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I, Robot (Reichert) #3
Issac Asimov's I, Robot: To Preserve by Mickey Zucker Reichert
Inspired by Science Fiction Grand Master Isaac Asimov’s I, Robot stories.
2037: Robotic technology has evolved into the realm of self-aware, sentient mechanical entities. But despite the safeguards programmed into the very core of a robot’s artificial intelligence, humanity’s most brilliant creation can still fall prey to those who believe the Three Laws of Robotics were made to be broken...
N8-C, better known as Nate, has been Manhattan Hasbro Hospital’s resident robot for more than twenty years. A prototype, humanoid in appearance, he was created to interact with people. While some staff accepted working alongside an anthropomorphic robot, Nate’s very existence terrified most people, leaving the robot utilized for menial tasks and generally ignored.
Until one of the hospital’s physicians is found brutally murdered with Nate standing over the corpse, a blood-smeared utility bar clutched in his hand. As designer and programmer of Nate’s positronic brain, Lawrence Robertson is responsible for his creation’s actions and arrested for the crime.
Susan Calvin knows the Three Laws of Robotics make it impossible for Nate to harm a human being. But to prove both Nate’s and Lawrence’s innocence, she has to consider the possibility that someone somehow manipulated the laws to commit murder...
2037: Robotic technology has evolved into the realm of self-aware, sentient mechanical entities. But despite the safeguards programmed into the very core of a robot’s artificial intelligence, humanity’s most brilliant creation can still fall prey to those who believe the Three Laws of Robotics were made to be broken...
N8-C, better known as Nate, has been Manhattan Hasbro Hospital’s resident robot for more than twenty years. A prototype, humanoid in appearance, he was created to interact with people. While some staff accepted working alongside an anthropomorphic robot, Nate’s very existence terrified most people, leaving the robot utilized for menial tasks and generally ignored.
Until one of the hospital’s physicians is found brutally murdered with Nate standing over the corpse, a blood-smeared utility bar clutched in his hand. As designer and programmer of Nate’s positronic brain, Lawrence Robertson is responsible for his creation’s actions and arrested for the crime.
Susan Calvin knows the Three Laws of Robotics make it impossible for Nate to harm a human being. But to prove both Nate’s and Lawrence’s innocence, she has to consider the possibility that someone somehow manipulated the laws to commit murder...
Hardcover
First published February 2, 2016
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268 people want to read
About the author
Mickey Zucker Reichert
89 books182 followersMickey Zucker Reichert (pseudonym for Miriam Susan Zucker Reichert) is an American fantasy fiction author of several best selling novels. Perhaps her most famous work is the epic Renshai series, which offers an intriguing perspective on traditional Norse mythology. She is also a parent and paediatrician with a soft spot for critters great and small. She has been known care for a veritable zoo of creatures, at times including mice, horses, snakes, llamas, parrots, squirrels, possums, and foxes.
Alongside her twenty-two novels, Reichert has also published one illustrated novella and fifty-plus short stories.
Alongside her twenty-two novels, Reichert has also published one illustrated novella and fifty-plus short stories.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
May 9, 2021
All the bad, mad and crap stuff on this series has already happened in the prior installments. So, what else could hit the fan this time around? Seems there's plenty of stuff around. This time N8 gets into a big mess and of course, it's up to Susan dearest to get him out of the Code Silver thingy.
Okay. I officially love this series and am sad it's short. A great take on intergenre writing, combining sci-fi, thriller, whodunit, mystery, medical, even contemporary. Great topics, especialy the ethical goings on.
Okay. I officially love this series and am sad it's short. A great take on intergenre writing, combining sci-fi, thriller, whodunit, mystery, medical, even contemporary. Great topics, especialy the ethical goings on.
January 29, 2016
Although I had known that Asimov's "I, Robot" series was being expanded, I'd quite forgotten about it, so it was a pleasant surprise to find Mickey Zucker Reichert as the chosen author. (I might have missed the first two, but I'll be looking out for them now.)
