BlackHat Mystery BookstoreIsaac Asimov's
Robot Mysteries
Robot Mysteries
Isaac Asimov [1920-1992] was one of the giants of science fiction literature, as well as one of the most prolific: he wrote 470 books, while working as a professor of biochemistry at Boston University Medical School. He wrote his first robot short story in 1939, at the age of 19. His first bestseller was the book "I, Robot", which is included here because some say it is necessary as background to the robot mysteries.
[The term 'robot' first appeared in Czech playwright Karel Capek's 1921 drama "R.U.R.", which stood for "Rossum's Universal Robots". The term is derived from a Czech word for worker or slave.]
An editor at Galaxy Magazine suggested that Asimov write a robot detective novel, and Asimov followed the suggestion only partway, making the detective a human named Elijah Baley, who worked with a robot sidekick named R. Daneel Olivaw. The story "Caves of Steel" was serialized in Galaxy in 1953 and published in book form in 1954.
The sequel novel, "The Naked Sun", was serialized in Astounding in 1956 and published in 1957. "The Robots of Dawn" was not published until 1983, and introduced a second robot sidekick, R. Giskard Reventlov. In the fourth book, "Robots & Empire", Asimov chose to allow Baley and Giskard to die while Daneel lived (and solved the case). Asimov was amazed at the storm of letters from readers more unhappy about the death of robot Giskard than about that of the human Baley.
The other books included on this page are early and late short stories about robots written by Asimov which often interconnect with the four Robot Mysteries.
The 'Three Laws of Robotics' devised by Asimov before robots even existed may be the longest-lasting legacy from any sci-fi author, in that these laws are embedded in the science and design of robots in the XXIst Century and will likely remain significant as long as robots are built.
These laws are:
In September 2000, sci-fi author Mark W. Tiedemann published "Mirage", the first of a trilogy of mystery novels set in the Spacer worlds environment created by Asimov in the above four books. The central characters are taken from various Asimov-related works, such as "Robot City".
And the latest news is the July 2004 release of the feature film version of "I, Robot" starring Will Smith; info below.
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"Caves of Steel" [1953]
Bantam Spectra pb [12/91] for $7.50 Doubleday hardcover [6/54] out of print/used |
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"The Naked Sun" [1957]
Bantam Spectra pb [12/91] for $7.50 Doubleday hardcover [6/57] out of print/used |
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"Robots of Dawn" [1983]
excerpt published in Nov 1983 issue of Penthouse Magazine Bantam Spectra pb [4/94] for $6.99 Doubleday hardcover [10/83] out of print/used Caedmon Audio [1/86] out of print/used |
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"Robots and Empire" [1985]
Acacia Press pb [10/86] for $21.94 Doubleday hardcover [9/85] out of print/used |
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Asimov's Robot Trilogy
includes "The Caves of Steel", "The Naked Sun" & "The Robots of Dawn" Del Rey 8½x5½ trade pb [8/88] for $28.99 |
Background Fiction & Non-Fiction
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"I, Robot" [1950]
ten stories as told by robo-psychologist Dr. Susan Calvin Bantam pb [7/94] for $7.50 Doubleday hardcover [6/63] out of print/used |
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"I, Robot: The Illustrated Screenplay" [1994] Script by Harlan Ellison Illustrations by Mark Zug "The greatest science fiction movie never made." Warner Books 9x6 pb [12/94] out of print/used |
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"I, Robot" feature film [Fox July 2004] Directed by Alex Proyas; screenplay by Jeff Vintar & Akiva Goldsman; starring Will Smith, Bridget Moynahan, Alan Tudyk & James Cromwell Fox Collector's Edition DVD [5/2005] 2 disks for $24.28 
Fox widescreen DVD [12/2004] for $19.49 Fox color DVD [12/2004] for $23.98 Fox color VHS [12/2004] priced for rental market Fox VHS subtitled in Spanish [12/2004] priced for rental market Verese soundtrack CD [7/2004] for $17.98 full credits from IMDb |
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"I, Robot" concept album [1977] by Alan Parsons Project Arista audio CD [10/90] for $13.98 |
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"The Rest of the Robots" [1964]
Acacia Press pb [10/68] for $18.94 Doubleday hardcover [6/64] out of print/used |
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"The Complete Robot" [1982]
Acacia Press pb [12/83] for $21.94 Doubleday hardcover [3/82] out of print/used |
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"Robot Visions" [1990] Illustrations by Ralph McQuarrie 18 stories & 18 essays NAL pb [7/96] for $7.99 NAL hardcover [4/90] out of print/used |
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"Robot Dreams: Remembering Tomorrow" [18 stories 1994] Illustrations by Ralph McQuarrie Ace 9x6 trade pb [6/2004] for $10.50 Ace pb [9/94] for $6.29 |
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Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine
subscription 12 issues/year [USA only] for $32.97 official magazine website |
Isaac Asimov's Robot Mysteries
by Mark W. Tiedemann
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Asimov catalog at Amazon
Isaac Asimov's listing at Internet Movie Database 'Foundation' books series at Amazon |
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