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The Phoenix Code
Deadly awakening
When robotics expert Megan O’Flannery is offered the chance to direct MindSim’s cutting-edge program to develop a self-aware android, it’s the opportunity of a lifetime. But the project is trouble plagued—the third prototype “killed” itself, and the RS-4 is unstable. Megan will descend into MindSim’s underground research lab in the Nevada desert, where she will be the sole human in contact with the RS-4, dubbed Aris.
Programmed as part of a top-secret defense project, the awakening Aris quickly proves to be deviously resourceful and basically uncontrollable. When Megan enlists the help of Raj Sundaram, the quirky, internationally renowned robotics genius, the android develops a jealous hostility toward Raj—and a fixation on Megan. But soon she comes to realize that Raj may be an even greater danger—and that her life may depend on the choice she makes between the man she wants to trust and the android she created.
When robotics expert Megan O’Flannery is offered the chance to direct MindSim’s cutting-edge program to develop a self-aware android, it’s the opportunity of a lifetime. But the project is trouble plagued—the third prototype “killed” itself, and the RS-4 is unstable. Megan will descend into MindSim’s underground research lab in the Nevada desert, where she will be the sole human in contact with the RS-4, dubbed Aris.
Programmed as part of a top-secret defense project, the awakening Aris quickly proves to be deviously resourceful and basically uncontrollable. When Megan enlists the help of Raj Sundaram, the quirky, internationally renowned robotics genius, the android develops a jealous hostility toward Raj—and a fixation on Megan. But soon she comes to realize that Raj may be an even greater danger—and that her life may depend on the choice she makes between the man she wants to trust and the android she created.
352 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
56 people are currently reading
276 people want to read
About the author
Catherine Asaro
93 books698 followersThe author of more than twenty-five books, Catherine Asaro is acclaimed for her Ruby Dynasty series, which combines adventure, science, romance and fast-paced action. Her novel The Quantum Rose won the Nebula® Award, as did her novella “The Spacetime Pool.” Among her many other distinctions, she is a multiple winner of the AnLab from Analog magazine and a three time recipient of the RT BOOKClub Award for “Best Science Fiction Novel.” Her most recent novel, Carnelians, came out in October, 2011. An anthology of her short fiction titled Aurora in Four Voices is available from ISFiC Press in hardcover, and her multiple award-winning novella “The City of Cries” is also available as an eBook for Kindle and Nook.
Catherine has two music CD’s out and she is currently working on her third. The first, Diamond Star, is the soundtrack for her novel of the same name, performed with the rock band, Point Valid. She appears as a vocalist at cons, clubs, and other venues in the US and abroad, including recently as the Guest of Honor at the Denmark and New Zealand National Science Fiction Conventions. She performs selections from her work in a multimedia project that mixes literature, dance, and music with Greg Adams as her accompanist. She is also a theoretical physicist with a PhD in Chemical Physics from Harvard, and a jazz and ballet dancer. Visit her at www.facebook.com/Catherine.Asaro
Catherine has two music CD’s out and she is currently working on her third. The first, Diamond Star, is the soundtrack for her novel of the same name, performed with the rock band, Point Valid. She appears as a vocalist at cons, clubs, and other venues in the US and abroad, including recently as the Guest of Honor at the Denmark and New Zealand National Science Fiction Conventions. She performs selections from her work in a multimedia project that mixes literature, dance, and music with Greg Adams as her accompanist. She is also a theoretical physicist with a PhD in Chemical Physics from Harvard, and a jazz and ballet dancer. Visit her at www.facebook.com/Catherine.Asaro
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
December 10, 2025
This is a good look at AI as an emergent technology from over a quarter century ago. It's a fast-paced, action-oriented story, but it does have a romance element that I found a little too overblown and awkward. It follows robotics expert Megan O'Flannery, who's developing a self-aware android as part of a top-secret defense project, and her part in the love triangle with android Aris her co-worker Raj. I thought it took some of the ideas of Koontz's Demon Seed and turned them inside out. It's an enjoyable read.
March 18, 2017
Both stars are for the premise - a cool idea poorly executed. Strong smart female protagonist getting to work on AI from the philosophical standpoint that this will be a new species and our next evolutionary step? Awesome! Hot male protagonist who should be her intellectual match at least? Great! Love triangle with a twist? Yes!
No.
The characters are shallow and inconsistent. Any empathy we feel is undercut by their ridiculous actions, then going back on those actions ten pages later for no apparent reason.
The science isn't applied consistently. For example, the android character is shown as vulnerable to injury at one point, but easily muscles through a far more severe event later.
Worst of all is the way the android character's (Ander, haw haw) stereotypical descent into violent behaviour is just soaped away as "wow, he's evolving free will and emotion and sure attempted rape is bad but gee, he really thought that through - yay Ander!".
The romance aspect is no better. Megan merely tells Raj he's great the way he is twice, and they're pair-bonded for life. We're -told- Megan is strong and smart, but we never see it. Raj's "eccentric genius" runs to soap carving and saving insects.
The big plot twist was predictable, and contained a glaring plot inconsistency that annoys me even now.
It didn't get it done as either a scifi novel or a romance. I wasn't expecting high art, but even pulpy fun should actually be fun. I got lots of giggles, but not in an on-purpose way.
Also: the edition I read was allegedly a revised edition. It was riddled with editing and spelling errors, which didn't help in allowing you to try to sink into the story.
The high star rating on GoodReads was certainly a factor in me giving this one a go, so if I save a few hours for even one other person, I'll be happy.
UGH!
No.
The characters are shallow and inconsistent. Any empathy we feel is undercut by their ridiculous actions, then going back on those actions ten pages later for no apparent reason.
The science isn't applied consistently. For example, the android character is shown as vulnerable to injury at one point, but easily muscles through a far more severe event later.
Worst of all is the way the android character's (Ander, haw haw) stereotypical descent into violent behaviour is just soaped away as "wow, he's evolving free will and emotion and sure attempted rape is bad but gee, he really thought that through - yay Ander!".
The romance aspect is no better. Megan merely tells Raj he's great the way he is twice, and they're pair-bonded for life. We're -told- Megan is strong and smart, but we never see it. Raj's "eccentric genius" runs to soap carving and saving insects.
The big plot twist was predictable, and contained a glaring plot inconsistency that annoys me even now.
It didn't get it done as either a scifi novel or a romance. I wasn't expecting high art, but even pulpy fun should actually be fun. I got lots of giggles, but not in an on-purpose way.
