(Drivebycuriosity) - Nobody knows how the future will be, but it is fascinating to speculate about it. That is what good science fiction does, making plausible assumptions. Annalee Newitz, the writer of the novel "Autonomous", does a gut job (amazon). She describes a plausible world in the early 21st century, shaped by biotech, artificial intelligence (AI) & the Internet of things.
The book focuses on the conflict between the pharma industry, who is defending her monopolies and patents, and the drug pirates, who create cheap copies to cater those who can not afford the expensive medicine. The plot follows Jan, a drug pirate, who discovered that one of her re-egineered drugs has deadly side effects and tries to fix the problem. She - and her pirate colleagues - are hunted by a ruthless agent and a military robot who are working for the pharma industry, which leads to a deadly conflict (I won`t tell more, this is a spoiler free blog).
The plot is plausible & entertaining. Newitz spiced her story with a lot of knowledge & science as you can expect from good sci-fi and blends it with wild action. I enjoyed the funny robots - which remind me of Stanislaw Lem`s robot fairy tales - and the hilarious erotics & romance scenes.
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