Review - Robopocalypse

Rating: * * * * *
Release Date: Available Now
Pages: 347
Author: Daniel H. Wilson
Publisher: Simon & Schuster

To describe this as simply World War Z, but with Robots, would be a complete disservice to Robopocalypse, but it’s the first thing that came to mind upon flicking through its pages.

Wilson has followed a similar path to that of Max Brooks, having previously written How To Survive A Robot Uprising; however, Wilson differs in the fact that he has a Ph. D in Robotics, so he kind of knows what he’s talking about here.

Robopocalypse covers a similar formula to WWZ, with one main character simply describing events as he has seen them, or re-telling a story that has been described to him. The story follows the rise of a super-AI structure called Archos, and the battle with humanity that ensues.

As you read, you will follow characters from around the world, a Native American of the Osage tribe on the plains of North America, a husband & wife in New York, an aging Japanese engineer, and many others. Their storylines slowly intertwine, showing the events that lead up to the creation of a human resistance.

Throughout these tales, we also get to learn about the evolution of the robots, and glimpses into the mind of Archos itself, and this in itself is one of the biggest differences from the aforementioned zombie book. A zombie is a mindless drone, which never learns and never adapts; once you’ve learnt how to defeat it, you’ve pretty much won the war, you are just relying on resources and the intelligence of your armies.

An Artificial Intelligence is different; whilst humans are learning to fight back, it’s also learning and it learns faster. Through the eyes of the human survivors, we watch as Archos adapts to new environments and new strategies, creating ever more complex robots to try and squash the human resistance. Wilson’s Ph. D really pays off in these moments, as he is able to accurately describe a machine that not only sounds deadly, but sounds realistic in every way.

Robopocalypse is a fantastic start to what I sincerely hope becomes a much bigger universe, and even if it isn’t it’s still a bloody good read. Whilst I fear that Wilson will remain underappreciated, I think he deserves the same amount of attention, if not more, that Max Brooks gained for his work.

An excerpt from Robopocalypse can be read [HERE], whilst the full book itself is available from all good bookstores.