The Naked Sun

The second instalment of the Elijah Baley - R.Daneel Olivaw story continues. This time Elijah is called to solve a murder on the Spacer world of Solaria. Solaria is a sparsely populated planet with 20,000 inhabitants and 200 million robots, the inhabitants lead an almost solitary existence and through video type projectors 'view' each other. They are taught from a young age to despise personal contact. Elijah struggles with this open planet (missing his 'Caves of Steel') and agoraphobia is as alien to the Solarians as the concept of solitude is to an Earthman.

The victims wife (Gladia) is the only suspect and can be the only suspect based on the customs and behaviour of Solarian inhabitants. To be killed Rikaine Delmarre had to be 'seen' and not just viewed. The only person that could 'see' according to Solarian practise were robots or his wife. And robots under the Three Laws cannot kill, so Case solved?

No, not exactly and for 200 pages we learn about Solarian society and Elijah interviews his way toward an Agatha Christie style denouement where all the suspects are gathered to hear Poirot's Baley's summing up and ultimate resolution to the impossible crime. Ably assisted by Hastings Daneel in bringing the culprit to justice.

I think this worked better for me than Caves of Steel as a detective novel, with an interesting plot twist at the end. In the grand scheme (Robot Series) we are getting closer to the end now, The Robots of Dawn is up next.