The Empathy Circuit

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Front Only
The Empathy Circuit

What price empathy?

CIPHER technology promised ultimate connection. Instead, it delivered the Fugue—a digital coma trapping millions in synthetic realities.

Gareth Williams didn’t care. As a professional Experiencer, he was happy to let his neural implants numb the pain of his failed marriage. But his complacency shatters when he receives the CIPHER 3 beta—an implant capable of perfectly simulating human empathy. Suddenly, Gareth is the most valuable man in the solar system. Manipulated by radicals, he is lured to an isolated Mars colony where his estranged wife, Cathy, now lives.

But they aren’t alone. Isolde Phillips, the dying architect of CIPHER, has followed them to Mars. She doesn’t just want Gareth’s tech; she wants his mind to anchor her digital immortality, built on the backs of the Fugue victims she enslaved. In a desperate war waged across physical space and virtual clouds, Gareth and Cathy must find a way to unplug the monster, or lose their minds forever.

Selected reviews: 

5.0 out of 5 stars 

What is a human? Our prescient present explored.

Reviewed in the United States on March 29, 2026

What is a human? This well written, fast moving consideration of a probable future could not be more timely in our Ai driven present. The loss of natural empathy, a human element which might binds us, may be lost forever as we supplement our human bodies with Ai chips and other enhancements. Chip implants are in today’s headlines already, this takes us a step forward. While a science fiction story, it explores this possible future with caution, humor and warmth,not unlike the style of John Scalzi. This well told and well plotted novel makes one hope it is the first in a series. The Empathy Circuit is a must read.

5.0 out of 5 stars 

More than friends, some foes, and mind-altering science. Take a breath and dive in.

Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2026

The future is not that far away, neither is Mars. The characters’ lives engage, entangle, and face power struggles from earth, Mars, and the space in between. If you wish you could experience someone else’s life, be careful what you ask for. This read draws you in, turns your thoughts around, and makes you wonder. Good read, disturbingly close to our possible future reality.