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Red Dot
After the disaster of global warming, the world has gotten its act together. People are positive, sensible and creating a better future and a just present. So, in a world where everyone makes good decisions, what could possibly go wrong?Well, other people. Twenty-something gay man Mardy dreams of becoming a full-time machine-tool artist. He brims with ideas, puts in the hours, has a solid circle of artist buddies—and forbidden friendships with artificial intelligences, the virtual slaves he works alongside of in his day job. But he’s always coming in second to an irritatingly successful rival. When he meets the rival’s twin, unexpected consequences drive Mardy to pursue not only his artistic passions but also love. And just possibly make the world a better place in the process.
- GenresQueer
319 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 1, 2021
78 people want to read
About the author
Mike Karpa
4 books16 followersHere's my standard bio: Mike’s fiction, memoir and nonfiction can be found in Tin House, Foglifter, Tahoma Literary Review, Oyster River Pages and other magazines. He is the author of Criminals (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09GRTWYBF), a literary thriller that was selected for Best Books of 2022 by Kirkus Reviews (starred review), the upbeat scifi romance Red Dot (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09GR7PH2B) and contemporary social comedy The Wealthy Whites of Williamsburg (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BM6L7D73), winner of Best LGBTQ novel at the San Francisco Book Festival! He lives with his husband and dog in San Francisco.
Here's what's new: I am getting into being a publisher not just of my work but of others. It's hard, but fun! And the press's first non-me book earned a starred review from Kirkus! So please check it out: blue: season, by Chris Lombardi. And Susie Hara's The House on Ashbury Street is getting a lot of love--you can even buy it at the San Francisco International Airport (Compass Books). And now we have a forthcoming new release: Wendy Schultz's River of Light, up for pre-orders on Amazon starting January 21, 2024.
I moved around so much the first three decades of my life that I didn't feel like I was from anywhere, but have now become quite rooted in San Francisco, lived in the same house for nearly decades, and with the same man for actual decades, which is the real form of being from somewhere: spending your life with someone you love.
Here's what's new: I am getting into being a publisher not just of my work but of others. It's hard, but fun! And the press's first non-me book earned a starred review from Kirkus! So please check it out: blue: season, by Chris Lombardi. And Susie Hara's The House on Ashbury Street is getting a lot of love--you can even buy it at the San Francisco International Airport (Compass Books). And now we have a forthcoming new release: Wendy Schultz's River of Light, up for pre-orders on Amazon starting January 21, 2024.
I moved around so much the first three decades of my life that I didn't feel like I was from anywhere, but have now become quite rooted in San Francisco, lived in the same house for nearly decades, and with the same man for actual decades, which is the real form of being from somewhere: spending your life with someone you love.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
April 1, 2022
Red Dot
By Mike Karpa
Mumblers Press, 2021
Five stars
It’s a wonderful book. Mike Karpa is one of those writers whose prose doesn’t get in the way. It’s literate and careful, but it doesn’t try too hard to be poetic, nor is it flat and unemotive. This quiet realism works especially well with the story, which is a kind of post-apocalyptic maker romance.
We know that the story, set in some unspecified future, is post-apocalyptic, because the author tells us, delivering the truth subtly, in discrete little fragments of history that (as I came to expect) become increasingly hair-raising, even as they continue to be almost throw-away lines in the narrative. That’s a very awkward way to describe it, because I don’t want to tell you anything about the state of the world in which the story takes place. Discovering Mardy’s world is one of the delights of reading “Red Dot.”
Mardy knows he’s in a post-apocalypse world—because he has survived it; been orphaned by it. But it is a world that is weirdly familiar, and comfortable, and certainly pleasant enough for Mardy and his group of twenty-something artist friends to live in. Mardy, his friends Inge, Cat, and Devesh, and the mysterious Hunt twins, are part of a crew of young makers—artists who rent workstations at a high-tech maker-space in San Francisco. They use their skills to compete in shows at a local gallery—run by more friends, a gay couple nicknamed Flaky and Death.
