Starside

In Listening In, the story of audio surveillance unfolds through remarkable tales, beginning with the 1945 incident in which US Ambassador W. Averell Harriman received a carved wooden plaque of the Great Seal of the United States from the Soviet Young Pioneer Organization, unaware it concealed one of the first covert listening devices, invented by Leon Theremin, which recorded his conversations for six years. Tracing the evolution of surveillance from post-World War II monitoring devices through the Cold War to today’s state and commercial spyware, the book explores how our calls, messages, and private moments can be recorded and used to train AI algorithms. It also looks to the near future, where AI-assisted technologies may anticipate unspoken words and even simulate voices after death, offering fresh insights into how personal privacy is traded for social connectivity and technological convenience. Meanwhile, in Starside, New York Times bestselling author Alex Aster transports readers to a magical and deadly realm where power is not inherited but claimed. Centuries after a brutal war split the land in two, the gates between Starside, home of immortals and magic, and Stormside, where mortals struggle, open every fifty years to allow fifty challengers on a quest for magic that can heal, grant wealth, or extend life. Orphaned blacksmith’s apprentice Aris enters seeking vengeance against the gods who killed her family. Lacking the superior weapons of the Great Houses, she must claim a legendary sword, making her both a competitor and a target. Facing countless dangers and the enigmatic, treacherous knight Harlan Raker—who may hold the key to her survival—Aris harbors a secret tied to her family’s death that, once revealed, could bring even the gods to their knees.