Robots becoming more human-like has been a story line in SF for a century or longer if you consider Frankenstein. We especially remember Isaac Asimov's "I Robot" (1950) and "Caves of Steel" (1953-54), and the many movies of the past 20 years – "I Robot" (2004) comes to mind – Will Smith in the shower comes to mind – as do more recent offerings exploring AI.

Do you remember in Terminator 2 Sarah Connor muses that T-800 is the father that John Conner never had. A perfect father in many ways. We can imagine that although ageless, the T-800 would change as John grew to be a man. We saw something of this evolved Terminator in the recent series installment "Terminator: Dark Fate" (2019).

Carey is a robot caregiver who can instantly change his name and affect to meet the needs of his client. Through decades of caring for members of one family Carey grows loving and empathetic in some indescribable way, to become not human, but something different, something better, perhaps.

The book is a pleasant read. There are echoes here of the growth phase of "Flowers for Algernon", I think. The idea of robots as caregivers is not new in any way, and although the robot empathy is well presented, I don't think this book will challenge your idea of sentient robots much at all.

I am a judge for the Compton Crook Award competition for debut SF novels. "Today I am Carey" by Martin Shoemaker was a contender in 2020 and I received a review copy to evaluate. ( )

Carey is a medical care android. The interaction of its programmed empathy and its ability to emulate human responses are unique. But where is the line between software and love?

Shoemaker's debut extends his devastatingly good short story (Today I Am Paul) to explore the further experiences of a state-of-the-art android whose capabilities exceed its programming. Carey's creator never predicted its unexpected compassion, and cannot replicate it however hard she tries. Carey is adopted into a family who consider it one of them, and the episodic narrative follows their relationship through three generations, exploring how Carey's experiences shape it - and how its care shapes those around it.

It leaves little to the imagination in interrogating its central question of love as a natural vs programmed process, but it’s unfailingly kind and at times deeply affecting. Brilliant if you’re looking for a hug of a read (I cried buckets, but in a good way).

Content warning: dementia, loss of loved ones

Full review

I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. ( )

This extremely well written tale of an AI becoming a real person is also an extreme work of emotional manipulation. Carey doesn't stage a planetary revolt or fight interstellar corporate piracy, it was designed with empathetic nets to care for patients with mental issues such as Alzheimer's and becomes the first and at least for the duration of the novel, only, self-aware android. The scale is always internal and mostly within one family. My issue is that like a dog is bred to love humans, Carey is made to care for them and while he is quite charming and clever, he is not a creature of free will. He develops, but only along a single axis. ( )

Wow. Good, interesting story that drew me in and made me feel with the characters, until I was crying for most of the last three or four chapters. Very interesting ideas, as well - emergent AI, in an android designed for medical care, and the puzzle of why this one and none of the others, mechanically identical. But mostly it's about Carey figuring out who it is, and its family and their struggles and joys. Fascinating, wonderful, I loved it, are there any more from this author? Maybe not yet, but I hope more soon. ( )