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Boy Robot
(Untitled Trilogy #1)
by
Seventeen-year-old Isaak discovers the truth about his origin and the underground forces that must come together to fight against a secret government organization formed to eradicate those like him in this high-octane science fiction debut.
There once was a boy who was made, not created.
In a single night, Isaak’s life changed forever.
His adoptive parents were killed, a myst ...more
There once was a boy who was made, not created.
In a single night, Isaak’s life changed forever.
His adoptive parents were killed, a myst ...more
Hardcover
Published
November 15th 2016
by Simon Pulse
(first published October 25th 2016)
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Showing 1-30

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Oct 23, 2016
Maria
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
read-2016,
2016-new-releases

Boy Robot has been on my watch list for a while now. I had first heard about it a while back when a few other book blogger friends of mine had been discussing it. I was then offered the opportunity to read an advanced copy thanks to the lovely people over at Simon & Schuster Canada! I was way to excited when I found it in my mailbox and I absolutely could not wait to dive in. Boy Robot turned out to be more than I expected. I didn’t really want to know much about it before starting it and I’m gl ...more

Jun 27, 2016
joey (thoughts and afterthoughts)
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
arc-review,
physical-arc
I should probably vomit a list of trigger warnings attached to Boy Robot because there are things that happen that may be off-putting to the masses. And I will in due time.
For now, you can just enjoy this flatlay image as my means of promo:

--Actual review to come (in like 4 months?). Between a high 3/low 4 probably. TBD. ...more
For now, you can just enjoy this flatlay image as my means of promo:

--Actual review to come (in like 4 months?). Between a high 3/low 4 probably. TBD. ...more

Boy Robot by Simon Curtis is the first book in an untitled trilogy about a boy who finds out he was born a robot and now must go on the run to a safe haven or be executed by a secret government military unit.
The Good
Boy Robot was such a thrill to read. I loved the cat and mouse feel from beginning to end. As a reader you never felt like the characters were safe... because they weren't. With car chases, robotic super powers, dark and gritty backstories, Boy Robot has it all! ...more

Edited: TWs for abuse like whoa and a lot of transphobia - be kind to yourself reading the review (let alone the book).
Cross-posted from my blog where there's more information on where I got my copy and everything.
This is gonna be a long review. This book did not work for me and I have seven pages of notes on why. Go get a snack because we're gonna be here a while. There may be spoilers, depending on what you consider a spoiler... honestly there will probably be spoilers. If you want to avoid th ...more
Cross-posted from my blog where there's more information on where I got my copy and everything.
This is gonna be a long review. This book did not work for me and I have seven pages of notes on why. Go get a snack because we're gonna be here a while. There may be spoilers, depending on what you consider a spoiler... honestly there will probably be spoilers. If you want to avoid th ...more

Decent...if unspectacular take on gay science fiction.
Boy Robot is one of those books that pretty much does what it says on the tin. Our lead character here is a boy, and well, he's a robot. There by cue some secret government conspiracy wackiness ensues.
I will say straight up that there are elements of this book that really work. I found the action scenes to be well pretty done and interesting, they have a slight X-Men vibe with telekinesis and shielding powers that lead to some interesting id ...more
Boy Robot is one of those books that pretty much does what it says on the tin. Our lead character here is a boy, and well, he's a robot. There by cue some secret government conspiracy wackiness ensues.
I will say straight up that there are elements of this book that really work. I found the action scenes to be well pretty done and interesting, they have a slight X-Men vibe with telekinesis and shielding powers that lead to some interesting id ...more

Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Full review to come closer to release date, but here is a sneak preview of what I thought.
Trigger warning for violence, rape, and general bad language.
Wow. This might be the best book I read this year. I know I only rated it four stars but that is for little things that didn't really detract from my reading but I wanted more from these pieces because the rest of the novel was SO good. There was the right mix of Science ...more
Full review to come closer to release date, but here is a sneak preview of what I thought.
Trigger warning for violence, rape, and general bad language.
Wow. This might be the best book I read this year. I know I only rated it four stars but that is for little things that didn't really detract from my reading but I wanted more from these pieces because the rest of the novel was SO good. There was the right mix of Science ...more

This book was an emotional roller that pulls at your heartstrings just before igniting into a science fiction action sequence. It addresses some very hard issues but in a very non-preaching way ...yet this book leaves you excited about the amazing adventure you know is about to come. Love this book.

