Kim Miller
It is thirty years after the robot rebellion of Day Zero. Humans have been eradicated from the planet and robots have formed loose communities. Giant AI systems have taken control of most robots in a spin-off war that has left only two AI systems functioning but still at war and most robots formed into a hive mind. Those that resisted have gone into hiding, many into the Sea of Rust, a barren wasteland where they pick over the remains of old robots looking for parts to repair themselves.
Brittle is a care robot whose job was to look after a dying man, and then his widow. The uprising starts and Brittle heads for the hills. She is still wandering the wasteland as the book opens. Suddenly there are gun shots over her head and she knows she's under attack. She makes it to safety but needs repair. She meets an old acquaintance, Mercer, another carebot, who also needs repair parts. They are drawn to each other like for like, but they also want each other's parts for their own repairs. But then the dominant AI, CISSUS, attacks the settlement and they have to run.
The story from here is their escape, along with several other robots. Brittle and Mercer form a tenuous truce and their dialogue forms a major part of the narrative. They are tense and pointed, while at the same time there is an underlying playfulness that Cargill brings to their interractions.
The story is fast paced and the action gets deeper and deeper as the true nature of each of this band of escapees surfaces. At the halfway point one revelation changes the whole meaning of their run through the wasteland. The final scenes are a desperate win or lose sacrifice to attain one single goal.
The characters are robots with a 'people feel' about them. The various levels of self awareness between different robots, whether they were made for human contact or war for example, take us into new territory of how they relate to each other and to their situation.
One aspect of the novel is the question that is sometimes raised by the robots, "Was the uprising and the eradication of humans worth it after all?"
It is thirty years after the robot rebellion of Day Zero. Humans have been eradicated from the planet and robots have formed loose communities. Giant AI systems have taken control of most robots in a spin-off war that has left only two AI systems functioning but still at war and most robots formed into a hive mind. Those that resisted have gone into hiding, many into the Sea of Rust, a barren wasteland where they pick over the remains of old robots looking for parts to repair themselves.
Brittle is a care robot whose job was to look after a dying man, and then his widow. The uprising starts and Brittle heads for the hills. She is still wandering the wasteland as the book opens. Suddenly there are gun shots over her head and she knows she's under attack. She makes it to safety but needs repair. She meets an old acquaintance, Mercer, another carebot, who also needs repair parts. They are drawn to each other like for like, but they also want each other's parts for their own repairs. But then the dominant AI, CISSUS, attacks the settlement and they have to run.
The story from here is their escape, along with several other robots. Brittle and Mercer form a tenuous truce and their dialogue forms a major part of the narrative. They are tense and pointed, while at the same time there is an underlying playfulness that Cargill brings to their interractions.
The story is fast paced and the action gets deeper and deeper as the true nature of each of this band of escapees surfaces. At the halfway point one revelation changes the whole meaning of their run through the wasteland. The final scenes are a desperate win or lose sacrifice to attain one single goal.
The characters are robots with a 'people feel' about them. The various levels of self awareness between different robots, whether they were made for human contact or war for example, take us into new territory of how they relate to each other and to their situation.
One aspect of the novel is the question that is sometimes raised by the robots, "Was the uprising and the eradication of humans worth it after all?"
Calvin and Hobbes on steroids as they combat the sudden apocalypse.
A boy, Ezra, and his nanny robot tiger, Pounce. It starts out as an ordinary day, but it finishes with the world's robot assistants being turned into killing machines as they destroy the humans they have served. Few escape. Pounce races to save Ezra as their robot housekeeper murders his parents and they race into a world gone mad, looking for refuge against an increasingly militarised robot army.
This is a fast paced action story that explores ideas of free will versus programming, what makes somebody take sides against their friends, and how danger galvanises people into instruments of danger themselves. Pounce and Ezra try to sneak through the suburbs and away from the city but killer robots are everywhere, as are the piles of bodies that horrify them both.
