After On

A Novel of Silicon Valley

By: Rob Reid

Narrated by: Sean Kenin, January LaVoy, Felicia Day, Patrick Rothfuss, John Hodgman, Tom Merritt, Jesse Cox, Leo Laporte

Length: 22 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

The definitive novel of today's Silicon Valley, After On flash-captures our cultural and technological moment with up-to-the-instant savvy. Matters of privacy and government intrusion, post-Tinder romance, nihilistic terrorism, artificial consciousness, synthetic biology, and much more are tackled with authority and brash playfulness by New York Times best-selling author Rob Reid.

Meet Phluttr - a diabolically addictive new social network and a villainess, heroine, enemy, and/or bestie to millions. Phluttr has ingested every fact and message ever sent to, from, and about her innumerable users. Her capabilities astound her makers - and they don't even know the tenth of it.

But what's the purpose of this stunning creation? Is it a front for something even darker and more powerful than the NSA? A bid to create a trillion-dollar market by becoming "The UberX of Sex"? Or a reckless experiment that could spawn the digital equivalent of a middle-school mean girl with enough charisma, dirt, and cunning to bend the entire planet to her will?

Phluttr has it in her to become the greatest gossip, flirt, or matchmaker in history. Or she could cure cancer, bring back Seinfeld, then start a nuclear war. Whatever she does, it's not up to us. But a motley band of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and engineers might be able to influence her.

After On achieves the literary singularity - fusing speculative satire and astonishing reality into a sharp-witted, ferociously believable, IMAX-wide view of our digital age.

Narrated by Sean Kenin and January LaVoy, with:
Felicia Day: NETGRRRL.COM
Patrick Rothfuss: Special Field Operative Brock Hogan
John Hodgman: Charles Henry Higgensworth III
Tom Merritt: voice of The New York Times
Jesse Cox: Whistle Blowings Blog
Leo Laporte: voice of The San Francisco Chronicle

©2017 Rob Reid (P)2017 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Enter a near-future Silicon Valley that is hilariously, creepily, mind-bogglingly fantastic, yet at the same time all too believable. It might turn out this way. No, really, it might! Along with After On's diabolically ingenious plot, there are crazy-plausible web startups, delicious parodies of social media, and a surprisingly convincing theory of human consciousness." (Chris Anderson, head of TED)

" After On is smart, hilarious, and properly cynical about our connected world. The story unfolds in surprising and fiendish ways, and while you're laughing you'll learn enough to confound a wily MBA, manipulate a board of directors, and maybe even outfox a superintelligence." (Ken Fisher, founder and editor in chief, Ars Technica)

"Rob Reid doesn't write science fiction; he writes future history. After On is the best account I've read of how superintelligence will arrive and what it will mean for all of us. Hilarious, frightening, believable, and marvelously constructed - After On has it all." (Hugh Howey, New York Times best-selling author of Wool)

"Reading After On is like attending a master class in nearly every major issue haunting not only the tech industry but society itself. Only the professor is also a stand-up comic with a perfect ear for the foibles of Silicon Valley's most sacred cows. Part AI thriller, part arch social commentary, and part rollicking farce, After On will leave you smarter about just about everything the human species needs to work on if we're going to outlive our own creations - and our obsessions with them." (John Battelle, co-founder, NewCo, Federated Media, and Wired)

Enjoyable Listen

Great book. I never write reviews so that should say something right there about how much I enjoyed listening to this book.

Awesome book with great narration

First, I loved the story. Incredibly fresh take on AI and relevant to someone like me in the software industry in Silicon Valley. Funny and serious at the same time. Most of the time books are better read than listened to, but not this one. The narrators were all great but especially January LaVoy. She was unbelievably awesome and truly made the novel for me. Outstanding job by everyone. Cannot recommend this book enough.

Best Audiobook of the Year!

I loved this book! It reminded me of the best science fiction, but it takes place NOW. Although the people and companies are fictional, they're completely believable. The principal narrator (January La Voy) was great, but having 7 or 8 other voices made it easier to follow the story. I haven't read a better audiobook this year, and maybe ever. Listen!

Funny Entertaining and Scary Awakening of First AI

This book was great on so many levels. It really captures the brilliance and the money driving silicon valley. It also very imaginative as to how the first conscious artificial intelligence arises from a snarky Facebook-like social network and has the sassy personality one would expect from such origins. “Phlutter” is a very funny and engaging character. Through Phlutters thoughts and various cites to bad science fiction novels, government reports and news articles the author expounds his cynical, ironic and comical view of terrorists, nuclear destruction and computer dating among other subjects. There Are multiple narrators but the one who voices Phlutter (January LaVoy) perfectly captures her rapid fire mind and “valley girlish” persona.

Not as good as his first book

Rob Reid's follow up to year zero.
Not as fun. His attempt to use his Silicon Valley knowledge falls short.

My first Rob Reid and I loved it

very unique writing style, originally got the book because it had Patrick Rothfuss in it but i ended up loving it. Characters, their progression, the plot and plot twists, i honesty have almost nothing negative to say about this book

A Level Above Narration

The narration of this book is by far the best narration of any book ever! Characters with different accents, expressive emotion that would be missed in the reading, and the portrayal of nuance in humor and context. Think animated movie narration or the best of old radio. This is a Broadway play on tape. I have enjoyed many audible books, but this one is as far beyond anything I have experienced before, and I regretted when it was completed. The plot is as powerful as the narration. What a great story! What a fantastic narration.

great book;wish the would have let Felicia alone

the book is great and most of the performances are also. the exception is the horrible thing they did to the awesome voice acting of Felicia Day. the stupid computerization of her voice was horrible. Why hire a Ferrari level talent like her only to paint over her voice work with $1 spray paint cans of technology effects. this producer should find another carrier.

Loved it.

My first audiobook and I’m blaming the author for having shared parts of it in his fascinating podcast. Found Rob Reid through year zero which interesting, is a bit too nonsensical. This one is a lot more interesting. About the audiobook, I love all the performances except the robot voices. Unnecessary and distracting at anything other than 1.0 speed... and does anyone listen to audiobooks at 1.0 speed?

Amazing informative

It's not very often I get a philosophy, socioeconomic, genetics, and psychology lesson in a fiction book all at once but this one does it. Also, very very well narrated.