Publishers Weekly
04/08/2024
In this clever postapocalyptic adventure, Tchaikovsky (the Children of Time series) puts a pair of out-of-place survivors on a satirical journey to replace what they lost when human civilization collapsed around them. The Wonk hopes to identify robots who have become self-aware and with them build a new, better society. The other survivor, a sophisticated robot house servant redesignated as “Uncharles,” wants to find a job. Even a simple employment quest is horribly complicated in an environment where repair facilities are scrap heaps in disguise due to robot overpopulation, dutiful robots fatalistically attempt to follow pointless instructions, and combat bots busily scavenge parts to perpetuate endless battles with each other. Tchaikovsky hangs a banner of tragedy over his stage, with Uncharles continually worried by the glitch that killed his owner and the Wonk increasingly disappointed in the search for a robot that thinks for itself (even one called “God” turns out to be running a program). What begins as a quest for justice, though, resolves into an appreciation of mercy as Uncharles and the Wonk lose their pasts but win a brighter future. With humor, heart, and hope balancing out the decay, this glimpse of the future is sure to win fans. (June)This review has been updated for clarity.
From the Publisher
A LibraryReads Pick!
“With humor, heart, and hope balancing out the decay, this glimpse of the future is sure to win fans.” —Publishers Weekly
“A surprisingly thoughtful and compelling story...Readers who love a good postapocalyptic hell ride, AI-centered adventures, and robot/human companion stories, such as A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers, will appreciate.” —Library Journal, starred review
Praise for Adrian Tchaikovsky
Elder Race was Shortlisted for the Ursula K. Le Guin Fiction Prize!
“Picking up an Adrian Tchaikovsky book is proof you love your brain and want it to be happy.” —John Scalzi
“There’s an Ursula Le Guin-like grace to [Tchaikovsky's] storytelling... Ten out of 10.” —The New York Times on Elder Race
“An epic tale of a land ruled by magic—or the sober record of a world colonized by science...The double vision built into the story works well.” —The Wall Street Journal on Elder Race
“Rex, a two-metre-tall bioengineered dog, is one of the most achingly human characters I have ever encountered in an SF novel. A gripping dive into bioethics and artificial intelligence.” —New Scientist on Dogs of War
“Children of Time is a joy from start to finish. Entertaining, smart, surprising and unexpectedly human.” —Patrick Ness
Additional Praise for Adrian Tchaikovsky:
“A great coming-of-age story that careens through a world so vividly realized that you can feel each insect bite and taste every acrid berry. The Expert System’s Brother gives you that visceral eek of satisfaction as its pieces come into view then fit together with exacting precision. It’s a smart story, smartly told.” —Hugo Award winner, John Chu
“I loved it. A bold, vivid story about humanity and the broader universe. Should we mold the universe to suit us? Or should we mold ourselves to suit the universe? Adrian Tchaikovsky keeps these choices in tension, and kept me riveted to the page.” —Ramez Naam, author of Nexus on The Expert System’s Brother
“Brilliant science fiction and far out world building” —James McAvoy on Children of Time
“A refreshingly new take on post-dystopia civilizations, with the smartest evolutionary world building you'll ever read” —Peter F. Hamilton on Children of Time
“A magnificently imaginative space opera.” —B&N Sci-Fi & Fantasy Blog on Children of Time
“[A] seamless blend of science fiction and fantasy... Recommended for lovers of portal fantasy, lost colony science fiction, and stories on the border between the two genres” —Library Journal on Elder Race
“Tchaikovsky takes beloved tropes to exciting new places, carried by memorable characters and clever prose. This proves yet again why Tchaikovsky is a master of the genre mash-up.” —Publishers Weekly on Elder Race
Library Journal
★ 03/01/2024
The robot valet Charles, soon to be Uncharles, kills his human owner, gets tossed out of paradise, and learns that the world outside the manor's doors is nothing like the vids. That world is gone, along with the humans whom Uncharles is programmed to serve. There's no one left to require Uncharles's service, the humans having grown so dependent on robots that their world collapsed; their solutions for finding purpose and meaning have devolved into greater and lesser hells of their own making. Uncharles tours the apocalypse with his slightly dysfunctional robotic companion, the Wonk, only to discover that the meaning he has been searching for has been right beside him all along. VERDICT A surprisingly thoughtful and compelling story from Tchaikovsky (Lords of Uncreation) about one robot's journey through their own version of Dante's circles of hell, complete with all the other hells they'd rather never have imagined. Readers who love a good postapocalyptic hell ride, AI-centered adventures, and robot/human companion stories, such as A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers, will appreciate.—Marlene Harris