This is a prequel trilogy, following Susan Calvin, well-known to Asimov's readers as the positronic robots' robopsychologist. Although currently a third-year medical resident, she knows that the Three Laws of Robotics cannot be evaded, altered or removed, but can there be any other explanation for a robot being found holding the murder weapon literally seconds after a leading scientist is bludgeoned to death? If US Robotics is to survive, if this wonderful, life-altering technology is not to be lost, she must be able to convince both the police and the public that the new positronic robots are not only useful to the military but also completely safe for the general public.
Disclaimer: I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This is a prequel trilogy, following Susan Calvin, well-known to Asimov's readers as the positronic robots' robopsychologist. Although currently a third-year medical resident, she knows that the Three Laws of Robotics cannot be evaded, altered or removed, but can there be any other explanation for a robot being found holding the murder weapon literally seconds after a leading scientist is bludgeoned to death? If US Robotics is to survive, if this wonderful, life-altering technology is not to be lost, she must be able to convince both the police and the public that the new positronic robots are not only useful to the military but also completely safe for the general public.
Disclaimer: I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
September 4, 2018
I am so disappointed in the third part of this robot story. in first section N8 is accused of murder. The next part talks about her sex life, ridiculous in this type of book. What a bore.
February 17, 2022
This was awfully bad. I knew where the book was going from the very first plot point. It was exhausting to read this knowing where the writer was heading all the time. It was so damn obvious and annoying to make a very strong smart character a complete idiot in the third installment of a trilogy that so far had 2 great books prior this one.
March 1, 2019
At last, I read the third book. It is pretty good, and really shows how SC became what we know from Asimov's later books.
February 29, 2016
I have enjoyed the Calvin trilogy thus far and been okay with the changes made to canon given how technology has changed in the intervening decades. However, I just could not connect with this final book. Right at the start of the novel, Susan meets a stranger who she falls in love with quite quickly. Given what we know about Susan's character, this felt out of character for her. She's been traumatized and has had everyone she's loved ripped away from her already. Given the fact that she isolated herself from her remaining friends, it seemed unlikely that she would be so quick to consort with a new person.
However, my biggest problem with this book was that it unsuccessfully mirrors one of the strongest Calvin stories: Liar, Liar. In To Preserve, there is a lot of conversation about how could Susan's new beau couldn't possibly love her given her plainness and his incredible handsomeness. Susan was rightfully put out by these comments, and pushed her friends away for making them. In Liar, Liar, a robot leads Susan to believe that one of her coworkers is attracted to her. It makes sense in context for a lonely woman who has denied herself personal relationships to be led astray by a being that she believes can't possibly lie. To see her realise what has happened and watch her hopes be dashed is heart wrenching. In To Preserve, however, this emotional heartache feels too unearned. Younger Susan is brilliant and not entirely separated from other people. People respect her and she interacts with people, at the very least, on the job. Older Susan seems much more isolated in comparison, and Liar, Liar says a lot about the choices she's made throughout her life. To Protect wants to crush its protagonist just to get her to isolate herself. It's too convenient and plot-driven rather than natural character progression.
I should also note that the way that Susan's friends were pushed out of her life was unsatisfying. Given Susan's lonely future, it makes sense that her personal connections would be cut before her time at the USR, but killing one and commenting that she just wouldn't be seeing one now that he worked for the government felt too convenient and not grounded in the narrative.
Unfortunately, To Preserve was the weakest book in the trilogy, giving readers a lackluster end to younger Susan's adventures.
However, my biggest problem with this book was that it unsuccessfully mirrors one of the strongest Calvin stories: Liar, Liar. In To Preserve, there is a lot of conversation about how could Susan's new beau couldn't possibly love her given her plainness and his incredible handsomeness. Susan was rightfully put out by these comments, and pushed her friends away for making them. In Liar, Liar, a robot leads Susan to believe that one of her coworkers is attracted to her. It makes sense in context for a lonely woman who has denied herself personal relationships to be led astray by a being that she believes can't possibly lie. To see her realise what has happened and watch her hopes be dashed is heart wrenching. In To Preserve, however, this emotional heartache feels too unearned. Younger Susan is brilliant and not entirely separated from other people. People respect her and she interacts with people, at the very least, on the job. Older Susan seems much more isolated in comparison, and Liar, Liar says a lot about the choices she's made throughout her life. To Protect wants to crush its protagonist just to get her to isolate herself. It's too convenient and plot-driven rather than natural character progression.