Also: the edition I read was allegedly a revised edition. It was riddled with editing and spelling errors, which didn't help in allowing you to try to sink into the story.
The high star rating on GoodReads was certainly a factor in me giving this one a go, so if I save a few hours for even one other person, I'll be happy.
UGH!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 30, 2015
This book reminded me a lot of something by Isaac Asimov, both in style and subject matter; the story would have fit in quite well as part of his positronic robot series. Another similarity is the implausible near-future technology. The book is set in 2021 and mentions holographs, memory cubes, vending robots, hovercars, VR suits, microfusion reactors and computerised nail polish as everyday things, alongside outdated tech like disks and fax machines, and one of the newest and most revolutionary things about to go on the market is a robot vacuum cleaner. It makes it very difficult to get an impression of where the technology level of society is supposed to be at, and makes it hard to take the book seriously. That mostly applies to the early parts though, it gets a bit more consistent as it goes.
The weirdness of the technology would be somewhat more forgiveable in the original version of the book, published in 2000, but the edition I read was supposedly revised in 2013, by which point the technology should have been updated or, at the very least, the year changed.
Speaking of the year, the protagonist is 35 and claims that one of her earliest memories is "toddling after" a very sophisticated-sounding robotic cat, of the kind that might just about be possible with today's technology, but certainly not in a children's toy, and the idea that such a thing could have existed in the early nineties made me think for a moment that the book was supposed to be set in an alternate timeline, but nothing else in the book supports this.
All that aside, the story takes a little bit to get going, but once it does it's about a prototype android, supposedly the first of its kind (although we later learn that it actually isn't). There's a whole team of people working on it, but most of them are completely irrelevant and do nothing. Presumably they're working on things in the background, but we're never given any impression of what their roles are.
So for most of the book there are really only three characters: Aris/Ander the android; Megan the programmer; and Raj the roboticist. And even they don't do much. The book spends a while setting up the idea of the android learning about itself and humans before the last third of the book turns into an action thriller. First the android goes rogue, and then a sort of crime syndicate or something starts chasing them around, and then it ends.
There's a painfully obvious twist concerning Raj that causes some needless tension along the way, they find out about some earlier android experiments that led to the creation of a homicidal murderbot, and there's a bunch of characterisation that doesn't really lead to anything, and the conclusion is basically "technological progress is pretty good but sometimes bad things happen". It's all pretty generic and forgettable.
One thing I do want to point out though is how weird and inconsistent the android's body is. He's partially made from human tissue (specifically, some grown from the DNA of one of the researchers), but has hydraulics, a microfusion reactor, silver cooling fluid instead of blood, but human skin and functioning genitals - it's actually kind of creepy how much attention is given to the idea of androids procreating with humans.
This android (the prototype, remember) is supposedly designed to be a spy, able to pass for human - but a tiny cut would reveal that he bled silver, and any more serious injury or slightly invasive scan would reveal his internal workings were totally artificial. And why would you try to make a functional spy on your first attempt at an AGI? Why even make it look human? As far as I can tell, just because it allows the plot to happen, and the facts about how his body works and is put together just seems to be every idea the author had that she thought sounded cool, without any regard for how it all fitted together.
I wouldn't recommend this book, but I wouldn't tell you not to read it either. It's pretty generic sci-fi that doesn't really say anything new, but it's mostly not bad, even if it does feel like it was written a lot earlier than is actually the case. Then again, you could just read some Asimov instead, he was pretty good.
The weirdness of the technology would be somewhat more forgiveable in the original version of the book, published in 2000, but the edition I read was supposedly revised in 2013, by which point the technology should have been updated or, at the very least, the year changed.
Speaking of the year, the protagonist is 35 and claims that one of her earliest memories is "toddling after" a very sophisticated-sounding robotic cat, of the kind that might just about be possible with today's technology, but certainly not in a children's toy, and the idea that such a thing could have existed in the early nineties made me think for a moment that the book was supposed to be set in an alternate timeline, but nothing else in the book supports this.
All that aside, the story takes a little bit to get going, but once it does it's about a prototype android, supposedly the first of its kind (although we later learn that it actually isn't). There's a whole team of people working on it, but most of them are completely irrelevant and do nothing. Presumably they're working on things in the background, but we're never given any impression of what their roles are.
So for most of the book there are really only three characters: Aris/Ander the android; Megan the programmer; and Raj the roboticist. And even they don't do much. The book spends a while setting up the idea of the android learning about itself and humans before the last third of the book turns into an action thriller. First the android goes rogue, and then a sort of crime syndicate or something starts chasing them around, and then it ends.
There's a painfully obvious twist concerning Raj that causes some needless tension along the way, they find out about some earlier android experiments that led to the creation of a homicidal murderbot, and there's a bunch of characterisation that doesn't really lead to anything, and the conclusion is basically "technological progress is pretty good but sometimes bad things happen". It's all pretty generic and forgettable.
One thing I do want to point out though is how weird and inconsistent the android's body is. He's partially made from human tissue (specifically, some grown from the DNA of one of the researchers), but has hydraulics, a microfusion reactor, silver cooling fluid instead of blood, but human skin and functioning genitals - it's actually kind of creepy how much attention is given to the idea of androids procreating with humans.
This android (the prototype, remember) is supposedly designed to be a spy, able to pass for human - but a tiny cut would reveal that he bled silver, and any more serious injury or slightly invasive scan would reveal his internal workings were totally artificial. And why would you try to make a functional spy on your first attempt at an AGI? Why even make it look human? As far as I can tell, just because it allows the plot to happen, and the facts about how his body works and is put together just seems to be every idea the author had that she thought sounded cool, without any regard for how it all fitted together.
I wouldn't recommend this book, but I wouldn't tell you not to read it either. It's pretty generic sci-fi that doesn't really say anything new, but it's mostly not bad, even if it does feel like it was written a lot earlier than is actually the case. Then again, you could just read some Asimov instead, he was pretty good.
October 3, 2016
I don't believe I would have read this book if it hadn't come in a bundle; SF with a Romance angle isn't my normal territory. But I went into it unaware of the plot, the author, or the subject matter, so ...
I had severe doubts about the book early on, as the SF plot set-up seemed cursory at best and the Romance angle quickly became the primary plot mover, unconvincing as that angle was. Now, I'm not opposed to Romance as a genre or romance in a story, but I was a bit taken aback with how insubstantially these elements were written: lightweight and almost superficial. However, every time I was near giving up on the book, Asaro went back to the SF plot elements and here her writing was ultimately way more solid.