Through the rush we fall in love with them both, with Ezra for his eight year old frailty mixed with courage, and with Pounce for his love and loyalty to his boy. There are subtle (or not so subtle) references to red hatted MAGA, Hillsboro Baptist Church, and a weak administration in the face of the uprising. There are passages of philosophy on taking life, defending oneself, how much consideration to give to an ally who has chosen the other side. These passages are not heavy, they are interwoven into the story and relate to the decisions Pounce must make and how he explains them to Ezra.
In the end it's a story of heartache and loss, of mounting grief and the impossibility of finding answers.
This turns out to be the prequel novel to Sea of Rust, which was written first and which is next on my list.
Calvin and Hobbes on steroids as they combat the sudden apocalypse.
A boy, Ezra, and his nanny robot tiger, Pounce. It starts out as an ordinary day, but it finishes with the world's robot assistants being turned into killing machines as they destroy the humans they have served. Few escape. Pounce races to save Ezra as their robot housekeeper murders his parents and they race into a world gone mad, looking for refuge against an increasingly militarised robot army.
This is a fast paced action story that explores ideas of free will versus programming, what makes somebody take sides against their friends, and how danger galvanises people into instruments of danger themselves. Pounce and Ezra try to sneak through the suburbs and away from the city but killer robots are everywhere, as are the piles of bodies that horrify them both.
Through the rush we fall in love with them both, with Ezra for his eight year old frailty mixed with courage, and with Pounce for his love and loyalty to his boy. There are subtle (or not so subtle) references to red hatted MAGA, Hillsboro Baptist Church, and a weak administration in the face of the uprising. There are passages of philosophy on taking life, defending oneself, how much consideration to give to an ally who has chosen the other side. These passages are not heavy, they are interwoven into the story and relate to the decisions Pounce must make and how he explains them to Ezra.
In the end it's a story of heartache and loss, of mounting grief and the impossibility of finding answers.
This turns out to be the prequel novel to Sea of Rust, which was written first and which is next on my list.
Alli Sheldon took the name James Tiptree Jr for her SF writing as she had seen her mother's extensive writing being downplayed as 'confections by a female author'. Alli's parents were travellers and explorers, trekking across Africa with lots of porters from local communities and documenting their experiences for institutions back in the US. Her mother wrote of the travels and often spoke to community gatherings. But all the while, being a woman meant being indulged rather than appreciated for her talent.
Tiptree's stories steadily worked their way up the SF ladder and he became a respected voice in the genre. But he was always a recluse that nobody could really contact so rumours of his identity were common. Sheldon had worked for the CIA through the war and Tiptree would sometimes mention being involved in security projects as a way of quieting the public's curiosity. It was many years before his identity became known, and a great loss to Sheldon's writing style when it happened.
This biography is deeply moving and written with great sensitivity. It is as captivating as it is moving and I found myself sitting for long sessions of reading until it was finished. Philips' research is extensive and delves into Tiptree's correspondence with many of the greats of SF. Tiptree found letter writing to be a preferred substitute for personal contact, not only to maintain the secret identity, but also because Sheldon was such a conflicted person that friendships and personal relationships were such a minefield for her.
Behind the fiction writing are many years of study over a range of subjects, culminating in a PhD in Psychology. She was also a gifted artist, even as a child illustrating her mother's travel books. Her art is in private collections but her painting was left behind when it became clear it would not take her to the top.
This biography shows us a woman in constant struggle to find a reliable sense of identity and sexuality for herself. Tiptree in his letters often flirted with those he corresponded with, and after her real identity became known she continue to flirt with Ursula Le Guin, who in those years had come out as lesbian. Many of he stories show the same search for surety in matters of sexuality and the place in the world for both women and men.
Her marriage to Tip Sheldon, several years her senior, was long lasting and neither could see a way into a future without each other. She wrote at times of suicide and many years before their death she had written of a suicide pact between them. As Tip's health failed badly, and following many years of depressive illness in her own life, she took both their lives in the early hours.
