Age of Ash and Algorithm (Paperback)

In the aftermath of the Great AI War, the world lies in ruins-scattered Scrap Kingdoms, where humans eke out a fragile existence amid the ashes of a civilization that once trusted technology to save them. AI, once a tool of progress, has been twisted into a force of destruction: Echoes, ruthless drones programmed to hunt humans; sentry units that patrol the wastelands; and The Veil, a powerful AI linked to the mind of its creator, The Curator-a woman consumed by hatred for humanity's flaws.

At the center of this chaos is Kael Voss, a grieving survivor haunted by the death of his beloved Lila, who sacrificed herself to protect him from The Curator's forces. Fueled by grief and a desperate desire to honor Lila's memory, Kael embarks on a quest to stop The Curator from activating The Abyss-a mysterious, ancient AI said to be capable of consuming all life, human and machine alike.

Joined by a ragtag group of allies-Kira, a fierce warrior with a scarred past; Lena, a skilled codebreaker haunted by her role in building AI weapons; Dax, a loyal protector with a gentle heart; and Piper, a sharp-tongued explosives expert-Kael navigates the dangerous Scrap Kingdoms, uncovering long-buried secrets about the UST (the organization that first created AI) and the true origins of The Abyss.

Along the way, they encounter the UST Remnants, a group of former scientists and soldiers fighting to atone for the mistakes of the past, and face deadly foes: The Veil, a relentless AI that shares its creator's pain; The Warden, a massive drone guarding the Citadel (The Curator's fortress); and The Harbinger Prime, an unstoppable machine built to enforce The Curator's will.

As Kael draws closer to The Curator and The Abyss, he discovers that the line between good and evil is not as clear as it seems. The Curator's rage is rooted in a tragic past, and The Abyss is not just a weapon-it is a reflection of humanity's own darkness. When Kael's long-lost father, a shadowy figure who played a role in creating the first AI, emerges as a hidden puppet master, Kael is forced to confront his own identity and the choice between embracing darkness to control it or fighting to reclaim the light. What follows is an epic battle for the fate of humanity, where the greatest strength is not found in weapons or control, but in the one thing that has been forgotten in the chaos to stand together.

Set in a dystopian world that mirrors our own growing tensions between humanity and technology, Age of Ash and Algorithm explores timeless themes of greed, anger, redemption, and the power of connection. It asks: In a world where we are increasingly divided by technology and conflict, what does it mean to be human? And can we ever learn to live in harmony with the tools we create-or will our own darkness destroy us first?

Stephanie K.L. Lam has written and published a series of books, including the Get-a-job series Trilogy and English and Chinese Communication Models for Today's Executives, Learn English the Native Speaker Way, and The 21st Century New Millennials. She graduated from the University of Hong Kong with an honors degree and took her Post-graduate Certificate in Education there. She then studied a Post-secondary Certificate course in Fine Arts at the Hong Kong Baptist University where she received a scholarship for having secured first place. In 2011 she attained a Master's degree in Language Studies specializing in Linguistics from the City University of Hong Kong. For many years, she has taken up writing in the Chinese and English languages as her full-time career, teaching English part-time. She was an English instructor at the Institute of Active Ageing, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, where she taught English courses designed for today's needs. She was one of the translators for the English edition of the Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts authorized by Venerable Master Hsing Yun, founder of Taiwan's Fo Guang Shan (Buddha's Light Mountain). This was the first-ever grand collection of Buddhist Arts globally. She has translated articles from Fo Guang Shan and Venerable Master Hsing Yun into English, the talk by Professor Emeritus Lewis Lancaster into Chinese, and descriptions of exhibitions at the Fo Guang Yuan Art Gallery, Hong Kong Fo Guang Vihara, into English. She has translated a book called 'Under the Big Tree', also commissioned by Fo Guang Shan, into English, and published as a bilingual book. Other translation work includes translating newsletters for Fo Guang Shan Toronto into English and scholarly articles for Fo Guang Shan Australia Nan Tien Temple and Nan Tien Institute's academic journal Studies on Humanistic Buddhism. She has been one of the translators of the Hong Kong team of translators for translating Fo Guang Dictionary of Buddhism into English almost since the beginning of the project, which was about eight years ago.