Developing their various artistic practices (which is not entirely like art today, because this is a very high-tech world, in which AI is ever-present) is rooted in a network of competitions—local, regional, continental—that can boost their prominence and marketability. They all have guaranteed basic incomes, and most of them have “day jobs.” Art is their passion, as art should be.
For all its futuristic fantasy, Mardy’s world feels very like the contemporary craft world I knew as a lifelong museum curator. I knew what the red dot of the title meant immediately, and it’s a great title, because it symbolizes what Mardy and his friends strive for.
At the core of the story is Mardy’s yearning to become a fully-realized adult, both through his art, and through his unexpected relationship with a friend’s brother. It is not really a coming-of-age story so much as a coming-to-appreciate-yourself story. It’s not unlike what all of us experienced when we were in our twenties. Before the apocalypse. It is an ordinary story made fresh and emotionally involving through the author’s skill at creating a world that is both frightening to imagine, and somehow optimistic.
By Mike Karpa
Mumblers Press, 2021
Five stars
It’s a wonderful book. Mike Karpa is one of those writers whose prose doesn’t get in the way. It’s literate and careful, but it doesn’t try too hard to be poetic, nor is it flat and unemotive. This quiet realism works especially well with the story, which is a kind of post-apocalyptic maker romance.
We know that the story, set in some unspecified future, is post-apocalyptic, because the author tells us, delivering the truth subtly, in discrete little fragments of history that (as I came to expect) become increasingly hair-raising, even as they continue to be almost throw-away lines in the narrative. That’s a very awkward way to describe it, because I don’t want to tell you anything about the state of the world in which the story takes place. Discovering Mardy’s world is one of the delights of reading “Red Dot.”
Mardy knows he’s in a post-apocalypse world—because he has survived it; been orphaned by it. But it is a world that is weirdly familiar, and comfortable, and certainly pleasant enough for Mardy and his group of twenty-something artist friends to live in. Mardy, his friends Inge, Cat, and Devesh, and the mysterious Hunt twins, are part of a crew of young makers—artists who rent workstations at a high-tech maker-space in San Francisco. They use their skills to compete in shows at a local gallery—run by more friends, a gay couple nicknamed Flaky and Death.
Developing their various artistic practices (which is not entirely like art today, because this is a very high-tech world, in which AI is ever-present) is rooted in a network of competitions—local, regional, continental—that can boost their prominence and marketability. They all have guaranteed basic incomes, and most of them have “day jobs.” Art is their passion, as art should be.
For all its futuristic fantasy, Mardy’s world feels very like the contemporary craft world I knew as a lifelong museum curator. I knew what the red dot of the title meant immediately, and it’s a great title, because it symbolizes what Mardy and his friends strive for.
At the core of the story is Mardy’s yearning to become a fully-realized adult, both through his art, and through his unexpected relationship with a friend’s brother. It is not really a coming-of-age story so much as a coming-to-appreciate-yourself story. It’s not unlike what all of us experienced when we were in our twenties. Before the apocalypse. It is an ordinary story made fresh and emotionally involving through the author’s skill at creating a world that is both frightening to imagine, and somehow optimistic.
April 5, 2022
This was such a beautifully constructed sci-fi world the author has crafted. The way they were able to bring about this post-dystopian world was so refreshing and unique, exploring a somewhat more hopeful future that sees environmental disasters conquered and technological wonders an everyday part of life. The emotional depth of a novel of this caliber that delves into the morality and heart of what an AI is or can be in life, and whether they can develop the same level of consciousness that humanity has, was absolutely outstanding and kept the reader both hopeful and teary throughout the read.
The character development of this narrative was stupendous. The LGBTQ representation that could be found throughout the entirety of this cast of characters was phenomenal to see and more relevant to the world we live in. This backstory for many of the characters, including protagonist Mardy himself, was perfect to mirror the themes and atmosphere that the AI conversation crafted naturally, making this such an exciting read.
