Stevie‘s review of Coral-600 (The DMA Files, Book 1) by Roxy Mews
Science Fiction Romance published by Samhain 24 Feb 15
I firmly believe that lots of well-used tropes could be freshened by the addition of robots (at least as many as could be improved by the addition of dragons, or by setting an already excellent series in space!). I also have more than a passing fascination with prostheses and futuristic assistive technology, so any story featuring both an artificial being with near-human levels of understanding and adaptability, and also a human with multiple high-tech assistive enhancements was bound to appeal. Now I learn this is just the first part of a series; colour me highly intrigued…
Coral, who takes her name from the model designation assigned to her by her creators, is a uniquely advanced android working as a servant in the royal palaces of an unnamed futuristic kingdom. Now more than ninety years old, Coral is becoming increasingly interested in the humans around her, particularly in the exploits of her roommate, and commonly plays back recordings of their conversations in order that her friend can better explain the context to her.
When Coral is introduced to Quinn, a royal relative newly moved into the palace, she is intrigued by him as both a human male and as the possessor of almost as many technological enhancements as she has in her mostly artificial body. Coral persuades her roommate to take her into a humans-only nightclub, where they once again encounter Quinn, and where Coral begins to experience new sensations, which she initially believes to be malfunctions in her programming. Quinn is attracted to Coral in spite of the laws against sexual encounters between humans and artificial beings, and Coral’s curiosity about both humans and the changes in how she experiences the world lead her to pursue him to his room.
After an emotionally-charged sexual encounter with Quinn, Coral transmits data to the manufacturing lab in the hope that they will be able to repair her ‘malfunction’ remotely, and so inadvertently sets off a chain of events that culminate in her being forced to flee the palace with Quinn rather than be shut down and reprogrammed. Of course, this leads to the trope of them being stuck in a log cabin, which, as with the earlier trope of the servant and the royal, is so much fresher when robots are involved.
This story left me wanting to know so much more about the background details, such as why a royal family (and a ruling one at that) and just how far into the future are we anyway? But hopefully all will be revealed as the series progresses, and I can’t wait to see how the conclusion of this novella plays out in the wider society of this intriguing world.
Grade: B
Summary:
Pleasure is not a malfunction.
Coral-600 is the first and only one of her kind. An artificial intelligence prototype with realistic skin over her metal frame, she was deemed too expensive for mass production and gifted to the royal family.
She cannot legally have a relationship with a human, and it never entered her electronic brain to want more—to break the law. Until she meets Quinn, and her DNA-enhanced skin tingles with a completely new sensation. Desire.
His body damaged beyond repair in the war, Quinn survived—barely—by agreeing to have much of it rebuilt. His royal relatives have taken him in, but it’s tough adjusting to a body that doesn’t come with instructions.
As Coral helps Quinn cope with his new body, the connection between them reaches the melt-down point. But unless she can convince the authorities that humanity runs deeper than flesh and bone, she’ll have her CPU wiped clean—permanently.
Warning: This book contains artificial and natural flavors, lubricant (lots and lots of lubricant), and fun with oh-so-hard drives.
Read an excerpt.
