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Piers Anthony
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To Be a Woman (The Metal Maiden Series Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Piers Anthony (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 205 ratings
A humanoid robot serves as a perfect female companion—until she achieves consciousness—in this wildly different story from a New York Times–bestselling author.

Humanoid robots are surely in our future, but their uses are likely to be limited to body guarding, childcare, companionship, and sex. Other chores can better be done by smart non-humanoid machines designed for those specific tasks. But for these limited purposes, the best robots must be so realistic that they are indistinguishable from live people.

Elasa is such a robot. You can’t tell her nature if she doesn’t reveal it. You can talk with her, embrace her, kiss her, and she is the perfect woman. Until she becomes the first conscious robot. She’s no longer satisfied to pretend to be a woman; she wants legal recognition that she is a woman, so that, among other things, she can marry the man she loves. Therein hangs a tale . . .
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  1. Book 1 of 4
    The Metal Maiden Series
  2. Print length
    140 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Open Road Media Sci-Fi & Fantasy
  5. Publication date
    July 1, 2014
  6. File size
    4.9 MB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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There are 4 books in this series.

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Shannon Condon is a New York City-based narrator and actor with a BFA in acting from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, where she trained at the Stella Adler studio. Shannon is an avid reader and a proud member of SAG-AFTRA.

Piers Anthony has written dozens of bestselling science fiction and fantasy novels. Perhaps best known for his long-running Magic of Xanth series, many of which are New York Times bestsellers, he has also had great success with the Incarnations of Immortality series and the Cluster series, as well as Bio of a Space Tyrant, and others.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00KLOY178
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Open Road Media Sci-Fi & Fantasy (July 1, 2014)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ July 1, 2014
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 4.9 MB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 140 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 205 ratings

About the author

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Piers Anthony

Piers Anthony

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Piers Anthony is one of the world's most popular fantasy authors, and a New York Times bestseller twenty-one times over. His Xanth novels have been read and loved by millions of readers around the world, and he daily receives hundreds of letters from his devoted fans.In addition to the Xanth series, Anthony is the author of many other best-selling works. Piers Anthony lives in Inverness, Florida.

Customer reviews

3.9 out of 5 stars
205 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book readable and thought-provoking. They describe the story as fun, entertaining, and full of imagination. However, some customers feel the characters lack depth and motivation.

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ReadabilityThought provokingStory qualityCharacter development
31 customers mention "Readability"31 positive0 negative

Customers find the book readable and engaging. They praise the writing style as entertaining and thought-provoking. The characters are liked by readers, and the author does an excellent job convincing them with the book.

"...Great read, great fun, and great forward thinking and call for reflection. Highly recommended." Read more

"This was an enjoyable read on my iPhone. The basic premise was like a few other gaming conscious story’s...." Read more

"..."Eh, it's okay." It's not great, it's not terrible. I found the writing and dialogue kind of simplistic...." Read more

"Amazing. I read this novella in one sitting, and it is rare that I am so transfixed by a story that I can't put it down...." Read more

22 customers mention "Thought provoking"18 positive4 negative

Customers find the book thought-provoking and engaging. They describe it as an enchanting story full of imagination and human characters. The concept is interesting and the book starts a great series for them.

"...This is a fun and thought-provoking read which also serves one of the genre's cultural purposes, that of prescience...." Read more

"...It is sexy and fast-paced, with a fable-like simplicity and many great questions to ponder about the nature of sentience...." Read more

"...I was amazed by the court hearing. Truly a thought provoking book." Read more

"...Immediate thoughts are fairly good with an interest in how a legal battle over a conscious robot would actually unfold." Read more

11 customers mention "Story quality"11 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the story's quality. They find it entertaining with an interesting plot. However, some readers feel the story lacks depth.

"...This is a fun and thought-provoking read which also serves one of the genre's cultural purposes, that of prescience...." Read more

"...We are well on the way with smart sex robots. Lighthearted reading." Read more

"Firstly, I really liked the primise of this story. I thought the plot was interesting...." Read more

"...This is Anthony for the grown up fan. A great story that tackles the social issue of what it means to be human...." Read more

3 customers mention "Character development"0 positive3 negative

Customers find the characters poorly drawn, unmotivated, and wooden. They also mention that the female heroine lacks a character arc and the male hero is an unlikable character.

"...The story just seems fraught with poorly drawn, poorly motivated characters, that do incomprehensible things for no clear reason...." Read more

"...The female heroine had no character arc, and the male hero was (per usual) kind of a doofus. Some of the concepts were interesting...." Read more

