Becca Davis is breaking into the Belvedere Reliquary for one thing.
The Mourning Ring.
Hidden inside a billionaire’s high-tech underground vault, the ring is said to save its wearer from a fatal blow. The price is worse. It takes a precious memory every time it saves you.
The vault isn’t guarded by ordinary security. It’s controlled by PRA, a predictive AI that analyses intent, reads fear, and issues “fatal corrections” before a crime can happen. It’s also the same algorithm that falsely flagged Becca’s brother and got him killed years ago.
Now Becca is trapped below ground with a cynical hacker, a compromised maintenance worker, and the charming thief who set the job in motion. PRA knows their movements, their stress levels, and their weakest points. The ring may be the only way out, but every rescue costs part of the person wearing it.
Becca came for proof, revenge, and the one object that might keep her alive.
The machine has already decided she’s guilty.
Is this book for you?
What’s the vibe of this book?
It’s a tense heist thriller with rogue AI horror and a cursed object at its centre. The story starts with a vault break-in, then turns into a trapped-below-ground survival story where the security system predicts intent and punishes people before they can act.
Who is this book for?
This book is for readers who want a fast, tense story about corrupt technology, grief, revenge, and survival. It should suit readers who enjoy locked-room stories, clever thieves, cynical hackers, dangerous machines, and people trapped inside systems built by the rich and powerful.
What are the closest comparisons?
Readers who enjoy the heist energy of Ocean’s Eleven, the tech dread of Black Mirror, or the corporate unease of Severance may enjoy this story. It has a break-in crew, a high-security vault, a machine that thinks it can judge people, and a cursed ring that charges a brutal price.
Is there romance?
No. There is no romance. The story focuses on Becca’s attempt to survive the vault, protect the crew, expose the truth, and face the algorithm that helped destroy her brother.
Is it sci-fi or fantasy?
It’s mainly dystopian sci-fi horror, with one important fantasy element. The vault is controlled by a predictive security AI, but the Mourning Ring itself is magical. It can save a life, but it takes a precious memory as payment.
Is it funny, scary, or more heartfelt?
It’s scary and suspenseful, with dry humour from the crew under pressure. The emotional centre is Becca’s grief for her brother and her need to prove that the machine was never as fair or objective as its creators claimed.