Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A great little Everyman novel from the position of an eternally-innocent robot valet, walking us through philosophical positions from some of the great philosophers as we enjoy the end of the world.

Huh? Say what?

What I MEAN to say is that we've got a bot on an eternal search to be of service in the almost complete wreckage of the human race, encountering so many robots following their instruction sets to the absolute ends of the earth and their existence.

Just do as you've been programmed, ya know? Kinda like us. Do as "they" say. Keep on doing all the little things "they" say. Even if it leads you to doom, never go against your instruction sets!

Ah, but this novel is a bit more than just that kind of commentary, but this little blast at our underlying assumptions is quite delicious.

So yes, why HAVEN'T we been creating a kind and orderly world for ourselves? It IS a simple question. It ought to be part of ALL of our underlying questions.

But, alas, it's not just robots who have to follow instruction sets, no? I think we've been programmed with shit.

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