Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Tordotcom (2023), 256 pages
Description
Fiction. Mystery. Science Fiction. Am I making it worse? I think I'm making it worse. Everyone's favorite lethal SecUnit is back. Following the events in Network Effect, the Barish-Estranza corporation has sent rescue ships to a newly colonized planet in peril, as well as additional SecUnits. But if there's an ethical corporation out there, Murderbot has yet to find it, and if Barish-Estranza can't have the planet, they're sure as hell not leaving without something. If that something just happens to be an entire colony of humans, well, a free workforce is a decent runner-up prize. But there's something wrong with Murderbot; it isn't running within normal operational parameters. ART's crew and the humans from Preservation are doing everything they can to protect the colonists, but with Barish-Estranza's SecUnit�heavy persuasion teams, they're going to have to hope Murderbot figures out what's wrong with itself, and fast.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member bragan
Here's the latest installment in The Murderbot Diaries series, featuring everybody's favorite formerly enslaved killer cyborg who these days just wants to watch TV and protect the humans (and the one very significant bot) that it cares about.
This one follows directly on from the end of Network
The plot of this one is okay, although I do feel like it takes about half the book to really get into any of the interesting action. But, let's be honest, I'm not primarily reading these for the plots, anyway. I'm reading these because I love Murderbot and its struggles with its emotions, its delightful sarcasm, its complicated relationships (especially with aforementioned bot), its development as it figures out what it really wants out of life, and, most especially, for the little moments when I find myself going, "Oh, Murderbot, honey," and wanting to hug it. (Not that I would, because it hates that. But maybe I could show it some nice new TV episodes or something.) I think it's really only in the second half of the story that we start getting many of those moments, too, but when we do, there are enough of them to leave me happy.
This one follows directly on from the end of Network
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Effect. Which is maybe a bit of a problem, as it had been a while since I read that one -- there was a whole volume in-between that was set earlier, after all -- and my memories of the plot details were a bit fuzzy. Which I was worried for a while was a real problem, as Murderbot keeps alluding to a particular disturbing thing that happened to it that it doesn't want to talk about, and I kept sort of wracking my brain trying to think if I knew what that was supposed to be. But, nope, it was a thing that happened in the brief space between books, and you do find out eventually what it was. (I really don't think that counts as a spoiler. Sort of like the opposite of a spoiler, really, being an assurance that, no, you don't in fact know this plot point!) And, that aside, I think you don't actually have to remember the earlier book perfectly to follow this one.The plot of this one is okay, although I do feel like it takes about half the book to really get into any of the interesting action. But, let's be honest, I'm not primarily reading these for the plots, anyway. I'm reading these because I love Murderbot and its struggles with its emotions, its delightful sarcasm, its complicated relationships (especially with aforementioned bot), its development as it figures out what it really wants out of life, and, most especially, for the little moments when I find myself going, "Oh, Murderbot, honey," and wanting to hug it. (Not that I would, because it hates that. But maybe I could show it some nice new TV episodes or something.) I think it's really only in the second half of the story that we start getting many of those moments, too, but when we do, there are enough of them to leave me happy.
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LibraryThing member paradoxosalpha
This book has an exciting story, and it reveals more of the implicit worldbuilding that has been going on in previous Murderbot Diaries. But it has practically no narrative exposition to orient new readers to the series' premises or to supply a refresher on events to those who last read the prior
Murderbot's capabilities of snark are slightly dampened in this volume, but still very evident. "Take that proportional response and like it" (203). It does get access to a vintage trove of entertainment media, which might even predate the current Corporation Rim interstellar polity--a development with possibilities still unexploited. There was very little new illumination regarding the bond company of the construct's origins, but the efforts of Murderbot and its colleagues from Preservation and the University to liberate humans (and constructs) from corporate control acquired new dimensions. Especially entertaining wasthe grudging defection of Barish-Estranza Supervisor Leonide , whose eventual status was not made explicit in the final short chapter of denouement, but who might be expected to return in future books of the series.
As expected, System Collapse was fast-paced and satisfying. But those new to the Murderbot Diaries should not begin here. Start with Fugitive Telemetry or All Systems Red, and be sure to read Network Effect before getting to this latest book.