The character development of this narrative was stupendous. The LGBTQ representation that could be found throughout the entirety of this cast of characters was phenomenal to see and more relevant to the world we live in. This backstory for many of the characters, including protagonist Mardy himself, was perfect to mirror the themes and atmosphere that the AI conversation crafted naturally, making this such an exciting read.
November 27, 2022
How could I not love this book? Hopeful, hopepunk, San Francisco, queer, art, thoughtful and philosophical while also an engaging story. My heart was in my throat for the last part of the book, and the ending did not disappoint. This was a random find through the StoryBundle Hopepunk bundle and I am so glad it came into my reading life!
June 6, 2025
Sometimes, a single determined soul can hype a book so much that you reluctantly put it on your TBR. Usually, I end up never reading these books if they don’t keep popping up in various places. My reading list will already take 4 years to get through if I don’t add anything to it or read any sequels. In Red Dot’s case, the cover didn’t do it any favors. It isn’t particularly enticing (though in hindsight, I actually think it captures the book perfectly). For some reason, this was the month that Red Dot came off the bookshelf, and I found myself lost in the life of an artist with severe imposter syndrome. This is definitely a contender for my favorite book of the year so far, and I will proudly be the 24th person to rate this book on goodreads. It’s a hidden gem that I would love to see gain some new readers; it sucked me in and didn’t let go.
Read if Looking For: character-driven sci fi, utopian-adjacent climate change futures, quality gay rep
Avoid if Looking For: action focused stories, believable romance arcs, pessimistic views of the future
Elevator Pitch:
Mardy is an artist in a vaguely utopian future. Humanity banded together to help heal from the climate crisis, universal basic income is standard, and people eagerly volunteer their time for the good of the earth. Mardy’s main medium is machine tooling: manipulating metal and animatronics that are both functional and artistic. However, he’s constantly beaten by his rival Smith, and he’s wondering if he really has a future in art. Cue a chance meeting with Smith’s mysterious twin brother Wes, and slowly pieces start to slot into place for his next big step. Layered on top of all this is the single snag in the idyllic (if overheated) world: artificial intelligence is essential to the survival of the earth. Naming them, acknowledging their personhood, or encouraging independent decision making is a crime, out of fear they will abandon their duties keeping the world from tottering into destruction. Mardy disagrees and hopes his art is subversive enough to start making people rethink their beliefs.
What Worked for Me:
The soul of this book is in Mike Karpa’s prose and pacing, who does a fantastic job of managing the flow of the story. In low stakes or character-focused stories, a big fear of mine is things dragging out, or feeling inconsequential. Success relies on a clear voice narrating the story and understanding which scenes are key to the book’s heart. Karpa nails this. His writing isn’t particularly bespoke, but I found it really captured the feelings of anxiety and imposter syndrome while sticking within a fairly traditional prose style. He also has a gift for not dragging scenes out beyond the length they need to be – sometimes as short as a single paragraph – and shifting between scenes without needing to constantly explain the connections between them. It was a remarkably smooth reading experience. I felt thrust into the life of an artist who never feels good enough, who sees red dots on all of his rival’s gallery pieces, and who can’t quite figure out his direction in life.
In terms of tone, this book is very grounded. The characters all feel transparently human, not simply a collection of character traits slapped onto a page. They take actions that humans would, impulsive and logical and emotional and planned. But no character feels like they act simply because the plot demands it. Friendships end without consuming the central plot, a reflection of Mardy’s growing obsession with his work and a new relationship. The story happens in a living, breathing art community, filled with its own petty drama and joyful friendships. The book isn’t quite slice of life – there’s too much direct plotting for that – but it captures the essence of what makes for great slice of life and applies it to a more traditional storyline. Even when drama occurs, it feels like the messiness of life, instead of a dramatic plot twist or stupid miscommunication. I kept expecting some giant reveal but, while a few big reveals happened, it was handled with remarkable deftness, and never felt forced or trite.
