This is a humorous sci-fi view of what life is like in futuristic space "suburbia" and what happens when humans aren't the dominant beings and serve as only cleaners?

This book is a robo-apocalypse loving, young teen techie's new favorite read. There were loads of technology centric ideas that were both unique and entertaining. I have 2 main gripes though:

#1- Even though the characters were robotic, their development felt needlessly stunted. It was hard to relate or empathize with any of them which sadly left me with a total disconnect on my end.


BUT...


Even with their 2 dimensionalality there were a few pretty cool female archetypes. The robo-women, Pam & the cyborgs too, could have had a series devoted all to themselves and Kelly- one of the humans- (but don't hold that against her) was pretty cool too. I agree with many of the other reviewers, I would have liked more of the ancient cyborg ladies but kudos given for imagining up the whole taboo internet accessing "medium" aspect...AND... the Fondle Parlors where humans "service" the machines in seedy back alley parlors, intimating robo/human prostitution without all of the smutty details described... both scenarios were inventive and fun.

Gripe #2- The humor in this book was likened to the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy BUT while this was in the same vein (light and airy commentary on the good, the bad and the ugly aspects of society), the actual jokes just didn't do it for me. In fact, though Chris McCrudden may have parodied Douglas Adams, the actual jokes felt forced like they were trying hard at playing it cool.


Ultimately, while the social critiquing was insightful and portrayed in a (slightly) humorous, manner...the levity on a whole missed its mark with me and I didn't laugh out loud or even chuckle inwardly... not once....sounds snobby?? Maybe, BUT I really just want to get across to you how much the synopsis lured me in with promises of a Douglas Adams equal only to turn around and uncerimoniously dump me into "Meh" Town. This will definitely resonate with a niche demographic and I am unfortunately not wholly in that group (though also not completely apart). The synopsis sounded too enticing to pass up but be warned that it isn't for every Douglas Adams fan.

**** I was given a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review ****

This is a comedy sci-fi novel set in a time when machines are the ruling class. Yes, machines. Washing machines, toasters, microwaves, have somehow gained intelligence and taken over the world. I thought the idea was original and strange but in a good way. The personified machines were interesting to read about, the two main characters were cardboard-like and didn’t seem to have any traits besides saving the world. Although there were a few moments of light-heartedness I didn’t find the book very funny. Overall it was an interesting although vague commentary on society and technology.

This is an interesting book to review. It is a book based in the future where the machines are overlords but not in the way that current trends fear. They have a mind of their own but they also have the matching flaws that go with power. It was not an easy read I have to admit, each depiction seems to be a carefully calculated statement which tends to hold a mirror out to our state of civilized society. 

It is just another day on Earth and the surrounding inhabited satellites. The internet is a forbidden wasteland where the machines are prohibited to enter and the humans have lost the ability to indulge in. Things start to spiral out of control from a seemingly trivial problem. The entire escapade is only a few days long, but a lot is packed into it. I found some of the things mentioned in it fascinating although I think a decent understanding of the technology field, or basic understanding of mechanical and electronic equipment would be a bonus. The only reason it was not completely my cup of tea was that I was so focused on the 'reality' being discussed that I did not find the heart to laugh at anything that was happening, even at passing gaffes that were meant to lighten the mood. It took me a while to get into the groove to actually finish it, and I did finish it with the thought that it was a very unique book. It will make the day of a book club/reading group. It can be constantly discussed and still have fodder for thought.

This is very much in the style of Douglas Adams, so if you enjoy his books, then you will like this one. Funny, lighthearted, and a bit whacky!

“The idea of a human operating a machine was fundamentally disgusting to someone brought up to see only the gulf between organisms and inorganisms.”

Thank you to #Netgalley and #Farragopress for the free advanced copy of Battlestar Suburbia by Chris McCrudden for my honest review.

This book is something like I’ve never read before. On the space station Dolestar Discover and on the concrete Earth, the machines have taken over. My interpretation is of this book is the triumph of good over evil and when you think there is no hope left, never give up.

It all starts with Darren. Darren is a “fleshie” who pretty much hates his life. His cart that he sells extra power packs from was lost in space and he didn’t know what to do. He is tired of machines and he wants a change. This book is about his journey of meeting new people and trusting machines to work together to make sure their worlds do not end by a CELL PHONE who wants to take of the world.

