Best of
Robots

2020

Acheron Inheritance


Ken Lozito - 2020
    

Facts vs. Opinions vs. Robots


Michael Rex - 2020
    Some things are facts--like the number of robots in this book. Other things are opinions--like which robot would make the best friend, or which robot dances best. And sometimes to tell the difference between a fact and an opinion, you need to wait to get more information--that's because facts can be proven true or false, and opinions are things you feel and believe--but that you can't prove.

A Guide For Working Breeds


Vina Jie-Min Prasad - 2020
    This collection of stories is where robots stand in for us, where both we and they are disadvantaged, and where hope and optimism shines through.

Semi/Human


Erik Hanberg - 2020
    Humans are out. Can one teenager steal her way to a better future?Pen Davis just lost her internship to a robot. As supercomputers take over all the jobs in the world, the lonely teen doesn’t see a future. Desperate to escape the coming robo-pocalpyse, she devises a plot to steal millions from her former boss. It’s payback for laying her off, and the only way Pen can see how to scrape together enough cash to survive.But her plan takes a crazy turn when she fumbles the hijacking of a self-driving truck and accidentally sets it free.Stuck with a semi who practically wants to be her little sister, Pen tries to make the best of it. She uses the semi to rescue quiet James, who is interested enough in her that he’s willing to join her crew, even though he’d prefer not to do anything actually illegal. When she convinces James and the truck to help her, the plan fails spectacularly and her mismatched team is torn apart.Will Pen claim the riches of her dreams, or will a unique friendship give her something money can’t buy?Semi/Human is an action-packed science fiction adventure. If you like quirky characters, hilarious road trips, and awesome high-tech heists, then you’ll love Erik Hanberg’s fast-paced caper.Buy Semi/Human to pull off the perfect crime today!

Kirby: Art & Style Collection


Joel Enos - 2020
    Featuring twenty-five years worth of sketches, artwork, Japanese video game box art, and more. With exclusive notes from creators and artists who have brought Kirby to life throughout the years.

Curse of Strahd: Revamped Premium Edition (D&d Boxed Set) (Dungeons & Dragons)


Wizards of the Coast - 2020
    Rumbling thunder pounds the castle spires. The wind's howling increases as he turns his gaze down toward the village of Barovia.Far below, yet not beyond his keen eyesight, a party of adventurers has just entered his domain. Strahd's face forms the barest hint of a smile as his dark plan unfolds. He knew they were coming, and he knows why they came--all according to his plan.A lightning flash rips through the darkness, but Strahd is gone. Only the howling of the wind fills the midnight air. The master of Castle Ravenloft is having guests for dinner. And you are invited.Resting in this coffin is a premium edition of the award-winning Dungeons & Dragons adventure book Curse of Strahd, one of the most beloved D&D adventures of all time.Curse of Strahd: Revamped splits the adventure into three parts--a softcover D&D adventure book with updated content, a Creatures of Horror booklet detailing monsters and NPCs appearing in the adventure, and a Tarokka Deck bookletLearn what fortunes await you with an oversized 54-card foil stamped Tarokka deck with storage boxUse a sturdy, four-panel DM screen designed especially for this adventure with tables outlining encounters in Barovia, the Barovian calendar, a guide to reading Tarokka cards, and more.Navigate Barovia and Castle Ravenloft with a 21 x 30 double-sided map and give players 4 handouts from the original adventure as they unravel the mysteries of Ravenloft.Invite friends to the table with 12 postcards featuring beautifully eerie art of locations across Barovia.Here lies: Softcover Curse of Strahd D&D adventure book, Curse of Strahd DM screen, 1 oversized Tarokka deck (54 cards) and card box, Tarokka deck-reading booklet, Monsters & NPCs booklet, Strahd stat block sheet, 2-sided fold-out map, 4 handouts, 12 postcards

Happy Paws


Vicky Fang - 2020
    When a local amusement park is in danger of shutting down, Layla knows just how to bring in the crowds... build an amusement park for DOGS! But will cool doggie rides like the Rub-a-Dub Mud Slide and the Tummy Rubbing Machine be enough to keep the park open?