I should also note that the way that Susan's friends were pushed out of her life was unsatisfying. Given Susan's lonely future, it makes sense that her personal connections would be cut before her time at the USR, but killing one and commenting that she just wouldn't be seeing one now that he worked for the government felt too convenient and not grounded in the narrative.
Unfortunately, To Preserve was the weakest book in the trilogy, giving readers a lackluster end to younger Susan's adventures.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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February 9, 2016I have no idea how to really feel after finishing this book. I had little ideas how to feel about the previous novel. There are a lot of outdated tropes here that would have flown in the 80's, but Susan is either oblivious or completely incapable of reading humans; the mystery we are given is 'solved' only in a sideways and unsatisfactory fashion, and any character that isn't Susan herself has been completely screwed over by the end of the novel.
I've read books with protagonists who aren't sympathetic that managed to fly on the strength of their friendships, and when it's the protagonists friends who are BODILY CARRYING them through the plot of the novel it's generally polite to leave these secondary protagonists with something fulfilling of their own at the end.
Instead the results here better suit a middle book or an ongoing series: the protagonist has yet again wrecking balled the life of all of her friends and then swings on past into her glorious (extremely bizarre) future while everyone she leaves behind is screwed over or dead. To say it's unsatisfying is an understatement.
Yet, I did finish this book. MZR can craft a decent story, has a good grasp of the written word and pacing. What went wrong is simply the payoff, and this isn't the first time I've felt that way.
I've read books with protagonists who aren't sympathetic that managed to fly on the strength of their friendships, and when it's the protagonists friends who are BODILY CARRYING them through the plot of the novel it's generally polite to leave these secondary protagonists with something fulfilling of their own at the end.
Instead the results here better suit a middle book or an ongoing series: the protagonist has yet again wrecking balled the life of all of her friends and then swings on past into her glorious (extremely bizarre) future while everyone she leaves behind is screwed over or dead. To say it's unsatisfying is an understatement.
Yet, I did finish this book. MZR can craft a decent story, has a good grasp of the written word and pacing. What went wrong is simply the payoff, and this isn't the first time I've felt that way.
February 14, 2016
A bit repetitive, too full of coincidences and implausible relationships between the characters. A fast read, despite all that. As much as I liked the first book, the second and third of the series were a bit of a let down.
June 4, 2018
Only sci fi because there are robot characters
The action sequences were confusing and the story seemed poorly thought out. The hospital details were very good and there were some good passages so I still finished it but I found many aspects frustrating to get through.
The action sequences were confusing and the story seemed poorly thought out. The hospital details were very good and there were some good passages so I still finished it but I found many aspects frustrating to get through.
August 6, 2018
This is that story where I kept waiting and waiting for the plot to take off, but it doesn't. The 3rd installment in the iRobot (or I, Robot) series involves the most obvious and lazy plot "twist" imaginable. Just...disappointing.
September 9, 2019
In the conclusion of the I, Robot trilogy, Susan has decisions to make and problems to solve. When NC-8 is found standing over the body of Dr. Ari Goldman, Susan knows that the Three Laws of Robotics make it impossible for him to have committed the crime. However, she is in the minority since most don't understand those laws. Dr. Lawrence Robertson is arrested because he was the one who designed and programmed Nate and is therefore responsible for his actions.
Susan knows that she needs to find out who killed Dr. Goldman and how they managed to make it look like Nate did it. She gives up her residency in order to have time to work on finding the proof which causes her friend Dr. Kendall Stevens to worry about her.
She manages to free Nate from the police property department and while they are fleeing, she is shot at. She is rescued by Pal Buffoni who says that he is recently discharged from an elite military unit. He says that he has fallen in love with her and is determined to keep her safe. Susan, being alone and attracted to him, decides to accept his offer to keep her and Nate safe. Pal tries to convince her that the Society for Humanity has regrouped enough after the events of the last book to become a threat again. He also encourages her to find the lost code that divorces the positronic brain from the Three Laws that both the SFH and DoD's Cadmium are convinced she knows.
This was an exciting and fast-paced story as Susan, Nate and Pal are being chased both by bad guys and by the police who want to recapture Nate. I liked the action even though I knew about the big reveal long before Susan figured it out.