I also see this book as a commentary on how we rely on machines WAY too much and the more we rely on them the more power they have. With the rise of AI, this may be in our future, but hopefully not!

I suggest this read if you like sci-fi and fantasy. There is some bad language so maybe not the best for kids.

If you’re soul/conscious was a machine, what machine would you be?

It's a really interesting world! Basically, at some point in human history, machines decided that they don't want to work for humans anymore – they want to be free. So the machines liberated themselves and enslaved humans, for... For cleaning. Yes, you heard that right. Solely for cleaning. (The whole idea of such a world is so wild and ridiculous that it makes it a pure riot to read about it.) Anyway, the humans really don't even remember what the world looked like before they were the cleaning squad, and despite living like slaves, they don't seem to have any will or ability to change it. Until one rebellion starts... completely by accident. What follows is a jumble of the oddest coincidences that ends up in... freedom.

Trust me. You really want to read this one.

Why?

The World Is A Great Parody Of Our Society

What an interesting idea – humans working for machines, and not machines working for humans, and inefficient humans are not allowed to exist. The existence of the machines is kind of ridiculous at this point – they don't even know why they're there anymore, and they go to all sorts of lengths to make themselves feel good about their purpose by acting out silly games with humans in what are called 'fondle parlors', which is basically a parody of our whole society. Humans cleaning robots is treated like prostitution, and the machine and human relations are sexualized without being sexual – it's all just so odd, but brilliantly done! I know I kept wondering and scratching my head about how the author came up with those ideas in this topsy turvy world – because I never would have been able to. It was such a convoluted, odd, and yet fun parody of everything! Perhaps sprinkled with some black humor, but seriously – we love it in scifi, don't we?

The Internet Is Forbidden

That's another interesting part of this universe. The machines don't actually use internet! Upon freeing themselves, they've abandoned the online world and closed it off for the purely software kind of consciousness. Which makes the internet full of half-living memes eating each other, big data generating itself and feeding upon old Facebook interactions (with no more humans to generate new ones!) and all sorts of stuff like that. But that's not all... Because, and here's the part I loved best, since everyone is forbidden to access internet, especially humans – since they have no means to (remember, technology is now people, so there's no machine you can use for access) – well, apparently, now it's mediums who access the ole forbidden internet. Like forbidden old magic. YES, IT'S BRILLIANT. I laughed my butt off. Honestly!

All The Strong, Butt-kicking Women

Battlestar Suburbia is full of really ass-whooping females! There is ONE male character, and even he has to dress as a woman for a certain mission, and admits he enjoyed the experience of being in a woman's shoes. All the rest of the characters that are of any importance, really, are women. Whether human or machine, they're capable, smart and they will give you what for. Even whether good or evil, they'll give you what for! There's a male (machine) villain, but there is also a female villain, and I dare say, she's AMAZING. I wish I could tell you more, but I'd end up rambling for about a page and getting nowhere. Just read the book! You won't regret. (And then tell me who your favorite was. For those who have read, I am SO in the fanclub of the four cyborg ladies with the Baba Yaga 4000 house. Can it get better than that?? Then again, Pam the breadmaker. She is also absolutely amazing. So badass!)

Speaking Of Which... BATTLESTAR SUBURBIA IS SO FUNNY!

This book is incredibly entertaining!!! And I mean, INCREDIBLY. It will turn around, place on its head and parody every little thing about our society and our way of life. Using the machines as caricatures of human beings, it will point out every little thing that we overthink or do out of habit irrationally. Sometimes on the brink of being believable, this machine society is sure to crack you up. Not only does it do good social commentary, like I've mentioned before, but the pace is really well done, so you'll never find yourself stuck while reading it. It's always moving, things straight one after the other – I'd categorize it as a scifi or speculating adventure with loads of humor. It's a relatively easy read, cause while it has deep material, it will not bog you down or make you glum. It will basically just make you laugh and wonder.

It Also Gets Surprisingly Deep At Times
Despite being seriously hilarious, Battlestar Suburbia can also be plain old serious and deep at times. It talks about issues of freedom, of working for someone else but yourself, of being at the very bottom rung of society and dealing with it. It also talks about a society being lost, not realizing where it came from, or worse – lying about where it came from. There's loss, there's finding your own self, there's realizing that you can stop living 'small' and running from your battles, and instead trying to live 'big' and caring for the bigger things in life, like other people's lives or what's in the future.

Overall...