Made to Order: Robots and Revolution


Jonathan StrahanPeter F. Hamilton - 2020
    This collection of stories is where robots stand in for us, where both we and they are disadvantaged, and where hope and optimism shines through.Contents:- Making the Other We Need by Jonathan Strahan- A Guide for Working Breeds by Vina Jie-Min Prasad- Test 4 Echo by Peter Watts- The Endless by Saad Z. Hossain- Brother Rifle by Daryl Gregory- The Hurt Pattern by Tochi Onyebuchi- Idols by Ken Liu- Bigger Fish by Sarah Pinsker- Sonnie's Union by Peter F. Hamilton- Dancing with Death by John Chu- Polished Performance by Alastair Reynolds- An Elephant Never Forgets by Rich Larson- The Translator by Annalee Newitz- Sin Eater by Ian R. MacLeod- Fairy Tales for Robots by Sofia Samatar- Chiaroscuro in Red by Suzanne Palmer- A Glossary of Radicalization by Brooke Bolander

Geeger the Robot Goes to School


Jarrett Lerner - 2020
    But not robot school…a school with kids, the human kind! Geeger isn’t used to human ways, and his zany misunderstandings and overly literal responses to instructions lead to quite a few mishaps. He’s starting to wonder if he can even make it until snack time! Will a bot made of wires, nuts, and bolts fit in with a classroom of kids?

Laevium


Ruxandra Tarca - 2020
    Especially when a groundbreaking discovery is at stake, and dark secrets are lurking in the shadows.In a Neo-Victorian London of mechanical horses and aerial gondotrams, airship engineer Jasper Kendall Asher has a bright future ahead as the youngest member of the Engineers Order and a secret agent in Her Majesty’s service. But a terrible accident brutally changes the course of his career, sending him instead to a dull life as a mechanic among the poor of St. Giles.Three years later, unusual circumstances give him the opportunity to return into service as the main engineer for the Queen’s new airship—and a chance to uncover the truth behind the unfortunate event that changed his life.Along with an outlandish woman navigator, a reckless female agent, and his taciturn brother, Jasper resumes his work. From his workbench, to London’s airharbour, to remote Scottish villages, he follows the trail of a scientific discovery that promises to reveal much darker plots than he initially imagined in his search for answers.

Twisted Fairy Tales: Snow White and the Seven Robots


Stewart Ross - 2020
    When the wicked Star Queen shipwrecks her daughter, Snow White, on a remote forest planet, the plucky princess uses her engineering know-how to rebuild her ruined spacecraft into robot helpers! Can she and her mechanical friends find a way to defeat the Star Queen once and for all?

I'm Programmed to Love You


Elias Barks - 2020
    20 beautiful, full-color pagesA non-cloying, non-corny inclusion into the ubiquitous parental love books genre, this is a perfect Valentine's Day title for quirkier sensibilitiesCelebrates classic 20th Century imaginings of a robot, with humorous allusions to the family's futuristic robotic lifestyleWhile hitting the adorable notes and format of Valentine's Day books of wide, mass-merch appeal, the quirky setting and cryptid subject matter provide strong appeal for indie bookstores as wellAppeals to parents who are enthusiastic about robots and science fiction

The Unofficial Master Annual 2074


Alister Pearson - 2020
    Which featured stories and illustrations produced by fans, as well as celebrity contributions from the worlds of Doctor Who.Now TERRAQUEOUS DISTRIBUTORS have released The unofficial Master annual 2074.The annual is an impressive 136 pages, featuring stories and illustrations produced by fans, as well as contributions from well known names such as Alister Pearson, Smuzz, and Andy Walker.The Master annual was originally announced last November, with a call for contributors. The following is an excerpt from the writers guidelines: “The Master is the Anti-hero. Sometimes saving people, not because of compassion or moral values, but because it suits whatever agenda he has.Of course he can also be the villain, remember that meddlesome Doctor isn’t around – and thats when villains come out on top”. The focus of the annual is the original Master portrayed by Roger Delgado.As many fans will notice, the cover artwork is a homage to the first ever Dr Who annual that was released in 1965 by World Distributors. “We wanted from the start to send the message that the Doctor isn’t here to save the day, he’s gone, he’s been replaced by a different kind of “hero”.And in the unofficial Master annual, we get to explore just how successful he can be. What could be more thrilling than exploring the Master’s universe, without having the Doctor there to save the day”.The cover was illustrated by Paul Cooke and features original characters from the stories in the annual.The Unofficial Master Annual 2074 is published by Terraqueous Distributors and available from Lulu at the print-on-demand price of £23.32 plus shipping costs). The annual is a not-for-profit publication, and none of the money paid by purchasers goes to the publisher or to any of the contributors.Later this year, Terraqueous Distributors will be releasing their fourth annual.