Fans of hard science fiction and robotics will enjoy this trilogy which makes a good introduction to Isaac Asimov's books about robots with positronic brains.
Susan knows that she needs to find out who killed Dr. Goldman and how they managed to make it look like Nate did it. She gives up her residency in order to have time to work on finding the proof which causes her friend Dr. Kendall Stevens to worry about her.
She manages to free Nate from the police property department and while they are fleeing, she is shot at. She is rescued by Pal Buffoni who says that he is recently discharged from an elite military unit. He says that he has fallen in love with her and is determined to keep her safe. Susan, being alone and attracted to him, decides to accept his offer to keep her and Nate safe. Pal tries to convince her that the Society for Humanity has regrouped enough after the events of the last book to become a threat again. He also encourages her to find the lost code that divorces the positronic brain from the Three Laws that both the SFH and DoD's Cadmium are convinced she knows.
This was an exciting and fast-paced story as Susan, Nate and Pal are being chased both by bad guys and by the police who want to recapture Nate. I liked the action even though I knew about the big reveal long before Susan figured it out.
Fans of hard science fiction and robotics will enjoy this trilogy which makes a good introduction to Isaac Asimov's books about robots with positronic brains.
August 11, 2024
I finally reach the end of this trilogy.
For the most part i've enjoyed the whole trilogy, but there are some annoying bits. Like in this book: how did Cadmium know that Susan and Nate would be walking through that park at that time to set up their ambush? She'd only just managed to rescue Nate and escape and even Susan had no idea how that was going to happen until, by a freak chance, it did. So all rather ridiculous if anyone is asking what i think.
And it just so happens that there's a jogger who saves her who is a super handsome god type who convinces Susan (who knows she's seriously plain Jane) that he thinks she's totally beautiful and seduces her into rampant sex. Well it was obvious from the start what was going on, but super intelligent, genius Susan couldn't see it until it was basically slammed into her face by Jake. Once again, ridiculous.
But, if you can overlook the ridiculous it's not too bad a story and we do get some good history on the beginning of humanoid robots and how Susan Calvin became the world's first robo-psychologist.
Now, thankfully, i can return to Isaac to read the real stuff.
Bye for now.
For the most part i've enjoyed the whole trilogy, but there are some annoying bits. Like in this book: how did Cadmium know that Susan and Nate would be walking through that park at that time to set up their ambush? She'd only just managed to rescue Nate and escape and even Susan had no idea how that was going to happen until, by a freak chance, it did. So all rather ridiculous if anyone is asking what i think.
And it just so happens that there's a jogger who saves her who is a super handsome god type who convinces Susan (who knows she's seriously plain Jane) that he thinks she's totally beautiful and seduces her into rampant sex. Well it was obvious from the start what was going on, but super intelligent, genius Susan couldn't see it until it was basically slammed into her face by Jake. Once again, ridiculous.
But, if you can overlook the ridiculous it's not too bad a story and we do get some good history on the beginning of humanoid robots and how Susan Calvin became the world's first robo-psychologist.
Now, thankfully, i can return to Isaac to read the real stuff.
Bye for now.
September 23, 2023
2037: Dr Susan Calvin walks away from her medical residency when her friend, robot N8-C is implicated in a murder and her father's former boss is deemed responsible, as he created the android. Convinced of the sanctity of the Three Laws of Robotics, she takes up a post at US Robotics as Robopsychologist and sets about trying to clear her friends.
Reichert's trilogy closes well, with an intriguing mystery which moves the major pieces to the starting point for Asimov's 'I, Robot' while successfully concluding the prequel trilogy. This book us just about capable of being read in isolation, but is outstanding when read as a bridge between the previous novels by Reichert and Asimov's Robot texts.
Reichert's trilogy closes well, with an intriguing mystery which moves the major pieces to the starting point for Asimov's 'I, Robot' while successfully concluding the prequel trilogy. This book us just about capable of being read in isolation, but is outstanding when read as a bridge between the previous novels by Reichert and Asimov's Robot texts.
March 2, 2019
This is the last third of the trilogy. Not a bad way to end the series with the hope of one day having robots in every home. This series takes place only 20 years in the future and I don’t think humanity would be ready at that point for an army of robots living and working for us and amongst us. Eventually I’ll get into Asimov’s I, robot series to see how closely Mickey got to squaring with his Susan Calvin.