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volume Network Effect when it was first published in 2020. (The intervening Fugitive Telemetry was from earlier in the chronological sequence.) Although I think that would make for a better experience for a reader progressing directly--and compulsively--through the existing series, it did strain me a little. In that respect, I guess I was in some small measure tracking with Murderbot itself, who complains of "(redacted)," thus mistrusting its own reactions and capabilities. Still, I think I would recommend to those in my position a quick re-read of Network Effect immediately prior to System Collapse for best enjoyment. Murderbot's capabilities of snark are slightly dampened in this volume, but still very evident. "Take that proportional response and like it" (203). It does get access to a vintage trove of entertainment media, which might even predate the current Corporation Rim interstellar polity--a development with possibilities still unexploited. There was very little new illumination regarding the bond company of the construct's origins, but the efforts of Murderbot and its colleagues from Preservation and the University to liberate humans (and constructs) from corporate control acquired new dimensions. Especially entertaining was
As expected, System Collapse was fast-paced and satisfying. But those new to the Murderbot Diaries should not begin here. Start with Fugitive Telemetry or All Systems Red, and be sure to read Network Effect before getting to this latest book.
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LibraryThing member oceancat
This is the seventh entry in the Murderbot Diaries series and takes place directly after the events of the fifth, Network Effect. For clarity, book six, Fugitive Telemetry, took place chronologically between books four and five. Okay, now that we have the timeline out of the way, to the
System Collapse absolutely lives up to what we have come to expect from The Murderbot Diaries, while also continuing to develop Murderbot's character and relationships. The events of Network Effect were traumatic, and Murderbot was already traumatized, but this trauma was a little different than before. This was Murderbot living it's worst nightmare, and the effect is more visceral than the usual day to day horror of having been a secunit under control of the Company. Murderbot is, for the first time in it's life, truly unsure if it is able to protect its humans. This is bad, because protecting its humans is both extremely important to it and its literal job, what it gets those excellent currency cards for.
ART is still stationed at the infected planet from Network Effect, and its crew is attempting to negotiate for the independence or at least freedom of the humans who have been living on the planet all this time. Now that they are no longer infected with the alien remnant, those humans have broken into further factions, complicating the process. Not to mention the rumor that there may be a completely separate settlement on the other side of the planet, who broke off from the original before the infection even occurred. Murderbot is to go along on the exploratory crew to discover if there is any truth to this, and act as security. But it's having flashbacks and stress as the least-liked part of itself- its human neural tissue- has not recovered from being captured by infected humans on this planet once already. What if these new humans are also infected? What if it cannot save its friends?
As we have seen time and again, and as Murderbot is finally, slowly, starting to learn, its humans care about it. Its friends, even if it won't use that word, care about it, and don't expect it to be able to do it all. ART cares about it, and won't abandon it, (and in this book gets some fun development that takes advantage of the fact that it is truly an AI in a way that Murderbot isn't) and it can admit when things are not okay.
It does get there, and it is good, and in the mean time we get exciting and creepy underground shenanigans and fights with a Corporation and a home video. It's all so good. I can't wait for the next one. Thanks to tordotcom and NetGalley for access to the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
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review!System Collapse absolutely lives up to what we have come to expect from The Murderbot Diaries, while also continuing to develop Murderbot's character and relationships. The events of Network Effect were traumatic, and Murderbot was already traumatized, but this trauma was a little different than before. This was Murderbot living it's worst nightmare, and the effect is more visceral than the usual day to day horror of having been a secunit under control of the Company. Murderbot is, for the first time in it's life, truly unsure if it is able to protect its humans. This is bad, because protecting its humans is both extremely important to it and its literal job, what it gets those excellent currency cards for.
ART is still stationed at the infected planet from Network Effect, and its crew is attempting to negotiate for the independence or at least freedom of the humans who have been living on the planet all this time. Now that they are no longer infected with the alien remnant, those humans have broken into further factions, complicating the process. Not to mention the rumor that there may be a completely separate settlement on the other side of the planet, who broke off from the original before the infection even occurred. Murderbot is to go along on the exploratory crew to discover if there is any truth to this, and act as security. But it's having flashbacks and stress as the least-liked part of itself- its human neural tissue- has not recovered from being captured by infected humans on this planet once already. What if these new humans are also infected? What if it cannot save its friends?