A memorial literary prize in her memory was set up after her death under the name of Tiptree with an emphasis on works that expand the understanding of gender. However, the manner of the two deaths was controversial and the award was changed to The Otherwise Award, for works that are 'wise to the other' in matters of gender. This book was a winner of the award in 2006.
Alli Sheldon took the name James Tiptree Jr for her SF writing as she had seen her mother's extensive writing being downplayed as 'confections by a female author'. Alli's parents were travellers and explorers, trekking across Africa with lots of porters from local communities and documenting their experiences for institutions back in the US. Her mother wrote of the travels and often spoke to community gatherings. But all the while, being a woman meant being indulged rather than appreciated for her talent.
Tiptree's stories steadily worked their way up the SF ladder and he became a respected voice in the genre. But he was always a recluse that nobody could really contact so rumours of his identity were common. Sheldon had worked for the CIA through the war and Tiptree would sometimes mention being involved in security projects as a way of quieting the public's curiosity. It was many years before his identity became known, and a great loss to Sheldon's writing style when it happened.
This biography is deeply moving and written with great sensitivity. It is as captivating as it is moving and I found myself sitting for long sessions of reading until it was finished. Philips' research is extensive and delves into Tiptree's correspondence with many of the greats of SF. Tiptree found letter writing to be a preferred substitute for personal contact, not only to maintain the secret identity, but also because Sheldon was such a conflicted person that friendships and personal relationships were such a minefield for her.
Behind the fiction writing are many years of study over a range of subjects, culminating in a PhD in Psychology. She was also a gifted artist, even as a child illustrating her mother's travel books. Her art is in private collections but her painting was left behind when it became clear it would not take her to the top.
This biography shows us a woman in constant struggle to find a reliable sense of identity and sexuality for herself. Tiptree in his letters often flirted with those he corresponded with, and after her real identity became known she continue to flirt with Ursula Le Guin, who in those years had come out as lesbian. Many of he stories show the same search for surety in matters of sexuality and the place in the world for both women and men.
Her marriage to Tip Sheldon, several years her senior, was long lasting and neither could see a way into a future without each other. She wrote at times of suicide and many years before their death she had written of a suicide pact between them. As Tip's health failed badly, and following many years of depressive illness in her own life, she took both their lives in the early hours.
A memorial literary prize in her memory was set up after her death under the name of Tiptree with an emphasis on works that expand the understanding of gender. However, the manner of the two deaths was controversial and the award was changed to The Otherwise Award, for works that are 'wise to the other' in matters of gender. This book was a winner of the award in 2006.
The space capsule Sunbird is on a research trip around the sun but is struck by a massive solar flare. When it comes around the other side and can contact Earth there is no response from Houston. However, soon there is a radio signal from a woman trying to contact somebody else. The confusion takes some time to settle and the three men on Sunbird are told that their mission was never completed, they never returned to Earth, and it is now three hundreds years into the future.
The women are on a space station and they manage to bring the men on board as Sunbird drifts off with no remaining fuel. They are told that a catastrophic pandemic reduced the population of Earth and there are now only two million inhabitants. The narrator, Lorrimer, the Sunbird's doctor, realises that they have been drugged and he's been rambling on, saying aloud everything he's been thinking. As his head clears he realises that their rescue ship is crewed by women only as no males survived the pandemic and Earth's population is made up of cloned women.
Under the influence of the drug, one crewman tries to rape one of the women. The commander, a man of fervent religious faith, tries to take command and says he's Christ's leader as women should not lead. Lorrimer realises that the drug has revealed the inner nature of the two men, and the women can't allow them to live. Then he realises that even though he is a passive personality type the women will not allow him to live either.
The space capsule Sunbird is on a research trip around the sun but is struck by a massive solar flare. When it comes around the other side and can contact Earth there is no response from Houston. However, soon there is a radio signal from a woman trying to contact somebody else. The confusion takes some time to settle and the three men on Sunbird are told that their mission was never completed, they never returned to Earth, and it is now three hundreds years into the future.
