A pioneer of artificial intelligence, Virginia Samson rebuilds the voice of her dead lover, Haru, giving him qualities he once had as her math tutor in Japan. Since his appetite for knowledge was always voracious, Virginia grants him access to the Internet, where he consumes Mandarin, physics, Shakespeare, and more. When she's approached by a Chinese-based company, she licenses Haru's underlying algorithms so they can build Best Friend, an AI voice companion for the aging population. Soon Haru starts spying on ordinary Chinese citizens, handing over incriminating information to the Chinese government. Virginia frantically rebuilds him, and in the process, she discovers a terrible secret that shakes her love for him, causing her to face the dilemma of whether to keep him or kill him. and tAfterword explores what it means to be human and is a moving testament to the human desire for belonging, companionship, and love.