I Think I Was Murdered by Colleen Coble & Rick Acker

I Think I Was Murdered
by Colleen Coble
and Rick Acker

ISBN-13: 9780840712578
Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Berkley
Released: November 12, 2024

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Just a year ago, Katrina Berg was at the pinnacle of her career. She was a rising star in the AI chatbot start-up everyone was talking about and married to an adoring husband. Then her husband, Jason, was killed in a fiery car crash. Her CEO was indicted and, as the company's legal counsel, Katrina faces tough questions as the Feds take over and lock her out of her office. The final blow is the passing of her beloved grandmother.

Her most prized possession is the beta prototype for a new, ultra-sophisticated chatbot loaded onto her phone. The contents of Jason's email, social media backups, pictures, and every bit of data she could find were loaded into the bot, and Katrina has "talked" to him every day for the past six months. She has been amazed at how well it works. Even the syntax and words the bot uses sound like Jason. Sometimes, she imagines he isn't really dead and is right there beside her. One day, she taps out: Tell me something I don't know. The reply: I think I was murdered.

Distraught, Katrina returns to her cozy Norwegian-flavored hometown in the northern California redwoods and enlists the help of Seb Wallace, local restaurateur, to try to parse out the truth of what really happened. They must navigate the complicated paths of grief, family dynamics, and second chances, as well as the complex questions of how much control technology has.


My Review:
I Think I Was Murdered is a romance with a mystery. I was intrigued by the idea of a woman addicted to an AI version of her husband, and I liked how that was explored. The main characters were generally likable and acted in realistic ways. However, I didn't quite understand why she was so completely trusting and open with someone I thought she ought to question the motives of a little more. Seb, who had a crush on Katrina when they were young, now goes out of his way to help her out even though he has a lot to deal with at the moment. She finally appreciates his fine qualities and willingness to help and protect her, which helps her realize how dependent she's been on the AI.

There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.