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Sarah (7800 KP) rated Machines Like Me in Books

Sep 12, 2020

Machines Like Me

Ian McEwan | 2019 | Fiction & Poetry, Science Fiction/Fantasy

6.0

(2 Ratings)

Book Rating

Great idea, just not well executed

The idea behind this book and the base plot is a really great idea. An alternate 80s Britain thats more technologically advanced than we are currently in 2020 is a fascinating idea and I really enjoyed the parts of the book that detailed all the differences - some of which (like Apan Turing still being alive) were actually rather emotive and almost made you wish real life had been like this.

Adam too is a fascinating character and any part of the book that featured him was a winner. The problem with this book is the two main characters Charlie and Miranda. They are completely unlikeable and self absorbed, and the way they treat Adam (and Mark in some respects) is absolutely awful. There's something Alan Turing says towards the end of the book that really sums up how much of a horrible person Charlie is. Whilst having unlikeable characters isn't necessarily a bad thing for some books, in this I just found them rather irritating and annoying. And Charlie's constant internal rambling monologuing got rather boring and really dragged on.

I really wanted to love this because the general idea is fantastic, and there are parts of this where I did love it. It's just a same it was let down by the characters.