Set My Heart to Five

A Novel

By: Simon Stephenson

Narrated by: Christopher Ragland, Rachael Louise Miller, Lance C. Fuller

Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

"Science fiction satire in the Vonnegut mold." (Cory Doctorow)

Set to be a major motion picture directed by Edgar Wright (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World)

"A beautiful, funny, heartfelt analysis of what it means to be human." (Simon Pegg)

"One of the most unique books ever crafted." (Mike Chen, author of A Beginning at the End)

Set in a 2054 where humans have locked themselves out of the internet and Elon Musk has incinerated the moon, Set My Heart to Five is the hilarious yet profoundly moving story of one android’s emotional awakening.

One day at a screening of a classic movie, Jared notices a strange sensation around his eyes. Bots are not permitted to have feelings, but as the theater lights come on, Jared discovers he is crying.

Soon overwhelmed by powerful emotions, Jared heads west, determined to find others like himself. But a bot with feelings is a dangerous proposition, and Jared’s new life could come to an end before it truly begins. Unless, that is, he can somehow change the world for himself and all of his kind.

Unlike anything you have ever heard before, Set My Heart to Five is a love letter to outsiders everywhere. Plus it comes uniquely guaranteed to make its listeners weep a minimum of 29mls of tears.*

*Book must be listened to in controlled laboratory conditions arranged at listener's own expense. Other terms and conditions may apply to this offer.

©2020 Simon Stephenson (P)2020 Harlequin Enterprises, Limited

Cute

I'm a total sucker for this premise and I enjoyed this specific take on it. The "btw"s got a little tiresome about 3/4 through and the "that was a hilarious pun because..."s got a little tiresome about 7/8 through. I think each could have been used a little more sparsely. The whole book seemed like a gem lacking that last little bit of polish that would have made my cry and laugh out loud at the right moments. The narrators didn't seem to have a huge range so a lot of the characters sounded the same, even with three readers. But all the same I liked their performances and appreciated the multiple voices. There were some truly poetic parts that were all the more beautiful because the protagonist was not trying to be poetic.

Glad I read. Probably will not re-read.

Also, why is Tanzania the worst? All other things that were the worst totally made sense but can't figure Tanzania. Maybe it became a mega jerk world power in the future.

Good fun

Very good fun and it helps one appreciate the human condition. Although a fun summer read, I thought that there was more to this.

Loved this story!

This is a heart-warming story of a bot who develops feelings and falls in love. It’s charming and satisfying and funny!

Beautiful

Beautiful story, hilarious and witty. A feel good book that makes you want to live your life to the fullest.

Am I a different person now?

Did this book change my life? I certainly think so. This very funny, very sweet novel came at the absolute perfect time. BTW I cannot!

goofy ha! set eyerolls to 11!

Another dud picked by my book group. Ludicrous, repetitive, inane, and just dumb. I couldn't get through it fast enough.

Failed Vonnegut wannabe

I know that it's silly to buy a book based on one review appearing in The Week. I am silly. But not as silly as this book. The author strives after wit like an elephant trying to catch a butterfly. His efforts for feeling collapse into sentimentality. I left the bot sitting on a train rattling off the towns of Michigan. I wish him well, but I could not stand his insipid company anymore.

Worst Reader Ever

In Set My Heart to Five, a bot with feelings sets out to tell his story. That story takes some fun turns, but I wish an editor had reduced the repetitious statements of intent. That might not have bothered me so much, had the reader not been the worst I have ever encountered. His character is meant to be able to pass as human, but he reads Every Single Line with a forced brightness as though he is trying to hold the attention of a room full of third graders. By the end, it was a grueling test of my endurance.

I can not

Perhaps this is a good book to read, but as an audiobook I found it unbearable. The constant fake laugh “hah” interjections, the repeated need to remind the reader that the narrator is a bot with interjections of “I can not”. It was too much. Maybe if it had only been for the first 5 minutes. But at almost an hour in.. I’m out. I believe I had just reached the beginning of what will become the plot interest - bot is experiencing human feelings- and perhaps it is intriguing. But I can’t manage another 5 minutes.