Book Review - Robot Uprisings edited by Daniel H. Wilson and John Joseph Adams

As Daniel H. Wilson writes in his introduction, one of the unique things about robots is, unlike other terrifying threats or monsters, that they are real and already woven into the very fabric of our society. We use robots already for so many tasks, ranging from everyday mundane cleaning through to processing sensitive military data. So what would happen if the robots, the very things that we as a society have come to rely on for so many things, rebelled? 

Chaos... mayhem... and terror. That's what. 

Robot Uprisings, an anthology edited by Daniel H. Wilson and John Joseph Adams (RRP $19.99 from Simon and Schuster), paints a horrifying and stark future for the human race if the technology goes haywire. Picture self-driving cars suddenly driving off bridges, or children's toys conspiring to commit murder, and you get a glimpse into our possible future. Composed of stories each depicting a different scenario, Robot Uprisings left me genuinely frightened and riveted at the same time. I was enthralled by each story, and the prospects of our future downfall unless we can get a handle (even that smacks of my human hubris) on the technology. Ranging from Scott Sigler's bug cyborgs and Charles Yu's murderous android maid through to Hugh Howey's super anti virus and Daniel H. Wilson's nanobots, Robot Uprisings kept me engrossed page after page. It is a big call for an anthology, but I can honestly say there was only one story in this book that I didn't really enjoy. Wilson and Adams have put together one of the strongest and most entertaining anthologies I have ever read. I absolutely adored the uniqueness of each story, and I thought each author did a remarkable job in exploring the realms of possibility. Each story or novella was fast paced, action packed, and usually full of mystery and mind blowing concepts. I seriously cannot think of another anthology that even comes close to this one in terms of the sheer pleasure (albeit frightening pleasure!) I had in reading it. 

Robot Uprisings is highly recommended for anyone who enjoys speculative fiction. A top notch anthology full of riveting stories and novellas that paint a terrifying possible future for the human race. 

4 out of 5 stars. 

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A review copy was provided.