This was a very interesting and thought provoking novel. It is at its core a buddy road trip where the two main characters are searching for purpose and answers to their existence while trying to discover what has really happened to the world.

Uncharles is a robot that is meant to serve humans. Once his ‘job’ with his current master comes to an end, he goes on a journey to find another to serve. But there are barely any humans left, and the few he finds do not need a servant. Uncharles, unlike most of the other robots is able to break out of his programing, or at least interpret it in such a way that allows him to adapt to the situations he finds himself in. He feels like a robot that is self aware and an determine his fate within the confines of his programing. But in the end he is a product of his creators. I liked Uncharles, but he did lack a little in personality and wasn’t a particularly compelling character, especially towards the end.

On his journey, Uncharles meets the Wonk, a fellow wanderer who often questions what Uncharles is doing and why. Uncharles finds the Wonk to be an unusual robot with lots of defective programming. I enjoyed Wonk quite a bit, she often had really good questions for Uncharles and pushed him to try and become self aware. There was certainly more to the Wonk that as a reader you will pick up on, although Uncharles never really does.

This is very much a plot driven story. On their journey Uncharles and Wonk meet many other barely functioning robots who are caught up in endless programming loops trying to perform the tasks that were set up by their human programmers. Many of these tasks no longer really exist. It was funny and yet very sad at the same time. There were quite a few amusing instances were the robot dialogue ended up in an endless loop, sort of like those computerized phone calls that we all hate. The Librarians they meet on their journey were also an interesting group in their interpretation of how to preserve human knowledge.

The writing was amazingly well done. I could easily imagine the devastation that surround our travelers on their journey. The dialogue was also top notch, and that was were most of the humor of the story came out. This story very much reminded me of the play, Waiting for Godot, but instead of the two characters waiting for Godot, these two go out in search of him. They want Godot to have all of the answers to their questions about what happened. The pacing was a bit slow, and things did get a bit repetitive towards the end. The ending was different than I thought it would be, and it felt a bit muddled as well. The answer to what really happened to the world also felt unfinished.

This was my first book by this author and I could certainly see why he is so popular. His writing is suburb and at least in this case really made me think. This existential journey through a post apocalyptic wasteland is one you won’t soon forget.

I really wanted to love this. The first few chapters are absolute gold. It plays out a bit like a Marx brothers film, where everyone is talking but no one is understanding each other, and hilarity ensues. I really wish it had ended there. This book was a real slog for me to get through, and while there were some moments of wonderful humor sprinkled throughout, it wasn't enough to make the tedious script worth it.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for this review copy.
Hmm. Well, this was my first book by this author. I felt like the book had a strong start. I was interested in what was going on with this robot, why he cut his master's neck lol, and what was going to happen to him. The book was funny and I was involved.
And . . . I'm not sure exactly what happened, but the book just seemed to go on and on and finally devolved into, well, monologuing almost? I just kind of lost track of why I cared what happened. I think it was definitely too long. Still, might fit the bill for someone who is really into robots, humans, and what the combination could mean for civilization.

“A humorous tale of robotic murder.”

Everytime I congratulate myself on being well-read, I come across a fantastic author with an extensive back-catalogue that everyone’s read but me.

Bookish FOMO.

If all his stuff is this good, I’ll be busy until 2047.

Like all good scifi, there were fantastic characters (The Wonk, Uncharles, God) a unique, yet eerily familiar setting, and enough social commentary to give philosophers front-bottom shivers until the fall of capitalism.

The only thing I didn’t love were the Great Librarians. Librarians should be the hero of every story.

Thanks to NetGalley, Tor Publishing, and Macmillan Audio for this comically dark ARC.

Wow, I enjoyed this book greatly the Charles/UnCharles robot was a fascinating character. Even though I guessed The Wonk back story she was an amazing part of the story as well. I had a problem with one of the characters at the end of the book but I get it was a way to explain and move the story along and I don't know how the author could have done without it. Overall very worth my time.

