Machines Like Me

Britain has lost the Falklands war; Margaret Thatcher battles Tony Benn for power and Alan Turing achieves a breakthrough in artificial intelligence. In a world not quite like this one; two lovers will be tested beyond their understanding.Machines Like Me occurs in an alternative 1980s London. Charlie; drifting through life and dodging full-time employment; is in love with Miranda; a bright student who lives with a terrible secret. When Charlie comes into money; he buys Adam; one of the first batch of synthetic humans. With Miranda's assistance; he co-designs Adam's personality. This near-perfect human is beautiful; strong and clever - a love triangle soon forms. These three beings will confront a profound moral dilemma. Ian McEwan's subversive and entertaining new novel poses fundamental questions: what makes us human? Our outward deeds or our inner lives? Could a machine understand the human heart? This provocative and thrilling tale warns of the power to invent things beyond our control.