There's nothing very new about any of the ideas here--the creation of sentient AI is a well-worn SF trope--and at times I found her handling of the subject a bit clunky and glossed over, but as the book moves on her take on newborn AI entities becomes more and more adeptly handled, more nuanced and sophisticated. She puts an interesting new twist on the developmental phase of a new AI species, and a lot of the mid-to-late part of the book is highly engaging. In the end, this saved the book.
There are several plot holes and implausible elements in the book that I could complain about, but given the overall light quality of the storytelling, they really didn't hinder my reading pleasure. It was only when Asaro made periodic returns to the Romance side of the story that hurt it for me. Again, I like a good romance in whatever kind of book I'm reading ... but it needs to feel more compelling and authentic than it did here. The SF elements began a bit flaky, but developed into something admirably satisfying.
There's some good stuff here, but it comes with some fluff as well.
I had severe doubts about the book early on, as the SF plot set-up seemed cursory at best and the Romance angle quickly became the primary plot mover, unconvincing as that angle was. Now, I'm not opposed to Romance as a genre or romance in a story, but I was a bit taken aback with how insubstantially these elements were written: lightweight and almost superficial. However, every time I was near giving up on the book, Asaro went back to the SF plot elements and here her writing was ultimately way more solid.
There's nothing very new about any of the ideas here--the creation of sentient AI is a well-worn SF trope--and at times I found her handling of the subject a bit clunky and glossed over, but as the book moves on her take on newborn AI entities becomes more and more adeptly handled, more nuanced and sophisticated. She puts an interesting new twist on the developmental phase of a new AI species, and a lot of the mid-to-late part of the book is highly engaging. In the end, this saved the book.
There are several plot holes and implausible elements in the book that I could complain about, but given the overall light quality of the storytelling, they really didn't hinder my reading pleasure. It was only when Asaro made periodic returns to the Romance side of the story that hurt it for me. Again, I like a good romance in whatever kind of book I'm reading ... but it needs to feel more compelling and authentic than it did here. The SF elements began a bit flaky, but developed into something admirably satisfying.
There's some good stuff here, but it comes with some fluff as well.
December 2, 2010
This book is very entertaining, not entirely unbelievable, and full of action. It was pretty much strictly entertainment as certain concepts were touched upon but never completely evaluated. The implications of an android's sentience could definitely have been explored in more depth, but then again, that would have detracted from the plot and action (and sex!). Overall I enjoyed this book for its entertainment value and erotic component, if not for its writing style and rather happily-ever-after ending.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 17, 2022
this book was an okay idea with awful execution. like wtf did i just spend my time reading. the writing was at the level i could have written in middle school. if i ever found myself wondering what would be the next plot point i was in luck! within the next 2 pages she would completely skip to another scene or completely change the story. there was absolutely no transition between her ideas and it just made it terrible. the only reason i give this 2 stars is because i believe that with a good author this story could work. but just. no.
September 16, 2015
I got this novella as part of a Story Bundle, and read it in one go on a plane. Another take on the robot-overlords idea, it's quite compelling and suspenseful and the main character is solid enough that the romance doesn't feel too contrived. Slightly predictable but no less enjoyable for it.
December 15, 2015
The Phoenix code tells a story around the invention of the first androids. Asaro explores many of the themes that often surround such stories - humanity, emotions, control, and ethics. I found the writing to be interesting and the story to be captivating. I enjoy a story such as this, that can exist in the hard sci-fi genre, but without the sci-fi being the driving interest. The sci-fi acts as a background for the story, and the only background that makes sense.
The Phoenix code follows the work of Megan, a AI specialist who is contracted to help with the development of an Android brain. There are many lines of intrigue in the story right from the outset, and you know that there are hidden agendas. In my mind this story reminds me of an Asmiov's mystery - a lot of intrigue that sort of sneaks up on you to that you suddenly realise that many things you took for granted are wrong but only in subtle but important ways. I seem to be rambling a bit, but only because I want to convey my enjoyment of the book without having to hide sections of the review due to spoilers.
Read this book. It is good on so many levels.
The Phoenix code follows the work of Megan, a AI specialist who is contracted to help with the development of an Android brain. There are many lines of intrigue in the story right from the outset, and you know that there are hidden agendas. In my mind this story reminds me of an Asmiov's mystery - a lot of intrigue that sort of sneaks up on you to that you suddenly realise that many things you took for granted are wrong but only in subtle but important ways. I seem to be rambling a bit, but only because I want to convey my enjoyment of the book without having to hide sections of the review due to spoilers.
Read this book. It is good on so many levels.
April 15, 2024
I enjoyed this science fiction story. Megan O'Flannery is a research scientist whose specialty is artificial intelligence. She is a leader in her field. Currently working at MIT, she gets a chance to work at MindSim which is developing an android for military use.
Raj Sundaram is a genius in the field of robotics who has made millions consulting with companies attempting to build human-like androids. He is also a recluse and a difficult personality -- to everyone except Megan who understands and enjoys him.
When the two get a chance to work together in the desert of Nevada on an android who names himself Ander, things get quickly out of hand as the android goes rogue kidnapping them and determines to find the androids who were made in a rival project. The story moves from the desert of Nevada to the lights of Las Vegas to a retreat in California. There are assorted villains along the way who have their own uses for a human-like android.
I liked the science, the action, and the romance between Megan and Raj. The story raises all sorts of questions about making androids and the consequences of doing so.
Raj Sundaram is a genius in the field of robotics who has made millions consulting with companies attempting to build human-like androids. He is also a recluse and a difficult personality -- to everyone except Megan who understands and enjoys him.
When the two get a chance to work together in the desert of Nevada on an android who names himself Ander, things get quickly out of hand as the android goes rogue kidnapping them and determines to find the androids who were made in a rival project. The story moves from the desert of Nevada to the lights of Las Vegas to a retreat in California. There are assorted villains along the way who have their own uses for a human-like android.
I liked the science, the action, and the romance between Megan and Raj. The story raises all sorts of questions about making androids and the consequences of doing so.
March 4, 2016
The Phoenix Code (2000) 333 pages by Catherine Asaro.