As we have seen time and again, and as Murderbot is finally, slowly, starting to learn, its humans care about it. Its friends, even if it won't use that word, care about it, and don't expect it to be able to do it all. ART cares about it, and won't abandon it, (and in this book gets some fun development that takes advantage of the fact that it is truly an AI in a way that Murderbot isn't) and it can admit when things are not okay.
It does get there, and it is good, and in the mean time we get exciting and creepy underground shenanigans and fights with a Corporation and a home video. It's all so good. I can't wait for the next one. Thanks to tordotcom and NetGalley for access to the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
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LibraryThing member NannyOgg13
Just a note that the reason it took me this long to finish the book is not the book's fault - my prolonged book slump just doesn't want to cooperate with me, even for a new Murderbot.
As for the book - I loved it (I might be biased) and I can't wait for a re-listen in a better reading mood!
As for the book - I loved it (I might be biased) and I can't wait for a re-listen in a better reading mood!
LibraryThing member lavaturtle
I wanted to like this more than I did. And sure, Murderbot is still a good character, and ART too, and the set of humans they're protecting this time grew on me. And the all-too-possible space capitalism is still super evil. And there are some pretty cool action scenes. But it just felt a bit relationships are important, it's good to make allies when you can, and Murderbot could really use some therapy to deal with its raging PTSD . Which... are all things we kind of knew already? I'm not sure if it's because this is the middle of a trilogy within the series or what, but it's not one of the stronger entries in the series.
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empty, and like we were re-treading the same ground from previous books. By the end of the book we know that Show Less
LibraryThing member MickyFine
Following right after the events of Network Effect, Murderbot, ART, and a selection of humans are working to foil the corporates and help the humans residing on the planet with the alien remnant contamination. When Murderbot and the crew hear rumours that there's another settlement near the pole of
As long as Martha Wells keeps writing Murderbot books, I will keep reading them. As with every previous entry in the series, the character development is perfection, the action and suspense well-drawn, and the sarcastic banter between Murderbot and ART is my favourite thing ever. If you like sci fi even a little, I can't recommend this series enough.
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the planet, they go to investigate. Of course, as often happens with Murderbot, nothing goes super smoothly.As long as Martha Wells keeps writing Murderbot books, I will keep reading them. As with every previous entry in the series, the character development is perfection, the action and suspense well-drawn, and the sarcastic banter between Murderbot and ART is my favourite thing ever. If you like sci fi even a little, I can't recommend this series enough.
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LibraryThing member ladycato
I borrowed this book from my local library.
I love the Murderbot series, and this is another excellent episode, but it wasn't as easy to get into. The beginning is very in media res. It'd probably be best to have read the previous book right before; I hadn't read it in a long time, so I felt
I love the Murderbot series, and this is another excellent episode, but it wasn't as easy to get into. The beginning is very in media res. It'd probably be best to have read the previous book right before; I hadn't read it in a long time, so I felt
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somewhat lost. That said, Murderbot's engaging perspective still pulled me along. The climax of this book is incredible, sheer technical artistry. I'm already eager for the next volume. Show Less
LibraryThing member macha
a particularly interesting installment in the terrific Murderbot series, in which in the middle of a crisis the murderbot completely falls apart, opts to reinvent himself, makes a friend, acquires a whole lot more humans he opts to protect, and learns a lot more about the ways of the world he is
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protecting. fascinating in his prospects, as he discovers possible pathways through a future universe of rampaging corporate entities, in which people are cheap and ethics is largely optional, if not contraindicated. Show Less
LibraryThing member fuzzi
It's been 18 months since I read the previous book in the Murderbot series. This entry takes place immediately afterwards, and so I found myself struggling to remember who everyone was and the current situation they were facing. Once I got into the story I enjoyed the plot.
This is not the strongest
This is not the strongest
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entry in the series, and probably would have been better with a brief synopsis at the beginning of what happened previously. Show Less
LibraryThing member amberwitch
Another entry in the Murderbot universe, which is about rescues and escapes on several levels. Murderbot is part of an effort to rescue colonists from a dangerous planet as well as predatory corporate efforts to conscript them as slave labor.
