The Cybernetic Tea Shop

I'm so glad I read this. It reminds me of why I enjoy indie & small press books so much; there's maybe somewhat more freedom for authors to explore unusual ideas and characters than in traditionally published works. This story focuses on two interesting people who live about 300 years in the future.

Clara is a mechanic or engineer who makes a living repairing robots, but robots are currently limited to pet-like creatures that don't have true artificial intelligence. However, she does have an AI companion, a hummingbird. I really like speaking animal companions as a plot element in any book, and Clara's companion provided some comic relief, as well as a lot of insight into Clara's personality. Clara has wanderlust and never stays in one place very long.

Sal is an old-fashioned robot, created before the regulations about artificial intelligence, who has outlived her original owner by over 200 years. She still runs the tea shop that they ran together. They meet when Clara comes to live in Seattle, and they eventually fall in love.

The romance is sweet and subtle, and both characters are asexual (or that is how I interpret it, although the word isn't used). There is non-sexual intimacy between them, especially when Clara works on Sal's systems. This is another thing I always like in fiction, perhaps because it often brings to mind Geordi working on Data's systems, which I always thought was a great expression of their closeness and the trust between them. So, while there are a few familiar concepts in this story, it all comes together very well into something original.

That theme of trust is explored in this story, and it's very emotional, because Sal has not really trusted anyone since her original owner passed away. She has one acquaintance but no one she feels especially attached to, only her shop. She has to deal with her grief and learn to move on by finding a new purpose in life. It's somewhat more difficult for her than it might be for a human, because the world doesn't really see robots as people. I feel the author handles these serious topics very well.

This is a great story and I recommend it highly to everyone. It's short, but the story definitely feels complete. I look forward to reading more of Meredith Katz' work.