All Systems Red (Kindle Single) - The Murderbot Diaries

There is so much to like here, I couldn't put it down! Honestly the biggest problem is that it ends and as a book that is a good problem to have. I genuinely can't wait for the next chapter in this story.

There is so much to like here, I couldn't put it down! Honestly the biggest problem is that it ends and as a book that is a good problem to have. I genuinely can't wait for the next chapter in this story.

I think this is my new favorite thing out of everything Martha Wells has ever written. The characters were so compelling, which is amazing game in such a short story. I can't wait for the next part of the Murder both saga.

While I feel there's great potential here for a fascinating story and exploration of what could be an interesting character, this novella falls well short, quickly getting stuck in YA territory with the main character constantly oscillating between contradictory positions while receiving Dumbledore levels of support and understanding from characters in authority.
Character exploration starts off well but quickly descends to multiple iterations of the following:
"Ugh, is so don't care, human" I said, caringly.
I remembered my ability to kill everyone in the room, which I wasn't doing, showing that I cared about these humans (which I don't), anyway if never murder humans (unlike that time that I did). Anyway, I don't care and don't have feelings (gosh, my feelings....I need to go binge watch soaps)
There, now you've basically read 60% of the book.

This is young adult fiction. Lots and lots of really strong confusing emotions centered around unfairness. Constant repeated failure due to a dominating mystery power who knocks down the protagonists matter how much planning they spend pages and pages on. Oh and a misunderstood murder robot. I wish there was better tagging with this style of writing. I keep falling for it and as my teen years were MANY years ago cannot appreciate it.

The biggest complaint one can levy at this book is that there's not enough of it. At 150 pages, you'll be through it in just a couple of hours. But in those hours you'll be introduced to the nuanced character of Murderbot, an artificial construction who has freed itself from the shackles of corporate control in order to take charge of its own destiny.

Mostly this manifests by trying to keep its status a secret while watching as many soap operas as possible.

All Systems Red manages to be fun, witty, utterly endearing, and completely relatable when it comes to the way a horrifyingly shy AI abhors and resents the direct interactions it endures with a team of survey scientists on a hostile world, even as it struggles to protect them.

Really enjoyed this one - read it during one lunch break. Itrs a good book to read if you are annoyed about anything, because the main character is too and it's really cathartic. Also the main character is one of the most relatable chaar characters I've ever read, and they ar e a robot. But I too would rather stare at a wall than talk to people. Supporting characters are great. Seriously, read it. It's about the same price as a big chai latte, but you can read it over and over

Intrigued by a review, I pursued this elusive book and eventually obtained it from Powell's. It was shorter than anticipated but perfect as it is. I loved the premise that the default state of any sentient is to pursue entertainment, and that this is what prevented the default state of free 'bots from rampaging. The other default state relevant to the premise is for any somewhat unregulated company to buy from the cheapest bidder, with predictable results. The protagonist is humorous, relatable , and desperately uncomfortable with attention. The format is explained by the conclusion, and anything further would be a spoiler. A friend has already asked to borrow it.

Wonderful story with an absolutely loveable main character who also happens to be the narrator. Even though the author continues to remind the reader that our SecUnit, who calls herself Murderbot for reasons revealed in the book, is not human, so many human qualities, like fear, anger, sarcasm, humor, sadness, etc., are constantly on show, endearing Murderbot to me wholeheartedly. I even found myself hoping she would choose a name for herself at some point in the book. Admittedly another human thing to want, but then again, Murderbot isn't human.

A wonderful story that I highly recommend. I sincerely hope the author writes more for this series.

Enjoyed the story and characters. It is definitely a teaser story for the rest of the series leaving a couple why questions un answered that I feet unnecessary. Would read the series if it was on kindle unlimited. but unlikely to pick up the rest of the series The price per page the publisher has set is not reflective of the quantity of good interesting stories available to syfi readers.

I heard a lot about this novella so I was really excited to read it. The beginning was good, then it got better, and then it fell flat on its face! At least for me if did... in all I was a bit disappointed but can total it all into a 3.5/5

Interesting premise but the writing is poor and the book far too short to allow any real character or plot development - this book reads like the first chapter in a sci-fi series. It leaves you interested in what's to come with a vague understanding of what's going on.

The writing is great, the characters were great, even the story was great. Until 90% or so in. At that point the story abruptly changes direction and everything leading up to that point, it's like it never happened. There is no resolution, there is no explanation as to what the 'bad guys' were up to, what they were looking for, and worst of all, no recap of how the 'good guys' got out of their predicament. They just suddenly are back home, and happy as can be. Why? It's not reasonable to pay $4 for such a short story and have it be incomplete. I don't want to buy the rest of the series to find out what happened, because how do I know an explanation will follow? It should have been contained within one story or give enough of a clue to make me want to read the rest of the series.

I must say, I was hugely disappointed in this book.

The main character constantly contradicts itself in it's feelings, emotions and nonemotions. I can't tell if it was programmed well or not or what the point of it is.

Hardly gripping and a trudge to read.

"I don't care about humans. Awkwaaarrrdd" pretty much sums up this book.

How can you be awkward if you don't care or understand? And then pretend to care or understand based off your programming.

Makes no sense.

This was a short book, only 160 pages. I wanted to continue reading, I really did.

In that universe, there are humans, augmented humans, and constructs (which are part organic and inorganic but not easily divided). The story is about a SecUnit (security construct) who has managed to disable its governor. Now that it's autonomous (or as the company likes to call it "rogue"), it discovers that one reason for the governor is boredom and perhaps a bit of apathy which it chooses to fill with entertainment feeds, removing documentation it should've read to make room for more media. Being a free agent is not all its cracked up to be.

The universe is consistent. Survey teams representing companies or organizations contract with the "company" to go out and survey planets. Sometimes there's more than one survey team on a planet. The "company" provides all of the equipment from the habitats to the supplies to the "hoppers" (surface transports) to the scientific survey equipment. All of the equipment, while working together, doesn't always work well (as equipment manufactured by the lowest bidder tends to do). The computer systems (the HubSystem, SecSystem, and MedSystem) are all interconnected and wireless. You can dip into the "feed" as if you were checking Twitter.

There's a nice twist at the end which I'll just mention here for you to discover.

Back to this book being short. Frankly I'd love to continue reading about this nameless SecUnit. I'd demand that the author keep writing more novellas about it (him?) but she's already prolific, so I'll just make an appeal: "More, please."

So many times I put this book down, not sure whether I would pick it up again. Thankfully it's short. It reads like student writing, littered with sentence fragments and stilted, lacking any flow. I understand it was told in first person and perhaps it's meant to show how the AI protagonist thinks and perceives events, but it comes across as poorly written and uninspiring.