It also has to escape the same corporation on a mission
Although I liked the book, I found it difficult to get immersed. The very abrupt start, picking up pretty much where the previous book ended, and the ongoing references to events in previous books, made me feel disoriented. As if the author (whom I generally adore) had broken the author-reader contract implicit in the kind of series named "Murderbot diaries", and that particular length (mostly novellas, and short novels) ie. books that are loosely connected but can stand on their own.
It also has to escape the same corporation on a mission
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gone wrong, saving its own humans along the way.Although I liked the book, I found it difficult to get immersed. The very abrupt start, picking up pretty much where the previous book ended, and the ongoing references to events in previous books, made me feel disoriented. As if the author (whom I generally adore) had broken the author-reader contract implicit in the kind of series named "Murderbot diaries", and that particular length (mostly novellas, and short novels) ie. books that are loosely connected but can stand on their own.
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LibraryThing member jennybeast
I was going to say that this isn't the strongest book in the series, but I'm not sure that's true. It took me a while to get into it -- I wasn't prepared to be dropped right where we left off and have the adventure rocket forward from there. I wasn't prepared for Murderbot to be so much less like
Advanced Reader's Copy Provided by Edelweiss.
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Murderbot of old, but I probably should have been. It feels very much like Wells is refusing to let us have a protagonist who stagnates as a badass SecUnit, and is rather going to insist that SecUnit continue to learn, grow, and become familiar with its own weaknesses. Learning experiences are rarely fun, but they are illuminating, and I like it when that challenges the reader as well as the characters in the book. Advanced Reader's Copy Provided by Edelweiss.
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LibraryThing member therem
Another propulsive read with suspense and laughs aplenty. And also some tears. Murderbot's path to healing is slow, but allowing others to help it -- and helping others to become free -- seems to be doing the trick. Now I want it to try out that new TV show "Cruel Romance Personage". Ha!
LibraryThing member RandyMetcalfe
If you aren’t panicking, you’re not paying attention. Which might be Murderbot’s motto. Because reasons for panic seem to cluster around it. And more often than not, it has something to do with the Barish-Estranza corporation. Fortunately, our hero is not alone (unless you think it’s a bad
Once again, Martha Wells ratchets up the tension for Murderbot step by step so that it will be compelled to either collapse in an emotional shutdown and reboot, or once again be the hero it was born to be. Honestly, it’s almost like being in one of those entertainment vids that Murderbot and ART love to watch. Well, you get the picture.
Thoroughly enjoyable. Very easy to recommend.
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thing that his friends and colleagues from Preservation ought to be panicking as well). If they can just clear out these ancient alien-tech infected ag-bots, then perhaps they can talk some sense with the humans on this godforsaken planet whom they are attempting to rescue. Unless there is another whole set of humans hidden away at the poles who have no idea that they even need rescuing yet. And oh, is that maybe B-E headed their way? Time to panic.Once again, Martha Wells ratchets up the tension for Murderbot step by step so that it will be compelled to either collapse in an emotional shutdown and reboot, or once again be the hero it was born to be. Honestly, it’s almost like being in one of those entertainment vids that Murderbot and ART love to watch. Well, you get the picture.
Thoroughly enjoyable. Very easy to recommend.
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LibraryThing member quondame
Murderbot has an issue associated with trauma that is refereed to as "redacted" for the first part of the story, so you can tell they are dealing with it properly. Right. Then concern that the colonists of the planet from Network Effect don't end up as corporate slaves, drives Murderbot and
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companions into communications black out zone, so you know things will get π shaped. They spend too long π shaped for my prefernece. But lessons learned. Show Less
LibraryThing member Awfki
Series: The Murderbot Diaries #7
2023-12-02: That felt short. Kobo estimated 2.8 hours and I think I was a little longer. A fun ride although I could have used a recap of the prior book as my memory of MB 2.0 and Three was hazy.
2023-12-02: That felt short. Kobo estimated 2.8 hours and I think I was a little longer. A fun ride although I could have used a recap of the prior book as my memory of MB 2.0 and Three was hazy.
LibraryThing member yarmando
A bit of a letdown after Network Effect, but still a good tale. As Art and Murderbot's humans try to keep the colonists out of corporate slavery, Murderbot itself struggles with lingering trauma after its alien remnant contamination.
