Culpability

A Novel

De: Bruce Holsinger

Narrado por: Stacy Carolan, January LaVoy

• Oprah’s Book Club Pick •

“I was riveted until the very last shocking sentence!”—Oprah Winfrey

“The most of-the-moment novel I’ve read all year, and it’s the book of the summer.”—Real Simple

Set at a summer rental on the Chesapeake Bay, a riveting family drama about moral responsibility in the age of artificial intelligence.

When the Cassidy-Shaws’ autonomous minivan collides with an oncoming car, seventeen-year-old Charlie is in the driver’s seat, with his father, Noah, riding shotgun. In the back seat, tweens Alice and Izzy are on their phones, while their mother, Lorelei, a world leader in the field of artificial intelligence, is absorbed in her work. Yet each family member harbors a secret that implicates them in the accident.

During a weeklong recuperation on the Chesapeake Bay, the family confronts the excruciating moral dilemmas triggered by the crash. Noah tries to hold the family together as a seemingly routine police investigation jeopardizes Charlie’s future. Alice and Izzy turn strangely furtive. And Lorelei’s odd behavior tugs at Noah’s suspicions that there is a darker truth behind the incident—suspicions heightened by the sudden intrusion of Daniel Monet, a tech mogul whose mysterious history with Lorelei hints at betrayal. When Charlie falls for Monet’s teenaged daughter, the stakes are raised even higher in this propulsive family drama that is also a fascinating exploration of the moral responsibility and ethical consequences of AI.

Culpability explores a world newly shaped by chatbots, autonomous cars, drones, and other nonhuman forces in ways that are thrilling, challenging, and unimaginably provocative.

To hear Oprah Winfrey interview author Bruce Holsinger, please visit the July 8 episode of the ‘Oprah’s Book Club: Presented by Starbucks’ podcast on the platform of your choice.

©2025 Bruce Holsinger (P)2025 Spiegel & Grau by Spotify Audiobooks

Extremely thought-provoking

Oprah doesn't recommend books for her health! Definitely add this book to your reading list especially if you're not well versed in AI. Each chapter will challenge your thinking without overwhelming you with doctoral level technical terms.

AI ethics

The questions the novel posts about the responsibilities of how we use AI. We need to understand that AI can help us better our lives, but not replace making decisions that are crucial to maintaining our humanity.

This book was so good!

I listened to it with my boyfriend this weekend on a long roadtrip, and he was initially not thrilled that we’d be listening to a book the whole drive, but we were both hooked from the first chapter! It was fresh, captivating, sharp-whited, made us think, pause it and talk about it. It was all the things! Great narration too.

Great story subject….wrapped around a family drama.

Loved the technology and the relationships between the family members. Also loved the “what would I do” if put in the same situation.

Wonderful plot

I liked all the characters. Very exciting and great story. Unexpected twists. Very relatable and with the times we are in today.

Shockingly good

I had no expectations going into this read. Lots of plot twists and it kept me on my toes. This is a page turner and the ending does not disappoint. 10/10

Great story, not great writing

The story was great but i found the writing really awful. It read like a cheap romance novel, but the story twists and timely questions about AI kept me listening

Timeliness of subject matter

I thoroughly enjoyed the story as well as the timeliness of the subject matter in our world. I liked the narration and felt that we got to know that dad's character very well and the children's as well. Finally in the end we better understand the mother one of my favorite books in a long time that I couldn't wait to listen to.

Very compelling!

One of my favorite stories of the year! It’s a relatable and a cautionary tale. Thought-provoking, and great book club discussions!

A cautionary tale.

I was so very impressed by the authors, quality, clarity and the detail of writing. It was a wonderful story. I learned something about AI and the responsibility, stewardship and the future considerations of its existence.
The other piece is the human story of this family. It was interesting to be a part of their lives and it was also shocking at the end to find out that the one daughter was complicit in what happened. I can only imagine that it wouldn’t bode well for her as she gets older.