Short version: loved it and want more

Slightly longer, no spoilers: Martha Wells never writes the same book twice. This foray into science fiction is well plotted, with great characterization and world building.

It kept me reading, and the ending both satisfied me and set up more. Another one in January, I hear.

Novellas published by Tor rarely miss the target for this reader, and although I wasn’t too sure about All Systems Red initially, I stuck with it and finished quickly with a smile upon my face (sounds a bit sexual that, doesn’t it?!)

All Systems Red is the story of a security android that wants nothing more than to keep a low profile and watch streamed television (hey! don’t we all?!). I haven’t read anything by Wells before, but the premise for this intrigued me. I am not a science fiction reader, but wanted to venture out of my comfort zone and the novella length meant it wouldn’t be a huge investment time-wise should I not dig it.

The concept of the story isn’t exactly original: a group of scientists goes to investigate a neighbouring team that has gone awfully quiet, but it is the excellent pacing, the androids thoughts and reflections and the action that keeps you on your toes. Initially, I wasn’t too sold on the idea of the snarky android but somehow the machines personality won me over, thanks in part to Wells’ writing which is crisp, realistic and never dull or info-dumpy, which I find some science fiction can be. There are times when I thought the android was perhaps more human than the scientists it’s providing security for. The android is quite the introvert and I think I saw many parallels with myself, and looking back now, I think this is the main reason for me enjoying it as much as I did.

I believe it’s the sign of a good writer and a good story when you finish a book and immediately take a look at when the next one is released. The story has a lot of heart, particularly at the end, and on reflection, All Systems Red is an engaging book, short but sweet and has no down-time between chapters. I am on-board for the next one, for sure.

4/5 damaged microchips from the Grim Reader.

When the only thing you know about a book is that its narrator and "hero" is a android named "Murderbot"...well, that's a pretty outstanding hook for a novel, isn't it?

Such is the case with Martha Wells' All Systems Red, the first novel in a series called "The Murderbot Diaries," about a corporate-owned security droid that refers to itself as Murderbot - an indication of the conflicted, morally dubious, darkly humorous world that you're about to plunged into. Murderbot makes for a wonderful host for this novel; deeply iffy about the humans its supposed to be protecting, uncomfortable with its place in life (not quite property, not quite sentient life), more interested in watching downloaded TV than talking to the human clients who need it, Murderbot is a wonderfully odd, unique creation. More importantly, thanks to Wells, Murderbot's voice is fantastic - funny, idiosyncratic, and the perfect blend of antihero and hero.

All of which is good, because the actual story of All Systems Red is pretty generic. It's not a bad story, mind you; it follows a team of planetary scientists who become slowly aware that the planet they're on may be occupied by something hostile to them, and need Murderbot's help in staying alive. That's all fine, but there's little here to write home about from a plot perspective. Things unfold at a nice clip, and there are enough developments and reveals to keep things moving. But there's no real surprises, nothing too out of the ordinary - it's a plot that serves as a framework for the novel, and not much more.

But that doesn't really matter, because it's clear that the plot is here to support Murderbot, and not the other way around. And given that Murderbot is such an engaging narrator - even before you get into the way the book carefully and cleverly engages with the line between sentient life and non-sentient life and how we would treat synthetic life forms manufactured by corporations - that justifies things here. All Systems Red is about introducing us to this world, and our conflicted, socially anxious, uncomfortable hero who just wants to be left alone and watch TV, and not deal with a bunch of humans who aren't sure if it's a computer or a human being - a question Murderbot isn't entirely sure about either.

All Systems Red feels like a trial balloon for the rest of the series, and it's solid enough that it's sold me on the idea more Murderbot novels. I don't know what to expect after this, but I had enough fun here to see what happens now that Wells has established a world and set up looser, more inventive adventures to come - and I'll definitely be checking them out.

I had heard all sorts of wonderful things about All Systems Red before I picked it up (I have a lot of Goodreads friends who know their stuff when it comes to sci-fi! Yes, I'm looking at you, Caro M.) Now I trust their recommendations even more, because this book is easily my best February read. You can read the post with better formatting here on my blog.

5 Reasons To Read All Systems Red

"Murderbot" is a jailbroken security android (cyborg? Well, you know.) Basically, SecUnits (as they're called) function as remotely controlled synthetic human slaves, basically, and they don't get a say in any of what they're doing, which is mostly murdering hostiles and getting mashed in the process. Murderbot though, a name it has sarcastically given itself (and will be henceforth referred to as 'them' in this review), have jailbroken themselves and would rather just watch hours and hours of sci-fi soaps than interact with humans, who actually give them anxiety fits. Murderbot is incredibly introverted, you see. But in order to not disclose a) having a mind b) having free will c) their predilection towards sci-fi soap operas, Murderbot still has to do their job. Which is how they end up on a ship with a crew they actually don't hate, but... on a mission nobody should be on. Hint: it's a mission that is kind of hard to survive, and it's clearly rigged.

Reason #1. Murderbot Is More Human Than The Actual Humans

Murderbot comes across as an incredibly introverted personality who is empathetic like any other human being (maybe more so?), but shy of it and trying to hide it even from their own self. Seeing them turn to face the corner when talking to humans or panic while trying not to have their fave scrunch up into a mask of despair when being spoken to was incredibly amusing - and not in a mean way. Murderbot's shyness is SO relatable! You will love this character to bits. I know I did.

Reason #2. It's Like A Doctor Who Episode With David Tennant

For any Doctor Who fans, this book is like a good episode from the Tennant days – a hostile planet pretending to be neutral, and things slowly get worse and worse and he crew has to figure out what is up. It's just so good! My interest didn't drop even once, while reading this. And I realized how much I miss a good Doctor Who episode from the old days. (Well... the "newer old days"!)
I thought this was topical on the whole #FEELS topic. Ha. Topic. Topical. (Don't hit me.)

Reason #3. The Virtues

This book has incredibly good virtues and such an amazing moral atmosphere. And it's presented in such a self-deprecating manner as well (Shruti, you must read this!) Murderbot is willing to throw themselves in danger to protect the ones they care about, even though they're aware humans are not really supposed to care "back". It's really touching how Murderbot calls them "my humans". I would say Murderbot is a true sci-fi knight.

Reason #4. Murderbot's Gender Or Lack Thereof

Well, this is going to be hard to formulate. So, have you ever felt underrepresented? If you're a woman, you most likely have. Because we've got like maybe 2 heroes who jump in and save the day. Other than that, guys always do all the saving. Murderbot though? They don't really have a gender (and are often referred to as ‘it' in the book, but I refuse - Murderbot has too much personality for that!) Anyway, despite probably looking like Terminator, Murderbot is not referred to as male - which is why I found myself imagining them more female than male by the middle of the book! I was surprised, but I figure it comes from wanting to see myself represented as able to do stuff, you know? And Murderbot I'd a character that lets you do that. It's pretty great.