LibraryThing member foggidawn
This book takes place just after the events of Network Effect. ART is still waiting for the university to send a crew to repair his wormhole drive, and in the meantime, Barish-Estranza has shown up, looking for what they can salvage after the alien contamination disaster. Unfortunately, it looks
I always enjoy time spent with Murderbot, and this book is no exception. It's maybe not my favorite of the series, because I felt like there wasn't much opportunity for character development for the human characters. That's always been the case, except maybe in Network Effect, and it has to do with how much we are in Murderbot's head and how Murderbot has a hard time understanding humans. (Same, Murderbot, same.) But it bugged me a little more in this book; I don't know why. On the other hand, Murderbot got lots of interesting character development, much to its displeasure! I also may have been a little thrown off by the fact that I expected this book to be Murderbot and ART off on interspace adventures, and instead we're still at this one planet for the duration of the book. That's okay, we'll (probably?) get a space travel adventure next time, and I'll be there for it. Fans of the series should certainly not miss this instalment, but readers new to the series should, of course, start at the beginning.
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like what they're most interested in salvaging is the planet's humans, forcing them into labor contracts and shipping them away. While the legal team works on finding a way to establish the colony's independence, Murderbot and some of its humans venture toward the planet's north pole, where a second group of settlers is rumored to have set up a colony. What will they find there? And why is Murderbot malfunctioning?I always enjoy time spent with Murderbot, and this book is no exception. It's maybe not my favorite of the series, because I felt like there wasn't much opportunity for character development for the human characters. That's always been the case, except maybe in Network Effect, and it has to do with how much we are in Murderbot's head and how Murderbot has a hard time understanding humans. (Same, Murderbot, same.) But it bugged me a little more in this book; I don't know why. On the other hand, Murderbot got lots of interesting character development, much to its displeasure! I also may have been a little thrown off by the fact that I expected this book to be Murderbot and ART off on interspace adventures, and instead we're still at this one planet for the duration of the book. That's okay, we'll (probably?) get a space travel adventure next time, and I'll be there for it. Fans of the series should certainly not miss this instalment, but readers new to the series should, of course, start at the beginning.
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LibraryThing member bibliovermis
I live for this book series. Fugitive Telemetry was my favorite Murderbot novella so far, and it made sense to me that the chronology of the series went back in time for that one, because Network Effect, the full length novel that was released before it, was really life altering for Murderbot, and
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it was hard to imagine where Martha Wells would take her creation from there. Luckily, it clearly wasn't hard for Martha Wells to imagine! This book is the latest in the series chronology, a direct and immediate sequel to Network Effect, and shows Murderbot and all the supporting cast dealing with the fallout and effects thereof that were indeed life altering—without destroying any of the elements that have made this series so absolutely engrossing and rereadable, and building a bridge to, hopefully, even more sequels. Show Less
LibraryThing member KallieGrace
I am always happy to return to Murderbot, so this was delightful. It's not really giving anything new at this point tho, so these are all starting to blend together in my mind. If we get another installment in the future I'd love to see something different.
LibraryThing member jbaty
I love Murderbot. This one took a little while to get rolling for me, but once it did, super fun.
LibraryThing member Dianekeenoy
I love these Murderbot books! Although, this one took me awhile to get pulled in. It makes me wonder if I missed one, which I will check out at a later time. But,as always, once I was in the groove, I did stay up late to finish it!
LibraryThing member nbmars
I’m not sure you’d want to read this 7th book in the series without having read the previous installments, but then, why would you want to *miss* the previous books?
The protagonist, who is part robot with organic parts, calls itself Murderbot, because of an incident now somewhat far in its past
In this installment, Murderbot is still with his gang of humans led by Dr. Mensah of the University of Mihira and New Tideland. They are on a planet whose colonists had been subject to alien contamination. The University was trying to protect colonists from being captured by evil corporations such as Barish-Estranza (B-E) and dumped into labor camps for corporate contract labor for the rest of their lives. Part of their mission is convincing the colonists that B-E was a bad actor and the University had their welfare as a priority.
As the crew from the University talk to the colonists, they learn there is a separatist group of colonists elsewhere on the planet. They also might need to be evacuated (if they weren’t dead), especially as B-E had gotten wind of both groups and arrived also.