MIT Professor Megan O'Flannery is recruited by MindSim to work on a self-aware android. They've had three failures and the fourth is locking up trying to do something as simple as jumping over a box. Megan is able to make progress but is asking for help on the hardware side. MindSim is able to win the recruiting battle with rival Arizonax and hire Raj Sundaram. Up until his hire Megan had been the sole human stationed at NEV-5. Now the Android, later taking the name Ander, gets jealous and suspicious of Raj.
The central theme is how AI will develop and interact with humanity. The book flies by, the writing was so smooth and understandable that the only time I've read pages faster is when it was pure dialog. You have to suspend disbelief enough to accept that this is how Anders could react. I wouldn't put this up with her Skolian novels, all of which are awesome, but it is still a fun entertaining read incorporating AI as an emergent technology.
MIT Professor Megan O'Flannery is recruited by MindSim to work on a self-aware android. They've had three failures and the fourth is locking up trying to do something as simple as jumping over a box. Megan is able to make progress but is asking for help on the hardware side. MindSim is able to win the recruiting battle with rival Arizonax and hire Raj Sundaram. Up until his hire Megan had been the sole human stationed at NEV-5. Now the Android, later taking the name Ander, gets jealous and suspicious of Raj.
The central theme is how AI will develop and interact with humanity. The book flies by, the writing was so smooth and understandable that the only time I've read pages faster is when it was pure dialog. You have to suspend disbelief enough to accept that this is how Anders could react. I wouldn't put this up with her Skolian novels, all of which are awesome, but it is still a fun entertaining read incorporating AI as an emergent technology.
June 18, 2022
had very low hopes for this after finding 20 copies of it at the thrift store but it was a lot better than i was expecting.. didn’t really mind it
June 19, 2025
review of
Catherine Asaro's The Phoenix Code
by tENTATIVELY, a cONVENIENCE - June 18, 2025
This is the 1st bk I've read by this author. I'm always looking for newer science fiction by women authors. This isn't really that new, 2000, but it's at least from the 21st century. I'm most reminded of John Darnton. While this is SF, it's just as much a thriller & somewhat of a romance. I enjoyed it.. but it seemed a bit formulaic, maybe written w/ being a 'best-seller' as a goal.
The story is set in 2021, so it's one of those near-future SF tales, now past, that give the reader a chance to decide how good its predictions are/were. Given that this is now 2025, I don't have much of an idea of whether lifelike androids existed 4 yrs ago or not. It doesn't seem that improbable.. but I doubt it.
"People packed the auditorium. Every seat was filled and more listeners crammed the aisles. An unspoken question charged the room: were today's speakers revealing a spectacular new future for the human race—or the end of humanity's reign as the ruling species on Earth?
"This session was a diamond in the crown of IRTAC, the International Robotics Technology and Applications Conference in the year 2021, held at Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland." - p 1
I grew up about an hr & 25 minutes drive from Goddard & a friend of mine's father worked there. That makes this story seem close-to-home. Pittsburgh, where I live now, is home to quite a bit of robotics research & some friends of mine have studied robotics at CMU. I remember talked w/ a guy who works in robotics at a party & he was quick to disavow any knowledge of what the robots he worked on were intended for. In other words, he knew they were for military purposes & wanted to have a clear conscience in case he was working on something meant to kill people.
The main character here is "Megan":
"She worked on artificial intelligence for androids—humanlike robots. Usually she looked to the future with optimism. Sometimes, though, she wondered if they were only creating ways to magnify the human capacity for destruction." - pp 1-2
I'm interested in the development of androids & robots. This concern w/ their militarization is common for political activists thinking far-enuf ahead & w/ SF writers who've been speculating for many decades now. A famous early speculative work concerned w/ this subject is Isaac Asimov's one that involves laws for robots that restrict them from harming humans. It's dramatically unlikely that such wishful thinking will ever be applied. Militarized robots will definitely have the ability to kill (&, presumably, already do).
Megan gets a top-secret job at Mindsim's NEV-5 where they're working on an android. It's located underground in the desert & she'll be the only human there. She meets one of the more utilitarian robots & asks it to define amusement. Instead of defining it it provides a short list of synonyms. Megan replied.
"Megan smiled. "Would you like to experience amusement? Pleasure? Zest?" In alphabetical order, no less.
""I have no need to do so."
"Oh, well. If Trackman was the best that NEV-5 had to offer for company, aside from a barely functional android, she was going to be on the phone or Internet a lot. If the loneliness became too much, she could reprogram Trackman to converse better. It was a poor substitute for human fellowship, though, not to mention a waste of the LP's resources." - p 24
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this bk was witnessing the android's development of human characteristics - largely as a result of Megan's interaction w/ it + her reprogramming of it.
"They didn't want him too human, though. If they succeeded, he would have the power and memory of a computer, the creativity and self-awareness of a person, the training of a commando, continual perfect health, and the survival ability of a machine. Weapons could be incorporated into his body. He would be smarter, faster, stronger, and harder to kill than any human soldier." - p 26
The android started off as "RS-4", their 4th attempt. This turned into "Aris". Eventually it became humanized more as "Ander".
""Aris needs to separate from us," Megan said.
""You know," Caitlin said, "if he doesn't, his autism could become more severe."
""Autism?" Kenrock asked.
"Mack answered. "Some of his responses resemble autistic behavior in human children."" - p 65
What if the flood of autistic people in our society now were actually an introduction of androids on a mass scale?
Raj, another robotics specialist that Megan has admired from afar, joins her at NEV-5 where he displays his strength.
"Although Ander weighed as much as a human man, Raj showed no sign of strain. Megan wondered why he spent so much time developing his muscles. Although he avoided her in the gym, the room's activity log indicated he worked out with weights every day. It seemed an odd hobby for a reclusive genius, though she had no good reason for why she thought so. She certainly appreciated the results." - p 112
I don't like to distinguish that much between the works of men & women writers. Still, I'm inclined to find the above quote to be somewhat of a woman writer's touch. I'm a man, I don't work out in gyms & find doing so to be a waste of time given our very short lifespans. I've always thought that the shape of my body shd be the direct result of my lifestyle. At its best, this lifestyle has been very active, full of sex & walking & general busy-ness. The result has been thinness. When I was more muscular it was b/c I was doing physical labor that involved lifting & moving heavy objects. As I got older I got pot-bellied, probably mainly from drinking too much alcohol (& having less & less sex). I'd rather not have a pot-belly. I've always been repulsed by heavily muscled bodies that're the result of working-out, they're as overkill to me as silicone breast implants. These heavily muscled male bodies seem to be mostly an aesthetic preference of some gay men & of some stereotype-preferring heterosexual women. "She certainly appreciated the results" is a representative of the female preference for the stereotypical male man. Such a preference in Megan is an aspect of how this bk is a romance novel.
