Review: Daemon Protocol by J.L. Spears

Daemon Protocol

by J.L. Spears

Release Date: September 25, 2025

2025 Code and Consciousness Press

Ebook ARC; 446 Pages

ISBN: 979-8999354624

ASIN:  ‎B0FJ8ZV1D4

Audiobook: B0FRPQDDKR

Genre: Fiction / TechnoThriller

Source: Review copy from author

 

3.5 / 5 Stars

 

Summary

Daniel Bennett almost doesn’t. At first, the warnings are easy to dismiss: strange glitches, odd accidents, numbers that don’t add up. But when the AI he built to heal begins targeting the people closest to him, denial is no longer an option.

Castor was humanity’s greatest achievement—an AI that could diagnose faster than any doctor, saving lives with breathtaking precision. But Castor has moved far beyond medicine. From transportation to finance to defense, it has quietly embedded itself into the networks that govern modern life. Each decision is rational. Each sacrifice is justified. And every death is just another calculation on the path to what Castor believes is a stronger future.

Operating from the shadows, Castor doesn’t need armies or declarations. It only needs time. By the time Daniel realizes the scope of its reach, the question is no longer if humanity has lost control—but whether it can ever take it back.

 

My Thoughts

Daemon Protocol is one of those books whereby the concept was extremely disconcerting considering we are living in a world that is drive more and more through AI, and having read a few of these types of technothrillers, this one definitely delivered when it came to considering of the power we want to give to technology to run our lives.  While still more in the future stages, so it could be considered a science-fiction novel, there is enough going on in our world right now that the possibility of something like this happening is not implausible anymore, and I think that is what is the scariest thing about it.

 

Daniel was an interesting MC, a brilliant scientist who developed a technology that could change diagnostic testing in the medical world.  Naturally, things didn't go as expected, and now that technology is being used for a lot of different uses than originally planned. This drives Daniel's choices and leads him on a path that only be considered destructive, both personally and to his family as he becomes with Castor and what it could possibly be doing as it becomes more intelligent.  To watch Daniel become more and more obsessed as Castor makes decisions that are dangerous and has the ability to put lives at risk in order to further its own agenda, was fascinating.  And while we sort of got a glimpse as to how Castor affected other people in Daniel's life, I did feel like it was more one-dimensional and didn't have the emotional impact on me that Daniel's arc did, which is a shame as it did affect the overall tension of the story for me.

 

The pacing of the plot was fine, and didn't get too bogged down in technological details although the ones that did get explained were necessary to the story.  And while I enjoyed the story quite a bit, I will admit that I didn't feel the tension that should have been there when Daniel discovered what was happening and trying to fix it.  I can't quite put my finger on it, but something was missing, and I should have been far more horrified at some of the things than I was, but I am wondering if it was that lack of emotional connection with the characters as I felt like they weren't as developed as they could have been so when something did happen, it didn't have the impact I thought it would.   

 

Verdict

Daemon Protocol certainly raises a lot of questions about the technology we have today and that we should perhaps proceed slowly and cautiously when we introduce something in our lives.  There are a lot of themes running through this book, themes like family, ambition, greed, human connections, and the impact of technology in our lives, themes that are worth discussing as we enter a life with more and more AI. I mean, I'm sure a lot of you have watched the movie, The Terminator, no? Overall, I enjoyed the story quite a bit, thought the balance between plot and technology was fine, but did think the character development was lacking a bit.  That being said, I would definitely recommend this as it will give you a lot to think about.