Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

I've had this book on my netgalley shelf for almost two years now and I think it's time to accept, that after multiple times of trying, I just couldn't get into this book at all. I'm sure it's a great book but it just wasn't for me unfortunately.

How will 'big tech' and science play into the future of sex, food, birth, and death?
Kleeman researches and interviews the pioneers in new developments in all four areas. The science communication of each subject is straight forward and interesting to read about. Kleeman's writing is engaging, and the recollection of her talks and interviews with her participants aren't sloggish as I've found in other popular science books.

"Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should" is a somewhat apt quote - I liked the discussion of ethics in the future developments of all these areas, and wish Kleeman could have delved a bit more into the ethics and the ethical questions the major players in the game ask/have asked themselves, or how far is too far etc.

Otherwise a fab book on the direction of where society is going in all these areas.

Sex Robots and Vegan Meat by Jenny Kleeman looks at the future of sex, death, food and birth, and sees the documentary maker interviewing a sex robot, eating lab-grown chicken nuggets, watching foetuses growing in plastic bags and attending members-only meetings where people learn methods of assisted suicide. Some of the content touched on similar ethical issues raised in Mark O’Connell’s books about transhumanists. The vegan meat section was the most interesting section.

Overall, I think this book is more concerned with the hype than the reality. Kleeman invests more words in where it all might go, than where it actually is. Also, I don’t think the author is always fair to her subjects. Her journalistic style is cynical, and if the ways she details her interviews is truly the way they went down, I don’t think she really gave the scientists a chance, instead taking cheap shots to shame their ethics (which is hardly going to get you the most open answers).

There is a real wealth of information in this book, and I think it is a good starting point to springboard your way into further research, but this text seemed, to me, to lack real respect for its subject matter. I prefer non-fiction that speculates less fervently, and which allows the reader some space to gather their own thoughts.

Review of
SEX ROBOTS & VEGAN MEAT
by Jenny Kleeman
⭐⭐⭐⭐

Imagine if it was possible to have the perfect sexual relationship without compromise, eat meat without killing animals, have babies without the need to bear them, and choose the time of our painless death. Life would be better, right?

This book is based on science. It seems otherwise but the author takes you along through each of the subjects covered, explaining the science behind it all.

Now, I love science. I found a few areas a little difficult to understand but caught on as I continued to read. Jenny Kleeman has a way of explaining things that makes everything very interesting.

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes sciencey stuff, but also to anyone who is curious what our future holds.

I gave this book four stars.

Extensively researched and thoroughly considered, Kleeman investigates some fundamentals of human existence, sex, food, reproduction/pregnancy and death. She looks into the proposed technologies that claim to be the solutions, visiting tech companies, entrepreneurs and interviewing potential consumers. The results are fascinating and often frightening. The common denominator is the idea that technology can provide quick fixes to issues deeply embedded in our culture's and societies. Far from solving these problems, new technologies have the potential to exacerbate then or create new ones by failing to deal with the root causes. Inequality looms large, often expressed in misogyny and wealth inequality. Sex robots, artificial wombs and 3D printed death machines are pay of venture capital schemes, designed for profit and are only thing veiled by altruistic claims. It's a story of ego, dominated by (often) straight, white men. The worry, as Kleeman is right to raise, is scientists, business people, investors and inventors are so often caught up in whether they CAN do something, the ethics and consequences of whether they SHOULD are left behind. It's a brilliant piece of writing that delves into difficult topics with interest and asks the difficult questions. It gets very dark in places but Kleeman's writing is clear and lively and well-balanced and manages to be entertaining as well as informative

Had to think about this one a bit before reviewing. The title may lead some to read for the titillation, but that’s not what is going on here at all.
The book is an examination of four technological solutions to perceived problems. All are examined in relation to exactly what they are trying to fix and more importantly potential consequences of these “fixes”.
I found the sections on artificial wombs and assisted dying particularly interesting and scary in equal measure. These are potential big changes in how we live our lives that most, including myself, are unaware of. Rules are being made that will impact us and our children without a lot of outside input.
This is not an anti-technology book. Potential positives are highlighted as much as the negatives. The point is to think about these changes and how to integrate them into our lives. Ideally in a very human way.

When it comes to reading, Science isn't usually my thing. There's a stereotype that it's boring and complicated but that is definitely not the case here! You already know from the title that Sex Robots and Vegan Meat, isn't your usual Scientific book but it is far more interesting, intriguing and entertaining than I could have believed. Jenny Kleeman looks at four of the core aspects of the human experience: sex, food, birth and death, and what effect technological advances in these fields could have on our very humanity. She has a clear voice in her writing that is peppered with humour and warmth and had me at times challenging my own beliefs or nodding vigorously in agreement. It made me want to discuss it all with the author or with anyone around me. Absolutely fascinating.

I'm currently doing a masters degree and incidentally some of the topics within this book have been the focus of dissertation (robots/reality), so I was already aware of, other things completed astounded me, as I was convinced I was reading the realm of sci-fi! Yet obviously this isn't the case and in fact our current reality of possibilities. I greatly recommend this book to people wanting an insight into todays modern evolution in the sciences that have been largely ignored and under the radar in mainstream press channels.