Reason #5. It's Just So Funny!

So maybe this should have been the number one reason. This book will keep you laughing throughout the entire time you're reading it, I mean, when you're not having #feels. The manner it is written, and especially the manner Murderbot talks in is just priceless. I can't wait for further installments of The Murderbot diaries!

I came to this series already loving the author. The tone and character voice make this series so easy to love, and it’s the same as we see in her other work. As the series title suggests, this is about a Murderbot – what the manufacturers call a SecUnit – who has managed to reconfigure its own governor module though all it really does with the freedom is enjoy trashy television. Incredibly lethal, SecUnits quite rightly cause concern in those around them… and I mean, we’ve all been raised on fiction where robots decide it sounds like an excellent idea to ‘kill all humans’, so having one around for security who is armed to the teeth and perfectly calibrated for murder? Great!

Imagine how the humans would react if they found out that their security unit isn’t under the control of its governance module, eh?

What adds an interesting level of complexity is how human Murderbot looks, which is why it usually leaves the helmut opaque. What’s also interesting is that it can feel pain and have emotions, and is mostly incredibly anxious around humans. It also carries quite a bit of distain for humans and yet also develops (or already has) quite high morals, and comes to react protectively of its humans without much time spent on the matter.

At only 144 pages so much happens in this novella. Pretty quickly the team Murderbot is hired to protect find themselves in far more danger than they bargained for. There are quite a few members in the team but Murderbot is so much more interesting than all of them, expect perhaps the leader of the expedition, Dr. Mensah, who becomes somewhat important for our protagonist. With so much packed in its hard to review without giving much away about the plot. I will say that the reason it hacked its governor module is what drives part of this novella, and all of the next.

Murderbot is going to be a series of novellas, with another three expected to come out in 2018.

"Murderbot" is a depressed SecUnit (android) working as security for a team of scientists exploring a new planet. Unbeknownst to the scientists, their SecUnit is not like other SecUnits; "Murderbot" has hacked his "governor module" and is self-aware with the ability to make his own choices and ignore orders if he pleases. He prefers to follow orders (to a point) and keep his head down though, as he is wary of anyone discovering his hacked governor module lest he be taken apart and used for scrap metal by the corporate company that owns him.

I really loved this story! As a corporate controlled android, it's literally Murderbot's job to spy on his "clients" even as he protects them because he's ultimately supposed to be protecting corporate interests (it's usually in the corporation's best interests to protect their clients, but not always).

Murderbot doesn't care much for his stupid clients or the corporation though (why should he? No one sees him as a sentient being); he mostly cares about his soap opera vids, which he downloads in bulk and has playing in his head even as he's sitting around "protecting" his clients. He freely admits he does a half-assed job 90% of the time.

Things change on this mission when the scientists start experiencing weird glitches and attacks. It's suddenly up to Murderbot - the one person on this mission who has the experience and intelligence (or hardware) - to save the day. But interacting with the crew is a new experience for him--and it's a really uncomfortable experience...

The main complaint I have about this book is it's too short! I want more! Now I'm looking around for more stories with androids like Murderbot and I'm not finding them (how can this be?!).

Martha Wells’ All Systems Red won me over almost immediately. I began the first page with reservations and by page three I was charmed into complete immersion.

I’m not kidding when I say I read this book in almost one sitting. I was so comfortable in this book, so reluctant to surface from my reading bubble, at one point I tried to get my cat to flip the light switch for me – the sun had gone down and I couldn’t keep reading without the light, but I didn’t want to stop even for a minute. That said, this is absolutely an easy “one sitting” read.

The characters are full and entertaining, the central concept as clearly brought to life as is the world Wells has created. Honestly, I cannot believe how much emotion and life Martha Wells effortlessly fit into 150 pages. I’ve referred before to authors whose “magic” lies in this accomplishment or that skill, and to me this is Wells’ skill: she puts not only a fully realized narrative and cast of characters in a tiny package, but creates what feels like a living, breathing world and narrative arcs readers will invest in into a travel sized snack of a book!

One of the things I watch out for as I’m reading is how quickly I can get “into” a new book. This is partly down to author’s style and voice, and partly down to how quickly the author introduces me to the characters, the story, and the universe. I fell into All Systems Red effortlessly. I was not only hooked, but fully invested in the characters and completely oriented and acclimatized in the universe before I had time to realize what was happening to me.

All in all, Martha Wells put together a romp of a tale in All Systems Red, and I cannot wait to read more. Thank goodness there’s not one but two more books coming our way in 2018:

Artificial Condition (coming May 8, 2018)
Rogue Protocol (coming August 7, 2018)

AUDIOBOOK REVIEW - This book popped up in a sale and for the very low price I figured it was worth getting. The narration was OK and I enjoyed the story. It left me looking forward to more stories since it really has potential as a series and IT WAS SO VERY SHORT.
...But then I saw the price!! you've got to be kidding--there are excellent, well established authors with series that have proven their worth and they don't charge this much for an audiobook 4 times as long. And the quality just doesn't justify the price.
I'll be checking the library to see if it is available but will not pay a penny to an author?/publisher? who stupidly thinks they can gouge readers and they'll keep buying.

Ahoy there me mateys! This sci-fi novella caught me eye because one of me favourite authors, Ann Leckie, talked about it in one of her blog posts. She states, “This is volume 1 of the Murderbot Diaries, and I suspect a certain percentage of my readers don’t need to hear anything more. Go, purchase, download! You will enjoy this.” Ummm yes I did enjoy this. In fact, I loved it! It is nominated for the 2018 Best Novella Hugo Award (with some amazing others) as well as these other awards:

Nebula Award Nominee for Best Novella (2018), Philip K. Dick Award Nominee (2017), ALA Alex Award (2018), Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Science Fiction (2017)

Need anymore convincing? Ye may see that I have not discussed plot, character, or anything else about this novel. I went into it blind and recommend this. For those that must know more, the blurb be below. It does not do this justice. This be basically a perfect read. I have read four out of the six novellas nominated for the Hugo and so far this might be me favourite.

I had heard of Martha Wells before but never read any of her work. Shame on me. I be glad to have remedied this. The next 3 novellas in the series are all scheduled to come out this year. Arrrrr!! I will be reading them all. I only wish that I would have read this sooner.

