Back with yet another review – this one a recently released novel by fellow blogger Nicholas C. Rossis.

Blurb

A science fiction crime adventure with plenty of humour and romance

A souvlaki and some sun. That is all Detective Mika Pensive wanted from her fun weekend away on the Greek islands. Instead, she finds herself caught up in a sinister plot, hatched by a reclusive billionaire with a penchant for illegal genetic engineering. As if that wasn’t bad enough, she has to put up with her new partner, Leo. Leo is an android—or toaster, as people scornfully call his kind. The only thing that could make things even worse would be for the headstrong Mika to fall for Leo. But people don’t fall for toasters—do they?

Set in the near future, A Heaven for Toasters is more than a sci-fi crime romance. It’s the book that will make you look at your toaster in a whole new way.

My Review

A Heaven For Toasters: A Sci-Fi Crime Romance set on the Greek Islands by Nicholas C. Rossis
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Detective Mika Pensive’s looking forward to her date – a chance to get away for a break from work and the unsavoury prospect of the new partner the police force is landing her with: an android called Leo. A distractingly good-looking android.
Sure, the beautiful Greek island has its attractions, but things don’t go the way she’d hoped. Not only is her date a complete boor, his idea of a good time is a daring – and frankly, hideous – art show involving non-sentient clones.
Pretty soon, Mika finds herself both a suspect, and possibly a target, in what might, or might not be, a murder. And the only person – er, android – around to help her figure out what’s going on, is Leo. Just how intelligent – and self-motivated – can a glorified toaster be?
Billed as a “science fiction crime adventure with plenty of humor and romance”, this short read fully lives up to that promise. The futuristic setting is not so far from now, with much of the technology on the verge of emerging in the near future, so well within the everyday reader’s comfort zone.
The characters are true individuals, and the swift action is set against the beautiful backdrop of what was once an idyllic island, now a somewhat scarier and more foreign place. The baddies are bad, the clones hilarious, and the motivations far greater reaching than at first appearance, making for an altogether satisfying read.
There was just one point in the plot where I thought the main characters were a bit dim, but it was only a small blip in an otherwise fun story.
So, the big question: is Leo more than a glorified toaster? With Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics as a starting point, but not the whole story, just how much wiggle room does Leo really have around his programming when it comes to aiding his human partner against other humans? You’ll have to read it to find out, and I highly recommend that you do. Me, I’m eagerly awaiting another book about this pair.
I received an ARC of this book. In no way does this affect my review or recommendation.

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Take a look on Amazon UK HERE

Amazon US HERE

WELL worth the £0.99 / $0.99

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