Perfectly Hugo

"Equal parts heartwarming and bittersweet, Monier's novel reimagines the universal experience of grief through the lens of technology, addressing both the comfort and the uncanniness that AI can bring. A touching meditation on love and loss in a futuristic world that may be closer than one thinks." -Kirkus Reviews

"Author Barbara Monier has crafted an absorbing narrative about the moral, philosophical, and emotional implications of advanced AI technology on everyday human lives. It's a character-driven story about a couple deeply in love, trying to deal with the inevitable nature of loss and human mortality. Monier's character work is stellar. I...highly recommend it." -Reviewed by Pikasho Deka for Readers' Favorite

"Barbara Monier's latest novel, Perfectly Hugo, is the most thought-provoking novel I have read in a long time." -Len Joy, author of The Stonemason Trilogy

Perfectly Hugo is the kind of novel that dares the reader to consider what our world might become if we forget or dismiss the very things that keep us human." -David W. Berner, The Writer's Shed Reviews

"The book is a meditation on grief, filled with an eye for nature, an ear for the habits and patterns of conversation that bind two people..." -James R. Petersen, Moth Story Slam Champion

"Pitch-perfect blend of literary wit, believable dialogue, and psychological insight." -Brooke Laufer, The Age of the Too Good Mother (2026)

"The ending...is perfect. I'm in awe." -Carol Orange, A Discerning Eye

"This one will rock you hard and stay with you." -Rita Dragonette, The Fourteenth of September

"Brilliant...what exactly makes up the thing called human intimacy? Monier's story explores these questions and much more." -Ruth Hull Chatlien, Katie, Bar the Door

"A prescient novel...a powerful meditation on the experience of aging, when the hope for new beginnings is weighed against the pull of the past." -Molly Hales, Vital Ties (2026)

"A superb, quietly magical story that should not be missed by anyone who has ever loved." -Pat Camalliere, author of The Cora Tozzi Historical Mystery Series

"A book for our time! Packed with movement and depth." -Patricia Shevlin, My NUNcommon Life

Perfectly Hugo is a gently provocative and emotionally layered novel that explores the boundaries of love, memory, and identity in an age of advancing technology.

Enid and Hugo built a life together-full of quiet joys, deep conversations, and unshakable devotion. But when faced with the inevitable, they make a decision few would dare: to sign with Assembled Souls, a cutting-edge company that offers the ultimate promise-rebirth through AI. If one of them dies, the other can bring them back.

A haunting meditation on the increasing loneliness of the modern world, Perfectly Hugo is ultimately a deeply human love story. Set against the background of a future that may be closer than we think, the book explores the uncertain path between the longing to hold tight and the desire to let go-a path that underpins grief, now brought into sharp relief by new technologies.