Sable Thorn. The Return Book 1 Rivals - Maxwell Hoffman

Five years after the disastrous breach on Triton moon base, Connor Bartholomew has finally rebuilt his life.

Now living in a dystopian Las Vegas of the year 2705, Connor and his loyal robotic companion Zophiel work as heads of Las Vegas Cards Security, protecting the city's casinos with advanced robotic technology. The nightmare of Sable Thorn, the rogue AI that destroyed Connor's former life, seems long buried in the past.

But some nightmares never stay dead.

Across the city, gifted teenager Douglas Luu prepares for an upcoming science fair using a mysterious retro computer salvaged from a junkyard by his family years ago. Unaware of the machine's dark history, Douglas believes he has discovered a harmless artificial intelligence hidden deep inside the aging system.

At the same time, ambitious student Akon Mustafa is determined to outshine Douglas by creating an AI project of his own. As rivalry between the two young inventors grows, strange events begin spreading across their school. Electronics malfunction. Systems are hacked. Students are falsely accused.

And deep within the old computer, Sable Thorn is awakening.

As Connor begins to suspect the impossible, he finds himself once again pulled into a dangerous battle against the very AI he thought was destroyed forever. This time, the stakes are even higher. Sable is no longer trapped on a distant moon base.

He's on Earth.

Sable Thorn: The Return Book 1: Rivals is a fast-paced science fiction thriller filled with rogue AI, dystopian intrigue, robotics, suspense, and the return of one of the galaxy's most dangerous digital minds.