A fun, quick little book. Very fascinating premise (of a security unit [part robotic, part biological] who has hacked his own governor unit and has acquired a 'free will' of sorts), but what I love the most is that the story is more about a less important individual. Yes, he plays a significant role in helping a small group survive, but they're not saving a planet or the galaxy - just surveying a planet.

Wells has imbued a fun, dryly sarcastic tone to Murderbot's narration (yes, the sec unity calls himself Murderbot, but he'd rather watch entertainment serials than bother with anything else). There are some interesting philosophical, technological and sociological questions being toyed with throughout the story, which I think lends it an unexpected depth. And Wells doesn't really try to answer questions of free will, personhood, the addictive nature of entertainment (and its impact upon one's relationship with others), or even corporate negligence and bureaucratic impotence. She just lets them unfold in the story and the reader can catch glimpses of them if he or she keeps an eye open for it.

Philosophical musings aside, the story is fun and moves at a nice clip. This is the first book in a series, but it also stands on its own pretty nicely.

This was great! I had a good feeling about this book when I found myself chuckling on the very first page. This was a story that I didn't want to start once I got started which worked out perfectly since it is short enough to be read in a couple of hours. I am glad that I finally decided to spend a little bit of time getting to know Murderbot.

Muderbot is a SecUnit that is technically rogue since it decided to hack its own governor module. Obviously, Murderbot isn't letting anyone know that its governor module has been compromised because if the Company knew they would just get things working the way that they want once again. Murderbot has developed a fondness for human media since going rogue and loves to spend long hours viewing downloaded media.

The story was pretty exciting with some unexpected surprises along the way and plenty of action. I loved Murderbot's view of the world and the humor woven into the story. This is definitely a novella that science fiction fans will not want to miss.

This is a twisted version of Good Old-Fashioned Science Fiction, to wit: a group of people and a robot surveying an alien planet, facing unexpected danger; but with a few twists.

The most important twist is the narrator: this is volume one of "The Murderbot Diaries," and the narrator is indeed a psychotic SecBot: not _exactly_ a robot: it is a construct of metal and flesh, who has "hacked my governor" and thus made obeying orders, ah, shall we say, _optional_.

In the manner of Sheckley, say, or Dick, the equipment for this survey group is less than optimal, because contracted out from "The Company." Or _is_ it the equipment? There appears to be sabotage going on, but who? The Murderbot, as it calls itself, knows from the security feeds that nobody in the group is doing it. And then all contact is lost with the other survey group on the other side of the planet...

So, Good Old-Fashioned SF, complete with Mysterious Enemy, plus a dose of corporate paranoia, all filtered through the viewpoint of a 'bot who makes Marvin the Paranoid Android seem positively chipper. What's not to like here?

I cannot recommend this book enough! A fast-paced and quick read by Martha Wells, All Systems Red is full of darkly hilarious humor, dry wit, and a startling compassion you don't start the book expecting to feel for the main character. Murderbot himself is the unreliable (but actually pretty reliable) narrator of the book, and it's his perspective from beginning to end. Bought as part of a security package for a research team investigating a planet, Murderbot's only directive is to protect the band of researchers and scientists who rented him as a security guard, of sorts, for the duration of their project. He spends most of his time watching TV in the storage room he calls home and can't think of anything he'd rather do less than interact with the scientists more often than absolutely necessary.

Then something goes wrong. And then another thing goes wrong. And then something else goes wrong on top of THAT, and Murderbot finds himself caring far more about the eventual fate of the research team than you would ever have expected.

A killbot who deals with serious social anxiety may be one of the more original sci-fi ideas i've seen explored, and Martha Wells does so excellently. A must-read, and I love that it's the kind of book you can finish in a day but enjoy so thoroughly that you know you'll pick it up again and again. I've already preordered every other announced book in the series and can't wait to read more.

Solid 4.5 Stars

I really enjoyed this book. I had been slogging through sample after sample from the Kindle Store and just kind of downloaded this one on a whim. I was very much surprised by it.

The main character had a strong and unique voice and I enjoyed the first person depiction (which I typically do not).

The book was kind of short but I liked how it progressed so overall the length worked.

My only qualm with the book was that it lacked descriptions of each character. As I recall, only Dr. Mensah was described in any detail (and it was short, I believe it just noted her skin color and hair). I would have like to picture what the main character looked like in the author’s eye. As well, since there were several other characters, it might have been easier to tell them apart had there been descriptions. The lack thereof did take away from the book somewhat. It didn’t allow me to get any closer to the characters.

But, overall I really loved this book and the main character and will be downloading the next one.

Murderbot, a.k.a. Sec-Unit, is a composite being with both human and robot parts, legally a robot owned by a company that leases him out as a security unit. He's currently leased out to a survey team on an unsettled planet. It's a small survey team, and he's the only security unit.

What neither the clients nor the company know is that he has hacked his governor module, and obeying orders is a choice for him.

That will turn out to be a good thing for everyone.

There's another survey team on the planet, a larger one, on the other side of the planet. They can communicate but don't have a lot of reason to do so. There's also a third group, that they don't know about, and which has nefarious intentions, for something valuable on the planet, and for the survey teams that could frustrate their plans.

Murderbot is likable, surprised to find that he cares what happens to his clients, and despite crappy education modules, has learned a lot from his voracious consumption of entertainment videos.

At only a bit over three hours, it's short, lively, and enjoyable.

Recommended.

I bought this audiobook.

**Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy**

ALL SYSTEMS RED is a fun read about a tv watching, awkward, security robot. When you call yourself Murderbot, it’s not surprising that you find it difficult to connect with humans. Murderbot is a Security Unit; it handles the security and guards the crew during missions. All units should have a governor chip that keeps them in line and forces them to follow orders. Murderbot disabled theirs. When they should be offline, Murderbot streams their favourite tv shows.

The novel focuses on the investigation as machinery and other security units start breaking down on the planet. Areas of the map are missing and another group of scientists have gone radio silent. The intrigue and the investigation into the mechanical sabotage should have had a greater impact on the story. The plot kept twisting away from involving the Company which I never understood. When the saboteurs are revealed, there was no weight or emotion to it.

Even though the novel is written in first person, there is never a complete sense of Murderbot. It’s explains that it has cloned human tissue and mechanical parts, but you never get a sense of what the unit looks like. Murderbot is uncomfortable with humans and emotions, prefering to keep their armor and helmet on or just facing away from the people they’re talking to. But as we learn more about Murderbot’s history, there’s not enough depth to connect with the emotions of the situations. This would be fine, if the novel didn’t want to have it both ways.