"...Piers Anthony's work, but I found this to be shallow and the characters very wooden." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Paige Ellen
    5.0 out of 5 stars What's good for General Motors...
    Reviewed in the United States on December 6, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    This is the first of what has become four interconnected novellas by the prolific Mr. Anthony. It was meant to be a one-off, but as the author explains, sometimes ideas take on a life of their.
    I love most everything l've read by PA. It seems hard to believe that his, "Space Tyrant" series got me through the last two years of my undergrad days back in the seventies.
    This tale is mostly fun, including a healthy dose of PA's freewheeling attitude toward sex and his trademark humor. It involves the intriguing prospect of a "fembot" whose AI advances to the point of actual independent consciousness. She sues for recognition as a person, and part of the attorney's argument is that since corporations are people... That's all I will say about that, other than that the courtroom scene alone is worth the price of the book.
    The drama comes in when she then must fight to not be taken apart and studied by her manufacturers. Since the outcome there is the key point of the story, I'll leave that for the reader.
    This is a fun and thought-provoking read which also serves one of the genre's cultural purposes, that of prescience. Humanity may well face such a dilemma, perhaps sooner than anyone thinks.
    Great read, great fun, and great forward thinking and call for reflection. Highly recommended.
    6 people found this helpful
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  • Emily W. Mims
    4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Premise
    Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    This was an enjoyable read on my iPhone. The basic premise was like a few other gaming conscious story’s. The story line makes no scientific announcements or impossible ideas. We are well on the way with smart sex robots. Lighthearted reading.
    3 people found this helpful
    Helpful
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  • Lawrence M. Clapp
    3.0 out of 5 stars Kind of childish
    Reviewed in the United States on August 30, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    Three stars says it all, to me. "Eh, it's okay." It's not great, it's not terrible.

    I found the writing and dialogue kind of simplistic. It seemed more of a fable than a novel. I found a lot of the action kind of unbelievable. The protagonist seems to fall in love with this non-conscious robot pretty easily and quickly. And then she achieves consciousness almost magically (but on the other hand, nobody knows how it might *really* happen, so I give him a pass on this, mostly). And then suddenly they're on the run from a company that quite rightly considers her their property, they don't even *try* to negotiate, they just run.

    When she does become conscious, the narration picks up in the first person from her point of view. I did rather like that part.

    The court scene was actually not terrible, though I found it fairly unlikely that a hot-shot lawyer's daughter would allow herself to be man-handled by a whole jury of people. So they win their "personhood" case by virtue mostly of a full-contact Turing test. Instead of, say, appealing, the company apparently goes quietly into the night, only to later offer them some kind of publicity tour or something.

    And then having won her legal personhood in a hard-fought battle ... she changes her mind four months into her daughter's life and says "ok, disassemble me, I'm afraid, but I owe it to my non-conscious sisters".

    The story just seems fraught with poorly drawn, poorly motivated characters, that do incomprehensible things for no clear reason.

    The sex scenes were fairly bad too, just by the way.

    Bottom line, I won't be buying any more book in this series. I would not recommend this book to friends.
    6 people found this helpful
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  • Jason Clerico
    5.0 out of 5 stars Piers: getting better with age
    Reviewed in the United States on January 18, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    Amazing. I read this novella in one sitting, and it is rare that I am so transfixed by a story that I can't put it down. It is sexy and fast-paced, with a fable-like simplicity and many great questions to ponder about the nature of sentience. I have loved Piers since the Incarnations of Immortality, and I have never read a better piece of work from him.

    I found it surprisingly poignant as well. Anyone who has ever fallen in love with someone they shouldn't, and then helplessly watched that person change with time, should feel for our hero Banner. I even got a little misty at one point. Don't tell anyone! ;-}>

    Can't wait to read the rest of the series.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Kindle Customer
    4.0 out of 5 stars Is a robot a sentient being?
    Reviewed in the United States on August 6, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    Book 1 of 4. A humanoid robot serves as a female companion.
    It starts off slow until she achieves consciousness.
    She is then no longer satisfied to pretend to be women.
    Now she wants legal recognition that she is a woman.
    I thought it was a half decent read.
    2 people found this helpful
    Helpful
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  • SHARISHOPPER
    5.0 out of 5 stars FANTASTIC READ REALLY ENJOYED EVERY PAGE
    Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    I was shocked at first, but after getting into the story line I understood the author's intent. Written well, even the sexual parts were not objectionable. I was amazed by the court hearing.
    Truly a thought provoking book.
    Helpful
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  • Lena Smith
    2.0 out of 5 stars An OK story
    Reviewed in the United States on December 21, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Firstly, I really liked the primise of this story. I thought the plot was interesting. However the plot was ruined because there were a lot of explicit sex in the story that I wish I had known about before reading. I am definitely not reading this again and would not recommend. Especially since I was so interested in the premise, and then disappointed with way to much sex
    4 people found this helpful
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  • Vowels
    3.0 out of 5 stars Good exploration of an interesting topic
    Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    How do you tell if an AI is sentient? I've seen this explored in any number of novels, in one fashion or another, and this is not a bad case.

    I found the pathway to a feel-good resolution the author used to be a bit too easy, in some ways. That said, the author seems to have been more interested in trying to demonstrate true sentience to the satisfaction of the reader, rather than go for gritty realism in the story.

    The android in the story is, in many ways, a better woman for her man than any natural woman could be, especially after achieving consciousness. I'm sure that is the point, but I'm actually kinda jealous of the android's lover, lol.

    There is a fair amount of bare-bones erotica in the story. It IS about a sexbot achieving consciousness, after all. None of it is really obnoxious and much of it is even pertinent to the story.

    Anyway, it was a decent read. Not sure why I only rate it a 3, but it feels like it is missing something I want in stories, I guess. Not enough doubt during the "black moment," maybe?

    Do enjoy it and make your own mind up. :)
    7 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Jim Bryant
    3.0 out of 5 stars Not Read Yet
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 16, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    I had to get the Kindle App for my android device & once that was done it was a little tricky to actually get them to appear but once done they are there ready & waiting for me to read....
    Report
  • S C Stone
    3.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 25, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    Rather disappointing. I read the sample before buying but the good start was not maintained. I am not planning to read the rest of the series.
    Report

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