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Author: Bruce Holsinger
Genres: Literary Thriller, Contemporary Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Family Drama
Publication Date: July 8, 2025
Oprah’s Book Club: July 2025 Pick
Star Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)
Culpability is Bruce Holsinger’s timely novel that merges a gripping family crisis with the chilling implications of autonomous technology. This culpability book review provides a spoiler-free look at how one tragic crash becomes the catalyst for moral reckoning in the age of AI.
On their way to a lacrosse game, the Cassidy-Shaw family’s self-driving minivan crashes, killing two people in another car. Narrated by Noah, the father, the story explores who—or what—is at fault when autonomy fails. While the police investigate, the family retreats to their Chesapeake Bay vacation home, where tensions simmer and secrets emerge.
Holsinger delivers prose that is cinematic and thoughtful. The novel balances emotion and technology, incorporating Lorelei’s AI ethics writings as interludes that deepen the philosophical stakes. His voice is simultaneously suspenseful and introspective.
Strengths: nuanced ethical drama, emotionally compelling family narrative, richly contemporary context.
Weaknesses: some slow pacing in the middle, dense interludes may feel heavy for readers expecting straight suspense.
Culpability blends family drama with philosophical urgency to examine who we hold accountable in an AI-driven world. Though anchored in modern anxieties, it feels classic in its moral reach. A riveting choice for book clubs and anyone asking, “Who’s at fault now?” Final Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)
For broader context and critical reception, check reviews at: The Washington Post, Kirkus Reviews, and Star Tribune.
If this interests you, explore: The Secret of Secrets, The Billion-Dollar Ransom, Wreck: A Novel. Track what you read with our Book Tracker Template.
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