Murderbot is again working with ART, an acronym Murderbot made up that stands for Asshole Research Transport. ART, called Peri by its humans, is the bot pilot of Perihelion, a wormhole-capable space research and teaching vessel. It is part of the University's anti-corporate team that gathers information and strikes out against corporations. ART is very advanced, although not as tuned into human emotions as Murderbot (who is addicted to human media and watches it constantly), and the two develop a love-hate relationship.
Murderbot, ART, and ART’s humans had been in struggles before against alien contamination and B-E, and all had sustained some damage. Murderbot still suffered from something equivalent to PTSD. Moreover, Murderbot wrestled with a compulsion to help other SecUnits, even those with B-E, to deprogram themselves from their controller software and become free agents.
There is non-stop violence, action, and adventure, all filtered through Murderbot’s dry sense of humor, sardonic wit, and constant existential angst. (ART’s personality is similar albeit without the angst.)
Evaluation: Murderbot has no gender, but I mostly (but not always) think of it as a “he”; perhaps that is just a reflection of my personal bias and/or need to assign gender. No one in the books have that same problem. They are of all races and genders and don’t tend to categorize any others, whether human or not.
The humans in Murderbot’s life can’t help but love and appreciate this very odd SecUnit. Moreover, the desire to make sacrifices to save the other becomes mutual. The episodes are endearing, very humorous, and diverting in the extreme.
Note: There is a good Murderbot Wiki, here.
The protagonist, who is part robot with organic parts, calls itself Murderbot, because of an incident now somewhat far in its past
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for which it wasn’t guilty, but the appellation stuck. In any event, Murderbot is a security robot, or SecUnit, designed to protect its human clients from any threats. But Murderbot went “rogue,” having hacked its controlling module, so that it now has free will. Murderbot would like nothing better than to spend its time watching all the space adventure series it has downloaded, but still can’t resist the pull to rescue humans from all the scrapes they continually get themselves into.In this installment, Murderbot is still with his gang of humans led by Dr. Mensah of the University of Mihira and New Tideland. They are on a planet whose colonists had been subject to alien contamination. The University was trying to protect colonists from being captured by evil corporations such as Barish-Estranza (B-E) and dumped into labor camps for corporate contract labor for the rest of their lives. Part of their mission is convincing the colonists that B-E was a bad actor and the University had their welfare as a priority.
As the crew from the University talk to the colonists, they learn there is a separatist group of colonists elsewhere on the planet. They also might need to be evacuated (if they weren’t dead), especially as B-E had gotten wind of both groups and arrived also.
Murderbot is again working with ART, an acronym Murderbot made up that stands for Asshole Research Transport. ART, called Peri by its humans, is the bot pilot of Perihelion, a wormhole-capable space research and teaching vessel. It is part of the University's anti-corporate team that gathers information and strikes out against corporations. ART is very advanced, although not as tuned into human emotions as Murderbot (who is addicted to human media and watches it constantly), and the two develop a love-hate relationship.
Murderbot, ART, and ART’s humans had been in struggles before against alien contamination and B-E, and all had sustained some damage. Murderbot still suffered from something equivalent to PTSD. Moreover, Murderbot wrestled with a compulsion to help other SecUnits, even those with B-E, to deprogram themselves from their controller software and become free agents.
There is non-stop violence, action, and adventure, all filtered through Murderbot’s dry sense of humor, sardonic wit, and constant existential angst. (ART’s personality is similar albeit without the angst.)
Evaluation: Murderbot has no gender, but I mostly (but not always) think of it as a “he”; perhaps that is just a reflection of my personal bias and/or need to assign gender. No one in the books have that same problem. They are of all races and genders and don’t tend to categorize any others, whether human or not.
The humans in Murderbot’s life can’t help but love and appreciate this very odd SecUnit. Moreover, the desire to make sacrifices to save the other becomes mutual. The episodes are endearing, very humorous, and diverting in the extreme.
Note: There is a good Murderbot Wiki, here.
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LibraryThing member stevesbookstuff
Murderbot is back in the seventh book in the series, and the second full-length novel - System Collapse.