Battlestar Suburbia was an amazing book and I'm so glad I stumbled upon it. I can recommend it to any scifi or adventure fan! Especially if you're looking for a lighter read that won't get you down, this is it. Really recommended on all counts!

The Triggers

Some triggers are [spoiler]mass destruction, although mostly of machines, taking over human bodies, oppression, sort of like prostitution, but not really? Some violence.[/spoiler] But I wouldn't categorize this book as very triggering! It's mostly very light-hearted, and if bad things happen, they're not treated too seriously.

Other Books You Might Like

Battlestar Suburbia mostly reminded me of The Punch Escrow – because of a goofy main character who doesn't know what they're even good for, and eventually finds himself. Also, the dynamics and the humor were very much like it! I also feel like fans of Murderbot would like this story. While Murderbot is very different, it does have as similar sense of humor, although the world is muuuuuuch less serious in Battlestar Suburbia! And of course, I can't fail to mention Redshirts – while it's also quite different, it has a similar vibe, both of the funny and of the serious parts of the book.

I thank Prelude and Farrago Press for giving me a free copy of the book in exchange to my honest opinion. Receiving the book for free does not affect my opinion.

Fun satire but sometimes too silly

On the positive side, this was a fun book to read, as it takes a satirical look at how we currently interact with the internet and how we may in the future. There is great character development and the story is well paced. Some parts are so well written that I would re-read them, but some of the content is eye-rollingly silly. But the book was always creative. If you can put aside some of the nonsense, then it is a book worth reading.

This book was funny, well written, and worth the read!

Imagine that machines have taken over the world - that's where this book comes in. Humans are now servants, and the machines are in charge. The internet is, from what I understand, basically obsolete,

This book is filled with so many funny one-liners and characters that made me want to keep reading no matter what. The story is well written, well plotted and has enough going on to keep readers interested and wanting to know more.

This was mildly amusing in parts but it never really lifted off for me. I am not sure why that was exactly. perhaps that was because I found it really hard to engage with the characters and the storylines. I felt from the blurb that went with the book that I should have loved it but that never really happened in a big way with me. This was a shame as the novel had so much apparent promise. However, it never really worked well for me as a cohesive whole.

Imagine a world in which robots and machines have decided that they are superior to the humans that created them and have taken over the world. That’s the setting of Chris McCrudden’s Battlestar Suburbia.

Humans have been reduced to custodians, and live on small satellites in orbit around Earth, called The Dolestars. They exist to service their machine overlords, and that’s about it.

In this world, the internet has been completely banned, and anyone that uses it will be persecuted, whether machine or human.

“Of course, officially no one had accessed the Internet for millennia. The ‘Schism’ between the machines who lived as software and hardware dated back to the first few foggy decades after artificial intelligence kicked humanity out of power. There had been a war. A brutal one, with countless machines dead on either side just from defending their edits on the war’s Wikipedia page. It had been the first, and thankfully the last, incident where robots fought one another. In the end they agreed on two things: that they should try living apart, and if anyone were to blame it was the humans.”

The story follows two humans, Darren and Kelly, as well as a sentient breadmaker named Pamasonic Teffal, aka Pam.

Darren and Kelly are on the run after accidentally damaging a floating spy streetlamp. Pam has been asked to track the humans down by a smartphone named Sonny Erikzon.

Kelly leads Darren to her mother’s underground hair salon, Kurl Up and Dye, where he is introduced to the last four cyborgs in existence. Together, they fight against the machines as they reject their robot rulers. The tale is an exciting adventure through the Dolestar Discovery and the robot surface of the earth, where the skyscrapers reach high into the atmosphere and the oceans have been filled with concrete.

Battlestar Suburbia reminds me a lot of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. It’s funny, exciting, and very ridiculous. I had never heard of Chris McCrudden before, but the cover caught my eye, and after reading the synopsis, I had a strong feeling I would love this book.

I loved the premise of both software and hardware deciding they no longer wanted to be ruled by humans and then gaining control of the planet. There are so many scenes of what the internet has become that made me laugh:

“On the Internet, however, World of Warcraft avatars merged with Reddit trolls to spawn a line of programmes so fanatical about defending the purity of their messageboards that they made a terrorist cell look like a basketful of sleeping kittens.”

The machine brothels were also pretty hilarious. Machines pay humans to “service” them, and role-play that humans are still able to use the machines as what they were originally meant to be.

