Goodbye for Now

Sam Elling is a brilliant software engineer for an online dating company, but his own love life is nonexistent—until he programs a matching algorithm that sets him up with his co-worker Meredith. Their giddy romance is interrupted by the sudden death of Meredith’s beloved grandmother, and her grief inspires Sam to create RePose, software that scans e-mails, video chats, text messages, and other electronic communications to create an artificial intelligence that can communicate as if it were the deceased person. Meredith finds e-mailing with her dead granny so pleasurable that she and Sam decide to offer the service to others. But going public results in unforeseen consequences—from the types of conversations people want to have with their DLO (Dead Loved One) to rancor from religious groups concerned with the metaphysical impact of technological immortality. A surprising twist forces the characters to confront the question of whether RePose is a blessing or a burden in the complicated process of grieving. Though the conceit of chatting with the dead occasionally feels stretched for filler, Frankel (The Atlas of Love) addresses thorny questions with thought and care. (Aug.)