Cover Image: The Electric Detective

The Electric Detective

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Member Reviews

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book was a really good experience. The writing and plot were very original and exciting. Definitely recommend.

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The Electric Detective by Peter Ward

ARC Rating 5/5 ⭐️

This was a really enjoyable sci-fi mystery that was fast-paced and full of interest and tension.

The story is set in the 23rd century, where an android called Penelope has just been commissioned to help solve to murder of DroidTec's CEO.

I really enjoyed this book, and and felt the world building and the characters were well written. This has such great twists, which just kept me guessing! I felt that I could really connect with Penelope, even though she wasn't human.

Overall, this was a really good read, and I would definitely read any future books by this author.

Thank you, NetGalley, The Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency, and Peter Ward for sending this eARC for review. All opinions are my own.

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In the 23rd century, the owner of a tech company is murdered in a seemingly impossible way and an android is created to investigate. The police don't trust androids--and it turns out for good reasons--though she is partnered with a police detective. She also is hampered by a hard programed set of directives of what she can and cannot do. What is an android suppose to do when other people are not following the rules?

I enjoyed this. I liked Penelope's characters and I love impossible crimes/locked room mysteries even if they do take place in the 23rd century. The writer played fair with the audience. In addition, this delves into some of the ethics of programming androids, sentience and the implications in society without it being overbearing. Plus, there is humor which I found annoying but some may find a bit heavy handed.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

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An intricate game of double agendas and deceptive clues.
Here's an unusual question: How do you pull off the perfect crime when you're up against an incorruptible investigator made of the latest in logical circuits?
Now here's an unusual answer: If you like making your life more complicated than it needs to be, you can use an administrator backdoor to install an additional set of instructions so that your positronic enemy may continue working with the police, but may not let any suspicions fall on you.
So now here's a more unusual question: How do you do your job as the ultimate logical detective when you're programmed to name the true killer but also programmed to not name the true killer?
Peter Ward's novel The Electric Detective is the unbelievably more unusual answer.
After the CEO of a leading robotics manufacturer is murdered in his ultra-secure office with no clues as to how the killer fled the scene, the company provides the police with Penelope, an especially produced robot that soon becomes the key piece in solving the mystery. Penelope is equipped with an impeccable moral compass, access to every reference database, and superhuman senses to never miss a clue. Plus she has her own personal assistant living in her head, monitoring her systems and inserting comedic advice. There's no way she won't crack this case.
However, as soon as she solves it, her programming is hijacked by the killer, and here's where the actual thrill of the book begins: can she find a logical loophole for a command that unambiguously means "don't rat me out"? During her mission to accomplish justice, Penelope will have to come up with desperate, last-minute workarounds for seemingly impossible conundrums that will put her reasoning skills in overdrive. There are few delights that are so unique to science fiction as watching the steps of the thought process that saves the hero at the last second, and Penelope's mind is a fascinating place to explore.
Not all the pieces of this case fit perfectly, though. There's one scene where a character is eavesdropping on a conversation and later makes choices as if they didn't know what they evidently were able to hear. The big villain's master plan has an impractically large number of moving parts, and somehow all of them go exactly as intended, which diminishes our heroine's protagonism because too many of her choices were what the villain wanted all along. The exposition doesn't trust the reader to conclude things on their own. And there's a quick section with excessive commentary on Penelope's superhuman hotness, which is never mentioned again and has no impact on the plot.
The Electric Detective isn't the kind of book one goes to for meditations on the dignity of artificial life under perpetual surveillance. This is simply a clever thought experiment dressed up in a science fiction costume. Expect that, and you'll be rewarded appropriately.

Nerd Coefficient: 6/10.

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This was a pretty classic Sci-Fi novel and considering some of the other things I've read recently, it was a refreshing change of pace.

This novel touches on the relationships between AI and humanity and how those relationships can be manipulated. There were lots of twists and turns throughout the plot and everything was not as it seemed. Penelope and Basic were also incredibly funny at times with their banter.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-ARC of this novel. Review will be posted on Instagram (@ellie.reads.a.lot) by the end of the week. Thank you for your patience.

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Lots of interesting ideas and thought provoking concepts. An interesting and intriguing story but somehow it didn’t quite grab me. I liked this book but I didn’t love it.

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2.5
The whole concept of this I found interesting. I liked the main character and the descriptions when describing things like surroundings and tech. Unfortunately i felt like this took a while to read. There are several things I'm not sure are necessary in the book and are over-explained.

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I saw some other reviews of this book, and thought it looked interesting.

