"The Preserve" by Ariel S. Winter is a dystopian novel with an intriguing premise, exploring the consequences of technological advancements and societal control. The story unfolds in a meticulously crafted world where citizens are isolated from the past and monitored for their safety. Winter's writing is immersive, creating a tense and atmospheric narrative that delves into the complexities of identity and freedom. However, the plot's pacing feels uneven at times, impacting the overall engagement with the narrative. While the characters are compelling, their development could have been more pronounced to deepen the emotional impact of their journeys. "The Preserve" offers a unique take on dystopian fiction but falls slightly short of fully realizing its potential.

3 stars

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this advanced reader's copy and the opportunity to read this early. Review has been posted on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Given the current world circumstances this book was not even started. I couldn't even wrap my head around the synopsis. The cover art is great and the co cept drew me in awhile ago,but I couldn't touch this book.

Mm, it’s a no from me on this one. I gave it a 3 because I felt like it had so much promise, but it left literally so much to be desired.

You had no idea how humanity got to its current point. You have no idea how robots got be so not only so humanoid, but how powerful they were. You had, essentially, zero backstory into how we got here. It felt very weird.

I felt like it was moving along well and then once it got about 75% of the way through, it started to lose its way. I wanted more and I didn’t get it.

This was such a weird, twisty little book! Definitely had me looking over my shoulder during my walks at night!

I would feel much better about this whole endeavor if it weren't for the sense of...like the author couldn't quite decide on one particular message. So, it's part allegory, part dystopia, part police procedural, and just not tight at all.

In COVID era, this was a LOT. I have a hard time reading plague books at this point, and actually have a fear of robots SO lol. This was not the right fit for me.

It was really hard for me to connect to this book and find it hard to say what worked and didn’t work for me.

This one was pretty good. I thought it was going to be something different. But it definitely gave off some creepy and eerie vibes and I'm here for that.

But I am not that scared by technology taking over so it wasn't something that kept me up.

I think it was interesting and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys this type of book.

I liked the premise of this, but didn't think it "hit it out of the park". I enjoyed the pacing and story line for most of the book, but did find myself less interested in parts and wanting more action...or something.

Interesting sci-fi novel where the robots are in charge and human are an endangered species living on a preserve. When were is a murder on the preserve, one of the local police chiefs, who had been enjoying the quiet life, must solve the crime quickly. The longer it takes, the more the robot government will come in and take over. And with this first big crime, he begins to see how seedy an underbelly really exists in this quite little place.

This book just wasn’t for me. The premise didn’t grab me and I had a difficult time believing the story. Those that love sci-fi may enjoy it.

The Preserve
by Ariel S. Winter

Society is turned inside out when there are more robots than humans in this book. The Preserve is a human reservation that has debatable purposes, primarily 1) gather all humans for protection, or 2) provide a means for control and, if necessary, quick extermination. Those who live within the walls of the Preserve don’t seem to be convinced about the protection side of the argument. Although the community population is primarily wary humans, there are a small number of robots (“metals”) and a few hybrids (think Steve Austin – Six Million Dollar Man) scattered about the community, and all doing their best to pass as humans.

Jesse Laughton is the Chief of Police, a husband to Betty and dad to Erica . The murder of a hybrid uncovers deeper concerns that requires an old partner of Jesse’s to join him in order to tackle the potentially catastrophic situation. That old partner is Kir, a robot. These two work well together, bantering as a human and robot would – their relationship was believable, and Kir related realistically as an old friend to Jesse’s family.

The Preserve is an unexpected read, with humans as the unstable underdogs that need controlling so the larger robot population would remain sympathetic to the “preserve” concept. While this is a book heavy on dialog, the elements of Preserve life described were intriguing, and I was hungry for more. A sequel with more of those would keep me fascinated. While our usual struggles with race, gender and class do not get any air time in this story, it was impossible not to see the same types of reactions and results in the relations between the humans and the robots. In a way, it was surprising how clear the view was through that unexpected filter.

A Sincere Thanks to Ariel S. Winter, Atria/Emily Bestler Books and NetGalley for an ARC to read and review.

This started off well, but it grew too weird and convoluted. I finished it, but it definitely took me a while - and then I had to skim just to try to make it through. Disappointing.

I was really drawn to this story but I was hoping the robot and sci-fi aspects would make up for the fact that I'm not too keen on detective stories. It didn't. If anything it's more of the latter. I was in love with the premise, but the execution was okay and I really wanted more plot, less dialogue.

Imagine a dystopian world where a plague has wiped out most of the human population. Humankind is now a minority ruled by AI complex robots.

This is an intriguing blend of sci-fi and a police procedural. The world has been almost wiped out by a plague. Humans and robots live in tandem. However, the robot population has surpassed that of humans and in order to “preserve“ the human race, The Preserve is created.

This book really grabbed my attention from the beginning and it was quite an enjoyable read. I was invested in the story and really wanted to know how the story pans out.

In view of the worldwide pandemic and the lockdowns, this futuristic, dystopian mystery seems timely and relevant.

I would recommend this book for readers who enjoy sci-fi.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Part Bladerunner, part Westworld, this book is a fresh new take on the plague/dystopia/robots living among humans trope. I was thoroughly entertained by this book and could not put it down--I only wish I had picked it up earlier! Winter's voice is strong and clear, the suspense is perfectly balanced with the story itself, and no one literary device is relied on too often or too strongly. I'm definitely going to check out the rest of this authors canon.

Cyberpunk detective novel set in a world where humans are now the minority and the robots outnumber them. good premise, great writing. Would like to check out more by this author

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

The cover is simple but gets the job done. It didn't really catch my eye though.

The storyline is fairly interesting.
The author's writing style is intriguing and kept my interest.
The characters are well-developed and relatable in some way.

I'll definitely be looking out for other work by this author.

Imagine a country side town. A group of people co-exist together, then a string of murders take place. To investigate them, a wild western cop steps in and debugs his way to solve the case. This is the plot of THE PRESERVE. Except the country side town is a dystopian US, group of people are people + cyborgs and the western cop is a police chief.

In this dystopian world, futuristic AI technologies gave birth to humanoid cyborgs. Since human species is almost extinct, we need to be “preserved”, two components are given utmost importance - population & education. Because we are such uptight creatures, the government decides to open certain preserves where humans can live without any interaction with these cyborgs and vice-versa. But when certain metals are targeted, and ends up dismantled its upto the Chief Laughton to find the reason. This story has a lot of potential to become a great mystery novel, but it failed to keep me gripped to the storyline. I had interest, but it was more like “ok, what next”. It may be because I expected more!! 3.5/5

Thank you Netgalley, Atria books for the arc in exchange for an honest opinion.