Tanith Lee is one of the most thought-provoking and imaginative authors of our time. In this unforgettably poignant novel, Lee has created a classic tale—a beautiful, tragic, sensual, and ultimately triumphant love story of the future.
Love is made of more than mere flesh and blood. . . .
For sixteen-year-old Jane, life is a mystery she despairs of ever mastering. She and her friends are the idle, pampered children of the privileged class, living in luxury on an Earth remade by natural disaster. Until Jane's life is changed forever by a chance encounter with a robot minstrel with auburn hair and silver skin, whose songs ignite in her a desperate and inexplicable passion.
Jane is certain that Silver is more than just a machine built to please. And she will give up everything to prove it. So she escapes into the city's violent, decaying slums to embrace a love bordering on madness. Or is it something more? Has Jane glimpsed in Silver something no one else has dared to see—not even the robot or his creators? A love so perfect it must be destroyed, for no human could ever compete?
Praise for The Silver Metal Lover:
"Deftly written, moving, funny, totally convincing...this is quite simply the best sci-fi romance I've read in ages."
--Daily News, New York
"Tanith Lee has another winner in The Silver Metal Lover. It's an aluminum soufflé that's both amusing and touching."
--Asimov's Science Fiction
"The strengths of [The Silver Metal Lover] lie in the vivid vision of [Lee's] world--exotic and a little frightening, but quite believable....One of Lee's most fully realized creations."
--Publishers Weekly
"Lee continues to distinguish herself with her ability to bring flesh and blood to the worlds of the future. For those who like emotion and feeling in their SF, The Silver Metal Lover is highly recommended."
--Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Review