Uncanny by Sarah Fine (review)

The year is 2069, the location is Washington, D.C. Hannah Dietrich has been murdered in the family home. In attempts to uncover what exactly transpired on the night of Hannah’s death, an advanced therapeutic canny, an evolved and advanced form of artificial intelligence, has been assigned to Cora, Hannah’s stepsister. Known for her attractiveness, popularity, and enthusiasm for her new sister, Hannah surely couldn’t have done anything to provoke quiet and socially inept Cora. In hopes of solving the mystery, Rafiq, an attractive and “fully functioning” human canny, has been tasked by Dr. Dietrich to find out what happened the night Hannah died, by any means possible. Chapters move between Cora’s narration and chronicles of Rafiq’s processing of shared evidence—a collection of recorded audio and visual data taken from the home’s AI system, the collected ocular/cranial communication device of Hannah, and conversations with Cora. In the midst of mystery and anticipation, prepare to be transported to Fine’s well-developed and sensory-appealing future, while contemplating the likelihood of forthcoming technological advances. Readers will appreciate Rafiq’s thorough and in-depth analysis of the case of the Dietrich sisters and consider that while the truth may eventually be revealed, justice refuses to be easily served.