The Robots of Dawn

By: Isaac Asimov

Detective Elijah Baley is called to the Spacer world Aurora to solve a bizarre case of roboticide. The prime suspect is a gifted roboticist who had the means, the motive, and the opportunity to commit the crime. There's only one catch: Baley and his positronic partner, R. Daneel Olivaw, must prove the man innocent. For in a case of political intrigue and love between woman and robot gone tragically wrong, there's more at stake than simple justice. This time Baley's career, his life, and Earth's right to pioneer the Galaxy lie in the delicate balance.

Auuster's Takeaway

So I realized after finishing this book that this was the third installment to the Robot series by Asimov, but I did have a feeling that I jumped into the middle of a story when they “introduced” the Detective Elijah Baley and all his deeds from stories before. In certain ways, it made the story more interesting as I had no knowledge of prior event. Nevertheless, I quite enjoyed the detective story to find who killed Jander Panell, a humaniform robot.

Elijah was invited to Aurora a technologically advanced planet that has different cultures and customs than on Earth. Accompanied by Giskard and Daneel Olivaw (the first humaniform robot, Jander was the second and the last), Elijah interviewed suspects to prove the creator of the robots (Fastolfe) was innocent and did not commit Roboticide. His experiences on Aurora greatly contrasted the political atmosphere and cultural customs of Earth and Asimov. He explored concepts of human interaction where robots play a prominent role in everyday life and used as political instruments.