A review by napthenknit
Set My Heart to Five by Simon Stephenson

emotional lighthearted slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I wanted very much to like this book. In fact, I liked it a lot for about 80% of the book. Then the next 15% the feeling waned a bit, but I figured the author knows so much about screenwriting that he would never leave us with a terrible cliche ending... but the longer I went on, the more tropes appeared, and then the last 3% of the book absolutely tanked for me. I was angry, and frustrated, and deeply upset. Not upset in a cathartic way, like a noble sacrifice was made for the greater good or there was a traumatic event that the main character could learn a lesson from. I found the ending genuinely upsetting and actually somewhat irresponsible for the author to portray as the joyful emotional climax of the story.

Other than the appalling ending, the book had funny little bits sprinkled throughout, and I could see this as sort of the "chipper younger brother" of Murderbot. However, do not come in with expectations for sci-fi worldbuilding (minor examples of irksome nonsense:
How does bitcoin exist if there is no internet? How are bots able to be tracked via "their barcode" if there's no internet? Why did every airplane fall out of the sky on the day of "the great crash"? Planes can still land without internet! If there are no planes how are characters still easily traveling between continents?
). You will get no worldbuilding. Instead, you will get references to people and brands that exist today which make this "near-future" story seem incredibly dated.

If you're looking for an easy read that you don't need to pay too much attention to (I listened to the audiobook sped up, which I never do), with lots of references to cinema and screenwriting (and the tropes therein), this could be a good choice. If you want a near-future exploration of human-bot interactions, maybe try the Monk and Robot series by Becky Chambers. If you want a snarky, sassy bot who doesn't understand people but can't get away from them, try the Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells.

Below is a brief summary of the ending for those who are concerned:
The main character kills himself in hopes that his death will make people realize that bots have feelings. He uses the same logic that many suicidal people use to explain why they want to commit suicide. He believes his suicide is a good thing that will benefit the world at large. There is no resolution afterwards; his suicide note is the end of the book.
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