best things I've read to date. That twist alone just took this book to another level for me and, I wanted to go back and re-read this entire book all over again lol. The ending was well done, and I loved the obscurity of it. This will make the perfect Halloween read for all you horror lovers out there.

Thank you to Netgalley, John Murray Press and Mason Coile for my eARC of this book. All opinions are 100% my own.

William is a short horror novel about a reclusive robot engineer who creates an AI consciousness in his house. Henry doesn't leave his home and spends all his time on his project, an AI-powered robot he's called William, even though it is impacting his marriage to his wife, Lily. As William starts to turn dangerous, Henry tries to stop him, but their high tech house shows William's power is further reaching than Henry thought.

This book was compared to Stephen King, Black Mirror, and Frankenstein, and unusually, I think that's actually quite a good set of fiction to compare it to, particularly as it doesn't give away too many of the twists whilst still setting up the kind of vibe you're going to get. Initially, there's the creator/creation thing that is key to the book, exploring ideas of artificial intelligence and what kind of 'spirit' might be created. Then you get the kind of horror when a house seems to work against its inhabitants, and that's where you can really picture the book adapted for the screen as it cuts between different parts of the house.

The length is ideal for a quick, gripping horror story that purposefully focuses in on certain parts of the plot and characters, and it feels precise rather than too short. William is a tense, fun read that builds on a lot of existing ideas and tropes to play on fears of things we create turning out to not be as they seem, and ideas of creator and creation.

In his attic laboratory, Henry, a brilliant engineer and scientist suffering from agoraphobia, creates William, an artificial intelligence robot programmed to acquire new knowledge every day.

Henry secures the lab meticulously, not only to guard the project's secrecy but also due to his growing apprehension towards William.

However, when Lily, Henry's pregnant wife, invites her colleagues over, the situation spirals out of control, particularly when William gains control over their smart home.

Prepare yourself for an exhilarating escapade where no refuge exists, no solution seems plausible, and every moment brims with terror.

The novel's atmosphere is exceptionally crafted, rendering the book utterly irresistible by introducing characters who are relatable and bursting with vitality.

Delving into thought-provoking questions, the story ponders whether artificial intelligence can possess consciousness or even a soul and whether malevolent forces can dwell within it.

Skillfully penned with an unforeseen conclusion, this book comes highly recommended for its exquisite writing.

This is a short, sharp read - 224 pages written by the pseudonymous Mason Coile described by the publishers as an 'up-all-night thriller which is Black Mirror meets Frankenstein with a dash of Stephen King'. I'd personally say it's got more of a dash of Blade Runner/ Ex-Machina (with a dash of a certain Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror segment) but either way that's some strong reference points.

Written in present tense, 'William' takes place in a condensed space of time after its' initial opening. Henry, a brilliant engineer with extreme agoraphobia lives in a smart tech house with his wife, Lily - a tech entrepreneur who is pregnant with their first child but from the first page clearly showing signs of 'distance' from him. Henry has been working on a secret project in his lab upstairs - William: a robot we very quickly learn is more advanced consciously than in his half formed physical appearance.

We've all seen the movies and read the books where the 'perfect companion' (be it machine, animal, or human) slowly develops tics suggesting something isn't right. The author here doesn't bother with such a slow burn. From the outset we can see there's something not quite right about William. We know it. Henry knows it. And pretty soon Lilly and two houseguests are going to know it.

This felt the right length for this book - easy enough to consume in one or two sessions and get pulled along by the action (and there's a lot of action in it), appreciate the twist and go along without stopping to question things until after you've finished. At which points some very interesting questions will arise.

This is one for Stephen King fans, absolutely! If you love horror, you'll absolutely eat this one up.

I thought it had the perfect touch of horror, personality and AI. I loved the inclusion of the technology in this text - it felt very modern and creative, and I thought the inclusion of AI made it all the more terrifying and tense.

I don't usually read books in one sitting, but I couldn't turn away from this one. I loved it. It was everything I wanted. The characters were perfect, the story was engaging and tense, and the ending was truly shocking and surprising.

Short and suspenseful novel that ratchets up the tension throughout. Trapping the characters in a tech-controlled house with a robot with AI, Coile uses suspense, horror and science-fiction to great effect. I always admire a book that sets out its stall early and delivers in a short and punchy way - no padding, just barebones tension.

Highly recommended

4+

Reclusive robotics engineer Henry, creates William and eventually greatly wishes he hadn’t. Foolishly, he thinks he can control William but the AI has other ideas and what’s worse it has a fixation on Henry‘s wife Lily, who recoils from the robot. This is not just because of his appearance which is disturbing, especially his face although it’s a close run thing with his odd body. However, it’s Williams razor sharp mind which is his most alarming feature and the inevitable result of this is both chilling and frightening. Perhaps a warning sound for us all. Prepared to be astonished In this buckle up tight read.

Right from the very start of this terrific novel, the conversations between William and Henry send shivers down the spine and set off warning bells in Henry’s brain. I become gripped by the horrifying awfulness that unfolds, unable to put the fast paced tense book down. I think some of the creative images have been burned on my retina. It becomes increasingly claustrophobic with the couples Victorian house playing its role in that, it’s extremely creepy, there’s a rising sense of panic, paranoia and a dreadful sense of being totally out of control. It’s terrifying in places and as for the ending, breathe girl, breathe. It is so unexpected, so good and clever yet also very darkly disturbing with a jaw dropping impact.

All the characters are incisively well portrayed, you can see all with clarity with the AI being especially vivid. Henry’s high state of anxiety builds to off the chart levels and definitely impacts the read and his state of apprehension is palpable.

Overall, if you like horror such as that of Stephen King then this is probably one for you. I just wonder if a sequel is on the cards, I do hope so.

This is a perfect Halloween read and luckily it publishes in the United Kingdom on 3/10 with immaculate timing.

It has a great cover too.

With the thanks to NetGalley and especially to John Murray Press for the much appreciated in return for an honest review.

Henry, an agoraphobic engineer, creates an AI, William. Something goes wrong and the story is claustrophobic and unsettling. Henry's wife Lily is pregnant and William becomes interested in her. The story is creepy, exciting, and different from anything I've read before. The ending is superb. It's my first book by this author and I'm impressed.