This review first appeared in Aurealis #93, Australian Science Fiction and Fantasy Magazine, pseudo-science-fiction book provides laughs of all types readers will progress from snickers to giggles to, finally, belly laughs and shouts of outrage.Puns, shaggy dog stories, snarky remarks, and hoaxes are just a few of the humorous elements used expertly here.The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy and Doctor Who fans are a natural audience for this story, but it may well build a broader readership once the word gets out. They would have found a pocket universe full of Justin Timberlakes or Katie Perrys much funnier. References to historical figures like John F Kennedy, Nixon and Marilyn Monroe, and extend section that riffs on Elvis songs, may be amusing for Gen-Xers but are likely to leave kids scratching their heads rather than laughing. There is a problem, though, with some of the humour given that the aim is a younger audience. Similarly, many of the plot devices – a killer-mutant cheese sandwich, a pocket universe full of Elvises, snarky artificially-intelligent appliances – seem to come out of the Adams back catalogue.īut this is a comedy book for kids, probably about 8 – 14 and (having road-tested it on the intended audience) it works well for this age-group, barrelling along and generating plenty of laughs. The opening monologue by editor Zeeb Blatsnart (even the name feels Adams-inspired) and many of Blatsnart’s italicised asides during the plot are essentially Adams-light, and many are reworkings of Adams’ ideas. The rest is a series of capers, battles and chases across Neo City, built on the ruins of the US east coast, with brief pauses for additional comedic interludes. Badde, Carter’s long-time nemesis, has kidnapped Carter’s daughter and blackmails him into steeling some high tech equipment. The paper thin plot involves detective Blake Carter and his new partner Steel going up against the universe’s worst bad guy named, unsurprisingly, Bartholomew Badde.

Set in the 26 th century, A Toaster on Mars is a science-fiction comedy romp for kids. The toaster in question is actually a cyborg character called Nicki Steel, wearing the epithet for robots made popular by the recent Battlestar Galactica reboot. And the plot only meanders to Mars for its finale. As the introduction makes clear, A Toaster on Mars in not, actually, about a toaster or any other kitchen appliances.

A Toaster on Mars by Darrell Pitt