This novella hearkens back to the good old days of Asimov or the general Campbellian SF universe where we focus on the nuts and bolts of the universe, or in this case, the solar system, as our robot observer watches our old red sun engulf the planets.

Of course, humanity is long dead. We're talking billions of years and I have doubts about the next ten.

That being said, this novella is very contemplative and enjoyable, adding little fun reflections on creativity and Jonathan's birth as well, but mostly we've got some great jewels like terraforming mars and igniting Jupiter as either long-dead history or possibilities, and this is where the author shows his chops as someone who knows the SF field and is writing a love-letter to it.

The only complaint I have is one that the author already addressed at the end: It needs to be longer and he is writing more. :) I'm quite good with that. Thanks!

This is for anyone who loves the whole concept of our Solar System's death. Or maybe you're just in a mood. :)

Thanks goes to Netgalley for this ARC! ( )

I almost didn't buy this book (for a few reasons) but in the end, I just couldn't resist the book design. I mean, look at that fantastic cover!

This book is about the end of our solar system (as we know it), and with it, the end of the human race. Eons before, a scientist created a machine, designed to exist long enough to witness these events. The machine, roughly humanoid, which he names Jonathon, lives for a time on Earth, then on the colonized and terraformed surface of Mars, before retreating to to the outer solar system to "read" his massive cache of human-authored works and wait to watch all humanity be extinguished.

To be sure, this book takes a not very optimistic view of the eventual fate of humanity. Many of Jonathon's observations of and theories on the demise of the species rang false to me, and repeatedly shook me out of the narrative. Really, with all the histories of fallen civilizations, the reason humans finally go extinct isn't war, isn't destruction of our own environment, isn't greed, it's just -- we didn't get out of the way soon enough? I mean, we knew the sun is coming for us. Surely with all our history of exploration and innovations someone was working to launch us into the clear. So what stopped them? Lack of resources? Theocratic cults assuring us that we would be saved opposing such ventures? We poured all our resources into something that failed? There had to be something, what was it?

I did like the "lonely robot contemplates the solar system" bits, but was ultimately disappointed by most of the contemplation of humanity. Needs more "soft" science. Less unappreciated male genius. ( )

A self-aware robot named Jonathan muses on his several billion years of existence as he welcomes the end of his mission: to witness the death of our sun and to leave a record of humanity for anyone who might someday investigate the the dead solar system. Thoughtful, and just the perfect length at about 80 pages. By the end I was rather mourning Jonathan as he reminisced about his creator and contemplated (not sadly, I might add) spending his last years on the cold body of the sun, unable to leave because of the gravitational pull. ( )