The new book follows the events of book #5, Network Effect. Murderbot and the team are still on the planet to which they were hijacked in that book. The inhabitants here are survivors of a failed
As book 7 opens however, they now face a new danger from the Barish-Estranza (BE) corporation. A team from BE has landed on the planet hoping to claim it, and its “assets”. In the universe of Murderbot the corporations rule, and the “assets” the BE team is referring to are the surviving inhabitants themselves, who they are hoping to trick into signing contracts, for what will effectively be slavery, on a BE owned mining colony planet.
BE is a corporation, and as I said, corporations rule. So, its team is used to getting their way. They won’t hesitate to use whatever means are necessary to do so. This sets up the action between the BE forces, and Murderbot, ART and their team, who are feverishly working to counter the BE forces and convince the inhabitants to instead seek a free future with their help.
Fans of the Murderbot novellas are used to action from beginning to end. But as in Network Effect, the other full-length novel in the series, the action is more sporadic here. For the most part Wells fills the pages in-between the action scenes with Murderbot’s continued growth, and his awareness and understanding that he is more than a construct. Without the control of his governor module he is becoming more than the sum of his inorganic and cloned organic components - more than a mechanical “SecUnit”. His human side reveals itself with a bout of pain, which he won’t tell us about for a good part of the book. It’s not physical pain - he’s felt that before - but mental pain.
Murderbot experiences PTSD with a flashback so impactful that it causes his systems to do a hard reboot - the system collapse of the title. This is something that’s never happened to him before, and in the aftermath he’s confused, not understanding why sometimes he just doesn’t “want” to do the things he knows he should do. He’s experiencing real, human pain.
Yes, Murderbot feels our pain.
But he’s still the same cynically sarcastic and cranky Murderbot we’ve come to know. So he still says things like “I’m 73 percent certain that never happened to me”, and “I was paying 87 percent of my attention to Iris”, and “that’s why the stupid Barish-Estranza team and their stupid SecUnit had walked right up on me and I had no f***ing idea.” And he’s still watching soap operas and trash TV (i.e. the “entertainment feed”) in his downtime.
If there is one thing I was disappointed in with System Collapse its that Three - the SecUnit that Murderbot rescued in Network Effect - didn’t have a bigger role. He’s mostly a background character here. I had half expected some interplay between the two SecUnits that might help Murderbot deal with the pain of his journey, as Three starts down the same road that Murderbot is travelling.
Plus there’s the whole intriguing notion that Three perhaps had a “relationship” with the two SecUnits who didn’t survive when he was rescued. SecUnits aren’t supposed to have relationships. At least you get to understand, as Murderbot tells us, that SecUnits, like humans, each have their own destiny. Three may not travel the same road as Murderbot.
I’m not entirely sure what that means, but I do hope there will be a more substantial role for Three in Murderbot #8, if and when that happens.
RATING: Five Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating Comment: If you are a fan of the Murderbot series, System Collapse will not disappoint. As I said in my last post about books #5 and #6 in the series, if you are a science fiction fan who has somehow never read any of the Murderbot books my advice is to immediately do so.
NOTE: I read an advanced ebook copy courtesy of NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group. The book is available to the public today, November 14, 2023. I thoroughly enjoyed the ebook, but I did miss the narration by Kevin R. Free that made listening to the audiobook versions of the prior installments a real pleasure.
The new book follows the events of book #5, Network Effect. Murderbot and the team are still on the planet to which they were hijacked in that book. The inhabitants here are survivors of a failed
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colonization attempt and were abandoned to their fate on a half-terraformed planet. The terraforming operation had been stalled, and the inhabitants themselves had been contaminated by alien artifacts. But thanks to the actions in Network Effect they were safe as that book wrapped up.As book 7 opens however, they now face a new danger from the Barish-Estranza (BE) corporation. A team from BE has landed on the planet hoping to claim it, and its “assets”. In the universe of Murderbot the corporations rule, and the “assets” the BE team is referring to are the surviving inhabitants themselves, who they are hoping to trick into signing contracts, for what will effectively be slavery, on a BE owned mining colony planet.
BE is a corporation, and as I said, corporations rule. So, its team is used to getting their way. They won’t hesitate to use whatever means are necessary to do so. This sets up the action between the BE forces, and Murderbot, ART and their team, who are feverishly working to counter the BE forces and convince the inhabitants to instead seek a free future with their help.