Service Model does a wonderful job pointing out how our society so often forgets the reason we started doing things a certain way in the first place and cling to the resulting incongruous procedure.

The Robot's Progress

Adrian Tchaikovsky likes to disguise philosophical treatises as novels. As Uncharles might say, "This is neither good nor bad. It just is." That is to say, some readers enjoy novel-shaped philosophical treatises -- some not so much. If you've read a lot of Tchaikovsky, you know how you feel about this. For the record, I'd have to classify myself in the "not so much" group. If you love it, please adjust my rating accordingly.

There are really only two characters in Service Model: Uncharles and The Wonk. Uncharles is a high-end valet robot, a gentleman's personal gentlerobot -- a metal and plastic Jeeves. Except Jeeves never murdered Bertie, although he may at times have felt the urge. Service Model begins with Charles, the robot whom The Wonk will eventually rename Uncharles, discovering that his master is dead. Before long he figures out that his master is dead because he, Charles, murdered him. (This is not a spoiler, because the publisher's blurb reveals it.)

This leaves Charles with a problem. Not the one you're probably thinking, but another: his master's death leaves Charles without purpose. Charles would deny that he wants a purpose, or indeed that "wanting" is a thing he is capable of, or that he actually cares about anything. But his actions show that he is mistaken in this belief. He therefore sets out on a search for a human whose valet he can become.

Thus begins a journey in Five Parts, as Charles searches for a situation. (The parts are called KR15-T, K4FK-R, 4W-L, 80RH-5, and D4NT-A. I have no idea what those designations mean.) He soon meets a strange broken robot that calls itself The Wonk, who unintentionally renames him Uncharles, the name by which he is known for most of the book. It transpires that the world is in terrible shape: everything is broken or breaking. As Uncharles's journey progresses, we learn the nature of the apocalypse that has overtaken the world.

I claimed above that Uncharles and The Wonk are the only characters in Service Model. That is not literally true. There are many other characters, but they are not REAL characters. They are mere sock puppets for ethical and philosophical questions that Tchaikovsky wants Uncharles and The Wonk to cogitate upon. In fact, Service Model reminded me of John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress, and not in a good way. None of what happens appears plausible to me as events that could really happen. It's all an allegory meant to motivate the exposition of ethical and philosophical questions.

The publishers describe Service Model as "A humorous tale of robotic murder". It is indeed sometimes funny. However, I honestly found it more tedious than funny. As always, YMMV.

Thanks to NetGalley and Tor for an advance reader copy of Service Model. Release date 4-Jun-2024.

This book was a delight, I really enjoyed it. My only note was that it felt a bit too long, but for Tchaikovsky, I feel like 400 pages IS a novella. I loved the main character and seeing how his POV and his journey unfolded, as well as the very strange and interesting characters along the way. Part of the reason I requested this book was the comparison to Redshirts and Murderbot, and I felt that the comparison was well deserved. It had the irreverence of Redshirts and the character work with a nonhuman person that made me fall in love with Murderbot.

I though that "Service Model" started off a little slow. I wasn't instantly enamored with Uncharles, the way I was with Murderbot (as this books has been compared to), but I was definitely intrigued. Why did this valet robot go against his programming? Why have no knowledge of the incident? Who was programming these other robots in such roundabout inefficient ways?
And so I kept going... and found Uncharles more and more interesting as he made his was through the dystopian world with his sometimes companion, The Wonk, as The Wonk kept trying to encourage UnCharles to embrace his ability to make decision for himself... despite his singular goal to find a human and return to valet service. Perhaps fewer mishaps with the razor this time around.

I don't think comparisons with Murderbot are entirely fair, as the humor in Service Model is a bit drier, and in some ways a bit sadder. The world UnCharles finds himself in is definitely sadder than that of Murderbot, and the robots themselves have very different goals. But they are both incredibly well written and well worth reading.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

I am not a knowledgeable science fiction reader, but I do occasionally pick up something that sounds interesting like Service Model. It turned out to be a terrific read and I know I will be thinking about it for quite some time.