July 4, 2018
Great conclusion to the prequel trilogy. I took one star off because I figured out who the bad guy was almost immediately when he entered the scene. It was just too easy. Also, for a smart woman, the protagonist is just so naïve and easily manipulated emotionally. Otherwise, I really enjoyed the series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 23, 2021
Reichert finished Dr. Susan Calvin's story arc well in this story. While it's not my favorite of the trilogy because the beginning was slow and some of the plot seemed contrived, I nevertheless enjoyed the story's final act the tied up all the loose ends of the trilogy. I hope Reichert can write more stories about Doctor Calvin.
November 27, 2021
I've read all three books in the series, including the library system purchasing this one at my request. I kind of enjoy them. I'm not utterly engrossed but at the same time I can see the goal of building a back story as to why she develops as she does. I actually think it could hold promise to be developed into a Netflix show (and it might be slightly more exciting that way).
May 12, 2019
Almost perfect
I loved the first two books in this series, this one floundered a little and the ending was much too obvious. Disappointing in that it also turned into a bit too much of an action movie type plot.
I loved the first two books in this series, this one floundered a little and the ending was much too obvious. Disappointing in that it also turned into a bit too much of an action movie type plot.
February 25, 2017
A tiny bit predictable. But good fun.
July 10, 2018
I wondered how Reicher's Calvin was going to turn into Asimov's Calvin. This tracks the evolution convincingly, at least to me.
Not to say that I like it. But it works.
Not to say that I like it. But it works.
July 13, 2020
Reichert has taken Asimov's "I, Robot" series deeper into the realm of science, a la Michael Crichton, and away from the fantastic - which makes it a much more attractive novel for me. She is a good writer who has created believable and three dimensional characters. Good stuff!
August 25, 2020
It was fun finish. It definitely is written to explain how Susan Calvin is in Asimov's books.
August 20, 2021
reread asimov's i, robot after years, enjoyed and went onto the 3 spinoffs
well crafted and excellent reads
wish there was more than the three laws of robots, so there could be more spinoffs
well crafted and excellent reads
wish there was more than the three laws of robots, so there could be more spinoffs
October 8, 2023
Great Book! Loved it!
July 13, 2024
Desværre er den ikke bedre end 2’eren. Dårlig handling, som grænser til det umulige. Og alt for meget fokus på følelser og for lidt fokus på facts. Øv!
March 18, 2017
I guess Susan Calvin had good reason to turn into a robot. Unhappily, with so much foreshadowing the zinger was obvious quite early on. Not a bad conclusion to the series, but she's no Isaac Asimov.
March 6, 2017
I, Robot: Preserve is third installment in the saga of Susan Calvin’s travels through her residency years and in some ways the most dramatic book in the series. Robot N-8C, AKA Nate, is accused of murder. The murder victim is a doctor who worked with Nate frequently and was a great supporter of Nate’s usage. Also accused is Nate’s creator Lawrence Robertson, a man greatly admired by Susan Calvin’s late father. Susan is convinced that Nate could not have done this crime but proving that he is innocent is not going to be easy.
The Three Laws of Robotics prevent Nate from being capable of harming a human being. But Nate has no memory of that time and the political climate is not robot friendly. Life is made even more difficult by the arrival of a young man named Pal, who poses as Susan’s new boyfriend but something doesn’t feel right to her friends. The details of the criminal investigation are confusing at times but by the end of the book I got the impression that political events limit United States Robots and Mechanical Men, Inc. place in society. This book gets a solid 4.
-Jacqueline R.
Click here to find the book at the Prince William County Public Library System.
The Three Laws of Robotics prevent Nate from being capable of harming a human being. But Nate has no memory of that time and the political climate is not robot friendly. Life is made even more difficult by the arrival of a young man named Pal, who poses as Susan’s new boyfriend but something doesn’t feel right to her friends. The details of the criminal investigation are confusing at times but by the end of the book I got the impression that political events limit United States Robots and Mechanical Men, Inc. place in society. This book gets a solid 4.
-Jacqueline R.
Click here to find the book at the Prince William County Public Library System.