Fans of the Murderbot novellas are used to action from beginning to end. But as in Network Effect, the other full-length novel in the series, the action is more sporadic here. For the most part Wells fills the pages in-between the action scenes with Murderbot’s continued growth, and his awareness and understanding that he is more than a construct. Without the control of his governor module he is becoming more than the sum of his inorganic and cloned organic components - more than a mechanical “SecUnit”. His human side reveals itself with a bout of pain, which he won’t tell us about for a good part of the book. It’s not physical pain - he’s felt that before - but mental pain.
Murderbot experiences PTSD with a flashback so impactful that it causes his systems to do a hard reboot - the system collapse of the title. This is something that’s never happened to him before, and in the aftermath he’s confused, not understanding why sometimes he just doesn’t “want” to do the things he knows he should do. He’s experiencing real, human pain.
Yes, Murderbot feels our pain.
But he’s still the same cynically sarcastic and cranky Murderbot we’ve come to know. So he still says things like “I’m 73 percent certain that never happened to me”, and “I was paying 87 percent of my attention to Iris”, and “that’s why the stupid Barish-Estranza team and their stupid SecUnit had walked right up on me and I had no f***ing idea.” And he’s still watching soap operas and trash TV (i.e. the “entertainment feed”) in his downtime.
If there is one thing I was disappointed in with System Collapse its that Three - the SecUnit that Murderbot rescued in Network Effect - didn’t have a bigger role. He’s mostly a background character here. I had half expected some interplay between the two SecUnits that might help Murderbot deal with the pain of his journey, as Three starts down the same road that Murderbot is travelling.
Plus there’s the whole intriguing notion that Three perhaps had a “relationship” with the two SecUnits who didn’t survive when he was rescued. SecUnits aren’t supposed to have relationships. At least you get to understand, as Murderbot tells us, that SecUnits, like humans, each have their own destiny. Three may not travel the same road as Murderbot.
I’m not entirely sure what that means, but I do hope there will be a more substantial role for Three in Murderbot #8, if and when that happens.
RATING: Five Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating Comment: If you are a fan of the Murderbot series, System Collapse will not disappoint. As I said in my last post about books #5 and #6 in the series, if you are a science fiction fan who has somehow never read any of the Murderbot books my advice is to immediately do so.
NOTE: I read an advanced ebook copy courtesy of NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group. The book is available to the public today, November 14, 2023. I thoroughly enjoyed the ebook, but I did miss the narration by Kevin R. Free that made listening to the audiobook versions of the prior installments a real pleasure.
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LibraryThing member bell7
Picking up soon after [Network Effect] leaves off, the newest Murderbot tale finds our favorite SecUnit and friends still on the planet trying to convince the colonists that Baresh-Estranza does not have their best interests at heart.
The latest in what has become one of my favorite stories has a
The latest in what has become one of my favorite stories has a
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bit of a slow start as Murderbot has redacted something that's bothering it and only admits what happened part way through. I'm curious to see if that redaction becomes important in a later installment. The last third of the book picked up the pace astronomically, and I will of course be following any further adventures. Show Less
LibraryThing member rivkat
Murderbot! Murderbot! It’s still just as enjoyable as ever. Murderbot is not over the trauma of getting nearly assimilated by alien tech, but it’s staying on the planet anyway. As with the previous book, the denouement is super fast, but at this point we’re here mostly for the relationship
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talks and excitement over media (Cruel Romance Personage needs to be its own fandom stat). I wonder what Three’s perspective on this all would be. Show Less
Awards
Locus Award (Finalist — Science Fiction Novel — 2024)
Libby Book Award (Winner — Science Fiction — 2023)
Locus Recommended Reading (2023)
LibraryReads (Monthly Pick — Hall of Fame — November 2023)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2023-11-14
Physical description
256 p.; 8 inches
ISBN
1250826977 / 9781250826978
Local notes
There’s something wrong with Murderbot; it isn’t running within normal operational parameters. ART’s crew and the humans from Preservation are doing everything they can to protect the colonists, but with Barish-Estranza’s SecUnit-heavy persuasion teams, they’re going to have to hope Murderbot figures out what’s wrong with itself, and fast.