A review by jaelynx
Autonomous by Annalee Newitz

5.0

Sex, BigPharma and Piracy.

In the 2100s, big pharmaceutical companies dominate in performance-enhancing and life-saving drugs available only to the rich. Those who can’t pay up, fall behind and become indentured servants. Robots with sentience likewise live in servitude under contracts and protections intended for both humans and robots are frequently flouted keeping the indentured as slaves for life.

Meanwhile, Captain Jack who formerly championed open-patent drugs now sails in her sub pirating knockoffs of expensive drugs for those who can’t afford the price tag. But when one drug goes seriously wrong, Jack is on a race against the clock to expose how it is the original marketed drug as highly addictive and dangerous rather than her pirated version. Otherwise, police working for the big pharmaceutical companies will deliver a summary execution to her and those who abet her.

While it doesn’t beat The Future of Another Timeline (in the above replied to) for me, I am starting to love Newitz’s ideas and perspectives. This book has a lot to say for today about healthcare, corporatism, labour and intellectual property rights. I enjoyed the different characters and perspectives giving their own take and experience on this world. But I do feel as though I didn’t get to connect as much as I’d like with the characters and the ending was a lot quieter than what I was expecting from the build-up. But all round enjoyable if you can brace yourself for some commentary on the evils of non-socialised healthcare.