Where the Robots are Tired

The Liberation by Ian Tregillis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

In some ways this novel (and series) didn't exactly work for me. It left some stuff out that I wanted, and it wasn't organized the way I like my stories organized. But it's so creative, thought-provoking, profound, and terrifying that it's still pretty damn awesome. I accomodate those contradictions with a 4/5, and I'll kinda explain.

The setup and world building are topnotch. The Dutch invented unstoppable robot servants in the 1600s, and used them to become the greatest world empire. The French, their only remaining enemy, use advanced chemistry to fight back, to hold, to barely survive, though they are forced to move all of government and the Catholic Church to the New World, our Quebec and Ontario, mostly. (The Dutch have the southern colonies.)

The central question of the series, concluding here, is whether the "Clakkers" are sentient beings with a right to free will, something they are denied by the various sciences used by their creators and masters, particularly alchemy. The robots are tightly controlled and are unable to do anything other than what they are told to do. We follow from book one a robot named Daniel who has accidentally gained freedom and escaped to the New World. But we learn he's not the only free robot, and by the third book many have been freed and are rampaging on both sides of the ocean, trampling their oppressors--who never believed they were sentient or capable of thought, and never knew they were committing horrible crimes against thinking beings.

There are many fantastic and horrible characters, brutal and cruel opponents among both the humans and robots, and it's the many factions and points of view that make the story less focused than I would like. The main conflict for humans, in a general sense, is very clear--survive the onslaught of emancipated and angry robots who are much, much faster and stronger than humans. That's cool. But when you try to narrow that down to a more specific goal, to something actionable, it's not there. There's no clear through-line of action; the main human characters are mostly just getting pushed around and chased and scattered. This is foxes and chickens, and I wanted the chickens to come up with something. I wanted to see a coherent plan of action, a coming-together of human factions much earlier, a dramatic push-back with explainable goals. Instead, we get a lot of muddling about, a lot of chaotic movement without purpose, before we reach a quick resolution with a lot of loose ends.

Still great. Very good prose. Lots of big ideas. I had fun reading the whole series, which is awesome in many ways, and for sure there's a lot to chew on. It's definitely worth investigating if you like fantasy.

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A Very Human Mechanical Man

The Mechanical by Ian Tregillis
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a great book, and a really cool start to a series.

Set in a parallel world where the Netherlands developed clockwork technology tied to alchemy and overran the world with their robot "Clakkers," a world where France is reduced to its holdings in the New World and other countries bow to the Hague, the story is mostly about a rogue Clakker who is accidentally freed from the geas that control him. He tries to survive in a world where free Clakkers are the highest priority of the Dutch government, wishing only to be left alone. At the same time, Berenice, the spymaster of France, is trying to learn all she can about the mechanical devices to have some way to defeat her enemies and empower her nation. She is a dangerous, brilliant woman, and engaging enough to have been the only POV character.

The world-building is wonderful--what we need to understand is supplied, but in bits throughout, never in obtrusive ways. The main characters and their stories, especially, are centered; the setting matters a great deal, an adds to the richness of the story, but never takes over.

I love Jax as a protagonist. The reader has sympathy for his situation, for the plight of all Clakkers, and even though he's a mechanical man he has a unique voice. Like robots in the works of Clifford Simak, Jax is a gentle soul, a kind soul, and is clearly his own person. I am rooting for him to succeed at every moment.

The series takes a breath at the end of the novel, but it's not the end in any way. I have the second book on its way and look forward to the next installment. And I already own the third--a gift that sent me on this journey in the first place. I'll be glad to get started on that soon enough.

Anyway, obviously, I recommend the novel. Fast action, great characters, a nice mix of tones, and believable stakes. Whew. Good stuff.

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Patrick Rothfuss* Told Me to Read This, And He Was Right

All Systems Red by Martha Wells
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a great read. Much fun.

The novella is told in first person by the security bot who calls themselves "Murderbot." (I read the character as female, but realized there was no indication and could be read as male, female, or no gender. Not sure why I made the leap I did. But I'm sticking with it.) The character is quirky and odd, inhuman in a way, but is still sympathetic and well drawn, which is key for me to like a book; I need to have someone to root for. Murderbot was fun to root for.

The action is quick and the internal monologue engaging and entertaining. (I don't always like first person narration. I liked it a lot here.) It's also a short work, but I feel like novella is the perfect length for this book. No down time. From the first moment of danger to the conclusion, things were in motion.

I have the second book queued up, and I'm glad to have that bit of entertainment waiting for me. :)

Recommended.

*In his review. Not personally. But that woulda been cool.

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Where the robots ponder heaven

Project Pope by Clifford D. Simak
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

On this re-read of a book I first enjoyed 30+ years ago, I have to say that I liked it again, but maybe for different reasons.

Clifford Simak does a great job of bringing his science fiction down to the personal level, to ground level. Though this novel takes place on a planet far from earth, it still is set in a small town on the edge of the wilderness, like so many others. The characters chat around a fire or walk in the woods and they have a drink while they explore what's going on around them. It's a different feel and a different pace from most SF.

I think my initial reads of Simak's novels, this one included, were generally just following the plot and looking for the answers to the riddles and mysteries. That's still fun the second time through, but it's the atmosphere he creates that I enjoy most now. Genteel robots discussing faith and the possibility of Heaven with the main character in an unhurried, friendly way, just feels like a future that isn't terrifying. It's human.

Some reviewers feel different about the novel. I get it. The plot is pretty jagged, and despite their warmth, his characters are never fully realized. I like it, though. I think we find a kind of conversation here, one that he started with his readers a dozen books before this one, a conversation that continues through all of his books, and it's one that matters to me. He shows us a ghost and asks us if we can consider it a person; he does the same with a primitive man from the distant past; then with intelligent animals; then aliens; then with a disembodied mind; and frequently, here and elsewhere, robots and computers. Are they like us? If no, why not? If they can visit with us and ponder the universe, aren't they the same as us?

It's pretty clear what Simak thought about that. And it helped form my opinion as well.

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I Should Just Say "Scalzi" and Dispense with Further Comment. Of Course It's Awesome.

Head On by John Scalzi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is called a stand-alone novel, which it is in a way, but it's second in the Lock In series, and it's a solid sequel, IMO. Based on my highly objective method of evaluation, scoring a book on whether I have to make myself read more (just good enough to finish, 3), enjoy but have to push myself a bit in places (good, not ideal, 4), or read it whenever I can because I'm having a good time (there ya go! 5!), this is a 5. Scalzi is always fun to read, and this is no exception.

The premise of the series--a future where a fraction of the citizens, after being stricken with a disease, are unable to move themselves but are able to interact with the world via robot bodies--is creative and thought-provoking. The plot here, an investigation into the strange death of a famous locked-in person, is partly science fiction, partly police procedural, and an enjoyable, fast-moving example of both. But, as always, it's Scalzi's language and humor that sets it apart.

(Though I considered it, I'm not going to try to give an example. Like any good TV show [Deadwood, I'm looking at you], the humor emerges from the characters and their interactions, not the punch lines, and that is the case here. The main character's smart, often ironic tone is a permanent setup for humor.)

I'm sure a book club could spend a lot of time talking about deeper issues the novel deals with--the power of money and corporations, the position of sports in society, the general ignorance about people with disabilities, and many more--and I like that the book poses some questions and offers some thoughts about them, but that's a bonus for me. Reading it generated quite a bit of thought, and if one is looking for that, well, here ya go. Lots to think about.

For me, though? I mostly just liked laughing at Agent Vann intimidating everybody she dealt with. She's scary, and it works.

Recommended.

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