Royden Lepp's Rust: Death of the Rocket Boy by Royden Lepp
See my reviews of volume one and volume two!
The various plot threads and mysteries come together in this volume. The mysterious stranger Jet Jones has his origin revealed, which explains a lot of his behavior and motivation. He wants to help out the Taylor farm since they've been kind to him but he also needs to keep running. His presence causes problems for the farmers and their friends. Young Oz Taylor wants to get rid of him since he has figured out Jet is more rocket than boy. The other family members disregard Oz's claims as fantasy. Jet has to make a hard decision before the situation gets more out of control as hostile robots and old acquaintances show up at the farm.
This volume brings up the important and thorny issue of balancing free choice and duty for Jet. The other robots on the farm and in the story follow their programming to the letter (paragons of duty?) and Jet was specifically programmed to choose his actions rather than strictly follow a program. Knowing what's the right choice in tricky situations is hard for everyone, so it's easy to identify with his crisis. He also faces the challenge of family attachment. His maker/father shows up, causing tension for Jet since he clearly wants to stay on the farm and have the Taylors as his family. The next volume is the last and I am looking forward to the resolution.
Recommended.
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