![\"A](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/ServiceModel.jpg?resize=194%2C300&ssl=1\")
By Adrian Tchaikovsky\n\u00a9 2024, Tor Books
\n373 Pages
\nISBN 13: 978-1250290298<\/p>\n
By Adrian Tchaikovsky
\n\u00a9 2024, Tor Books
\n373 Pages
\nISBN 13: 978-1250290298<\/p>\n
As I\u2019ve come to expect from any Adrian Tchaikovsky book I read, Service Model was brilliant. Told with sensitivity, humor, humanity, and a touch of philosophical wonder, the story follows the personal development\u2014inasmuch as a robot can expect to develop on a personal level\u2014of Master\u2019s personal valet unit designated Charles\u2014later designated Uncharles\u2014a top-of-the-line, human-facing robot designed and created with one purpose: to serve. But when Master is suddenly murdered through a mysterious chain of events that Charles (Uncharles) only understands at the very end of the book, Charles is shorn of his employment, his duties, even his name. Turned out into the shambles of human civilization known as the \u201coutside world\u201d and left to his own devices, Uncharles must find fulfillment on his own terms\u2014not that \u201cfulfillment\u201d is something a robot can truly experience. (Or can they?)<\/p>\n
Given his new moniker by a fellow traveler known only as the Wonk, Uncharles and Wonk travel together off and on throughout the story, stumbling into adventures (or misadventures) and surviving through cooperation and friendship (not, Uncharles would explain, that friendship is something a robot would understand). The main thread of the story is Uncharles\u2019s search for a way to fulfill his purpose. Through prolonged exposure to the devastation present in every human city, Uncharles\u2019s thoughts stray further from his original programming until he finds himself with an unexpectedly expanded decision tree, replete with options he would never have had access to before. The changes he undergoes from page one through the very last page make him absolutely relatable, the kind of protagonist readers love to root for.<\/p>\n
There are elements here of ecofiction and dystopia, a true cautionary tale hidden within a real \u201chero\u2019s journey\u201d sort of tale. In addition, threads of philosophical quandaries weave through the story\u2019s fabric\u2014deep questions about Purpose and Meaning, especially behind the Big Stuff that happens outside our control. There is also a touch of Murderbot Diaries (Martha Wells) in our view of the world from inside Uncharles\u2019s head, as well as of Monk and Robot (Becky Chambers) in Uncharles\u2019s adventures and personal growth (not that robots experience personal growth).<\/p>\n
There is also humor, though not hilarity, in this book. More than anything else, though, there is humanity, sensitivity, and the search for understanding. Bad stuff happens to good people\u2014good robots, too\u2014but ultimately, Service Model is a story of hope in the face of societal collapse and a humanity on the brink of extinction.<\/p>\n
If you love well-crafted science fiction stories told with grace, compassion, and unexpected twists, you\u2019ll love this book. Most highly recommended.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Adrian Tchaikovsky \u00a9 2024, Tor Books 373 Pages ISBN 13: 978-1250290298 As I\u2019ve come to expect from any Adrian Tchaikovsky book I read, Service Model was brilliant. Told with sensitivity, humor, humanity, and a touch of philosophical wonder, the story follows the personal development\u2014inasmuch as a robot can expect to develop on a personal…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6223","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8n0kX-1Cn","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3825,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2024\/02\/23\/dogs-of-war-duology\/","url_meta":{"origin":6223,"position":0},"title":"Dogs of War Duology","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"February 23, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Dogs of War: Dogs of War, Book 1 By Adrian Tchaikovsky Head of Zeus Publishing ASIN: B06XXJ4P9H Kindle version; file size 7308 KB; \u00a9 2017 Paperback, 352 pages; \u00a9 2022 Bear Head: Dogs of War, Book 2 By Adrian Tchaikovsky Head of Zeus Publishing ASIN: B08DJJBQ1M8 Kindle version; file size\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/DogsOfWar-196x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2929,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2022\/10\/23\/cage-of-souls\/","url_meta":{"origin":6223,"position":1},"title":"Cage of Souls","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"October 23, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"By Adrian Tchaikovsky \u00a9 2019, Ebook format ASIN: B07DPRW17S File size 1865 KB It's easy to see why this book was shortlisted for the 2020 Arthur C. Clarke Award. This is an intricate story, part fictional memoir, part dark dystopian ecofiction with touches of horror. There were elements of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/CageOfSouls-196x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4241,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2024\/05\/12\/children-of-time\/","url_meta":{"origin":6223,"position":2},"title":"Children of Time","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"May 12, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"By Adrian Tchaikovsky Tor (\u00a92015); Pan Books (\u00a92016); Orbit (\u00a92018) ISBN-13: 978-0316452502 ASIN: B07DN8BQMD Kindle Version, file size 2632 KB; Paperback 640 pages Let me just get right to the point. I loved this book. I cannot say enough good things about it. From the explosive opening chapter to the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/ChildrenOfTime-201x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7990,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/06\/slow-gods\/","url_meta":{"origin":6223,"position":3},"title":"Slow Gods","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"July 6, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"By Claire North \u00a9 November 18, 2025 File size: 3.1 MB 437 pages ISBN-13: 978-0316586344 In a society where one either has \u201cshine\u201d or is always struggling to gain more \u201cshine,\u201d Maw has lived an entirely ordinary, unShiny life until they find themselves in debtor\u2019s prison. 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A Prayer for the Crown-Shy By Becky Chambers \u00a9 2022 TorDotCom ASIN: B09CNFL3W7 Kindle Version; file size 5020 KB Paperback, 152 pages It\u2019s years after The Awakening, when\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Psalm-188x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5684,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/24\/antunas-story\/","url_meta":{"origin":6223,"position":5},"title":"Antuna’s Story","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"March 24, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The Antunite Chronicles, Book 1 By Terry Birdgenaw \u00a9 May 16, 2022, Cyborg Insect Books 190 pages ASIN: B0B1KWFF24 \u00a0 This story was\u2026unique. 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