I adored this book! It’s so much fun to read, and it's such an interesting and different take on robots. The characters are also great, and the action scenes are seriously next level. I can’t wait for book 2!!
...more

I am choosing not to read this book, because of the trans representation, child abuse and sexual assault content. I found this review especially helpful in making this decision: http://lainahastoomuchsparetime.blogs...
This description of the trans representation made it clear the book is not for me, and something other trans readers need to know about:
"Most of the trans character's time in the book is spent suffering in a flashback and then she only shows up for a minute or two and doesn't real ...more
This description of the trans representation made it clear the book is not for me, and something other trans readers need to know about:
"Most of the trans character's time in the book is spent suffering in a flashback and then she only shows up for a minute or two and doesn't real ...more

Dear lord this was amazing. I almost want to read it again right now. Seriously, I can't even believe the freaking cliff I am dangling on right now! This is a terrifyingly beautiful sci-fi world that feels all too realistic & quite possibly already true!
...more

In the highly imaginative novel, "Boy Robot" Isaak's life changes on his eighteenth birthday when he suffers the excruciating pain of a headache that results in a freak accident, instant healing and being kicked out of the only home he's ever known. Given one more night in his familiar surroundings he's pulled from his bed by Azure an enigmatic girl with incredible power who saves him from the Sheriffs, a team of soldiers sent to kill him.
Fleeing from a secret military organization and questioni ...more
Fleeing from a secret military organization and questioni ...more

This book actually doesn't deserve any stars at all. Initially, I didn't want to read it. The synopsis didn't draw me in, didn't seem like my kind of thing. I only picked it up for the sake of my book club.
But holy crap, this book was BAD. I only made it as far as the second chapter (page 63, holy crap) before I quit. The pacing was bad: everything that's written is way too rushed and it feels like every disaster that happens is for the sake of plot points and not actually weaving a good story. ...more
But holy crap, this book was BAD. I only made it as far as the second chapter (page 63, holy crap) before I quit. The pacing was bad: everything that's written is way too rushed and it feels like every disaster that happens is for the sake of plot points and not actually weaving a good story. ...more

Oct 10, 2016
Andrea: BookStoreFinds
added it
DNF. I hate not finishing books. But I've been reading this one for 3 days now and I'm still not hooked. Plus I'm only 100 pages in.
I love science fiction. It's my fav genre. But I just can't get into Boy Robot. Maybe it's timing or maybe it's the wishy washy writing style? It's had alternating POV's which would be fine if it was between characters generally. But it's between characters where Issac is in first person and the other, which I believe are flash backs to Azure's changing, are in thi ...more
I love science fiction. It's my fav genre. But I just can't get into Boy Robot. Maybe it's timing or maybe it's the wishy washy writing style? It's had alternating POV's which would be fine if it was between characters generally. But it's between characters where Issac is in first person and the other, which I believe are flash backs to Azure's changing, are in thi ...more

There is no point to a great deal of this book. Ridiculous amounts of brutality coupled with no reason for this brutality makes a superfluous amount of unsettling situations that are clearly only designed to make the reader uncomfortable.
Literally the second-ish chapter follows a robot girl being bullied by a group of guys and girls. They violently abuse her both verbally and physically, to the point that her secret superpowers surface and blast all of them to smithereens. Frankly, it was a pre ...more
Literally the second-ish chapter follows a robot girl being bullied by a group of guys and girls. They violently abuse her both verbally and physically, to the point that her secret superpowers surface and blast all of them to smithereens. Frankly, it was a pre ...more

I really liked this book it was different than anything I have read recently a good kind of different. The only thing I have a small issue with was the change in POVs it was a little jarring and mostly unnecessary I still liked those parts of the story as well. I really liked the characters especially Issac he was a well thought out and interesting character his struggles make sense and make you really feel for him and many of the other characters as well. I liked the plot of the story it was we
...more

Just finished. Where can I sign up to be a Robot? Full review to come!

I despise this book. I am LGBT. Let me tell you why. This review is rife with spoilers, but I suggest you read it anyways so you know exactly why you shouldn't waste even a dollar on this absolute garbage. My review is organized by section so you can see what I'm talking about.
PLOT AND PROTAGONIST:
Just to start from the absolute basics of writing and literature, the plotting for this story is nonexistent. Its pacing is horrible and there's no real sense of an antagonist or what the climax will b ...more
PLOT AND PROTAGONIST:
Just to start from the absolute basics of writing and literature, the plotting for this story is nonexistent. Its pacing is horrible and there's no real sense of an antagonist or what the climax will b ...more