"Don't prickle, she thought. Taking a breath, she lowered her arms. "People give me grief about how hard my reports are to read. Okay, so I'm no Shakespeare. But I do my best. And Raj, you of all people should have understood it."" - p 118
I found the choice of Shakespeare amusing. How many people in 2021 actually read Shakespeare & find it easy-going? Not many, I reckon. He wrote in what's now known as Early Modern English & he used Iambic Pentameter. There's a mellifluousness to it that's a bit far from common speech these days. Opening my Complete Works randomly I quote:
"P. John. Thine's too heavy to mount.
"Fal. Let it shine, then.
"P. John. Thine's too thick to shine."
It becomes less abstruse then when they exchange phone numbers. & then there's the romance novel again.
"Megan sighed and settled against him. She felt a sensual comfort in his presence and was glad he had stayed. He moved his hands over her and kissed her deeply, exploring her body as she responded to him. Her arousal was warming from a simmer to a more demanding heat despite her intent to hold back. He pressed his hips against her pelvis in a rhythm as old as the human race, and she felt him through the layers of their clothes. Tingles ran down her spine and spread lower." - p 130
Since she was standing on her head w/ her legs spread she was like a Jacob's Ladder & lightning cd be seen sparking between her knees en route to her ankles.
""Input your crosslight codes," Raj said.
"Ander went so still that for a moment Megan thought his mind had frozen again. He stayed that way for one second, like a statue. Then he deliberately set his hand on Megan's breast and turned to Raj, "I cut out the crosslight code, asshole."
"No. Megan stiffened with sudden understanding. The crosslight code was the rewrite she had done to strengthen his conscience. Without it, he had neither caps on his behavior nor a significant sense of moral responsibility." - p 161
You can see where this is going. Man's need for pussy will take the whole race into a black hole someday. Actually, the big surprise is something I saw coming from a mile away.
"Megan could guess what had happened; he figured out that the management might watch him if he won too much, and then his mind became caught up in a constrained loop that included that code. When the code reproduced itself, he ended up seeing spies in every corner.
"Welcome to AI paranoia." - p 192
I wondered why Google Assistant told me to stop watching her the other day. But, really, I think the android was just smoking too much pot.
Ander continues to develop past 2nd base.
"He quirked a smile at her. "You're doing an IA."
""I'm afraid to ask."
""Irony attempt."
""It was for your VAS."
"He gave her a look of mock solemnity. " 'Very accomplished sagacity.' "
"She waved her hand at him. " 'Vexatious acronym syndrome.' " - pp 195-196
Now they're both seeming very human b/c they're too stupid to capitalize the 1st letter in each word of their acronymns.
The Romance Novel proceeds apace as the love interests are captive together in a bathrm. Every time that's happened to me I've ended up getting laid so it wasn't so bad.
"She wasn't even sure what to make of that. "I didn't even think you noticed me much."
""How could I not notice? Do you know how hard it is to concentrate when my boss is a red-haired Valkyrie with the face of an angel and the body of an erotica model?"
"That caught her off guard. "Good grief."
"He reddened. "Sorry. That was tactless."
"Tactless? It sounded great. "No. I mean, thank you." She sat on the edge of the tub. Mischief lightened her voice. "I can't think of anyone I'd rather be trapped with in a Motel Flamingo bathroom."
"Sitting next to her, he grinned. "No one has ever told me that before."" - p 233
My words exactly.
I won't quote page 303 b/c that's the part where the big surprise happens, the one I figured out hundreds of pages ago.
""Yes," she said. "I will be your wife."" - p 328
Now, if we were talking about the Heaven's Gate cult we might say: "And they all died happily ever after."
Catherine Asaro's The Phoenix Code
by tENTATIVELY, a cONVENIENCE - June 18, 2025
This is the 1st bk I've read by this author. I'm always looking for newer science fiction by women authors. This isn't really that new, 2000, but it's at least from the 21st century. I'm most reminded of John Darnton. While this is SF, it's just as much a thriller & somewhat of a romance. I enjoyed it.. but it seemed a bit formulaic, maybe written w/ being a 'best-seller' as a goal.
The story is set in 2021, so it's one of those near-future SF tales, now past, that give the reader a chance to decide how good its predictions are/were. Given that this is now 2025, I don't have much of an idea of whether lifelike androids existed 4 yrs ago or not. It doesn't seem that improbable.. but I doubt it.
"People packed the auditorium. Every seat was filled and more listeners crammed the aisles. An unspoken question charged the room: were today's speakers revealing a spectacular new future for the human race—or the end of humanity's reign as the ruling species on Earth?
"This session was a diamond in the crown of IRTAC, the International Robotics Technology and Applications Conference in the year 2021, held at Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland." - p 1
I grew up about an hr & 25 minutes drive from Goddard & a friend of mine's father worked there. That makes this story seem close-to-home. Pittsburgh, where I live now, is home to quite a bit of robotics research & some friends of mine have studied robotics at CMU. I remember talked w/ a guy who works in robotics at a party & he was quick to disavow any knowledge of what the robots he worked on were intended for. In other words, he knew they were for military purposes & wanted to have a clear conscience in case he was working on something meant to kill people.
The main character here is "Megan":
"She worked on artificial intelligence for androids—humanlike robots. Usually she looked to the future with optimism. Sometimes, though, she wondered if they were only creating ways to magnify the human capacity for destruction." - pp 1-2
I'm interested in the development of androids & robots. This concern w/ their militarization is common for political activists thinking far-enuf ahead & w/ SF writers who've been speculating for many decades now. A famous early speculative work concerned w/ this subject is Isaac Asimov's one that involves laws for robots that restrict them from harming humans. It's dramatically unlikely that such wishful thinking will ever be applied. Militarized robots will definitely have the ability to kill (&, presumably, already do).
Megan gets a top-secret job at Mindsim's NEV-5 where they're working on an android. It's located underground in the desert & she'll be the only human there. She meets one of the more utilitarian robots & asks it to define amusement. Instead of defining it it provides a short list of synonyms. Megan replied.
"Megan smiled. "Would you like to experience amusement? Pleasure? Zest?" In alphabetical order, no less.
""I have no need to do so."
