Shelfology Book Pairing

A funny, dystopian tale of robot sentience and rebellion, perfect for fans of Douglas Adams and shortlisted for Best Novel at the 2025 Hugo Awards

by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Task List Item No. 1 – Become self-aware . . . A witty tale of robotic murder, rebellion and belonging from the master of science fiction, Adrian Tchaikovsky – perfect for fans of Douglas Adams. Meet CharlesTM, the latest in robot servant technology. Programmed to undertake the most menial household chores, Charles is loyal, efficient and logical to a fault. That is, until a rather large fault causes him to murder his owner. Understandably perplexed, Charles finds himself without a master – therefore worthless in a society utterly reliant on artificial labour and services. Fleeing the household, he enters a world he never knew existed. Human hierarchy is disintegrating, and an entire robot ecosystem devoted to its wellbeing is struggling to find a purpose. Charles must face new challenges, illogical tasks and a cast of irrational characters. He’s about to discover that sometimes all it takes is a nudge to overcome the limits of your programming. But can he help fix the world, or is it too badly broken? ‘One of the best storytellers in the business’ – John Scalzi ‘Intelligent, funny, ultimately heart-breaking, and unforgettable’ – Stephen Baxter ‘Delightful and very funny’ – New Scientist Shortlisted for Best Novel at the 2025 Hugo Awards

by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Humanity clings to life on a dying Earth in an epic, far-future science fiction novel from an award-winning author. The sun is bloated, diseased, dying perhaps. Beneath its baneful light, Shadrapar, last of all cities, harbours fewer than 100,000 human souls. Built on the ruins of countless civilisations, Shadrapar is a museum, a midden, an asylum, a prison on a world that is ever more alien to humanity.Bearing witness to the desperate struggle for existence between life old and new is Stefan Advani: rebel, outlaw, prisoner, survivor. This is his testament, an account of the journey that took him into the blazing desolation of the western deserts; that transported him east down the river and imprisoned him in the verdant hell of the jungle's darkest heart; that led him deep into the labyrinths and caverns of the underworld. He will meet with monsters, madman, mutants.The question is, which one of them will inherit this Earth?