Vampires of Avonmouth


Tim Kindberg - 2020
    Everything changes for David when a ship arrives from West Africa, carrying a vampire who hungers not for blood but mental energy. As she hunts those around him, David struggles to protect her ultimate prey: the woman he falls in love with, despite himself. For David is carrying his own monstrous secret inside. If he fails, she will lose her mind. Literally.This gothic science fiction story takes us on an action-packed exploration of mental enslavement – by systems of oppression, and by parts of our own selves.

Visitation Seeds


Ben Berman Ghan - 2020
    It has travelled across the void to us. Call it a Gardener.When we wake, there is a forest growing in the night sky. The Visitation Seeds have come.In a future where life has mysteriously sprung forth on the Moon, humanity seizes a new land to colonize, raising cities from the silver dust. Now, after decades of settlement and growth, something is stirring. The voice of a young man is calling out from the graveyards. The dead no longer lie still beneath the ground. From Earth, a lone cyborg is dispatched to solve the mystery of resurrection and quell all rebellion, but her journey beneath the pomegranate trees will lead her on a darker path, towards a secret that will undo the growing world beneath her feetGhan’s tale is not a story but a journey to a place that is both dangerously foreign and familiar, a journey from which no one will return unchanged.

Octobriana 1976


Jim Rugg - 2020
    To show solidarity, underground American cartoonists made their own Octobriana comic book. Robot Stalin's got a new doomsday bomb! Can the Devil-Woman stop him before he destroys us all? Siberian labor camps, PPP secret orgies, motorcycle gunship train chases - this one has it all! Samizdat gone wild - a cross between 70s psychedelia and Soviet constructivism!?! You've NEVER seen a comic book that looks like this! Revolution forever, bitch.The world's first fluorescent blacklight comic book!

Drones to Ploughshares


Sarah Gailey - 2020
    In a near future, a surveillance drone serving an authoritarian state is captured—and offered a new lease on sentience.

William the Last Volume 2


Brian Shearer - 2020
    Meanwhile, William sneaks away to rescue her using stolen Hawk Rider Armor.

Humans and Robots: Ethics, Agency, and Anthropomorphism (Philosophy, Technology and Society)


Sven Nyholm - 2020
    The reason is that we humans have a tendency to spontaneously attribute minds and "agency" to anything even remotely humanlike. Moreover, some people already say that robots should be our companions and have rights. Others say that robots should be slaves. This book tackles emerging ethical issues about human beings, robots, and agency head on. It explores the ethics of creating robots that are, or appear to be, decision-making agents. From military robots to self-driving cars to care robots or even sex robots equipped with artificial intelligence: how should we interpret the apparent agency of such robots? This book argues that we need to explore how human beings can best coordinate and collaborate with robots in responsible ways. It investigates ethically important differences between human agency and robot agency to work towards an ethics of responsible human-robot interaction.

Energon


Boy Willeboordse - 2020
    While he is doing it solo, his best friend Ariana is in the tournament as well, as she takes part in the team games.Ariana and her team have trained for this moment for so long, yet the present champion is not planning on giving up that spot. Team Invictus has been undefeated and will do anything to keep their title.While both of them have to make their stand in the Arena, great danger will follow as Dan finds out disturbing news about what is coming for them.Battle for ChampionFight for Survival

Welcome to BBs


Tracy A. Ball - 2020
    Until her birthday, when they chipped in and got her a sample package.It came with a coupon...

The Day I Started a Mega Robot Invasion


Tom McLaughlin - 2020
    The robot, Bob 1, is pretty clever…so clever that he decides to make Bob 2 and, before you can say binary, there’s AN ARMY OF BOBS.Now Molly must race against time to stop a MEGA BOB INVATION…and hand in her homework!