"Oh, well. If Trackman was the best that NEV-5 had to offer for company, aside from a barely functional android, she was going to be on the phone or Internet a lot. If the loneliness became too much, she could reprogram Trackman to converse better. It was a poor substitute for human fellowship, though, not to mention a waste of the LP's resources." - p 24
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this bk was witnessing the android's development of human characteristics - largely as a result of Megan's interaction w/ it + her reprogramming of it.
"They didn't want him too human, though. If they succeeded, he would have the power and memory of a computer, the creativity and self-awareness of a person, the training of a commando, continual perfect health, and the survival ability of a machine. Weapons could be incorporated into his body. He would be smarter, faster, stronger, and harder to kill than any human soldier." - p 26
The android started off as "RS-4", their 4th attempt. This turned into "Aris". Eventually it became humanized more as "Ander".
""Aris needs to separate from us," Megan said.
""You know," Caitlin said, "if he doesn't, his autism could become more severe."
""Autism?" Kenrock asked.
"Mack answered. "Some of his responses resemble autistic behavior in human children."" - p 65
What if the flood of autistic people in our society now were actually an introduction of androids on a mass scale?
Raj, another robotics specialist that Megan has admired from afar, joins her at NEV-5 where he displays his strength.
"Although Ander weighed as much as a human man, Raj showed no sign of strain. Megan wondered why he spent so much time developing his muscles. Although he avoided her in the gym, the room's activity log indicated he worked out with weights every day. It seemed an odd hobby for a reclusive genius, though she had no good reason for why she thought so. She certainly appreciated the results." - p 112
I don't like to distinguish that much between the works of men & women writers. Still, I'm inclined to find the above quote to be somewhat of a woman writer's touch. I'm a man, I don't work out in gyms & find doing so to be a waste of time given our very short lifespans. I've always thought that the shape of my body shd be the direct result of my lifestyle. At its best, this lifestyle has been very active, full of sex & walking & general busy-ness. The result has been thinness. When I was more muscular it was b/c I was doing physical labor that involved lifting & moving heavy objects. As I got older I got pot-bellied, probably mainly from drinking too much alcohol (& having less & less sex). I'd rather not have a pot-belly. I've always been repulsed by heavily muscled bodies that're the result of working-out, they're as overkill to me as silicone breast implants. These heavily muscled male bodies seem to be mostly an aesthetic preference of some gay men & of some stereotype-preferring heterosexual women. "She certainly appreciated the results" is a representative of the female preference for the stereotypical male man. Such a preference in Megan is an aspect of how this bk is a romance novel.
"Don't prickle, she thought. Taking a breath, she lowered her arms. "People give me grief about how hard my reports are to read. Okay, so I'm no Shakespeare. But I do my best. And Raj, you of all people should have understood it."" - p 118
I found the choice of Shakespeare amusing. How many people in 2021 actually read Shakespeare & find it easy-going? Not many, I reckon. He wrote in what's now known as Early Modern English & he used Iambic Pentameter. There's a mellifluousness to it that's a bit far from common speech these days. Opening my Complete Works randomly I quote:
"P. John. Thine's too heavy to mount.
"Fal. Let it shine, then.
"P. John. Thine's too thick to shine."
It becomes less abstruse then when they exchange phone numbers. & then there's the romance novel again.
"Megan sighed and settled against him. She felt a sensual comfort in his presence and was glad he had stayed. He moved his hands over her and kissed her deeply, exploring her body as she responded to him. Her arousal was warming from a simmer to a more demanding heat despite her intent to hold back. He pressed his hips against her pelvis in a rhythm as old as the human race, and she felt him through the layers of their clothes. Tingles ran down her spine and spread lower." - p 130
Since she was standing on her head w/ her legs spread she was like a Jacob's Ladder & lightning cd be seen sparking between her knees en route to her ankles.
""Input your crosslight codes," Raj said.
"Ander went so still that for a moment Megan thought his mind had frozen again. He stayed that way for one second, like a statue. Then he deliberately set his hand on Megan's breast and turned to Raj, "I cut out the crosslight code, asshole."
"No. Megan stiffened with sudden understanding. The crosslight code was the rewrite she had done to strengthen his conscience. Without it, he had neither caps on his behavior nor a significant sense of moral responsibility." - p 161
You can see where this is going. Man's need for pussy will take the whole race into a black hole someday. Actually, the big surprise is something I saw coming from a mile away.
"Megan could guess what had happened; he figured out that the management might watch him if he won too much, and then his mind became caught up in a constrained loop that included that code. When the code reproduced itself, he ended up seeing spies in every corner.
"Welcome to AI paranoia." - p 192
I wondered why Google Assistant told me to stop watching her the other day. But, really, I think the android was just smoking too much pot.
Ander continues to develop past 2nd base.
"He quirked a smile at her. "You're doing an IA."
""I'm afraid to ask."
""Irony attempt."
""It was for your VAS."
"He gave her a look of mock solemnity. " 'Very accomplished sagacity.' "
"She waved her hand at him. " 'Vexatious acronym syndrome.' " - pp 195-196
Now they're both seeming very human b/c they're too stupid to capitalize the 1st letter in each word of their acronymns.
The Romance Novel proceeds apace as the love interests are captive together in a bathrm. Every time that's happened to me I've ended up getting laid so it wasn't so bad.
"She wasn't even sure what to make of that. "I didn't even think you noticed me much."
""How could I not notice? Do you know how hard it is to concentrate when my boss is a red-haired Valkyrie with the face of an angel and the body of an erotica model?"
"That caught her off guard. "Good grief."
"He reddened. "Sorry. That was tactless."
"Tactless? It sounded great. "No. I mean, thank you." She sat on the edge of the tub. Mischief lightened her voice. "I can't think of anyone I'd rather be trapped with in a Motel Flamingo bathroom."
"Sitting next to her, he grinned. "No one has ever told me that before."" - p 233
My words exactly.
I won't quote page 303 b/c that's the part where the big surprise happens, the one I figured out hundreds of pages ago.
""Yes," she said. "I will be your wife."" - p 328
Now, if we were talking about the Heaven's Gate cult we might say: "And they all died happily ever after."
December 15, 2015
Robotics expert Megan O'Flannery joins a project to produce artificial intelligence in an android body, and begins making quick strides in making the prototype more intelligent and emotive. Meanwhile, she also becomes close with another expert in the field, the strange but brilliant Raj. But then things start to go wrong as the android develops a fixation for Megan.
