Robots & Roommates

Star Kingdom #0.5

by Lindsay Buroker

The tale of how Casmir and Kim from the Star Kingdom series first met and became roommates.

Genres: Science Fiction, Audiobook, Short Stories, Fantasy, Fiction, Humor, Space Opera

17 pages, ebook

First published January 19, 2021

About the author

I'm a full-time indie fantasy and science fiction author. When I'm not writing, I'm ferrying my dogs to hiking trails for adventures.

Reviews

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice and enjoyable introduction to the characters and Buroker’s writing.

I have several of her books as her kindle omnibuses regularly go on sale on Amazon, but this is the first offering of hers that I’ve read.

I’m looking forward to reading more as I whittle down my Buroker backlog.

[Emmalynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very short and cute story

[Ronie Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

This authorgot me interested in magic. I didn't know robots could be this cool. None have gone skynet as of now. So another title to add to my list.

[Carolyn F. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was sent this short story by the author, although she forgot to send the 3rd part for some reason.

Cute story. Enjoyed it. Nothing big.

[Lorrie (Clockworkbookworm) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Caleb · Rating 4 out of 5]

I quite enjoyed this short story.

It was very interesting to see the interactions between the robotics major and the young, almost roboticly calculating, biology major work together to get upto no good.

I also enjoyed the take of futuristic education where students complete meaningful projects instead of the current doctorate programs.

[Bruce · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good contextual short

[Alex Shrugged · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute. Funny. A little slapstick. I liked it a lot. I'd like to read the series.

The Story: Casmir Dabrowski is a robotics nerd in college looking for a roommate. He puts out an ad, and Kim Sato answers it... well.. actually she checks the place out on the sly, but gets caught by Casmir. It seems unlikely they will ever be roommates, but Kim has a problem that Casmir can solve using a robot drone.

Any problems with the story? Nothing really. This short story serves as a prequel to a series. I haven't read the series yet, but if it is largely comedic, then I have one impression of it. If it is not largely comedic then I would wonder why the author went for laughs here.

Any modesty issues? Casmir is Jewish and wears a kippah. Normally that marks one as an Orthodox Jew and thus one who practices modesty. Yet he admitted that he was not Orthodox. That might explain why he was considering taking a woman on as a roommate. Thus he would not consider a woman roommate as a violation of local modesty rules. (Every Orthodox Jewish community has their own set of rules that vary here and there on this subject.)

They almost get in trouble for breaking the rules of the secular community, but Casmir circumvents the authorities so deftly that Kim seems impressed. Thus starts their friendship.

I really liked this story and I might read it again. I am definitely interested in the series beginning with, "Shockwave".

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short prequel introduces Casmir Dabrowski as an electronics wizard college student looking for a roommate. He steps out to go meet friends for a game night and finds a young lady inspecting his building and surrounding trees. Advanced student, Kim Sato, isn't initially impressed by Casmir or his untidy dwelling. Then an unexpected encounter changes the situation and Casmir discovers that Kim has a nemesis nearby and she needs help accomplishing a lab experiment. Casmir steps up to help.

I enjoyed these two distinct, quirky characters and see how they could aggravate or compliment each other as partners at work. This story is short but entertaining. It pulled me in so that I plan to get book one to listen to more.

Audio Notes: Fred Berman does a very good job with the narration. He brings the right amount of humor to the text to capture the flavor of the story. I look forward to listening to more.

Source: Audible Plus Catalog. My Rating 4.25.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short story that introduces Casmir Dabrowski and Kim Sato and how they met and became roommates. Kim is skeptical of becoming Casmir's roommate at first because the house is messy and strewn with his belongings, including his robotic projects. But after his expertise proves useful in a project Kim is working on (and he cleans up the house), she changes her mind. It was fun getting some background into how they became friends, I enjoyed the story very much.

[Carole · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short story about how Casmir and Kim ended up being roommates. There’s no real plot here. It was entertaining to someone who had read the series, but I can’t imagine it would be interesting to someone who had not.

This is a short story with events taking place before the start of the series.

[MGB · Rating 4 out of 5]

A real fun short story. Possibly even real student life. Nothing like an engineer and a biologist coming to an understanding.

[Marti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect!

[Tünde Kasza tóth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can see the potential, but none of the characters felt close to me.

[Liza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Casmir needs a roommate but can he find one who can accept his untidy nature?

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable short.

[Noodle The Naughty Night Owl · Rating 4 out of 5]

7/10: Good solid read, something to get your teeth into.

[Loretta · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was a charming introduction between two college kids.

[Alistair · Rating 3 out of 5]

a free audible short story,
an introduction to this world/galaxy
fun and short could be worth pursuing it's now on the
"list" of possibles?

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute. Added the first book in the series to my wish list.

[Scott Wozniak · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short prequel was a fun read. Nothing epic, but very well written.

[Esmeralda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entertaining and fun

[Malissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very Entertaining
This was absolutely entertaining and a great lead in to the series. I cannot wait to continue on.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really cute read, I don't know if I'll buy the rest of the series but it's certainly tempting.

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice introduction to the two main characters. Sweet and short.

[Tommy Cargulia]

To short

[Jena · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

It was charming and makes me want to read the series!

[Elaine Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will probably check this series out, sounds fun.

[Vulpes · Rating 4 out of 5]

8.5/10

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

Duration 0:34