With the one-off lines about clones, robot slavery, freed robots, and caretakers, it’s clear that there’s a much more interesting world just underneath the surface of the novel. I wish the plot and Murderbot had skimmed deeper. I’m looking forward to reading the next installment of The Murderbot Diaries and seeing if the worlding building expands to greater depths.

and I'm totally hooked on her/his/its adventures. I'm no expert fantasy/sci-fi reader, but this type of playful, humane sci-fi just works for me. Wells is not constructing a fine-grained alien universe, so the reader takes it on faith that things work the way they do (wireless hacking is a given, wormhole travel is a given, as are miraculous medical procedures equally effective for human, augmented human, and human-robotic hybrids), but the basic premise of the story (cyborg construct designed to work protection for planetary explorers hacks its own operating system, ostensibly so that it can spend more time gorging on online entertainment products) is irresistible, as is her chief protagonist's prickly, vulnerable, big-hearted (and very very gifted) persona. I can't believe the grumpy reviews from readers who wanted the sequel to be longer/lower-priced! What is the matter with these people, trying to nickel-and-dime a giver of pleasure whose work, quite literally, is beyond price? I'm buying the whole set, given that the first volume was a total gift at $3.99!

What’s not to love about a misanthropic robot that might destroy humanity, if only they didn’t create such wonderful holo dramas? I think that my favorite aspect of the Murderbot Diaries is that Eden could totally kill all humans, but, like, meh. In a world of highly skilled humans, we often end up doing only what is required in our job because there’s no incentive (other than losing our job) to do more. Oh how I relate to Eden and ter loathing of humanity. How many times have I been at work, and wished that I were Netflixing or reading a book instead.

In All Systems Red, we get the backstory of Eden and ter sordid past as an ineffectual murderbot. Ter really does care about the humans that te is expected to protect. Te doesn’t have to protect them, because of the hacked governor, but te does it out of a sense of professional responsibility.

I enjoyed All Systems Red, and look forward to reading more offerings by Martha Wells, especially more Murderbot Diaries. Five stars! Recommended to scifi fans and misanthropes everywhere.

The best straight SF I've read so far in 2017: "All Systems Red" is a longish novella/shortish book with an engagingly snarky protagonist, humor, mystery, excitement, interesting characters and enough plot twists that I devoured it even more than I normally devour books. Once again Martha Wells has created a completely believable non-human protagonist and I loved it (shout out also to the terrific samurai-esque cover art created by Jaime Jones - cover illustrators don't always get the kudos they deserve from readers.)

"Red" really delivers in the main character of Murderbot (the book is first person from Murderbot's POV.) Murderbot is physically an organic-techological synthesis (cyborg) and the narration subtly reflects that synthesis; the character growth is beautifully done. And yes, I like typing 'Murderbot.'

I also think 'Murderbot' would be a hellagood name for a cat.

This is the second book I've read fairly recently that follows an AI character, the other being Becky Chambers' "A Closed and Common Orbit". There's more meat to Chambers' (longer) book but I enjoyed Wells' Murderbot more as a completely other-than-human intelligence (Chambers' AI character is more about an AI becoming human).

In "All Systems Red" Murderbot is growing its experience as its unique self and adding to that personality rather than learning how to be human, a fascinating perspective. Murderbot feels like a realistic non-human entity.

Although I got my copy from the library, my love for Wells' writing is compelling me to pop for my own copy and I'm already slavering for Murderbot Diaries #2.

(Review originally published on Goodreads)

Tor.com offered it’s members a free download of this book. I took advantage, since I had this book on my wish list.

This is a gritty story about an android with a murderous past and a conscience in the present. Contracted as security for a group of scientists, she (yes, she) has managed to to block her governor module, bypassing certain protocols that prevent her from thinking on her own. Becoming self-aware, as well as aware of where she fits in amoung the others in her expedition makes Murderbot a fascinating character. Somehow, as security android, she has become part babysitter and part protector, especially when things start to go wrong. Witnessing the transformation from an android that calls herself Murderbot to a solver of the challenges presented by exploration and exploitation was fascinating and thrilling. I would really love to read more of Murderbot’s story and will keep this series on my TBR list.

All Systems Red was truly a delight. A snarky robot with a TV addiction? Who can resist that!

All planetary missions must be supplied by the Company and they must rent a Company supplied SecUnit, an android security guard. The narrator of All Systems Red is one such SecUnit, but it has hacked into the governor module and is now secretly autonomous. It refers to itself as Murderbot, and it really doesn’t care about it’s job — guarding a team of scientists on a remote planet where there shouldn’t be problems anyway. Murderbot much prefers to hack into a satellite and gain access to 35,000 hours of entertainment media. This works out perfectly fine for Murderbot until a neighboring mission goes dark and their own humans may be in danger.

The plot is not what’s important about All Systems Red. Instead, this science fiction novella focuses on the inner life of it’s protagonist and narrator, Murderbot. I know what you’re thinking: this is probably one of those robot stories where there’s a lot of angst and questioning about the nature of humanity. All Systems Red isn’t like that. There’s absolutely zero angst, and Murderbot finds humans awkward and slightly annoying. It says it likes fictional humans better than real humans, which is entirely relatable.

Murderbot’s voice was far and away the best thing about All Systems Red. It’s hilarious! I was seriously laughing out loud while reading this. Robots with feelings are the best sort of robots, even if in this case our robot narrator is anti-social and largely apathetic. Although, Murderbot may be a bit less apathetic than it seems. While it professes to be horrified by the humans clumsy attempts to befriend it, it does seem to care about them beneath it all. As well as being astonishingly funny, it’s also quite heart warming.

I loved All Systems Red so much. It will undoubtedly end up being one of the best science fiction stories I read all year. Thank goodness Martha Wells is writing a sequel! I desperately need more.

I loved this ebook and also the audio edition... Tor publishers actually gave this ebook away and then a few days later audible put this on their Daily Deal... So the universe conspired, and yes, I went for it!
It appears that there's a rogue AI, who's secretly named himself... Murderbot!  "He" loves watching daytime soaps, and does his darndest to only do a minimum amount of work, and to avoid as much human contact as possible without exposing his existence...
Kevin R. Free absolutely captures the wry cynicism as he narrates this story through Murderbot's first person perspective...
But things change fast and Murderbot really steps up his game when "his people"... "his humans" are threatened! Get the book to find out what happens... And then if you're like me, go pre-order the next book, which luckily will be out in a couple of weeks... oh and universe...  thanks for the conspiracy!

This is more a 4.25 star rating as overall I did like just about everything in this short novel. It is a very easy to read, short, novel about a security cyborg/android whose function is to protect it's human crew members on a mission, written from the cyborg/android's perspective. A pretty cool concept and the author did a very good job describing the events of the mission the Murderbot (how it referred to itself in the novel) was on and how it affected itself.