April 27, 2016
“Isaac Asimov’s I, Robot: To Preserve: by Mickey Zucker Reichert is the third book in the series that continues to explore the role and fate of robots who have become sentient. Susan Calvin’s life has been fraught with tragedy and violence and the start of her time as head resident on the Pediatric Inpatient Psychiatry Unit is disrupted by an event that challenges the Laws of Robotics and threatens destruction to N8-C, the robot she calls Nate. Susan’s analytical mind must determine a way to solve the conundrum she is faced with, and her allies, new and old, must help her work through a way to save not only Nate, but also the inventor and leader of United States Robots and Mechanical Men, Lawrence Robertson. Unfortunately, not everyone has the same priorities.
Isaac Asimov’s remarkable contribution to science as well as science fiction provides the backbone for thought-provoking stories such as this one. Dr. Reichert continues to expertly immerse the reader in a society that is entirely plausible but reminds one of the biases that would have to be overcome in order to utilize such a remarkable invention to the maximum potential.
This exploration of the implications and permutations of the Three Laws of Robotics is an entertaining addition to the series, and although I think it may be possible to read this as a stand-alone story, it would be advisable to start at the beginning to appreciate all of the nuances. There are certain elements that were pretty predictable and a little inconsistent in light of Susan’s normal perspicacity and one cringes at the carnage that seems to plague her, but the story reveals new facets in both Susan and Nate and I certainly hope that this is not the last of the series.
An ARC of this title was provided for review which has been submitted to Night Owl Reviews
Isaac Asimov’s remarkable contribution to science as well as science fiction provides the backbone for thought-provoking stories such as this one. Dr. Reichert continues to expertly immerse the reader in a society that is entirely plausible but reminds one of the biases that would have to be overcome in order to utilize such a remarkable invention to the maximum potential.
This exploration of the implications and permutations of the Three Laws of Robotics is an entertaining addition to the series, and although I think it may be possible to read this as a stand-alone story, it would be advisable to start at the beginning to appreciate all of the nuances. There are certain elements that were pretty predictable and a little inconsistent in light of Susan’s normal perspicacity and one cringes at the carnage that seems to plague her, but the story reveals new facets in both Susan and Nate and I certainly hope that this is not the last of the series.
An ARC of this title was provided for review which has been submitted to Night Owl Reviews
February 20, 2017
Somewhat predictable and I didn't read the first two books in this series.
April 22, 2016
It takes a brave author to write about characters who were created by another well known and published author. To take on the readers and fans of Asimov's Robot stories was defiantly going to be a risk. However, Mickey Zucker Reichert most definitely pulls it it off in this I Robot Trilogy, of which I, Robot: To Preserve is the the last in the series.
Centering on Susan Calvin, the robopsychologist of Asimov's short stories, you are taken back to the time before she started working for United States Robots and Mechanical Men. This is not Asimov's almost emotionless ice lady but a bright young woman, at the beginning of her medical training, who has yet to experience the events that will harden her feelings and ensure that she will consider robots a far better being than the humans who created them.
In the last of the trilogy Susan finds herself trying to prove that a robot, Nate, and her soon to be new boss is not guilty of the murder of one of her colleagues at the hospital in which she is completing her internship. She finds herself up agains the police and a political group who hate robots and believe that her father had a code that could uncouple the robots from the basic 3 laws with which they are programmed.
A fast paced novel, which nicely concludes the 3 part series. Though part of me really hopes that that might be another book
Centering on Susan Calvin, the robopsychologist of Asimov's short stories, you are taken back to the time before she started working for United States Robots and Mechanical Men. This is not Asimov's almost emotionless ice lady but a bright young woman, at the beginning of her medical training, who has yet to experience the events that will harden her feelings and ensure that she will consider robots a far better being than the humans who created them.
In the last of the trilogy Susan finds herself trying to prove that a robot, Nate, and her soon to be new boss is not guilty of the murder of one of her colleagues at the hospital in which she is completing her internship. She finds herself up agains the police and a political group who hate robots and believe that her father had a code that could uncouple the robots from the basic 3 laws with which they are programmed.
A fast paced novel, which nicely concludes the 3 part series. Though part of me really hopes that that might be another book
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews