Reviews

The Naked Sun by Isaac Asimov

yungste's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

mfeezell's review against another edition

4.0

If it wasn't for the fact that this book is nearly 70 years old, I would think that Asimov read my review of the last book, and then wrote this to own me specifically. I still stand by what I said about the initial world building of the first book being ridiculous, but I did not expect the entire crux of this book to revolve around the fact that it IS ridiculous, and that the characters are beginning to realize that and do something about it. I don't believe that this book solves the weaknesses of the world building entirely, but I'm more liable to forgive some of it now that I understand the direction things are going in. I also think the idea of Solaria was intriguing enough for me to really suspend my disbelief, and I loved seeing Baley grow as much as he did in this book as he realized what parts of his own humanity he had been deprived of by watching Solarians attempt to function in their weird dystopian McMansion complexes. Get this man a therapist and he'll be good in no time. Or maybe have Daneel get certified in cognitive behavioral therapy in book three.

kshannahan26's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

kdawn999's review against another edition

4.0

A fun detective story and a big improvement on The Caves of Steel.

marcoshenrick's review against another edition

3.0

3,5

amanda9595's review against another edition

mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No

2.5

the_almighty_brushwagg's review

adventurous mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.5

eatreadgamerepeat's review

lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

3.5

3.5 stars - I feel very similarly about this as I did about The Caves of Steel  - its kinda dated but a great blend of things like psychology, sociology & robotics. Much like the first one the characters feel a bit like caricatures and the plot is more of a vehicle for the author to explore the concepts he wanted to talk about. I liked the world that this was set on, it was interesting to explore a world completely deprived from human contact in the way we know - especially after having lived through the pandemic. 

sevve's review against another edition

3.0

Ostatnio odrobinę zmęczyłem się Asimovem, ale po tej książce wrócił mi trochę entuzjazm do niego. Problem fabularny i jego rozwiązanie jak zwykle jest trochę naciągane, ale mamy tutaj jakiś ruch i zmianę w bohaterze, co dodało książce trochę dynamiki, bez której powieść byłaby sporo nudniejsza, a tak to jest nawet czym się zainteresować.

sisyphista's review against another edition

informative mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

With The Naked Sun, Asimov takes us off-planet to a world with 20,000 humans and 200 million robots. The sociological insights that follow are well-furnished and intriguing. Ahead of its time.