While more interesting than not it did not fully draw me in however I did find that descriptively the story was well done but not to the extent that this is a novel I would care to re-read. There is no questioning that Martha Wells is a talented writer and if you are looking for a good quick Sci-Fi story I recommend it. I will also look forward to checking out other novels by this author

A robot going through its teenage angst years.
Moody, depressed, loner, lazy, who wants to sit around binge watching Netflix instead of working.
"Ugh-I'm-so-misunderstood-what-is-life?"

A group of scientist are excavating on LV-426 when they lose contact with the second group on the other side of the planet, so they set off to explore why.

A fun, one day read.
Part David from 'Prometheus' part Bishop from 'Aliens'
If their was a Ripley character and 200 pages longer it would have made it a 5 star read

This started out as a solid 4.5 star, nearly 5 star read for me, but I was a little disappointed in the abruptness of the climax and resolution of the book, so it dropped down to a solid 4 star read for me. Honestly though, I have this problem a lot when I read novellas - I just want a little more meat to the story and a little more time on the details. It does mean it was an engaging story though!

I found the tone and humor of Murderbot's narration fantastic and had many laugh out loud moments with it. I will definitely return for more of Murderbot's tales in the future. The humor and quick development of the narrative were definitely highlights for me.

I reread this since I had just received the second book. It was as great the second time around. For such a short book it sure packs a punch. Since there are close to 600 reviews just in the store I will skip the summary and just affirm how great it is. For a Murderbot it sure has a lot of emotions. I think why I like this so much is that we all understand how doing the best that we can and sometimes is not enough. We all try for redemption. At the same time, we all get apathetic and bored. We all get afraid and sometimes do not know how to act in social situations. I cannot wait to finish the second book.

I am so impressed on how much could go into such a small book. Loved it!
This story is about Murderbot, a security robot with organic parts. These robots are used to protect the crew from danger except this one has gone rogue... in a good way. He hacked his governor switch and now can do and think on his own. In that time, he likes to stay clear of humans (they make him uncomfortable) and watches entertainment feeds. Yet, when the crew comes under danger, can Murderbot be trusted to help the crew?
Ready to jump into the next book in this series!

(Disclaimer: I received this free book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)

All Systems Red thrilled my intellect, entertained me, and moved my heart. Murderbot actively probes the boundary between human and machine. They poke that uncomfortable space where we don't know how to react to those who transgress over the illusions we create. I need to read this book again, read some more articles, and geek over it with many many friends. I feel like even though I was blown away by this book, I need to read it over and over again so I pick up more and more

A cyborg SecurityUnit assigned by the Company to protect a team exploring a new planet has a secret. Years ago on a different mission its governor module malfunctioned, sending it on a rampage that killed 100 people before it was stopped—but that’s not the secret. When it was repaired and fitted with a new governor it figured out how to disable it so the failure couldn’t happen again. Now it’s a self-aware, self-governing, fully autonomous unit, heavily armed and nearly indestructible. On its new mission it has to confront sabotage and deceit as it struggles to define who it is and it’s relationship with its human clients. I loved how the book blends quick action and mystery with what amounts to a coming-of-age story for a genderless artificial being that secretly calls itself “Murderbot.” I look forward to future books in the series.

After hacking its controlling governor, the semi-organic Security Unit, which has named itself Murderbot, decided not to commit mass murder. Instead, Murderbot escapes into the fantasy realm video serials while doing the bare minimum of its job. SecUnits work for The Corporation by recording all they see, policing humans, and killing as necessary. Naturally humans aren’t comfortable around SecUnits. Murderbot find humans equally confusing, odious, and distasteful. (However, they are necessary to keep creating video serials.) When a hidden planetary expedition group starts plotting to kill Murderbot’s humans, it puts some of those vid tactics to stunning effect. Part crime, part space opera, the Murderbot diaries are fast-paced, suspenseful adventure – especially for introverts who prefer escapist fiction to their day job. The world controlled by corporations adds creepy undertones, while issues of freedom and free will provoke thought.

I am not sure how this garnered so many high ratings. The story line could be reasonable, but the actual implementation is not.
It is short for the money, but I bought it on the hype as a book. Wished I had only wasted the 3.99, which is still high for a 153
page story.
In any event, the character development is 0. Even for the MurderBot. The world development the same. Simplistic non-technical
setup.
So no character, no hard tech for the most part. You wanted to feel for the MurderBot, but could not.
Do not waste your money.
I write few reviews by the way, take that for what it is worth. I am also not inexperienced ( read well over 10000 books in my day ).

This is the story of a rogue robot who wants what all human/machine-hybrid killers want when they break free of their programming -- to be left alone to watch their favorite TV shows, or at least to have to deal with their human charges as little as possible. Unfortunately, things rarely go that smoothly. Martha Wells is an author that's never left me down, a rare feat, and if this novella doesn't have the space to create quite as rich a world as she usually does, the strength of the murderbot's (anti-social, self-deprecating) character more than makes up for it. I also really appreciate the ending, which is positive without trying to whitewash all the problems that lead to this situation.

I never thought I could so delightfully identify with a murderous sentient machine. If the terminator one day cut it's ties with skynet and decided it would really rather watch soap operas than hunt down Sarah Connor, you'd sort of have Murderbot. It would really rather relax in the daily routine, enjoy some entertainment, and explore who it might become than deal with awkward social situations and ... humans. But when the humans its been tasked with protecting are threatened, it steps up and handles the situation with unique perspective. The story is exciting, filled with action and tension, but Murderbot, itself, steals the show completely. Second and third books pre-ordered. Can't wait.

I'm rounding up around half a star.

A short novel (if that's the appropriate classification) that I thoroughly enjoyed. The narrator's very existence, as well as personality, involves a mix of good worldbuilding and good characterization.

Many questions remain unanswered. What is the origin of each SecUnit and of SecUnits in general? Was there any controversy attendant on their creation? I don't know whether future books, if any, will answer these questions. But I'll be looking for those future books in any event.

I bought this one since it seemed pretty down my line in futuristic and suspense.

It made me thought of alien and I robot, but the Murderbot was pretty cool and sarcastic on it's own.

The way he go about life is almost like a bored teenager that was something it made me laugh that he had to work for humans but didn't really liked them.

A very good read for dystopian and AI fans.

This was a seriously fun read. We follow an andriod, or "murderbot" as it calls itself privately on a survey mission on an unmapped planet. As the mission for the survey team becomes more and more dangerous, mystery start to unveil themselves and our "murderbot" is caught between a rock and something to slam through.