Sex Robots & Vegan Meat was just the perfect book for me. It's glimpses of our future and how four pieces of technology can and will change all of our lives really effect me, and gave me lots to think about. I'm still processing some of the things I learnt from this brilliant book, and will be thinking about it more and more as these technologies come to pass.

This book sounded fascinating, but something about the delivery didn't work for me. All of the subjects are fascinating - as a vegan, I'm especially interested in lab-grown meat - and I do feel like I've learned things. Unfortunately, I just wasn't a huge fan of the writing style, so I found it difficult to get through. Not necessarily an issue with the book or the author - probably just a "me" thing, since I don't read this type of book often.

This wasn’t for me really, I was intrigued by the subjects, but something about the style and the way it was presented just didn’t click with me. I’m sure plenty of others will find it more to their taste and style though

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

I really wanted to enjoy this - the subjects are really interesting - but the writing style just didn't suit me at all. My issue, not the book's, I'm sure other people will enjoy it very much. These subjects really are important and they're interesting to learn about. Just maybe from another book, for me personally.

This book was provided free of charge for the purposes of this review,the following is my review and is not in any way influenced by the fact it was provided free of charge,.

At first and for around an hour or so into the book I thought that I was reading a sci fi book, I had to check TWICE!..so this is about the here and now ? After using the 'helpfullness' of google it hit me hard !! THIS IS REALITY I never in my wildest dreams though this was all possible, sex dolls that, well, are all together, if you see what i mean, Im saving up already lol, meat that is not meat but is , confused ? I was, babies grown to order and to top it of in bags, the rest well dive in and give it a go, highly reccommended, a good flowing read and eye opener.

I loved this, such a weird but interesting book. Not my usual subject matter but I enjoyed it a lot. Really really well written.

The book is divided into four parts: sex robots, vegan meat, out of body birth bags and end of life methods. These are all things in development around the globe to improve (?) people's lives. Each section is a very interesting read. How they are trying to make sex robots more life like; delving into the socio-economical aspects of them going on to the market. I found it very interesting that the majority of vegan meat developments are not about culturing meat from animal cells than using plant based products. It was also interesting that the majority of people working in this industry are vegan and therefore the taste and texture was difficult to test as very few meat eaters were testing. The birthing bag to me seemed like the strangest concept of all four. But I can definitely see the benefits in terms of reducing still births, monitoring development and the ability to have a child even when your body is unable. The strangest concept was definitely the end of life programs. People were planning their deaths and ways of doing it, and not because they were ill but just in case and ready.
The book was really well written and captivating. All concepts were thought-provoking. A really good read for those interested in scientific developments and the future of our society.

This book is incredible and I have already recommended it to everyone I know. The topics are explored well and the information is presented to you in an accessible way. It is evident that the author put a great deal of research into the topic and the end result is exceptional.

In a time when entrepreneurs and disruptors are jostling to be Next Big Thing, Jenny Kleeman takes on four areas of innovation which could prove to be the very biggest: external wombs for human parents, animal meat that doesn't come from animals, robots for the lonely and companionless, and suicide machines that give a painless and dignified death. Kleeman takes us from Europe and Asia to America and Australia, interviewing scientists, proponents, critics, and the people for whom these innovations would be absolutely life (or death) changing - and asks us to consider whether we will be using these technologies to irrevocably change society for the better or worse.

Each of the four sections of the book could stand on their own but Kleeman manages to thread them all together, commenting on the showmanship (and occasional lies) of marketers and entrepreneurs, the desperation of some of the people for whom the innovations are already coming too late, and the holes in our societies that technologies like these aren't really mending. Are robots for lonely people really offering companionship, or are they allowing us to continue ignore their loneliness? Lab-made meat might stop us slaughtering animals, but how will it alleviate our already poor diets? If life-changing technologies are unaffordable for most, aren't they just widening the gaps that already exist between genders, classes, nations?

For me, the weakest part of the work was the first, 'The Future of Sex', featuring the titular sex robots, although this very much speaks for the strength of the other three-quarters of the book. Kleeman notes that it is hard to interview owners of sex dolls, as they tend not to court publicity, but with only one user-interviewee (the well-interviewed Davethecat) it did feel like there were voices missing, both from users and from critics who might have a more nuanced view than the anti-sex-robot campaigner who refers to them as 'rape robots'.

However, I found the whole book unputdownable, and have been able to talk about almost nothing else since I started reading it. Sex Robots & Vegan Meat answered questions I didn't even know I had about the place of technology in our world today, and the potential problems they may be causing and exploiting, but more importantly it left me still bubbling with excitement, ideas, and a desire to learn more.

Weird and wonderful, "Sex Robots and Vegan Meat" is an exemplary piece of work from Jenny Kleeman. It's clearly the result of an enormous amount of research, presented in accessible, plain language. I found each section hugely interesting and enlightening. In places I laughed uproariously, in others I was moved to near tears. Prime coronavirus lockdown, self-isolation reading. Get on it! And buy a copy for a friend, real or robotic.