Finally, I want to take some time to acknowledge and laud the queer represnetation in this book. This is the type of story that made me feel remarkably seen as a gay man. The various queer men are all different, and none feel like stereotypes (even though many have elements of stereotypical gay men). Thank goodness for queer men writing queer men, and female authors of gay fiction could learn a lot from this. The story also includes a fairly prominent nonbinary side character, who similarly was excellently realized.
What Didn’t Work For Me:
This book isn’t a Romance (though I see it mentioned as such on the author’s bio). A romantic connection is a key subplot, but I ultimately think you could remove it without losing the heart of the story. This is a good thing because, while I think the relationship ended up in a well-realized place, it didn’t start that way. The first meeting, complete with physical attraction, to falling in love was too quick to justify in my mind, and would have bugged me more if this had been a more major part of the story. As it was, there were a few raised eyebrows and a nagging need to suspend my disbelief a few times.
I also think there would have been more room to explore the ideas of AI personhood more deeply. In the end, I think that would have taken the story to a more traditional dystopian space, but this book remained resolutely upbeat despite being filled with a character not feeling like they’re enough. For me, the choice to lightly touch on themes fit the needs of the story, but I think some will chafe at how Karpa could have pushed harder in this direction.
Conclusion: a hopeful, anxious, and optimistic story of a machine artist pursuing his dreams in a future where humanity has banded together to save the earth
Want More Reviews Like This: Try my Blog CosmicReads
Read if Looking For: character-driven sci fi, utopian-adjacent climate change futures, quality gay rep
Avoid if Looking For: action focused stories, believable romance arcs, pessimistic views of the future
Elevator Pitch:
Mardy is an artist in a vaguely utopian future. Humanity banded together to help heal from the climate crisis, universal basic income is standard, and people eagerly volunteer their time for the good of the earth. Mardy’s main medium is machine tooling: manipulating metal and animatronics that are both functional and artistic. However, he’s constantly beaten by his rival Smith, and he’s wondering if he really has a future in art. Cue a chance meeting with Smith’s mysterious twin brother Wes, and slowly pieces start to slot into place for his next big step. Layered on top of all this is the single snag in the idyllic (if overheated) world: artificial intelligence is essential to the survival of the earth. Naming them, acknowledging their personhood, or encouraging independent decision making is a crime, out of fear they will abandon their duties keeping the world from tottering into destruction. Mardy disagrees and hopes his art is subversive enough to start making people rethink their beliefs.
What Worked for Me:
The soul of this book is in Mike Karpa’s prose and pacing, who does a fantastic job of managing the flow of the story. In low stakes or character-focused stories, a big fear of mine is things dragging out, or feeling inconsequential. Success relies on a clear voice narrating the story and understanding which scenes are key to the book’s heart. Karpa nails this. His writing isn’t particularly bespoke, but I found it really captured the feelings of anxiety and imposter syndrome while sticking within a fairly traditional prose style. He also has a gift for not dragging scenes out beyond the length they need to be – sometimes as short as a single paragraph – and shifting between scenes without needing to constantly explain the connections between them. It was a remarkably smooth reading experience. I felt thrust into the life of an artist who never feels good enough, who sees red dots on all of his rival’s gallery pieces, and who can’t quite figure out his direction in life.
In terms of tone, this book is very grounded. The characters all feel transparently human, not simply a collection of character traits slapped onto a page. They take actions that humans would, impulsive and logical and emotional and planned. But no character feels like they act simply because the plot demands it. Friendships end without consuming the central plot, a reflection of Mardy’s growing obsession with his work and a new relationship. The story happens in a living, breathing art community, filled with its own petty drama and joyful friendships. The book isn’t quite slice of life – there’s too much direct plotting for that – but it captures the essence of what makes for great slice of life and applies it to a more traditional storyline. Even when drama occurs, it feels like the messiness of life, instead of a dramatic plot twist or stupid miscommunication. I kept expecting some giant reveal but, while a few big reveals happened, it was handled with remarkable deftness, and never felt forced or trite.