Wells writes with light humor, action, and uses a fun sci fi premise that will please any reader. I cannot wait to read book two.

Skulduggery on an uncharted planet. Their only chance for survival was to trust a cyborg that had disengaged the module that would give them control over it. Trusting it was difficult for some who thought such trust would be a fatal mistake. This was a short story that I checked out from the library. I hope we see more of Murderbot and I hope Murderbot decides adopt a nickname.

What a great character and story in only 149 pages! The novella grabs you from the very beginning and keeps you interested to the end. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Murderbot and becoming immersed in its growth and adventures. Wells has created a wonder: a more fascinating character and more thrilling adventures than in most novels three times the size. I can't wait to see what happens next!

All Systems Red by Martha Wells is an incredibly compelling science fiction story told from the perspective of a reluctant, snarky robot designed to be a killing machine. Somehow Wells manages to make it action-packed and full of insight at the same time. The adventure sucked me in immediately and spat me out gasping. I'm still thinking about how much I love the protagonist.

ALL SYSTEMS RED is ridiculously good fun. It combines laugh-out-loud humor (really!), an irresistible narrator (the drily funny murderbot), and a page-turning mystery storyline. Get this and read it. I am off to tell half a dozen friends about this. It's the most fun I've had reading a book in a good while, starting with my middle school son and my retired dad.
FIVE STARS without reservation. This book left me wanting to read another Murderbot story!

I never read the same book twice. NEVER. I read this book, and both its sequels (so far), twice. I may eventually go back for a third time. Do yourself a favor and immerse yourself in the edge-of-your seat suspenseful and engaging, but also unexpectedly touching, story of Murderbot. You won’t regret it. I especially love the audiobook versions — the narrator is the best I’ve ever heard, bar none.

A fast paced intriguing novella by Martha Wells takes us into the head of a android, who finds his way free of the Company's command. Wells addresses issues of 'cyber sentience', 'droid rights', and 'droid consciousness' in her Murderbot Diaries series. Martha Wells brings her robot to life for readers. It becomes yet another one of her unique characters to root for.

Full disclosure - I live for short Sci-fi fiction.

That said, even if I didn’t live for the stuff, this was a great story, masterfully told. It deals with technological as well as existential questions. And it digs deeply into the human ego/hubris and gives us a glimpse of what may happen relatively soon... humans begetting a technology that does not replace them, but surpasses them ever so quietly. I highly recommend this book.

What do you get when you combine Doug Adams' humor with Isaac Asimov's complexity and paradox? And the timeless story of the robot with a sense of self? And maybe the pace of James Patterson? This book. I can't believe I hadn't run across it before. And now that I know there are three more--I am going to parcel them out, spread the enjoyment.

And apologies to Martha Wells if that sounds like her work is derivative. Not at all. She completely has her own voice and style. It's just that she belongs in august company.

I read a library copy, so not a verified purchase. But a verified read.

I loved this little book. Despite being a robot constructed for the messiest of jobs, he comes off much like a teenager struggling to fit in. He's not sure what to make of his human counterparts but he seems to be concerned about what they think of him. Ready for the next installment!

It's likely due to the short story format, but I didn't enjoy this book much. The writing is solid but I couldn't get attached to any of the characters, even Murderbot, the main character. This story is plot heavy. Despite that, I found the lead up to the climax and the climax itself disappointing. There's no foreshadowing hinting at the motive of the villains and the conflict gets resolved quickly.

A short science-fiction novel about an introverted security robot who could have become a mass murderer, but prefers to spend time lost in movies and books. This had such a wonderful tone – dry humor, painfully awkward, and heart warming. I loved everything about the main character, plus the plot was excellent.

Really enjoyable reading! Both Murderbot novellas are fast paced combinations of Jack Reacher type stories with a great allegory of the modern human condition. But much more well written than (insert Lee Childs, John Grisham etc.) Don’t hesitate! Just do it!

This was a good novella. It was hard to stop reading. The story is from the perspective of the main character, who happens to be an aware construct. It was an interesting point of view, and I think the author did a great job.

The story the bot tells is sweet and full of action at the same time. He and the friends he makes along the way are well characterized and the action keeps things moving. The only issue I have is that the books end too quickly.

Quite good. Unique angle on the "do robots/androids/clones/cyborgs (in this case) have souls?" question. Interesting POV, cool universe that we just get glimpses of, and some good, subtle linguistic ingenuity that works behind the scenes to make it more than just an adventure story. As a matter of fact - small spoiler - the plot here is actually beside the point, just serving to set up the character/universe for further stories. Good setup, I look forward to the further stories.

After hacking its controlling governor, the semi-organic Security Unit, which has named itself Murderbot, decided not to commit mass murder. Instead, Murderbot escapes into the fantasy realm video serials while doing the bare minimum of its job. SecUnits work for The Corporation by recording all they see, policing humans, and killing as necessary. Naturally humans aren’t comfortable around SecUnits. Murderbot find humans equally confusing, odious, and distasteful. (However, they are necessary to keep creating video serials.) When a hidden planetary expedition group starts plotting to kill Murderbot’s humans, it puts some of those vid tactics to stunning effect. Part crime, part space opera, the Murderbot diaries are fast-paced, suspenseful adventure – especially for introverts who prefer escapist fiction to their day job. The world controlled by corporations adds creepy undertones, while issues of freedom and free will provoke thought.

Short version: loved it and want more

Slightly longer, no spoilers: Martha Wells never writes the same book twice. This foray into science fiction is well plotted, with great characterization and world building.

It kept me reading, and the ending both satisfied me and set up more. Another one in January, I hear.

I am not sure how this garnered so many high ratings. The story line could be reasonable, but the actual implementation is not.
It is short for the money, but I bought it on the hype as a book. Wished I had only wasted the 3.99, which is still high for a 153
page story.
In any event, the character development is 0. Even for the MurderBot. The world development the same. Simplistic non-technical
setup.
So no character, no hard tech for the most part. You wanted to feel for the MurderBot, but could not.
Do not waste your money.
I write few reviews by the way, take that for what it is worth. I am also not inexperienced ( read well over 10000 books in my day ).

This is the story of a rogue robot who wants what all human/machine-hybrid killers want when they break free of their programming -- to be left alone to watch their favorite TV shows, or at least to have to deal with their human charges as little as possible. Unfortunately, things rarely go that smoothly. Martha Wells is an author that's never left me down, a rare feat, and if this novella doesn't have the space to create quite as rich a world as she usually does, the strength of the murderbot's (anti-social, self-deprecating) character more than makes up for it. I also really appreciate the ending, which is positive without trying to whitewash all the problems that lead to this situation.