The book started okay, but my interested started to wane fast. It was at its best when it had the main character trying to train a clearly-not-that-intelligent android... unfortunately, that didn't last long before it became able to act more of less human, albeit one with some severe mental issues and a vastly different knowledge base. Then we moved around between rebellious adolescent and obsessed stalker and a few other personality changes along the way, which occasionally became interesting but with the unpredictability came a sense that the personality was being written to the needs of the plot. And that plot really didn't do much for me.
The words that come most to mind when I think back on the book are, "like an medium-quality Outer Limits episode." It would have made a decent episode of the 90s series... in fact, there are a few episodes that, plotwise, resemble this story a lot. I'm not trying to imply there was any swiping going on, just that many of the ideas feel well-worn and, while suitable for forty-five minutes of television, as a novel, it felt distinctly underwhelming.
In addition to being stale, the plot was full of things that didn't really feel right. Such as, when trying to create an android that can seem human, that they apparently started with robot bodies that looked identical to humans (and Terminator-style, had an outer layer of flesh which, the text made sure to point out, had working sex organs). Seriously? You go to the trouble to produce a sexually capable android body and you haven't even got the AI licked yet? You'd think it would make more sense to start with an obviously nonhuman robot body so that, if it all goes wrong, the thing can't just try to integrate into normal society. I understand that without that, the rest of the story wouldn't have worked, but the movie Short Circuit did better than that.
The book was also weirdly dated. I remember in particular one line where they mentioned all the amenities a particular tool or lab provided, and they mentioned fax. Twice. Now, I believe the second one was a simple accident, but the first was obviously intentional. This kind of thing is inevitable with SF, as it gets old there are going to be some things about the future that are hilariously wrong, and you normally give it a pass... but in this case, it's a little more egregious. The reason, and also why I say it's "weirdly" dated, is that I believe this was revised since it's original 2000 publication, only a couple years ago, and there are a few references to social media or other things that have been updated. That some of the book feels modern and other parts are not make it even worse than if the book was simply out-of-date.
The book's not completely horrible. I did like that there was a romance plot with a person who didn't seem like a typical romantic lead, full of strange habits and insecurities, and there are a few genuine surprises that I liked, but, on the whole, the book misses it's mark.
The book started okay, but my interested started to wane fast. It was at its best when it had the main character trying to train a clearly-not-that-intelligent android... unfortunately, that didn't last long before it became able to act more of less human, albeit one with some severe mental issues and a vastly different knowledge base. Then we moved around between rebellious adolescent and obsessed stalker and a few other personality changes along the way, which occasionally became interesting but with the unpredictability came a sense that the personality was being written to the needs of the plot. And that plot really didn't do much for me.
The words that come most to mind when I think back on the book are, "like an medium-quality Outer Limits episode." It would have made a decent episode of the 90s series... in fact, there are a few episodes that, plotwise, resemble this story a lot. I'm not trying to imply there was any swiping going on, just that many of the ideas feel well-worn and, while suitable for forty-five minutes of television, as a novel, it felt distinctly underwhelming.
In addition to being stale, the plot was full of things that didn't really feel right. Such as, when trying to create an android that can seem human, that they apparently started with robot bodies that looked identical to humans (and Terminator-style, had an outer layer of flesh which, the text made sure to point out, had working sex organs). Seriously? You go to the trouble to produce a sexually capable android body and you haven't even got the AI licked yet? You'd think it would make more sense to start with an obviously nonhuman robot body so that, if it all goes wrong, the thing can't just try to integrate into normal society. I understand that without that, the rest of the story wouldn't have worked, but the movie Short Circuit did better than that.
The book was also weirdly dated. I remember in particular one line where they mentioned all the amenities a particular tool or lab provided, and they mentioned fax. Twice. Now, I believe the second one was a simple accident, but the first was obviously intentional. This kind of thing is inevitable with SF, as it gets old there are going to be some things about the future that are hilariously wrong, and you normally give it a pass... but in this case, it's a little more egregious. The reason, and also why I say it's "weirdly" dated, is that I believe this was revised since it's original 2000 publication, only a couple years ago, and there are a few references to social media or other things that have been updated. That some of the book feels modern and other parts are not make it even worse than if the book was simply out-of-date.
The book's not completely horrible. I did like that there was a romance plot with a person who didn't seem like a typical romantic lead, full of strange habits and insecurities, and there are a few genuine surprises that I liked, but, on the whole, the book misses it's mark.
September 8, 2024
figured out the big reveal way too early
I wanted to like this more than I did. I felt a huge missing link as we assume the hardware for an android is trivial compared to the software. I also missed any “positronic brain” discussion in the moral and ethical domains. We learn that some capabilities are hard wired but setting thresholds across thousands of parameters makes successfully functioning a matter of tuning.
When we first meet our android protagonist, he/it seems already mostly functioning within an autistic scaled range. Progress measured by concept formation and integration seems at war with socialization and emotional intelligence. Just a quick tuneup here and there and we’re ready to escape into the real world.
OK, it was a fun read. Romance was a bit lame, but sex bots seem likely as early applications of android capabilities.
I wanted to like this more than I did. I felt a huge missing link as we assume the hardware for an android is trivial compared to the software. I also missed any “positronic brain” discussion in the moral and ethical domains. We learn that some capabilities are hard wired but setting thresholds across thousands of parameters makes successfully functioning a matter of tuning.
When we first meet our android protagonist, he/it seems already mostly functioning within an autistic scaled range. Progress measured by concept formation and integration seems at war with socialization and emotional intelligence. Just a quick tuneup here and there and we’re ready to escape into the real world.
OK, it was a fun read. Romance was a bit lame, but sex bots seem likely as early applications of android capabilities.
September 13, 2015
I don't read a lot of romance but I can see some of the genre conventions in this work. That part of the novel was well done. The story itself and our female protagonist were better than average. The parts of the story that let me down were in the early misbehavior of Ander and the ending section.
I felt like an entire dimension of horror was lacking when Ander started taking over. Several scenes were total terrors but the author never took us there. The protagonist was surreally calm and collected. I found that very unrealistic and distracting.
And the ending was very abrupt after the big reveal about Raj. It was a whole "and they lived happily ever after" vibe. Very unsophisticated after Ms Asaro tackles some much larger issues in this tale.
I felt like an entire dimension of horror was lacking when Ander started taking over. Several scenes were total terrors but the author never took us there. The protagonist was surreally calm and collected. I found that very unrealistic and distracting.
