The Testimony

Soon, we'll be able to predict everything. We'll predict weather patterns, traffic jams. We'll predict who is going to run countries. Laurence Walker wants to be President of the United States. He's a sure thing: adored by the public, ex-military, a real family man. A good man. But then ClearVista, the world's foremost prediction software, tells the world his chances. And not only will he not be President, but it predicts that he's going to do the worst thing he can imagine.

Short-listed for the Arthur C Clarke Award 2014, this is a Frankenstein tale for our time. Vic returned from war tormented by his nightmares. His once happy marriage to Beth all but disintegrated. A machine promised salvation, purging him of all memory. Now the machines are gone, declared too controversial, the side effects too harmful. But within Beth's flat is an ever-whirring black box. She knows that memories can be put back and that she can rebuild her husband piece by piece.

1997. Seventeen-year-old Laura Bow has invented a rudimentary artificial intelligence and named it Organon. At first it's intended to be a sounding board for her teenage frustrations, a surrogate best friend; but as she grows older, Organon grows with her. As the world becomes a very different place, technology changes the way we live, love and die; massive corporations develop rival intelligences to Laura's, ones without safety barriers or morals; and Laura is forced to decide whether to share her creation with the world.   

When journalist Cormac Easton is selected to document the first manned mission into deep space, he dreams of securing his place in history as one of humanity's great explorers. But in space, nothing goes according to plan. The crew wake from hypersleep to discover their captain dead in his allegedly fail-proof safety pod. They mourn, and Cormac sends a beautifully written eulogy back to Earth. The word from ground control is unequivocal: no matter what happens, the mission must continue.

1967. Four female scientists invent a time travel machine. They are on the cusp of fame, but then one of them suffers a breakdown and puts the whole project in peril.... 2017. Ruby knows her beloved Granny Bee was a pioneer, but they never talk about the past. Then they receive a message from the future - a newspaper clipping reporting the mysterious death of an elderly lady.... 2018. When Odette discovered the body, she went into shock. Blood everywhere; bullet wounds; that strong reek of sulphur. But when the inquest fails to find any answers, she is frustrated. Who is this dead woman that haunts her dreams? And why is everyone determined to cover up her murder?