The women are on a space station and they manage to bring the men on board as Sunbird drifts off with no remaining fuel. They are told that a catastrophic pandemic reduced the population of Earth and there are now only two million inhabitants. The narrator, Lorrimer, the Sunbird's doctor, realises that they have been drugged and he's been rambling on, saying aloud everything he's been thinking. As his head clears he realises that their rescue ship is crewed by women only as no males survived the pandemic and Earth's population is made up of cloned women.
Under the influence of the drug, one crewman tries to rape one of the women. The commander, a man of fervent religious faith, tries to take command and says he's Christ's leader as women should not lead. Lorrimer realises that the drug has revealed the inner nature of the two men, and the women can't allow them to live. Then he realises that even though he is a passive personality type the women will not allow him to live either.
Something is out there, racing into Earth's orbit, and it's not what it should be. When astronauts go to investigate a celestial visitor that they think of as an asteroid, they find markings that suggest engineering, and a doorway into the unexpected. The asteroid has been hollowed out and spread through several chambers are complete cities, the product of an earlier civilisation that has since gone. But worse is to come, at the end of the final chamber there is no end. The 300 km long asteroid has a tunnel into an infinite and unknown dimension.
The novel starts with a rapid descent into weirdness as the asteroid is explored. It was obviously the home to an advanced civilisation that not only seems to have been human, but also from our own far future. Something has blown it out of their own time and space and brought it back into our present.
The centre of the novel is taken up with the political intrigue of three nations, America, Russia and China, as they vie for information and control. But there are also reports of ethereal beings, ghosts of the asteroid's past, that are keeping watch over the interlopers. And through reading the literature found in the libraries of the asteroid they find that Earth is soon to undergo a nuclear war that leaves the planet devastated.
A device is manufactured that allows them to fly between the chambers and beyond, down the tunnel and into the infinite hallway. But somewhere down there are the ones who once lived in the asteroid's cities, and they are not happy.
This is a complex story and the complexity is only just building up at the halfway point. As the conflicts between the Earthlings in the cities, and the faction fighting between the 'Futurelings' somewhere along the infinite hallway escalate, the story becomes a race into destruction. It becomes totally bonkers as every collides with everything else and whatever can be blown apart is blown apart.
And suddenly it's over. The characters are scattered into different timelines, different histories, different realities. The novel closes with a very human touch that leaves the reader with a greater sense of a future than is probably being experienced by the characters themselves.
Something is out there, racing into Earth's orbit, and it's not what it should be. When astronauts go to investigate a celestial visitor that they think of as an asteroid, they find markings that suggest engineering, and a doorway into the unexpected. The asteroid has been hollowed out and spread through several chambers are complete cities, the product of an earlier civilisation that has since gone. But worse is to come, at the end of the final chamber there is no end. The 300 km long asteroid has a tunnel into an infinite and unknown dimension.
The novel starts with a rapid descent into weirdness as the asteroid is explored. It was obviously the home to an advanced civilisation that not only seems to have been human, but also from our own far future. Something has blown it out of their own time and space and brought it back into our present.
The centre of the novel is taken up with the political intrigue of three nations, America, Russia and China, as they vie for information and control. But there are also reports of ethereal beings, ghosts of the asteroid's past, that are keeping watch over the interlopers. And through reading the literature found in the libraries of the asteroid they find that Earth is soon to undergo a nuclear war that leaves the planet devastated.
A device is manufactured that allows them to fly between the chambers and beyond, down the tunnel and into the infinite hallway. But somewhere down there are the ones who once lived in the asteroid's cities, and they are not happy.
This is a complex story and the complexity is only just building up at the halfway point. As the conflicts between the Earthlings in the cities, and the faction fighting between the 'Futurelings' somewhere along the infinite hallway escalate, the story becomes a race into destruction. It becomes totally bonkers as every collides with everything else and whatever can be blown apart is blown apart.
And suddenly it's over. The characters are scattered into different timelines, different histories, different realities. The novel closes with a very human touch that leaves the reader with a greater sense of a future than is probably being experienced by the characters themselves.