Service Model
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Service Model
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Narrated by:
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Adrian Tchaikovsky
About this listen
Read by the author, Adrian Tchaikovsky.
Adrian Tchaikovsky, master of imaginative science fiction, returns with a delightfully humorous tale of robotic murder, rebellion and belonging – perfect for fans of Douglas Adams.
Task List Item No. 1 – Become self-aware . . .
Meet Charles™, 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 wider world he never knew existed. Here an age-old human hierarchy is disintegrating into ruins, 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
‘An entertaining and thought-provoking read. Tchaikovsky does an excellent job narrating the audiobook’ – IGN
Adrian Tchaikovsky's Children of Time won the Arthur C. Clarke Award for Best Novel on 24th August 2016
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What listeners say about Service Model
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 31-07-24
Funny about the end of the world
I normally don’t enjoy apocalyptic stories, but Tchaikovsky’s spin on the story had me giggling to myself several times. How many humans should a robot be allowed to accidentally kill before being sent to maintenance? Great entertainment, both funny and thought provoking. Also excellently read by the author.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- secret squirrell
- 08-07-24
Deceptively simple
A sort of mashed up candide and the wizard of oz- funny and trenchantly ironic
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 10-10-24
Good story and great narration
This is nice story even if it’s not one of the authors stronger work. Despite the lively narration make it a very enjoyable listen
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mills
- 30-11-24
Such a delightful romp through a post apocalyptic world
I’ve enjoyed quite a few Tchaikovsky books over the past couple of years, but I think Service Model might be one of my favourites. Funny, creative, and interesting ideas around AI explored.
I thought Tchaikovsky was a brilliant narrator as well. A bit Bridgestock is a good way.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Sarah
- 09-06-24
Entertaining story and excellent narration
This is why authors who can should narrate their own books. I think this should be picked up by Netflix.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Ian Baxter
- 24-08-24
This was a sobering story of the dangers of AI
I must admit it to me a while to adjust to the style of the story. But after a while I adjusted and it built up to an amazing and very thought provoking ending. Anyone with the slightest interest in AI and the state of humanity should read this! I loved it, one of my favourite books of the year! It was also really well read by Adrian.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Duncan S.
- 07-12-24
I’ll be reading/listening to all of Adrian’s novels from now on
This is only my second Tchaikovsky and I’m enjoying the originality and the dry, often sarcastic sense of humour. ( he makes at least two subtle tributes to Douglas Adams here ). He’s certainly a master of the English language. It’s GREAT when you ‘discover’ another favourite author.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- K. Harkness
- 23-06-24
Excellent story and narration
Adrian Tchaikovsky's novels rarely disappoint but I was surprised to find him equally talented at narrating. I would normally avoid author-narrated books but this was excellent. The story felt a little slow on occasion but as it went on it became clear that this was necessary to create the allegorical nature, and I enjoyed playing spot the reference. My only gripe is that I didn't "get" the chapter headings as they were read out, and only realized their significance on reading a review later. Perhaps chapter names could be added to the chapter numbers in the contents.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jono
- 19-06-24
Great characters and story
You're generally is very safe hands with Adrian Tchaikovsky and this is no different in that regard.
This could be a very bleak story but rather seems like a comedy to do with AI alignment.
Right. I'm off to find my next Adrian Tchaikovsky story to listen to!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Piotr
- 19-06-24
light to listen and funny
it is one of those you take for holidays or to boost up your mood. Great sense of humour throughout. Logical. Made my work with ai engines start with a smile 😃
not like the other works of the author- just different but positively different.
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1 person found this helpful