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gingerbreadman's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Incest and Xenophobia
I was nervous about halfway through that despite my love for Asimov's writing I'd be disappointed by this book, since the solution to the mystery seemed so obvious, but as usual I was surprised by the ending. I especially enjoyed the references to the Foundation series — I already knew Daneel figured into the larger picture, but it was fun to gain a greater understanding of Baley's place in the chronology. I do disagree with some of (most of) the book's moral insinuations, but I was willing to excuse it in light of it being on the older side.lukerik's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
It’s the old story: boy meets girl, boy loses girl, author returns to a series twenty-five years later and completely screws it up. But not this time! This is actually pretty good. The dénouement is particularly well done. There are a couple of problems. Unrestrained by paper costs, Asimov has written to twice the length. The conversations are not as tight as they were in the first two novels. There are even a couple that could be excised completely. The themes are not brought out as crisply either.
However, despite this slight bagginess these is much to enjoy. Asimov picks up the slavery theme from the first two novels. If you remember, Aurora was describes in The Caves of Steel as having an ‘integrated’ robot culture: C/Fe. Carbon and iron living equally. I couldn’t help noticing that C came first. Now here are on Aurora and the culture is definitely still master/slave, but the masters are kidding themselves about how far they’ve come and will investigate a ‘roboticide’, but only when it’s politically expedient. Basically, in the years intervening since the last novel, the civil rights movement has happened and Asimov is slyly commenting on its success. The sexual revolution has also happened and Asimov can now go on about sex to his heart’s content. There’s an interesting section in his wikipedia article about his problems interacting with women.
Well worth reading if you enjoyed the first two novels.
However, despite this slight bagginess these is much to enjoy. Asimov picks up the slavery theme from the first two novels. If you remember, Aurora was describes in The Caves of Steel as having an ‘integrated’ robot culture: C/Fe. Carbon and iron living equally. I couldn’t help noticing that C came first. Now here are on Aurora and the culture is definitely still master/slave, but the masters are kidding themselves about how far they’ve come and will investigate a ‘roboticide’, but only when it’s politically expedient. Basically, in the years intervening since the last novel, the civil rights movement has happened and Asimov is slyly commenting on its success. The sexual revolution has also happened and Asimov can now go on about sex to his heart’s content. There’s an interesting section in his wikipedia article about his problems interacting with women.
Well worth reading if you enjoyed the first two novels.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Incest and Xenophobia