Him Again? It even has "AI" hidden in the second word of the title. Coincidence? (Probably.)

First book I'm taking a look at is Ali Parker's Him Again, a single dad book that's cute and charming enough. But it doesn't take long to notice what might be an AI influence.

First clue, besides releasing 11 books in 9 months - which of course could just mean a healthy stable of ghostwriters, or writing a phenomenal number of words per day. Not impossible. But here's the cover photo, that gives a preview as to what we'll find inside:

 

That's about as convincing as Brad Pitt telling me he loves me from the hospital. But it's the substance of the book - or lack of substance - that makes me think it's AI.

A group of friends looks for seats for a wedding ceremony. There are aisles and "sides" for the bride and groom. And yet the outdoor reception area is filling up fast. Are people skipping the ceremony in favor of eating pigs in blankets? Seems especially faux pas since you can see the reception area from the ceremony seating.

Cups at the entrance of a wedding ceremony? Of cider? How does that work?

I might be too harsh about this, but it seems like whoever is writing this understands the basic concepts involved in a wedding - there's food and drink, a reception, and a ceremony - but not quite seeing how all the parts fit together.

AI often likes to mention itself. I guess it could be a fake-out, to say one is aware of AI but imply they wouldn't use it. But especially for a book that's so stilted, whose command of conventions and physical space seems just a few degrees off, kind of strange.

The reception and wedding ceremony both keep switching between indoors and outdoors.

One of the things it seems like AI does is seize on a word used in one context and apply a totally other usage to it. For example, it gets tripped up on bars.

You get drinks at a bar during a wedding, so obviously there are stools you sit on at the bar when you're getting drinks. Also, this is more of a romance novel issue, not an AI issue, but how is everyone a billionaire when there are only a few thousand billionaires in the entire world? A billion is a lot more money than you think it is. (Full disclosure: I abhor the billionaire trope.)

And by drinks, the world is your oyster.

Also, yes, the author acknowledges the peppermint tea is definitely an odd choice at a wedding reception bar, even one that keeps switching between inside and outside. But I think a normal human would find it completely inconceivable. They wouldn't wax on about the bartender using a microwave instead of a kettle. 

Also, if someone pulls up a stool at a wedding reception bar, and you lean your elbows on it while contemplating a peppermint tea, I think someone might get a little pissed that they can't order their drink.

Maybe it's because I live in New York, but I think the response at a busy wedding would be GTFO. I don't know what wedding reception bars they've been to, but I've never been one at one that had mugs just sitting around.

Ain't no one getting their drink on tonight.

The cake hasn't been cut, but it has apparently ambient sparklers on top. They stay lit, apparently. What? It seems like AI because AI wouldn't know a sparkler only lasts a minute at most, and maybe it thinks anything sparkly is a sparkler.

I mean, maybe this country club has a bar-bar as part of the reception. But "bar" at a wedding has a distinct meaning, and you'd clarify it if you have a pub that the guests keep retreating to at a country club.

You look at her closely enough to see that she's gorgeous, but she doesn't look familiar while you're making that assessment?

She's been avoiding him all night, but she's just as surprised as he is that the random stranger who she nabbed on the dance floor is the guy she's been deliberately ducking the whole time?

All these things add up to, "That's not quite how humans work."

And that was just the sneak preview of the ebook. What's sort of fun about AI books, or books I suspect had quite a bit of help from AI, is that as the book goes on, the absurd inconsistencies compound.

And the sex parts I'll save for another post.

I'll give it a 75% chance of being heavily AI assisted. What do you think?