The main character, UnCharles, is a highly functioning robot valet programmed to serve upper class humans. He is a machine, and relies on the programs and routines he has been loaded with. Anything outside the parameters doesn't compute and just loops back around to be cycled through the program again.

But nothing is normal. UnCharles has killed his master. He doesn't think about why as he is a robot and not a sentient being. But he and the other house robots have no function with their human gone. UnCharles is interviewed by the robot police in a hilarious comic scene. They are all confined to doing their jobs in a certain way and follow a certain path so they are all gloriously ineffective.

And so the adventure begins. UnCharles leaves and sets out on what turns out to be quite a journey. He runs across a very interesting and opinionated being named Wonk who tries to convince him that he has contracted a virus that has given him some human sensibilities.

Their escapades take them to a deprogramming center, an archival library, an industrial farm and to a warlike robot who is constantly battling. Along the way UnCharles believes his only goal is to be useful again, to find another human to serve. Wonk keeps trying to convince him that he has much more potential. And the setting is dystopic -- once they start roaming, they find most of the human have been obliterated and the countryside and cities are in ruins. Parts of this book reminded me variously of 1984 and the Wizard of Oz.

I found this to be an original and thoroughly thought-provoking story. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

—Thank you to NetGallery for the ARC.

Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky was a fun and entertaining read. I especially enjoyed the author’s wry wit and acerbic humor as he describes the robot Charles’ difficulties navigating his way through a post-apocalyptic landscape, all in his mission to find a new master and manor in which to serve as robot valet—his programmed purpose for existing. I also loved the character of “The Wonk,” a quirky and possibly malfunctioning robot that Charles encounters early in the story. She serves as a sort of gadfly to Charles, trying to spur him forward to a greater purpose. The two embark on their unusual road-trip—The Wonk seeking a final answer to explain the state of the world, and Charles the robot, a somewhat reluctant companion along for the ride. I chuckled frequently at the comical interactions between the two, and with the other characters they meet along the way. Other reviewers have compared this to "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy," and I can embrace the spirit of that comparison, though the novels are still quite different. As the story unfolds, Tchaikovsky also injects an insightful, running commentary on the state of society and the foibles of humanity, often with an ironic, darkly humorous edge. Recommended!

This is only the second Adrian Tchaikovsky book that I've read, but once again, I am struck by the originality of a story premise that I thought I already knew.

It's the end of the world, except our narrator Charles, the robot valet, doesn't know it. In fact, there's a lot that he gives the appearance of not knowing. An incident happens, blindsiding him in one of the most Weekend-at-Bernies (is that reference old? I don't care) kind of way that sparks his departure from the life he knew into a world of illogical absurdity as he tries to reclaim a sense of purpose.

In this absolutely wild world, the author had the most fun spearing the ridiculousness of the types of people and situations that Charles (now Uncharles) encounters. I got a lot vibes a la Wizard of Oz, Gulliver's Travels, The Odyssey... all those journey epics. Episodic, thoughtful, but ultimately fun to read. I like that the analysis of flawed systems (flawed humans?) is accompanied by the absurdity that accompanies it; it makes it a smoother, more entertaining read.

I have a few students who claim to like and "get" satire. I might recommend this text to them if they have a strong science fiction foundation already.

Genre: science fiction

Charles is a robot valet. He’s an advanced model, adept at interfacing with humans and completing a wide range of valet functions from scheduling to grooming. But one day, Charles encounters a problem: he can’t complete certain tasks because his human master is dead (and therefore needs neither tea nor a shave nor his travel schedule updated). And upon memory recall, determines that, uh, he’s the one who killed him. As he is programmed to do, he reports this incident, turns himself in, and is sent to be evaluated. No longer Charles – because Charles is the designation for the valet of the house he is no longer in service to – but Uncharles, he learns he may have been infected with a “protagonist virus” making him the center of his own story.