Finally, I want to take some time to acknowledge and laud the queer represnetation in this book. This is the type of story that made me feel remarkably seen as a gay man. The various queer men are all different, and none feel like stereotypes (even though many have elements of stereotypical gay men). Thank goodness for queer men writing queer men, and female authors of gay fiction could learn a lot from this. The story also includes a fairly prominent nonbinary side character, who similarly was excellently realized.
What Didn’t Work For Me:
This book isn’t a Romance (though I see it mentioned as such on the author’s bio). A romantic connection is a key subplot, but I ultimately think you could remove it without losing the heart of the story. This is a good thing because, while I think the relationship ended up in a well-realized place, it didn’t start that way. The first meeting, complete with physical attraction, to falling in love was too quick to justify in my mind, and would have bugged me more if this had been a more major part of the story. As it was, there were a few raised eyebrows and a nagging need to suspend my disbelief a few times.
I also think there would have been more room to explore the ideas of AI personhood more deeply. In the end, I think that would have taken the story to a more traditional dystopian space, but this book remained resolutely upbeat despite being filled with a character not feeling like they’re enough. For me, the choice to lightly touch on themes fit the needs of the story, but I think some will chafe at how Karpa could have pushed harder in this direction.
Conclusion: a hopeful, anxious, and optimistic story of a machine artist pursuing his dreams in a future where humanity has banded together to save the earth
Want More Reviews Like This: Try my Blog CosmicReads
November 6, 2021
Addictive. Sexy. Weirdly profound.
Did you love Kim Stanley Robinson's NEW YORK 2140? Then strap in for this journey through that future in the rest of the country. In addition to Karpa's trademark sharp plotting and sharp characters,RED DOT manages to be a meditation on grief and resiliency.
Did you love Kim Stanley Robinson's NEW YORK 2140? Then strap in for this journey through that future in the rest of the country. In addition to Karpa's trademark sharp plotting and sharp characters,RED DOT manages to be a meditation on grief and resiliency.
August 14, 2023
‘Red Dot’ is set in a future, post-apocalyptic world where climate change forced humanity to overcome animosity and tribalism to work together to rebuild. Based in San Francisco, the main character – Mardy – works part-time in an artist collective competing for recognition and part-time delivering packages. As Mardy strives to be seen and recognized as an artist, he questions the rules regarding how society interacts with artificial intelligence and finds romance in a very unlikely place.
For myself, I came away with three distinct but interwoven story lines. In no particular order, I’ll start with this future Earth. Earth has been damaged by unmitigated climate change, sea levels rose, levies broke, nations are under water. I think the United States implemented a basic living wage for all adults which can be supplemented with doing restoration work or other jobs like delivering packages. The background worldbuilding is subtle, incorporated into Mardy’s background story as to why things are the way they are.
My niggles here are, oddly enough, with the delivery aspect. The reader knows Mardy is zipping around in some kind of supersonic jet or air transport à la “Jetsons” style, but from an efficiency, logistical, and environmental standpoint it made no sense as to why someone in San Fransico would be delivering packages to the East Coast. Other than to set the foundation for the romance.
It is through the delivery aspect the artificial intelligence thread emerges. It is against the law to name artificial intelligences, yet Mardy had come to recognize and name the AIs he interacts with – a very risky move if discovered. It is this aspect that influences and empowers his art. The movie or movie clip references which inspire Mardy’s project were interesting enough that I googled them (do it when you read this book. All I have to say is fascinating!). Art pushing social/political boundaries is not new and as a theme it was well employed in the book.
Delivering packages is what leads to the romance. It is set in Cleveburgh (inferring an East Coast metropolis) that Mardy meets his rival’s twin brother - Wesson. The attraction is instant and mutual. This was my other niggle - the first romantic interlude that occurs a few chapters later felt rushed and out of place, jarring even, and didn’t leave me with warm fuzzies. It took several more chapters and some dating to regain my mental footing as related to the romance. Ultimately, I did enjoy the romantic development between Mardy and Wesson.
