Robopocalypse, by Daniel H. Wilson

You know that cool remote engine starting feature of your car?  How about the computer controlled traffic light system?  Or the drones the military is using?  What if a malicious artificial intelligence entity managed to gain control of all that--and more?  That's the scenario Daniel Wilson lays out in Robopocalypse.  In his near-future novel, we don't just have remote start but auto drive; not only traffic lights but emergency vehicles are computer-controlled; and most actual combat is done by robots.  A lone scientist has perfected the creation of a complete thinking, reasoning artificial intelligence.  He took safeguards to keep the AI contained, but it learned so quickly that it was able to "escape" and slowly take over the computers of the world.

The problem is that Archos, as the AI calls itself, has apparently been reading Al Gore's books.  It is disgusted with the way humans treat their environment, and begins to eliminate the human virus from the earth.  His program of extermination begins with small acts, like a domestic robot who attacks humans, a peacekeeping robot who overcomes its nonviolent programming to kill civilians and soldiers, a robotic doll who attacks the child owner, the elevators that take building residents to their deaths.  (Uh, oh, maybe it's beginning!  This happened in NYC!  Story here.)  This is where Robopocalypse is strongest: telling the stories of these episodes of technology turning on us, where people are no longer the master, being mastered by their tools and toys.  Imagine the horror of being behind the wheel of your cool new car with all the bells and whistles, then losing control as the autodrive takes over, mowing down pedestrians, then drives you into the lake where you slowly drown with your family.

With so much of human life relying on computerized and robotic controls, civilization quickly crumbles once the robots really get going.  Here's where the weaker part of the book.  Not that the second half of the book is bad; it's certainly entertaining.  But it becomes a little cliched: if you've seen one post-alien invasion or post-nuclear war movie, you've seen them all.  People flee, they learn how to survive in adverse conditions, unlikely heroes arise, and they unite to fight a common foe.  This will make a fun, special-effects filled movie.  In fact, the book reads like that, cutting from one scene to another, playing out like a screenplay.

There's not a ton of depth here, but it's a fun read, like the summer blockbuster it's destined to be.  Enjoy!