Oh do I love a good robot story! Uncharles, as is his designation for most of the book, is a quintessential Asmiovian robot bound by well-defined hard set logic rules. He has the capacity to adapt within certain parameters, but cannot exceed the limits of his programming. Through his journey to discover why he killed his master, he encounters other robots with their own hyper-specific functionality and logic rules. It seems, for example, that he’s stuck at Diagnostics because the queue is clogged by a case that requires Grade Seven or above human, and no such human exists anymore, since they apparently all retired. None of these robots have the capability of thinking, only functioning within their programmed scope.

Because of the nature of Uncharles’s limitations, the book does have some intentional repetition to it, and if you listen to the audiobook, you’ll feel as caught in the logic loop as all of the other robots. I really liked that nod - when the tone of the narrative reflects the concepts it relays, a book feels well-rounded to me as a reader. That said, I think this may have been slightly better served as two novellas because there are two main conflicts that felt like distinct arcs to me (despite the nice neat way Tchaikovsky ties them together at the end!)

There is an urge to compare this Murderbot by Martha Wells, and in some ways that’s not entirely wrong, since we have a character sketch of a nonhuman robot entity bound by certain rules. Except where Murderbot is grappling with parts of its humanity, since it has organic parts and capability of free thought, Uncharles is truly a robot confined by programming. Uncharles cannot have “feelings,” but instead has the capacity to realize when his programming cycles are complete or incomplete. There are narrative asides about his inability to experience a feeling, but Tchaikovsky cleverly conveys this in a way to be comfortable to a human reader.

I was reminded also of a classic SF short story I read perhaps 25 years ago, that my brain attributes to Larry Niven, but could easily have been someone else, about two travelers visiting a restaurant where the kitchen robots get stuck in a logic loop and continue to bring out shrimp cocktails. I thoroughly enjoy any story where a robot runs into flaws its own logic makeup, and this novel addresses that not only through Uncharles, but also another character he meets along the way.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Tor Publishing Group for an advanced copy of this science fiction book that looks at a future where things are falling apart, for reasons unknown, and a robot who only wants to serve man, in the best way travels a fallen world looking for purpose.

Discussing the future, everyone like to think about the differences that technology will make. How much easier things will be. A person could have his own gentleman's servant, a valet to lay out clothes, plan meals, make travel arrangements. A house run by a computer that will practically run itself. Food, gardens, lights electricity, even bill paying, done without a thought by the human. This future seems bright and sunny, every day seeming like the last to both human and robots, until one day one trusty valet makes a closer shave than usual, and everything falls apart. Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky is a science fiction novel of the future, with a robot traveling a dying earth, looking for both purpose and humans to iron clothes for, and make their travel arrangements.

Charles is a valet servant and travel arranger for a human, who has not left the house in over 2,000 days. Charles is proud of what he does, and is content choosing clothes for his master, which are not worn, than washing them and pressing them, for a time they are needed. Charles is told of strange stains that are on these clothes one day, and finds the same stains on the car that he washes everyday, a car that has not left the garage in years. These stains it seems are blood, and they actually come from Charles hands. There is an investigation with robots, and Charles is dismissed and the name of Charles taken away. and sent to Diagnostics to see what went wrong. As Charles travels he sees that other manors are slowly decaying, with robots standing in the fields, fields that are slowly overgrown, and nothing in the way of people. Our valet is given a new name Uncharles, by the Wonk a possible fellow defective robot, that needs food, and at least 8 hours of sleep. Uncharles is given a reason for his problems, but wants to know more, so begins to travel to find a better purpose, and humans to serve. However humans are not easy to find.

