Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Seven-foot-tall killer robots known as D-17s malfunction during military testing in the Mojave Desert and crush the skull of an Army computer scientist in the rip-roaring latest collaboration between Nelson DeMille, who died in 2024, and his son, Alex (after Blood Lines). Before the head-smashing incident, a Ranger regiment had been supplying troops for training battles with the robots, but the so-called "tin men" proved faster and more capable than their human counterparts, beating the soldiers in every simulation. Superstar Army criminal investigators Scott Brodie and Maggie Taylor are assigned to figure out what went wrong with the futuristic machines and whether it might indicate a dangerous flaw in their software. Brodie and Taylor are characteristically unrelenting in their probe, turning up evidence that the D-17s have developed capabilities that even their inventors and programmers don't know about, which could prove disastrous to U.S. military operations. The DeMilles kick the action into high gear early on and don't let up until they arrive at an exhilarating clash between a 60-robot contingent and terrified human forces. This is liable to keep readers up all night. Agents: Sloan Harris and Jennifer Joel, CAA. (Oct.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
The third outing for Scott Brodie and Maggie Taylor (after Blood Lines), by father-son duo Nelson DeMille (who died in 2024) and Alex DeMille, is a high-tech murder mystery with hints of a dystopian future. U.S. military investigators Scott Brodie and Maggie Taylor know their new investigation is an important one as soon as their boss pulls them from their regular assignment to inform them of the death of an army major at a remote desert outpost in Nevada where special research was being conducted. The death came at the hands of a robot dubbed a "lethal autonomous weapon," and the case has implications for future research. When Brodie and Taylor arrive at the Nevada base, the army brass places restrictions on their investigation to maintain secrecy. As they conduct their inquiries, Brodie and Taylor are perturbed by the environment on the base, whose enlistees are wound up and ready to explode. This unease increases with the discovery of the late major's sub-rosa research, which hints at the possible sentience of the robots. VERDICT Brodie and Taylor are partners whose bond transcends the workplace, and their dynamic fuels much of the story. Mystery fans as well as lovers of sci-fi will enjoy this must-read.--Philip Zozzaro
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
Robots may be the future of warfare in this final father-son DeMille collaboration. In Camp Hayden, Army Maj. Roger Ames is found dead, his skull crushed. Chief Warrant Officers Scott Brodie and Maggie Taylor, special agents of the United States Army Criminal Investigation Division, are sent to the Mojave Desert, "a.k.a. in the middle of nowhere," to investigate. In this fictional military installation, Army Rangers conduct field training exercises with lethal autonomous weapons. These "dangerous new toys," nicknamed "tin men," may become the future of warfare if they can be programmed to distinguish between friend and foe. Anyway, the Rangers' job is to train the tin men, not the other way around. They are AI-driven robotic prototypes called D-17s, but even prototypes can kill. Did a bot kill the major? And was there criminal liability or intent, or was it a tragic accident? Brodie and Taylor discover that not everyone loves these beasts, and they must find out if humans are programming them for mischief or even trying to set up the program for failure. Meanwhile, the bots have nicknames. Bot number 20 is Bucky, seen on a video as a "seven-foot-tall titanium machine with hands covered in blood and brain matter" that has "a face but no eyes, with hands but no skin, with a body but no soul." As scary as these beasties are, Brodie and Taylor must also look at the humans at Camp Hayden, because they learn that the "machines don't have motives….They have inputs and outputs," which naturally come from human programmers. They have neither brains nor courage nor honor; they do have brute force, speed, and agility. Obviously, plenty goes haywire in this enjoyable yarn. It feels a bit too believable for comfort, and that's to the DeMilles' credit as storytellers. Nelson DeMille had begun this project with his son Alex, who had to finish it alone after his father's death. Fast-moving and disturbingly plausible. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
