The Wrong Unit

A Novel

By: Rob Dircks

Narrated by: Rob Dircks

I don't know what the humans are so cranky about. Their enclosures are large, they ingest over 1,000 calories per day, and they're allowed to mate. Plus, they have me: an Autonomous Servile Unit, housed in a mobile/bipedal chassis. I do my job well: keep the humans healthy and happy.

"Hey you.”

Heyoo. That's my name, I suppose. It's easier for the humans to remember than 413s98-itr8. I guess I've gotten used to it.

Rob Dircks, author of Where the Hell is Tesla? and Don’t Touch the Blue Stuff!, has a "unit" with a problem: how to deliver his package, out in the middle of nowhere, with nothing to guide him. Oh, and with the fate of humanity hanging in the balance. It's a science fiction tale of technology gone haywire, unlikely heroes, and the nature of humanity. (Woah. That last part sounds deep. Don't worry, it's not.)

©2016 Rob Dircks (P)2016 Rob Dircks

Critic reviews

“★★★★★ Dircks has delivered a fantastic novel that is charming, thoughtful, both heart wrenching and heart warming, thought-provoking, and ultimately just hilarious.” (AudiobookReviewer.com)

"Rob Dircks manages to bridge the tricky divide between science-fiction and humor so effortlessly that a comparison to Vonnegut is not a hyperbolic stretch.” (Ruth Sinanian, Literature Reviewer)

thought-provoking, and ultimately just hilarious

The Wrong Unit by Rob Dircks is set in a dystopian far future where humanity is controlled by Core, or a computer overlord. 413s98-itr8, or Heyoo as he is more commonly referred to by humans, is a loyal Servile Unit or a humanoid robot that is charged with interacting with and helping humans on a day to day basis. One day, he goes in to get repaired when his existence as he knows it is changed forever. Instead of day to day tasks of helping humans go about their days, he is thrust onto a journey to deliver a fragile package to a location unknown, with no path or instructions. Little does Heyoo know, he’s is now wrapped up in a quest to overthrow the computerized overlord that he actually believes to be infallible. On this journey, Heyoo’s primary goal is to figure out how to get home, but as time passes he begins to wonder if this rebellion may not be such a crazy idea after all.

Dircks’ has delivered a fantastic novel that is charming, thoughtful, both heart wrenching and heart warming, thought-provoking, and ultimately just hilarious. Heyoo’s character as a robot attempting to interpret human motivations and actions is just captured so well and with a lot of amusing thoughts from the robot. Beyond the humor, there is fantastic character development. Heyoo and the other two main characters really grow and change throughout the novel. In fact, Heyoo’s slow change, both physical and intellectual, during his long journey is truly transformative. While the premise for the story isn’t unique, the perspective is really novel and I like that throughout, it is slowly revealed how humanity got to the point that it became controlled by Core. Also, while the timeline extends over many years, the story does not drag at all. Dircks’ achieves a great balance between action and reflection. Ultimately, this is a humorous story about humanity and freedom.

The narration was also done by Rob Dircks and it was spot-on. His voice capture of Heyoo and the units was really well done. All of the human characters were also really well captured and distinguishable. He was really able to make the listening experience immersive. The production quality was good as well. I would highly recommend this story to anyone who enjoys funny novels about robots, overthrowing robot overlords, and humanity at large.

Audiobook was provided for review by the author.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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Great story

What made the experience of listening to The Wrong Unit the most enjoyable?

It's fun, well written sci fi. Great subject idea.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

Unfortunately to my English ear I struggled with the narrator pronouncing some words super quickly and I couldn't make out what was being said. This spoilt my listening and I had to stop with what was an enjoyable read....

Any additional comments?

I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Completely Captivating

I listened to this book in one day. When I had to put it down I struggled until I could get back to it. The narration is reminiscent of Will Wheaton or R.C. Bray, in the way that I am completely immersed in the performance. While I wouldn't rank this book as high as Ready Player One or The Martian, if you have finished one of these and are wondering what to do with your life now, this is a great option. I would rank this on par with Will Save the Galaxy for Food or We are Legion (We are Bob).

Great read for a new father.

As a new father this book is touches home in a great way. The story itself shows Rob Dirks truly brilliant creativeness in unique stories. Taking a expected theme to a truly new place. Defiantly check out his other book "Where the Hell is Tessa" which is fun and hilarious adventure. It's definitely worth checking out. Now Rob if you read this, you better write some more. Cannot wait for the next book.

A fun, light-hearted sci-fi book. Recommended!

My rating: 4.5 stars
Audiobook narrator Rob Dircks rating: 4.5 stars

This is another short and fun science fiction book by Rob Dircks (author of Where the Hell is Tesla? A Novel). This book had a semi-similar feel to the book The Road (though, The Wrong Unit is much more positive and less dreary). It’s similar because of the two initial main characters and their relationship building. I really liked the interaction between Heyoo and Wa and how they grew together.

I don’t normally remember quotes from books but I really enjoyed the quote of “Fear not, you can always find beauty, even in a broken world.” Very poetic and well placed (then I learned that this similar quote shows up a few more times in the book).

This book had just the right amount of sci-fi mixed in with humor to make for a fun and short novel. I suppose that I did not enjoy this book as much as Rob’s first book but I still really enjoyed this one. I did not particularly care for the part where the kid picks up the gun and it discharges on him.

I liked the nod towards the Houston Astros and the baseball references (I thought there could be more baseball references in this book as well!). One thing that stood out to me was how we were given dates but we were also given elapsed time throughout the book. Sometimes it’s hard to calculate in my head how much time has elapsed when we’re just given dates. So I really appreciate having both options at the beginning of some of the chapters.

Not only is Rob a good author, he is a good narrator as well! I feel like he does a great job of breathing life into his characters and changing his voice for different characters. I am glad he reads his books.

I was gifted this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

learn a little humanity from a machine!

loved this book. listened through in one setting. great performance by the author, and a thought provoking story!

Danger Will Robinson

This was a new twist for me. I listen to you about five books of month and it's hard to find a good read, this was one of the best! I am going to buy the authors other book. And pray that fertile mind of is keeps turning out exciting works!

glass box of emotions.

It you want a father and son story. This box will full that void. But it can be a tear jerker.

A must have

Would you consider the audio edition of The Wrong Unit to be better than the print version?

I only listened as I use audio to get through my commute to work.

Who was your favorite character and why?

HeyYou! Who doesn't love a slightly sarcastic robot?

Which scene was your favorite?

So many to choose from. I think when Wah fashioned the wings for them to fly over the canyon to get to Shanghai. At this point, it seemed the two characters matured and became more equals -- fully trusting each other.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I found this to be very entertaining and engaging. Rob Dirks reads his own work in a way that you forget the author is reading to you -- he's simply acting out the story for you and the characters come alive. And I did laugh several times, and there were some very endearing and touching moments in the latter pages of the story.

Any additional comments?

Rob, when is your next SciFi book? Keep 'em coming!!!

Loved this

I loved this book and that the narration by the author is amazing. This novel had me crying and laughing throughout