A wonderfully strange book that is mix of many kinds of stories, both science fictional, allegorical, and fantastical. Tchaikovsky is in rare form here, digging deep into his ability to create odd worlds and weird ideas, and yet keeping everything kind of grounded. These story will seem familiar, a bit of Candide, maybe even a bit of Canticle for Leibowitz. However it is all Tchaikovsky who really is one of the best writers of science fiction out there. Charles/Uncharles is a bit like Jeeves, from the P. G. Wodehouse stories murdered Bertie Wooster, and decided to find a job with Aunt Agatha. I have to admit, Charles/Uncharles really does grow on one. The book is hard to describe, but is very worth reading, just for the imagery that Tchaikovsky puts on paper. Some of the morality might be a little iffy for some people, but the ideas around it are interesting. A rare science fiction book that one has no idea where it is going, but really makes one think.

Recommended for fans of Tchaikovsky, and for readers of James Morrow, especially Towing Jehovah and John Brunner. A future book that is quite dark in many ways, but is ultimately hopeful. And very good.

Service Model is a hard book to explain. Is it a book about a robot uprising? A screed against modern civilization? A religious pilgrimage? All and none at the same time?

I'll be honest,I tried to read this quickly and I tried to give up, but the robot ballet valet Uncharles kept drawing me back. I was never sure what was happening or what would happen next. And I think that's how it was supposed to be. Uncharles was searching for something, and it took on different meanings in each context.

It's a stranger book than I expected. It made me think, and I'm still thinking, so that's a good thing!

A robot valet finds itself at the end of humanity in Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky. After the untimely death of his master, Charles must find his way through a post-apocalyptic landscape to find meaning with new employment and find the answer to the question of what a robot is supposed to do when all the humans are gone.

A fun twist on the mystery genre. Tchaikovsky’s storytelling skills are on full display, as expected. There really is no (sub-)genre he can’t turn his hand to. Definitely recommended, as is everything he’s written.

I will admit, when I first read the description of this book my mind went to Murderbot (from the Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells). And this is not Murderbot.

In this book Uncharles (formerly Charles) is a robot valet who murders his human master. However, he has no idea why he did this. Through a somewhat amusing sequence of events in which other robots are unable to process what has happened because of their narrow governing parameters. Uncharles is sent out into a world that has fallen apart in the wake of human greed and selfishness. It's a pretty standard post-apocalyptic human destroyed world with very few remaining living humans. Lots of rubble and decay with a whole host of robots trying futilely to fulfill their human programmed purposes. Delivering a crate of supplies despite the fact that the supplies are gone and there is no one to deliver them to any longer.

Things I liked: The Wonk is a fun side character and watching her antics and dogged companionship was enjoyable. The whole idea of the robot Librarians charging in to save data was great as well.

Where this story kind of fell short was that I really wish we'd been able to see Uncharles develop more of a personality. Instead he just stuck to his programming. Which is realistic enough for a robot, but doesn't make a super compelling story. I felt like the story dragged at parts and felt a little repetitive after a while.

I have only just met Uncharles, but he is now my son and I love him. This book about a robot butler murdering his master and escaping into the wild has it all. Whether it's data compression, archangel-spider-librarians, horrifying-but-immaculately-stitched daycare robot Skippidy-Jack, or god itself, the only things this whimsical Hitchhiker's-Guide-esque story is missing are humans of grade seven or higher. If you love Douglas Adams, John Scalzi, or Terry Pratchett, this is a definite hit. 10/10.

In a post societal collapse world, robots are these one left except for a few humans. When robot Charles is fired from his post as a valet, he begins traveling and searching for work. Through his eyes we learn about this dystopian society.

I was amused with the start of this book. It was a very British humor, who's on first, comedy of robot logical errors. I like the wit and humor that revealed the ridiculousness of the robot's algorithms. As the story progressed, the humor became more subtle and the focus was more on how society devolved, how Charles (now Uncharles) was adapting, how other robots were faring. It is an attempt to explore how a world of robots might go terribly wrong and how robots might respond. It was worth reading and the plot kept moving along at a decent pace, but I definitely struggled more with the middle and end of the book. The loss of the humor made finishing the book more work.