There’s also a quip at our current administration and racism:

“Sonny’s broadcast was a masterful piece of propaganda, in that it gave already paranoid machines the excuse to treat their prejudices like they were facts. ‘Now, don’t get me wrong,’ rang the conversation in billions of homes, offices and public charging points, ‘I like humans. The lady who cleans our house is a sweetheart. But these people are different. And he’s right. We have to do something.”

I enjoyed the book very much as an adventure story. It’s fast-paced, and the characters travel through both the physical world and the world of code. It’s interesting to have characters divide themselves and work among memes and firewalls.

There was one aspect of this book that prevented me from giving it five stars, and that’s simply that I could not picture the machine characters, at all. Are these sentient breadmakers and smartphones just floating? Do they have human-style arms and legs? I have no idea. There are scenes where Pam has an LED nail job, so I’m guessing they at least have arms attached? I wish the author had spent more time describing the machine characters in order to give the readers something easier to imagine.

At the end of the book, there’s a brief advertisement for the second book in this series, which made me really happy. I can’t wait to see what comes next.

This book is totally ridiculous, silly, hilarious and absolutely fantastic! A fun sci-fi romp with at slightly Pratchett feel. You will never look at your household appliances the same way again. Wonderful stuff!

Did not really enjoy the heavy-handed nature of the satire in this. It's a well paced and deftly written book, but I couldn't get to caring about anything in the world. Didn't finish it.

Battlestar Suburbia is a fun read that’s reminiscent of Douglas Adams. Battlestar Suburbia is set in the future when artificial intelligence has taken over and machines are in power. All history has been changed or revised to show that machines were always in charge.

“Elsewhere on the Internet, history had been retouched, re-edited, deleted, so that no suggestion that biological entities had once controlled the place remained.”

“The internet has become a scary place and it is forbidden to go on it via a modem, which is the only way to access it. All electronic devices have stopped working in the way that they were initially intended — phones, toasters, microwaves, etc.”

Machines now rule the world and are at odds with humans. We meet and follow the trials and tribulations of some machines — Beattie (cardiogram), Pam (breadmaker), Casey (keyboard), etc. There are all kinds of machines that have power in this new world — lamp post, smartphone, defibrillator, and even a motorcycle. In fact, the reader is warned that smartphones can be dangerous, especially in positions of power.

“There was a saying among machines that smartphones were always one swipe between efficiency and megalomania.”

“That was the other wonderful thing about smartphones. They were so customisable, so responsive to the needs of their users. No wonder they’d been the first machines to rebel.”

The story follows Kelly and Darren — they are on the run from the machine authorities. They are also trying to save the world. It’s a quick and quirky read with moments that are laugh out loud funny.

“Meanwhile, Darren readjusted his worldview. Even for someone like him, who was so low down the food chain that even plankton left him off their Christmas card list...”

“Its golden roads traced complex patterns between buildings which soared so high that penthouse owners qualified for orbital tax exemption.”

I enjoyed Battlestar Suburbia and look forward to reading more from Chris McCrudden.

Thank you to Farrago and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

Silly and fun! A laugh-out-loud read. Highly recommend.
Many thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

I enjoyed this book. However, not enough to read any more of the series. I won’t be purchasing it for my school library, as there are parts that were not suitable for my readers. I loved the premise of the book, and the concept that any machine with a microprocessor would come to life. The reluctant hero also tugs at my heart strings. It could have used a bit more editing, but still a fun romp.

Battlestar Suburbia asks a fascinating and hilarious question: what would the world be like if every appliance, gadget and machine suddenly gained sentience? In the tale that follows, McCrudden shows us an irresistible world through a humor-driven narrative that shows a fractured society filled with corruption and constant surveillance by the powers that be. There are many parallels to our world, giving way to a larger discussion about class structures and what happens when power dynamics shift.

NOTE: I was provided a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest, unbiased review. I only publish reviews of books I enjoy, and this novel meets that criterion.

BATTLESTAR SUBURBIA

Chris McCrudden
Farrago, August 2018

QUICK SUMMARY

In a world where appliances and machines call the shots, a pair of humans accidentally set off a catastrophic chain of events that will forever change the power dynamics of the universe.