What I loved about this was the fact that it was so different. It was a futuristic detective story, and I don't think I have read anything like it before. It was very interesting to have a story with an android as the protagonist. I found it a very entertaining read, and humorous in places.

If you like science fiction and mystery, I would recommend this.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a free copy to review.

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Urgh no. I was tempted by the promise of some old noir sff (like Asimov’s Caves of Steel), hopefully with an upgrade in modern sensibilities, but bounced off right away. Seriously, such gross objectifying male gaze in this day and age? Do better, people.

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DNF

I loved the idea of this book, it sounded really fun. Unfortunately, the first chapter made me really uncomfortable.

The book opens with the detective becoming conscious that she's been created. The dynamic between her and her AI, and the moment with the spider were very enjoyable. It got weird when the factory was putting the finishing touches on her.

The story skips over her choosing things like hair and eye colour, which is fine except that it pays a lot of attention to the fact that her nipples are stick-ons and that she takes some spare (and keeps them in a drawer in her backside) in case they fall off. The amount of attention paid to this was a little weird, but it was made even creepier by the AI's comment on the fact that her legs are 15% longer than the average woman, and then says 'and your breasts' before she cuts him off. A little later, she's sitting in a car and says she only has three basic positions programmed into her for sitting (which is fine, makes sense) but then goes on to say she has preprogramed positions for other things but she's sure she'll expand with practice. Now, these things on their own are uncomfortable but forgiveable, but the combination of comments in such a short space made me feel really icky and I didn't want to keep reading.

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I made it to page 10. That's it. That's all the space needed to ensure that I made a face like eating a lemon and turned one more page just to make sure - yeah, no, done with this book.

I could manage with the robot talking to its own OS. Weird, but okay. I squinted a bit at the naming of said OS - it clearly feels that this is a derogatory term but they don't actually address that. Alright, maybe I misread the situation? Aaaand then they discuss the robot's body - specifically, as the OS lists the deviation from average female values, it pauses and gets weird about the breasts. WHY. Why is an operating system showing (very particular cultures') social mores? It was at this moment, dear reader, that I realized this book was going to be extremely uncomfortable and objectifying.

I pressed on for another page, where the OS specifies Pantone 1395 as an average hair color. First: average hair color across all humans would be WAAAAY darker. Second: that is not a real hair color. This was the straw that broke the camel's back. On its own, an extremely petty complaint, but it left me feeling that the book would be very much like 60s Sci-Fi in all the bad ways. With so much rubbing me the wrong way so soon in the book, I abandoned ship.

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An interesting story, with philosophical angle. I don't know if it was because of the arc, but I found the capitalisation of the inner voice BASIC rather distracting in the beginning, though I understand the why, -
The story appears to be a mix of Ghost in the Shell, I, Robot (Asimov's Robotic Laws), and Klara and the Sun. Good story, although not quite original. - it has been done before.

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A sci fi murder mystery?!!! Yes please.
Blade Runner meets Agatha Christie :)
The CEO of DroidTec murdered in a locked room with no way of escaping. Detective Curtis with the help of a droid called Penelope work on the seemingly impossible case.
This book is full of twists and turns and it did keep me guessing right to the end. I love Penelope and her in built AI 'Basic', the inner dialogue between them is hilarious. I would really love to read another adventure featuring them two. I would definitely recommend this book to others.
Thankyou so much to NetGallery UK, the author Peter Ward and the publisher for letting me read the book in return for an honest review.

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Peter Wards “The Electric Detective” is a fast paced story with many twists and turns. In a world where droids are nearly everywhere, Penelope is built to help solve a murder. More specifically, the murder of the CEO of Droidtec, the company that builds 95% of droids.

I absolutely loved the concept of this story, and the mystery was such a fun thing to follow.

A downfall for me was that Penelope being a droid seemed to be a reason for there to be an infodump every couple of pages. Also Penelope had an operating system voice in her head that seemed to act as a conscience though it was constantly making jokes that didn’t fit the overall theme of the story. That system felt out of place.

This review is left voluntarily, and thank you to the publisher and netgalley for an ARC of this book.

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This book takes place in a futuristic society where androids do most of the work, what initially started as them doing complicated and difficult jobs has turned into humans essentially using them for even the most menial of jobs. The CEO of DroidTec, the largest droid maker, is murdered in his office. This is a locked door mystery, as there is only one door into his office and the murderer somehow disappears and escaped through said door. Penelope is created to help the police solve this murder.

