eBook, 352 pages
English language
Published May 4, 2020 by Tor.com.
I’m usually alone in my head, and that’s where 90 plus percent of my problems are.
When Murderbot's human associates (not friends, never friends) are captured and another not-friend from its past requires urgent assistance, Murderbot must choose between inertia and drastic action.
Drastic action it is, then.
Such a fun read! Action-packed, almost breathlessly so, with much less of the exposition that I think slowed down the later novellas, still plenty of humour, but also deeper relationship-building. Murderbot (aka 'SecUnit', when it wants to be less, I don't know, murderey) remains easily the most relatable character in today's fiction.
This series gets more addicting with each installment. The first four books were almost too short, and reading this one felt like I was finally really getting to dig in to the world of Murderbot. Consider me thoroughly hooked!
Enjoyable, but I got bogged down in the middle for a good while: I suspect I prefer this kind of story at novella length.
It turns out I've been up all night finishing off this book, thank Murderbot it's still lockdown.
Was it worth pre-ordering? Yes. Did it blow my expectations? Totally.
Having the three narratives at one point took a tiny bit of adjustment, but for me it genuinely made the action come more to life. I've also noticed that things tend to be described just enough that you're able to set your own visuals along with the series.
I certainly hope there is another Murderbot novel in the works, as I've been sucked in deep to this series