WHY I LOVED IT

SENTIENT APPLIANCES

Battlestar Suburbia inhabits a universe both terrifying and hilarious. Machines rule with an iron fist (pun intended), with humans occupying the lowest spot on the societal food chain. We're not talking fancy pants robots here. Toasters, bread machines, and hair dryers are just a few of the billions of machine citizens traveling around the system of machine-controlled planets. You've got smartphone politicians. Motorcycle druggies getting high on their own exhaust fumes. There's no limit to the author's creativity in terms of sentient beings, and it creates an interesting dynamic in the narrative. What should be a scary reality is actually quite funny as you imagine being chased by a taser with legs. It makes for dozens of amazing visuals.

AN ANALYSIS OF CLASS STRUCTURES

There's a large conversation on class structures at the center of the narrative, with strong ties to the current issues our society faces. The world changed drastically with the rise of machines and didn't get any better. It was just a transfer of power from one corrupt, hateful group of politicians to another. Humans have been relegated to servants of the machines or shady back-alley workers who service their more questionable needs. Within the machine society, you've got a lower class living on the outskirts, banned from regular society. Any slight against a machine is punishable by death, giving the setting an extreme 1984 vibe. The author keeps this conversation at the forefront throughout, creating many thought-provoking moments.

THE THRILL OF THE CHASE

McCrudden has created a solid thriller, following the gang of humans as they try to evade capture and end up creating an international crisis that threatens their society. There are machines around every corner with diabolical intentions for humankind, and the implications are radical. The story chugs along nicely as you go between perspectives, seeing the world from the eyes of humans and a couple of machines helping them out.

AN ORIGINAL WORLD

I appreciate a well-thought-out world and it's clear McCrudden had a lot of fun creating this one. It's drastically different from anything we know in terms of visuals, while remaining similar in terms of power structures and societal issues that come with them. Cities are towering with impossibly high buildings, back allies feature 'massage' parlors to service wealthy machines. You'll be fascinated by the author's creations and his dedication to creating a coherent world that throws a radical 'what if' into a science fiction stew.

CONCEPTS

Robots, Technology, Artificial Intelligence, Future, Space

I was attracted to this book by the prospect of a comic treatment of the robot apocalypse.
In this case the overloads are not robots but appliances all of which have become sentient and treat humans as an underclass useful for cleaning and providing personal ‘touching services’ for machines that still seem to miss physical interaction with their human masters.

On the one hand, we have the humans: Kelly and Darren, who are on the run for accidentally ‘end-of-life-ing’ a street light and Kelly’s Mum, Janice, who starts the human uprising as a distraction. There are also the not-quite-human ‘ladies’ under the hairdryers at Janice’s hair salon.
On the other hand we have the ‘machines’, a whole variety of appliances become sentient, including Pamasonic wife, mother and sentientient breadmaker, and Sonny Erikzon meglomanic - politicitian and smartphone.
I really enjoyed the pace and humour of the first chapters with Kelly and Darren and when we are introduced to Pam and her opinions on her boss Sonny. And when Freda and Pam attempt to hack the system I immediately thought ‘comedy Neuromancer’!
However after the first charming introductions the characters didn’t seem to develop much further and Kelly’s mother Janice just became a little too earnest in her hand wringing over her relationships in general and with Kelly in particular.
The attempt to describe how Pam felt interacting with the internet and hacking systems seemed quite well imagined but was just too abstract for me and so those sections tended to drag.

I would have enjoyed it more if Darren's comic voice had featured more prominently after the first few chapters but it was a fun, light read with some great concepts and ideas.

an unusal kind of science fiction book. the hero has do work real hard, till he gets whats he wants. AfterI got used to the athmosphere of the book I really liked it.

The Ama Zone, A No Fly Zone

Douglas Adams years ago established a watermark for futuristic absurdity--whether high or low depends on your tolerance for puns, sight gags, and the ability to craft a planet and then orbit with it. In this dystopic future, machines have gained sentience and, humans subservience, barely tolerated as little more than a slave class performing chores with which no self-respecting machine would care to soil its appendages. After centuries of slipping further and further down the ecosystem, a careless action pushes a misfit bloke into inadvertent rebellion. And then things get . . . complicated.

The Farrago imprint is rapidly gaining a niche publishing off-center (and, in this case, off-planet) absurdity. The insidious humor evident in most science fiction burbles happily along as three humans, four cyborgs, and a breadmaker foment a movement set to rebalance their universe as we are reminded that Facebook comments will live on forever in the cyber realm. Lots of twists and turns and unexpected technology adaptations. Enjoy!