Who won the Atomic Swarm giveaway?

March 16, 2010 by

If you read the last Geek-Speak newsletter you’ll have seen that I was giving away a copy of Jason Bradbury’s Atomic Swarm to a random subscriber. All they had to do was reply to say they wanted it and I’d randomly (using Random.org‘s random number generator) choose a winner this morning.

Well, job done, and congratulations to Pete Cattell who won the book!

I can’t promise that there’ll be a giveaway every time, but if you want to get the inside track on what’s happening at Geek-Speak, and participate in subscriber giveaways when I am able to do more, you can sign up for the newsletter here. I’m not one of those “e-mail a day” marketers, so you won’t have to worry about being overwhelmed with mails from me and, who knows, you might even find it interesting :)

Right, that’s me for now. There’s no “normal” article today as I was away all day yesterday visiting my 2-day old nephew (he’s brilliant!). Have a great day, and I’ll catch you tomorrow.

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Birthday Bash: Win Jason Bradbury’s Dot.Robot and Atomic Swarm

February 15, 2010 by

Let’s carry on with the birthday giveaway! This time the prize is two books by gadget geek and children’s author Jason Bradbury, and a SciFi.co.uk goody bag.

Jason has released two novels aimed at children aged 11+ but I have to admit I really enjoyed them as a 31 year old adult! You can read my reviews of them here: Dot.Robot and Atomic Swarm. They’re brilliant geek literature and well worth getting hold of. I’ve already been asked this, so I’ll say it up front now: you’re entering to win new copies of the books, and not just my tatty review copies :)

How do I enter?
Just answer the question below. I want to say thanks for being a Geek-Speak reader, so you don’t need to retweet or join my mailing list. Mind, I’d be more than happy if you did choose to do so! :) You can enter no matter where you are in the world.

How will the winner be chosen?
All the correct entries will be recorded in the order I receive them. When it comes to choosing the winning entry I will be using random.org‘s random number generator to pick a position in the list… and the person at that position wins.

Enough already! What’s the question?

Which science fiction author is most popularly attributed with inventing the "Three Laws of Robotics"?

This competition is now closed. Find out who won here.

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Atomic Swarm by Jason Bradbury [review]

February 2, 2010 by

Jason Bradbury, who you most probably know as one of the presenters of The Gadget Show, released his first children’s novel, Dot.Robot, last year. It was a cracking tale of technology and geekery so when the second book in the series was released I made sure I got my copy quickly!

Atomic Swarm picks up the story of Jackson Farley after he’s left home and taken up a scholarship at MIT. He’s still working on remote-controlled robots, but no longer for the MeX organisation of the first book. Instead he’s working with his MeX partner Brooke and her father.

There’s some really clever storytelling here. Much of the book is devoted to Jackson’s work with Dr English but you’re aware that there’s something going on in the background. I found myself wanting to know what was going to happen, and when, but without being frustrated by the wait to find out. And when it does happen it’s another exciting tale of intrigue and twists. I was constantly guessing what the real storyline was and whether the events so far were just leading up to a twist – suffice to say it certainly kept my interest right up to the end.

Much as with the first book, I’m a little surprised how much I enjoyed this given its 11+ target audience. I also find myself still amazed that the technology referenced in the story is all real! Much of it is so cutting edge that we won’t see it in general use for a while, but real all the same.

I loved the first Dot.Robot and I’m pleased to say I thought Atomic Swarm was just as good. It’s available from Amazon.co.uk* now, and well worth picking up a copy.

* Affiliate link

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Dot.Robot by Jason Bradbury [Review]

September 28, 2009 by

“Congratulations, Jackson. Welcome to MeX.” Dot.com billionaire Devlin Lear, founder of the top-secret defence force MeX, has been watching Jackson Farley. He knows he has found a digital genius. Along with three other brilliant gamers from different corners of the world, Lear needs Jackson to join him and stop the criminal heist of the century. And all by the power of the most highly advanced, state-of-the-art robots ever invented. Are Jackson and the MeX recruits as good as Lear thinks? And how does Jackson know quite who to trust when they can never meet face-to-face? (Amazon.co.uk)

Jason Bradbury’s Dot.Robot is one of those stories I’d have loved when I were a lad. It reminded me of the film “The Last Starfighter” where a boy completes an arcade game and then discovers that it was actually a training and recruitment tool for an alien defence force. It’s a story of “gamer turned hero”… and to think people say playing computers games is a waste of time…

Actually, it’s a bit wrong to say I’d have loved this story when I were a lad, because I loved it last week and I’m 30! The introduction to the book states that all the technology mentioned in the story is real, which is amazing to consider as you read through it. Autonomous cars, remote-operated aircraft, and other high-tech gadgetry make this science fiction in the proper sense (i.e. fiction actually based on science) and make you wonder what might be possible as these technologies become more common.

But what of the story itself? Well, I don’t want to reveal too much, obviously, but it hurtles along at a fast pace, drawing you through conspiracy, tension, and drama… and there’s a nice twist too. It’s written for children aged 11+ but certainly didn’t feel childish to read as an adult, so if you don’t have kids don’t let that stop you picking up a copy!

Would I recommend reading Dot.Robot? Absolutely! Whether you’re a teenager or an adult, whether you’re into gadgets or just want to read a good story, pick up a copy and find out what happens to Jackson and his gaming teammates.

Dot.Robot is available on Amazon.co.uk.

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