Boy robot the book that will give light in your darkest days"
When Simon Curtis announced that he was writing a book my mind raced of all the possibilities. What was released was nothing I ever expected! (This is a good thing folks) when boy robot came out all the anticipation finally to get my hands on this Book with that gorgeous beautiful cover. Simply amazing. I read the excerpts online and couldn't wait to binge this book!! As much as an avid reader I am I wanted to truly feel this book for ...more
When Simon Curtis announced that he was writing a book my mind raced of all the possibilities. What was released was nothing I ever expected! (This is a good thing folks) when boy robot came out all the anticipation finally to get my hands on this Book with that gorgeous beautiful cover. Simply amazing. I read the excerpts online and couldn't wait to binge this book!! As much as an avid reader I am I wanted to truly feel this book for ...more

The copy I received was a Riveted at YallWest exclusive ARC or bound manuscript (there's no label on it). I wasn't quite sure what I was expecting when I picked up a ticket for it, but from the title, I would've guessed sci-fi. I eventually looked it up on GR when I got home, and it seemed intriguing (despite my pickiness about sci-fi), so I dove into it.
In some ways, it was both predictable (in the part-human, part-robot, non-humans being hunted down by the government sort of way) and surprisi ...more
In some ways, it was both predictable (in the part-human, part-robot, non-humans being hunted down by the government sort of way) and surprisi ...more

"I have this human heart
My mother told me so
She said, 'This shit can go to pieces, boy, be careful...'"
-OneRepublic, "Lift Me Up"
Enough book bloggers were raving about this book that after months of my library not ordering it, I finally special-ordered it from Sacramento. Worth it.
It's a commanding read, completely unputdownable, even when the story shifts into horrifying violence - which it often does, especially when digging into the backstories of the other Robots besides our protagonist, Isa ...more
My mother told me so
She said, 'This shit can go to pieces, boy, be careful...'"
-OneRepublic, "Lift Me Up"
Enough book bloggers were raving about this book that after months of my library not ordering it, I finally special-ordered it from Sacramento. Worth it.
It's a commanding read, completely unputdownable, even when the story shifts into horrifying violence - which it often does, especially when digging into the backstories of the other Robots besides our protagonist, Isa ...more

Mar 16, 2017
Mikayla
rated it
did not like it
Recommends it for:
Nobody
Shelves:
didn-t-finish,
read-in-2017
I didn't finish this book. I got 100 pages in and figured I would quit.
This was not an enjoyable book. I found myself questioning how this got through publishing. The story feels as if someone made it up as they went along. The writing style is confusing and repetitive, not to mention cheesy. Whenever a new chapter started, I couldn't tell if a new character was being introduced or a previously existing one was having a flashback. There are completely pointless bits of information, like a charac ...more
This was not an enjoyable book. I found myself questioning how this got through publishing. The story feels as if someone made it up as they went along. The writing style is confusing and repetitive, not to mention cheesy. Whenever a new chapter started, I couldn't tell if a new character was being introduced or a previously existing one was having a flashback. There are completely pointless bits of information, like a charac ...more

Couldn't finish, sorry. The pacing was distractingly awful, either moving at breakneck spread or pulling me out of the action entirely to tell stories through memories/flashbacks. None of the characters are really that likable or have enough of a personality for me to even determine whether I like them or not. I think it is a great thing that Simon Curtis wanted to tell some of the truly awful true stories that happen every day to LGBTQ kids around the world, but those stories and memorials got
...more

Awful! Really awful! It's violent and gruesome and unredeemable. The chapters are very oddly organized and the character POV changes at random in mid chapter multiple times. It has disjointed writing and is hard to follow. And it takes until page 290 for any character to question whether mass murder was really the only solution! There is rape, gang rape, and the single consensual sex scene ends with a completely nasty death. Every single robot character endures horrific, brutal bullying and even
...more

Intense, brutal and brilliant.
I finished it in one sitting because once I started I couldn't put it down. This has got to be at the top of the list for my favourite books of 2016.
There seems to be a lot of comments on the violence. It dealt with some dark themes but I didn't feel like the violence was gratuitous and it would have been an injustice to the characters and the story to brush over it or do a 'fade to black' kinda thing. These stories need to be told and I think Simon handled it bri ...more
I finished it in one sitting because once I started I couldn't put it down. This has got to be at the top of the list for my favourite books of 2016.
There seems to be a lot of comments on the violence. It dealt with some dark themes but I didn't feel like the violence was gratuitous and it would have been an injustice to the characters and the story to brush over it or do a 'fade to black' kinda thing. These stories need to be told and I think Simon handled it bri ...more