This was such a fun read! Right from the start I liked Penelope and her snarky and funny iOs, Basic. The commentary between these two was enjoyable and had me chuckling quite a bit.
There are a lot of twists and turns and some red herrings thrown in which keeps you constantly guessing who the killer is. A very enjoyable read with a wonderful ending. I hope I get to read more books about the police work Penelope and Basic get into!

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Electric Detective was a great read! It introduces quite a few ethical questions about AI and Androids without becoming overly complex. It's a good introduction to the sci-fi genre.

First, thanks to NetGalley for sending me an ARC. I was surprised it was still available and I'll definitely be grabbing a physical copy of it for my collection.

What first drew me to this novel was the cover, and I wasn't disappointed. The title and theme give subtle Blade Runner vibes, which poked my interest.

Basic is my new favourite, with its snarky commentary and sometimes very funny lines. The character was also well set off from Penelope to show that they are, in fact, two different entities.

Another aspect that is also conveyed well is how much we do subconsciously, like sitting in a certain manner, blinking, folding our arms. Penelope learns and categorises these aspects for the illusion of humanity, but the fleeting notices of how many poses she has collected show how little we think about certain actions. We just do. Whereas a machine "thinks" about every little action.

Generally the plot of the novel was nice, it had a few seemingly obvious twists and some good red herrings in the mix to keep the story moving along at a good pace.

Would definitely recommend reading Electric Detective!

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This has great pacing, good action, and an engaging story. Good stuff.

I really appreciate the free review copy for review!!

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I’ll start with 2 things I found surprising. BTW, the book is The Electric Detective by Peter Ward.

Surprise #1 was the book was available on Netgalley. I’d like to thank Netgalley and the Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency for a chance to read and review it after publication. I normally get Advanced Readers there but for some reason this was still available several months after publication.

The second surprise was how quickly I came to enjoy this book. I do like detective fiction but read very little science fiction. I particularly enjoyed the internal dialog between Penelope (the android) and Basic (her operating system). But I’m getting a bit ahead of myself.

The Electric Detective takes place in a futuristic technological society where androids do much of the work. The CEO of the biggest android maker is murdered in his office which has only one door which is under constant surveillance. The presumed murderer escapes without leaving through that door. Penelope is assigned to help the police investigate this crime.

There are many twists and turns along the way. It is an enjoyable read and it does make you think not only on this mystery but also artificial intelligence, androids and the future.

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with my misimpression of science fiction being overly complicated for my own comprehension, this is relatively easy for me to follow. though i must admit that the futuristic things mentioned in this book i.e., the cars, the internal AR system, i wasn’t able to fully envision them while reading.

i was also internally scream-reading while reading dialogues involving basic because of the way the author differentiates basic and penelope. but basic has managed to make me laugh a couple of times in her all-serious replies to penelope and her commenting.

i must say basic is my favourite character out of them all.

i hardly read science fiction, let alone science fiction mysteries; this is the first for me. and honestly i enjoyed it.

can i also take the chance to comment how pretty the cover is? i’m so glad i judged a book by its cover and clicked into the page for its blurb.

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A title that feels so obvious it surely has been done before, The Electric Detective is, as it suggests, a bit of android detective fiction. From a science fiction perspective, it is a relatively simple, future Earth where droids are used for everything and replaced and traded in like i-Phones. The CEO of the biggest droid company is murdered in his locked office, and the culprit has somehow escaped. Enter, or more accurately, create Penelope, our titular Electric Detective, made and designed to be exceptionally analytical, gifted to help the police. And we sit, in Penelope's head from her moment of creation, with her internal monolog with her extremely droll operating system (nicknamed Basic) as she engages in solving the crime.

Ward has two things going for him here. Firstly he has a very light touch, and a genuinely amusing rapport in the internal dialogue between Penelope and Basic (it is not Holmes and Watson, but it helps illuminate the case as well as a number of decent running jokes). Secondly, the mystery actually works. Whilst it is a locked room mystery that might rely on future technology to aid the crime, the book is always fair to the reader in showing that, and other potential solutions, in advance. So while I am not sure I buy how the internal monologue, or indeed Penelope's personality actually comes into being, I soon forgot that because I was enjoying it so much.

From a science fiction point of view, Ward plays a game with the laws of robotics, and certainly the central issue at the heart of the book (the sentience of otherwise of these robots) is sometimes a little up for grabs considering what seems to be the objective sentience of out viewpoint character. But even that is thrown into the mix, and so what was left was a light and breezey, fun mystery with a number of decent moments of peril. It is a refreshing change of tone from similar books, not least to have a plot that works (and even what looks like plot holes get commented on).

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