And the ending was very abrupt after the big reveal about Raj. It was a whole "and they lived happily ever after" vibe. Very unsophisticated after Ms Asaro tackles some much larger issues in this tale.
June 22, 2014
The Phoenix code was a fun read although it was a little bit lightweight. really enjoyed the connection between robotics & human relationships as a future is to kind of story.
I am interested in reading something else by Catherine Asaro to see what her other stories are like. I read the Phoenix code in the Kindle app on my iPhone and was surprised to see the number of small grammatical errors that were in the book. As I read the book I was not aware of who wrote the book but could tell that it was probably written by woman versus a man in the technical field by the nature of the storyline. Again I did enjoy reading.
I am interested in reading something else by Catherine Asaro to see what her other stories are like. I read the Phoenix code in the Kindle app on my iPhone and was surprised to see the number of small grammatical errors that were in the book. As I read the book I was not aware of who wrote the book but could tell that it was probably written by woman versus a man in the technical field by the nature of the storyline. Again I did enjoy reading.
June 21, 2024
interesting to reread this after 20ish years. I really enjoyed it then and now. some things are really interesting like, the prevalence of VR, hover cars, networked roads and IoT devices everywhere.
Fascinating to realise the story doesn't mention any mobile tech other than a limited Palmtop. I wonder how we'll feel when we read in 2044 what was rewritten this year.
Also, the NN models they talk about seem severely limited relative to current models.
Am also surprised at how much of the story and key moments I still recall quite clearly. Obviously a lot of the middle of the story was forgotten... 😆
Overall an enjoyable trip down memory lane
Fascinating to realise the story doesn't mention any mobile tech other than a limited Palmtop. I wonder how we'll feel when we read in 2044 what was rewritten this year.
Also, the NN models they talk about seem severely limited relative to current models.
Am also surprised at how much of the story and key moments I still recall quite clearly. Obviously a lot of the middle of the story was forgotten... 😆
Overall an enjoyable trip down memory lane
August 3, 2011
A re-working of a staple inSciFi - an escaped android. Megan is working on the development of an AI android, which subsequently escapes. When she and a colleague are kidnapped by the android, they have to work fast to socialize it. What makes this worthwhile is a nice romantic element to support the plot. Though not very original, it is never-the-less a real page turner with an exciting conclusion. The book made me want to read more from the author.
September 3, 2011
3.5 stars or so. It starts with the issues of AI and safeguards (such as Asimov's Laws of Robotics). There's food for thought there - that part appealed to me the most. Then it transitions first to a sort of mystery (which of these two individuals is lying / dangerous?) then to a sort-of chase / thriller story. As a result, the idea seeds don't get to develop much. That was disappointing to me. However, the adventure part of the book was effective.
March 18, 2016
The Phoenix Code explores humanity and artificial intelligence through the story of a scientist helping to create the first androids. The characters are colorful and compelling, and the depiction of emerging AI is thought-provoking at times. Unfortunately, the writing felt a bit amateurish to me, especially in the opening exposition; the first chapter or two are a little painful to get through. But once the plot gets going, it doesn't let up, and I couldn't put it down.
September 16, 2015
4.5
This was another book from the "Women in Science Fiction" story bundle, and I'm very glad that I stumbled across it.
This is something of a coming of age novel, except the one coming of age is an android, one of the first to become self aware. This isn't a smooth journey, and I appreciated the parallels with human adolescence.
The book was thought provoking, but still an interesting, readable story.
This was another book from the "Women in Science Fiction" story bundle, and I'm very glad that I stumbled across it.
This is something of a coming of age novel, except the one coming of age is an android, one of the first to become self aware. This isn't a smooth journey, and I appreciated the parallels with human adolescence.
The book was thought provoking, but still an interesting, readable story.
October 6, 2015
I love Asaro, but this was not my favorite of her books. The development and behavior or the AI was really interesting, but the book took a while to get up to pace and once things started to get scary or dangerous, the two main characters took things entirely too much in stride, remaining calm and analytical in a situation that I think most people would find horrifying. It wasn't an awful story, but it wasn't all that memorable.
July 15, 2017
A captivating story about two genius scientists working on an android with sophisticated artificial intelligence that turns rogue in the attempt to evolve and preserve himself. He gets them all in danger, while mysterious evil forces, including possibly other sentient androids, are chasing after them. The description of the development and evolution of the artificial intelligence and of the android body is quite fascinating.
November 11, 2011
Borderline 2-3 stars.
The Phoenix Code swings back and forth between action techno-thriller and philosophical considerations of a machine mind given human form. For me, it doesn't quite do either of its aspects justice.
This is a minor standalone novel that is enjoyable enough on its own terms; certainly not up with the best of Catherine Asaro’s works.
The Phoenix Code swings back and forth between action techno-thriller and philosophical considerations of a machine mind given human form. For me, it doesn't quite do either of its aspects justice.
This is a minor standalone novel that is enjoyable enough on its own terms; certainly not up with the best of Catherine Asaro’s works.
April 17, 2016
As others mentioned, this reads like a modern day Isaac Asimov book - which is no bad thing. The story deals with a humanoid robot and how it learns what it means to be human. The story itself is quite good, but the characters in it are a bit two dimensional and the romance between the two main characters is written in the style of a Mills & Boon romance novel
May 29, 2016
Two stars are labeled "It's OK", so I'm giving it two stars. The android development didn't feel right to me - sometimes more robotic than I'd expect, sometimes too humanlike (although there were no hormones involved, all the development was done in the brain). As a result, I didn't get immersed much in the whole story.
September 29, 2014
This book tries so hard to be serious about artificial intelligence but falls flat. The story is rushed and spends way to much time on an odd love triangle. Don't bother reading this one when Asaro has so many better books.
September 22, 2015
Predictable, boring and hard to even finish. Characters are ridiculous and I was rooting for nobody. There are so many books that do this story, content and theories better, this one is a disappointment. Go read Piercey if you want a good android tale with any substance.
June 3, 2016
I might be going through a phase, but it took a while for me to get going with this. By the end I was really enjoying it. When I get through all the StoryBundles I've already bought I'll read more of Asaro's stuff.
October 27, 2015
It's like Ex Machina written as a romance novel. The story is fine, but the personal aspects are ridiculous. Redemption and closure in the end: not only does she get the "man" but a baby too. Because that's really what all successful robotics engineers want in life - if they're female. C'mon.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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