Rating: 
Summary: science fiction detective mystery concludes [no spoilers]
Review: "Robots and Empire" is the conclusion in the awesome science fiction series concerning R. Daneel Olivaw and new partner R. Giskard. Two hundred years have passed and although Elijah Baley has passed away, his influence remains with the technological masterpiece R. Daneel Olivaw and the extraordinarily gifted R. Giskard. Restricted by the Laws of Robotics, Daneel and Giskard must find a way to thwart any plan a certain enemy executes while unable to employ what they consider Elijah's aggressive techniques. Reading about Daneel trying to think like the great detective Elijah is a fun read. The fond memories the robots and long-lived Spacers elicit make this a touching story. This brilliant detective story is a work of art.Thank you.
Rating:
Summary: science fiction detective mystery concludes [no spoilers]
Review: "Robots and Empire" is the conclusion in the awesome science fiction series concerning R. Daneel Olivaw and new partner R. Giskard. Two hundred years have passed and although Elijah Baley has passed away, his influence remains with the technological masterpiece R. Daneel Olivaw and the extraordinarily gifted R. Giskard. Restricted by the Laws of Robotics, Daneel and Giskard must find a way to thwart any plan a certain enemy executes while unable to employ what they consider Elijah's aggressive techniques. Reading about Daneel trying to think like the great detective Elijah is a fun read. The fond memories the robots and long-lived Spacers elicit make this a touching story. This brilliant detective story is a work of art. Thank you.
Rating:
Summary: science fiction detective mystery concludes [no spoilers]
Review: "Robots and Empire" is the conclusion in the awesome science fiction series concerning R. Daneel Olivaw and new partner R. Giskard. Two hundred years have passed and although Elijah Baley has passed away, his influence remains with the technological masterpiece R. Daneel Olivaw and the extraordinarily gifted R. Giskard. Restricted by the Laws of Robotics, Daneel and Giskard must find a way to thwart any plan a certain enemy executes while unable to employ what they consider Elijah's aggressive techniques. Reading about Daneel trying to think like the great detective Elijah is a fun read. The fond memories the robots and long-lived Spacers elicit make this a touching story. This brilliant detective story is a work of art. Thank you.
Rating:
Summary: A superb novel; one of Asimov's best
Review: "Robots and Empire" is the continuation of the robot stories and at the same time is the link to Asimov's empire and foundation novels. Apart from explaining how Earth became radioactive (not by nuclear war as he first intended) it also effectively closes the robot novels with a very satisfying ending. What I particularly like about this story and which makes it much better than "The Robots of Dawn" is that it is set many years after the death of Elijah Baley where the Spacer Worlds no longer play such a significant role as they did in the first novels. Furthermore we visit the Settler world Baley World and the strange Spacer world Solaria. What I miss though is an answer to what really happened to Solaria. In my view we do not get this in later novels either. The robots R. Daneel Olivaw and R. Giskard Reventlov are again key figures and without them the development of humanity and the colonization of the galaxy would at this point probably have stagnated. "Robots and Empire" also contains a description of Elijah Baley's last moments so you do not feel that he is suddenly out of the picture. I think that this is one of Asimov's best novels one of the reasons being that many of the things described in this novel is revisited later in "Foundation and Earth". This is a "must read" for all Asimov fans but do take your time to read at least the first 3 robot novels. It makes this one so much better.
Rating:
Summary: THE CLASSIC ROBOT NOVEL
Review: A classic novel and a must read for any Asimov fan.
Rating:
Summary: Asimov is brilliant
Review: A reader must keep in mind that Asimov's stories and concepts have been taking form over a period of 50 years. His Foundation series is a brilliant extrapolation of Gibbon's famous 'decline and fall of the Roman empire' to humanity's far future. The Robot series is equally brilliant. Asimov moves the concept of law to a level beyond that of even the most modern government, and represents power and responsibility in the most moral form with his robotic characters. Either series stands on it's own, but together they form a massively deep and moving story and very pertinent philosophy. If you are ready for a serious, brilliant, and always entertaining read, Asimov is the one to try.
Rating: 
Summary: The beginning of the Empire....
Review: Ah yes, this might not be the very best Asimov, but it is good reading and prepares the reader first for the three Empire novels and then the Foundation series. This takes up 200 years after ROBOTS OF DAWN and Elijah Bailey is long dead. However, R. Daneel Olivaw and Giscard continue and are actually the primary movers in this novel, although Gladia, a villainous descendent of hers, a descendent of Elijah's and a continuing villain from the earlier book are all important characters. There's a lot of rather philosophical dialog between the two robots which slows down the story quite a bit, as they ponder over the ramifications of the three robotic laws and come up the the zeroth law which will in time enable R. Daneel Olivaw to return in later books. It helps explain how Earth's descendents gain the edge over the spacers in their expansion in the galaxy. It also explains Earth's radioactivity which is referred to in later volumes. This is straight science fiction without any of the mystery subplotting of the previous novels. There are hints of the types of power struggle which permeate the following books. Also, one must realize that this book and the preceding robot novel were written after the three Empire novels and the Foundation Trilogy. All in all, a satisfying enough read best enjoyed when read in chronological sequence.
Rating:
Summary: Pax Robotica.
Review: Almost every human activity carries
some risk. Consequently, conscience stricken
robots like R.Daneel and R.Giscard
could not permit most of them. I.e. according
to the three laws of robotics: A robot may not injure
a human being or, through inaction,
allow a human being to come to harm.
So, any group of Asimovian robots worth their salt should
immediately round up all humans and put them in a
Matrix-like computer simulation?
And it certainly doesn't get a whole
lot better with the zero law, the Giscardian
reformation, which is introduced here in Robots and Empire.
Under zero law, a robot must act in the long-range
interest of humanity as a whole,and may overrule all other laws,
whenever it seems necesary for that ultimate goal. Thus, as intelligent
robots entered human society, humanity started living
under the Pax Robotica - In all its strange
consequences.
Certainly, Asimov was a genious to have forseen it all.
And Robots and Empire is yet another great Asimov book. -Simon
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: Although the loss of Baley before the book even begins is a bit disconcerting, this book holds together wonderfully well and the Baley "flashbacks" we are treated to are wonderful. Some parts of the book are even surprisingly moving, especially Gladia's speech on Baleyworld.
Rating:
Summary: My favorite
Review: Although this is a fairly unusual choice, Robots and Empire is actually my favorite all time science fiction novel that i've read to date. Although Elijah Baley is dead a couple centuries ago, a number of flashbacks sum up the conclusion to his life very nicely. His descendent DG, featured in this book is also a very intriguing character. In addition, this book really explores the issue of advanced robot psychology to a greater extent than earlier novels, with many interisting discussions between Daneel and Giskard. I thought Robots of Dawn was kind of boring and lengthy at parts, but with this one, although it was nearly a hundred pages longer, it kept me a captive reader throughout the whole thing.
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