This was literally the dumbest book. From the extremely long chapters about useless characters who had no part in the book to the laughable awkward love scenes that were cringe worthy to ready...it was all over the place. The theme seemed promising at first but it was so poorly written it didn't make it far. The overall theme/action from each character was to literally brutality kill your enemies and those who hurt you to get revenge and then live with those who accept you and you'll be good. Li
...more

Nov 21, 2016
Ben
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2016-bookshelf,
scanned-books
Smart, electric debut with fast-paced action, solid characters, and great setup. About 2/3 through the book I realized this would not be a standalone novel. However, enough details were given and back story and reasoning explained to make this a thrilling first effort. Looking forward to the next installment.

Wish I could get 400 pages of my life back.
UPDATE: Here I am, 2 years after I first read this book, writing an updated review. No matter what I did, this book wouldn't leave my head. It followed me like a nightmare.
I've never given a book a one-star rating before, and I think my distain for it caused me to block most of its contents out of my mind. I'm not sure if I just enjoy torturing myself or if my own curiosity got the best of me, but I decided to give this book a second go and to give it ...more
UPDATE: Here I am, 2 years after I first read this book, writing an updated review. No matter what I did, this book wouldn't leave my head. It followed me like a nightmare.
I've never given a book a one-star rating before, and I think my distain for it caused me to block most of its contents out of my mind. I'm not sure if I just enjoy torturing myself or if my own curiosity got the best of me, but I decided to give this book a second go and to give it ...more

Boy Robot by Simon Curtis
Boy Robot is a unique read by Simon Curtis that should be a must read for young readers everywhere.
I would like to start off by saying this is not my favourite book - but it is good. Recently I've been finding more and more books I'm reading are fantastic, but just not in my wheelhouse. I did enjoy this book and I think it'd be a fantastic addition to another Young Adult/Young Reader bookshelf (whether personal or in a school) but I personally won't be grasping and holdi ...more
Boy Robot is a unique read by Simon Curtis that should be a must read for young readers everywhere.
I would like to start off by saying this is not my favourite book - but it is good. Recently I've been finding more and more books I'm reading are fantastic, but just not in my wheelhouse. I did enjoy this book and I think it'd be a fantastic addition to another Young Adult/Young Reader bookshelf (whether personal or in a school) but I personally won't be grasping and holdi ...more

For this #FictionFriday review, we're talking about Simon Curtis' debut novel about a robot on the run from a secret government organization trying to eradicate his kind in Boy Robot. I found this book while perusing my local book store and thought the cover was incredibly captivating. And with the book being on sale, it was more than worth a read.
So, what's this book all about? Seventeen-year-old Isaak discovers he's a robot shortly before his adoptive parents are killed. He's saved from the or ...more
So, what's this book all about? Seventeen-year-old Isaak discovers he's a robot shortly before his adoptive parents are killed. He's saved from the or ...more
topics | posts | views | last activity | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Goodreads Librari...: Missing page number in description | 2 | 14 | May 01, 2018 09:00AM | |
YA Book Club: Boy Robot discussion ~ 8/6/17 ~ Overall, what were your opinions about Boy Robot? | 1 | 5 | Aug 06, 2017 07:51AM | |
YA Book Club: Boy Robot discussion ~8/6/17 ~ How do you think the chapters in between the numbered chapters added to the story? Did it create suspense? | 1 | 5 | Aug 06, 2017 07:48AM | |
YA Book Club: Boy Robot discussion ~ 8/6/17 ~ Do you feel like the long chapters made the book more interesting, or were you longing for a chapter to end? | 1 | 4 | Aug 06, 2017 07:32AM |
Other books in the series
Untitled Trilogy
(2 books)
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“They expected her to kill. It’s what they’d trained her for. Her team was the deadliest—capable of wiping out entire cities, just the four of them. The”
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“Do you know”—she began to wheeze between the words—“that I begged your mother not to have you. I begged . . . and pleaded . . . to scramble you up and pull you out . . . before you ruined her life.” Her grandmother took a hit from the oxygen tank. “You were a disgrace to this family before you even popped out . . . and if I could change one thing in my life . . . I’d go back . . . and pull you out with my bare hands . . . before you were able to kill my baby girl.” She heaved into the mask. “You killed my baby . . . ruined what was left of my life . . . and I will never . . . forgive you.” She gripped the wheels of her chair and began to scoot away. “I should’ve left you . . . in a dumpster.” Even”
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