Within these three threads is a cast of supporting characters. These characters felt real to me – no besties squeeing “tell me EVERYTHING!!”, no siblings threatening to do bodily harm if their brother was hurt – it is a dynamic group of friends who support each other, who are their own entities and acted like people would act. I think this aspect, more than anything, is what held those three plot threads together.
Overall, this is an engaging read with some thought-provoking themes relating to climate change, societal views on AI autonomy, and art as social commentary.
NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
For myself, I came away with three distinct but interwoven story lines. In no particular order, I’ll start with this future Earth. Earth has been damaged by unmitigated climate change, sea levels rose, levies broke, nations are under water. I think the United States implemented a basic living wage for all adults which can be supplemented with doing restoration work or other jobs like delivering packages. The background worldbuilding is subtle, incorporated into Mardy’s background story as to why things are the way they are.
My niggles here are, oddly enough, with the delivery aspect. The reader knows Mardy is zipping around in some kind of supersonic jet or air transport à la “Jetsons” style, but from an efficiency, logistical, and environmental standpoint it made no sense as to why someone in San Fransico would be delivering packages to the East Coast. Other than to set the foundation for the romance.
It is through the delivery aspect the artificial intelligence thread emerges. It is against the law to name artificial intelligences, yet Mardy had come to recognize and name the AIs he interacts with – a very risky move if discovered. It is this aspect that influences and empowers his art. The movie or movie clip references which inspire Mardy’s project were interesting enough that I googled them (do it when you read this book. All I have to say is fascinating!). Art pushing social/political boundaries is not new and as a theme it was well employed in the book.
Delivering packages is what leads to the romance. It is set in Cleveburgh (inferring an East Coast metropolis) that Mardy meets his rival’s twin brother - Wesson. The attraction is instant and mutual. This was my other niggle - the first romantic interlude that occurs a few chapters later felt rushed and out of place, jarring even, and didn’t leave me with warm fuzzies. It took several more chapters and some dating to regain my mental footing as related to the romance. Ultimately, I did enjoy the romantic development between Mardy and Wesson.
Within these three threads is a cast of supporting characters. These characters felt real to me – no besties squeeing “tell me EVERYTHING!!”, no siblings threatening to do bodily harm if their brother was hurt – it is a dynamic group of friends who support each other, who are their own entities and acted like people would act. I think this aspect, more than anything, is what held those three plot threads together.
Overall, this is an engaging read with some thought-provoking themes relating to climate change, societal views on AI autonomy, and art as social commentary.
NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
June 18, 2025
Honestly, I almost bounced out of this story when the romance plotline started, because it felt very sudden and threatened to overwhelm the chosen family aspects I preferred. But…I’m glad I didn’t! Everything that looks simple at the start deepens layer by layer. This fun, hopeful story about robots, AIs, and makers/artists keeps mixing them all up, over and over, to explore identities, appearances, and social support systems. The story’s power springs from small insights, from future geography to water cooler conversations (with AIs integral to both planes and cooling systems), from artistic challenges to unanswered questions (often involving a certain pair of identical twins), and from personal insecurity to challenging unfair laws (pretty much the main character’s M.O. throughout). This fantastical future feels messy in a good way that left me hoping the best for all the characters and their version of our world.
August 2, 2023
The world building was interesting, if a little bit inconsistent. The ending of the book was incredibly rushed, introducing a lot of new information and ideas without really fleshing them out. The ending was ambiguous, bordering on a cliffhanger, although I suspect that was a stylistic choice.
The hardcore sex scenes were jarring.
The hardcore sex scenes were jarring.
December 26, 2022
This book is delightful, very HopePunk, similar to Becky Chambers. It’s full of kindness and hope, with characters who are artists and care for each other. I also like the relationship between organics and inorganics. I loved it!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews