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gossamerwingedgazelle's review against another edition
2.0
While not the most sexist book ever, it was pretty close. The mystery was weird, and the main character made a crappy detective. At least it was an easy read and the plot was somewhat interesting.
katrinacharleston's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
eher1305's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
trin's review against another edition
3.0
Reread, April 26, 2024: because I wanted to finally finish the series -- I think I originally got through the first two? -- and I felt I needed a refresher. This time, however, I was distracted by how implicitly sexist this book is -- Baley Just Divorce Your Wife If You Hate Her So Much Challenge -- and by the fact that the Spacers are eugenicists, ew. (To be clear: their POV is not presented as indisputably correct, but it's not fully refuted either.)
The novel is still hilariously homoerotic though, in the best sort of oblivious way. Imaginative, entertaining, pulpily bad-but-good.
Original review, June 1, 2007:
In which human cop Elijah Baley is partnered with robot cop Daneel Olivaw to solve an unusual murder, and wackiness ensues. I enjoyed this quite a lot—it was fun to watch Baley slowly overcome his prejudices toward robots and start to regard Daneel first as an asset and then even as a friend. His detective prowess left something to be desired, however. In fact, I spent most of my time reading this novel wishing someone would write a porny due South version of it. (Turns out Salieri kind of has: [http://community.livejournal.com/ds_flashfiction/512211.html]. "Real Boys (A Chip Off the Old Blog)" is a fantastic story, and the concept is close, if not exact. Well worth reading, anyway.)
Asimov's novel is, too. I wish I'd read it when I was younger and less likely to be distracted by perviness.
The novel is still hilariously homoerotic though, in the best sort of oblivious way. Imaginative, entertaining, pulpily bad-but-good.
Original review, June 1, 2007:
In which human cop Elijah Baley is partnered with robot cop Daneel Olivaw to solve an unusual murder, and wackiness ensues. I enjoyed this quite a lot—it was fun to watch Baley slowly overcome his prejudices toward robots and start to regard Daneel first as an asset and then even as a friend. His detective prowess left something to be desired, however. In fact, I spent most of my time reading this novel wishing someone would write a porny due South version of it. (Turns out Salieri kind of has: [http://community.livejournal.com/ds_flashfiction/512211.html]. "Real Boys (A Chip Off the Old Blog)" is a fantastic story, and the concept is close, if not exact. Well worth reading, anyway.)
Asimov's novel is, too. I wish I'd read it when I was younger and less likely to be distracted by perviness.
archernaelra's review against another edition
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
yrsbrn's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
mfeezell's review against another edition
3.0
This book had a lot of things I don't like. The world building is a bit weak, as Asimov seems to understand how to write individuals or characters well, but doesn't seem to understand how humans as a society function in any meaningful capacity. I know the City of New York in this book isn't meant to be amazing, but I also find it incredibly hard to believe that we'd accept living in a world where we never get to see the sun or eat good food(?) or breathe real air or know what a tree or an animal looks like; that's just objectively not how we are as a species, especially when we compare this idea of the future to how most of us have responded to the threats of climate change in recent decades. Most of us love nature! We love walking outside and we get sad when the sun goes away in the winter, and we love cooking new types of food and eating it for the sheer joy of doing so, and this book assumes we'd just be fine to give all that up for the sake of Asimov's (INCORRECT) assumptions about the risks of scarcity and overpopulation in a futuristic world. I also find it hard to believe this book's assumption that nearly all humans on Earth would hate robots because we love to bond with inanimate objects at every opportunity.
That being said, it seems clear to me that most of the people in the book aren't necessarily meant to be read as morally good, but rather complicated people trapped in two very different, but simultaneously failing societies, which I do find interesting as a concept. Also, despite his clear lack of understanding of sociology as a whole, Asimov really does have a knack for writing interesting individuals that keep you invested, and I found myself really rooting for Lije despite him being essentially an angry (robo)racist cop. At the end of the day, I think I'm just a sucker for sci fi-noir mysteries, and stories where an angry guy has to learn to be best friends with the new himbo in town. This book absolutely knocked both of those things out of the park, so I ended up really enjoying it despite everything else.
That being said, it seems clear to me that most of the people in the book aren't necessarily meant to be read as morally good, but rather complicated people trapped in two very different, but simultaneously failing societies, which I do find interesting as a concept. Also, despite his clear lack of understanding of sociology as a whole, Asimov really does have a knack for writing interesting individuals that keep you invested, and I found myself really rooting for Lije despite him being essentially an angry (robo)racist cop. At the end of the day, I think I'm just a sucker for sci fi-noir mysteries, and stories where an angry guy has to learn to be best friends with the new himbo in town. This book absolutely knocked both of those things out of the park, so I ended up really enjoying it despite everything else.
tarumatu's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
aamasten's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0