The Scythe Trilogy: A Book Review
I recently finished reading the “Arc of a Scythe” trilogy by Neal Shusterman, a book series I first found out about on TikTok. (Available on Libby)
The series presents a dystopian future where death has been conquered - with the help of a benevolent super-AI called “The Thunderhead”. Humans live for hundreds of years, can be “turned back” to any age they please, and no longer worry about disease or death - in fact for some death has become a pastime similar to daredevil sports of today. However, the incessant creep of overpopulation never goes away, and instead of limiting births, a new class of population control killers is created - the Scythes.
For those of us who love their AI tools and ChatGPT, it’s refreshing to read a book where a super intelligent General Artificial Intelligence doesn’t launch the nukes the moment it gains sentience, but instead acts as an infallible world government and protector of humanity. In fact the Thunderhead is perhaps the most likable character in the series, when compared to the power hungry and corruptible Scythes, and the many feeble minded humans.
It turns out that no matter how advanced we become, death is necessary in order for us to fully appreciate life, as the characters in the novel find out.
The series is being developed into a TV series by Peacock and Universal, with Steven Spielberg at the helm, which I believe will be a very popular show based on how much I enjoyed this unique take on the future of mankind and technology.
Rating: 4/5 Stars