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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Adrian Tchaikovsky is trying to do a lot here, and insofar as his intentions go, I think he succeeded — Service Model is a funny, voicey book that comments on the danger of relying on computers to save us when they have been programmed by humans, who are biased; the consequences of those with privilege hoarding resources for themselves; the line between human and machine; and so much more.
Unfortunately, the execution was just not for me. I went from intrigued by the excellent premise (a robot butler is going about its daily task list when it realizes it somehow accidentally murdered its human master) to impatiently frustrated, to confused at the discordant direction of the plot, to feeling like I had things explained to me like a child. Again, I think a lot of this was actually necessary to drive the themes home, but I was glad to be finished with it.
It will be interesting to see if this takes home the Hugo Award!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Blood
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
medium-paced
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
funny
mysterious
medium-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
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
I particularly loved this charming dystopian sci-fi. I hadn’t read anything about this book before I picked it up, and I’m so glad I didn’t, because there are things that happen in the first chapter that play out in such an interesting and well-written way. If I had known what happened, it would’ve made the experience a lot less interesting. Basically, here’s what you need to know about the plot: there’s a charming robot valet on a journey through a dystopian world. And things happen, some absolutely outrageous things, some sad, some hilarious. It’s a great adventure with a strong message. I laughed out loud multiple times. I couldn’t put this one down!
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced