Validation
A novel by Peter S. Dubois
A night nurse helps introduce a companion system into a coastal care home. As a friend falls ill and the records of a fatal night come under scrutiny, he must find a place for his own needs among the people he cares for.
Bruno works nights in a care home on the North Sea coast. He lives alone, takes in injured animals, and once a week plays a fantasy role-playing game over video with three old friends.
The home has brought in an AI companion for residents and staff. Management has started reading its reports as a reason to cut shifts. Then a resident dies, and the system’s account of that night stops being something anyone can rely on. At the same time, one of Bruno’s friends has cancer.
Bruno has made a life out of being useful. The novel is about what happens when he is the one who needs looking after, and about the difference between being reassured and being understood.
Forthcoming.