I never thought I could so delightfully identify with a murderous sentient machine. If the terminator one day cut it's ties with skynet and decided it would really rather watch soap operas than hunt down Sarah Connor, you'd sort of have Murderbot. It would really rather relax in the daily routine, enjoy some entertainment, and explore who it might become than deal with awkward social situations and ... humans. But when the humans its been tasked with protecting are threatened, it steps up and handles the situation with unique perspective. The story is exciting, filled with action and tension, but Murderbot, itself, steals the show completely. Second and third books pre-ordered. Can't wait.

I'm rounding up around half a star.

A short novel (if that's the appropriate classification) that I thoroughly enjoyed. The narrator's very existence, as well as personality, involves a mix of good worldbuilding and good characterization.

Many questions remain unanswered. What is the origin of each SecUnit and of SecUnits in general? Was there any controversy attendant on their creation? I don't know whether future books, if any, will answer these questions. But I'll be looking for those future books in any event.

I bought this one since it seemed pretty down my line in futuristic and suspense.

It made me thought of alien and I robot, but the Murderbot was pretty cool and sarcastic on it's own.

The way he go about life is almost like a bored teenager that was something it made me laugh that he had to work for humans but didn't really liked them.

A very good read for dystopian and AI fans.

This was a seriously fun read. We follow an andriod, or "murderbot" as it calls itself privately on a survey mission on an unmapped planet. As the mission for the survey team becomes more and more dangerous, mystery start to unveil themselves and our "murderbot" is caught between a rock and something to slam through.

Wells writes with light humor, action, and uses a fun sci fi premise that will please any reader. I cannot wait to read book two.

Skulduggery on an uncharted planet. Their only chance for survival was to trust a cyborg that had disengaged the module that would give them control over it. Trusting it was difficult for some who thought such trust would be a fatal mistake. This was a short story that I checked out from the library. I hope we see more of Murderbot and I hope Murderbot decides adopt a nickname.

What a great character and story in only 149 pages! The novella grabs you from the very beginning and keeps you interested to the end. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Murderbot and becoming immersed in its growth and adventures. Wells has created a wonder: a more fascinating character and more thrilling adventures than in most novels three times the size. I can't wait to see what happens next!

All Systems Red by Martha Wells is an incredibly compelling science fiction story told from the perspective of a reluctant, snarky robot designed to be a killing machine. Somehow Wells manages to make it action-packed and full of insight at the same time. The adventure sucked me in immediately and spat me out gasping. I'm still thinking about how much I love the protagonist.

ALL SYSTEMS RED is ridiculously good fun. It combines laugh-out-loud humor (really!), an irresistible narrator (the drily funny murderbot), and a page-turning mystery storyline. Get this and read it. I am off to tell half a dozen friends about this. It's the most fun I've had reading a book in a good while, starting with my middle school son and my retired dad.
FIVE STARS without reservation. This book left me wanting to read another Murderbot story!

I never read the same book twice. NEVER. I read this book, and both its sequels (so far), twice. I may eventually go back for a third time. Do yourself a favor and immerse yourself in the edge-of-your seat suspenseful and engaging, but also unexpectedly touching, story of Murderbot. You won’t regret it. I especially love the audiobook versions — the narrator is the best I’ve ever heard, bar none.

A fast paced intriguing novella by Martha Wells takes us into the head of a android, who finds his way free of the Company's command. Wells addresses issues of 'cyber sentience', 'droid rights', and 'droid consciousness' in her Murderbot Diaries series. Martha Wells brings her robot to life for readers. It becomes yet another one of her unique characters to root for.

Full disclosure - I live for short Sci-fi fiction.

That said, even if I didn’t live for the stuff, this was a great story, masterfully told. It deals with technological as well as existential questions. And it digs deeply into the human ego/hubris and gives us a glimpse of what may happen relatively soon... humans begetting a technology that does not replace them, but surpasses them ever so quietly. I highly recommend this book.

What do you get when you combine Doug Adams' humor with Isaac Asimov's complexity and paradox? And the timeless story of the robot with a sense of self? And maybe the pace of James Patterson? This book. I can't believe I hadn't run across it before. And now that I know there are three more--I am going to parcel them out, spread the enjoyment.

And apologies to Martha Wells if that sounds like her work is derivative. Not at all. She completely has her own voice and style. It's just that she belongs in august company.

I read a library copy, so not a verified purchase. But a verified read.

I loved this little book. Despite being a robot constructed for the messiest of jobs, he comes off much like a teenager struggling to fit in. He's not sure what to make of his human counterparts but he seems to be concerned about what they think of him. Ready for the next installment!

It's likely due to the short story format, but I didn't enjoy this book much. The writing is solid but I couldn't get attached to any of the characters, even Murderbot, the main character. This story is plot heavy. Despite that, I found the lead up to the climax and the climax itself disappointing. There's no foreshadowing hinting at the motive of the villains and the conflict gets resolved quickly.

This book though! The protagonist -- a security android (MURDERBOT) that just wants to be left alone to enjoy its stories -- has a great voice and I identified with them so much. As with basically every Tor novella I've read so far, I enjoyed this from start to finish and can't wait to (hopefully) explore more of this world/character.

It's over before it started. Liked the character, plot and writing style, but it all resolves a bit too easily; had hoped for some more ups and downs.

Interested enough to read the next, but not for its current price.

I read this all in one go and it was delightful. I recognised myself quite a bit in Murderbot (hate socialising and reload social batteries with TV series? Yeah.) I'm looking forward to the second part, although this can very well be read as a stand-alone story.

I was totally hooked by the teaser chapter I read a few months ago, and the rest of the story is every bit as good. Really outstanding storytelling, wry sense of humor. From the title, I'm assuming this is the lead-in to a whole series, and I really hope so!

With a character that is described as a robot who refers to himself as a Murderbot sarcastically and who has a lot of hidden freedom it sounds like it would lead to a fun story. Unfortunately there isn't too much of substance to the story. Murderbot only gets interesting once he reveals himself to some humans about halfway through the book and even then it's pretty tame. The plot isn't terrible but definitely lackluster. With other robots like Star Wars' HK-47 or Bender from Futurama, there are better foils out there. I won't be continuing the series and wouldn't suggest it to others. Final Grade - D+

Great story. Left me wanting for more. I can't wait to read the next installment.Is there anything else to say? :-)
The premise is interesting, and it's very well-written. Probably the best depiction I've read of the point of view of a sentient construct, without detriment to the story.

All Systems Red is extremely engaging from page one, and has incredible depth for a story so short! Great ending with options to explore more in this world. I look forward to further stories about Murderbot!

This book though! The protagonist -- a security android (MURDERBOT) that just wants to be left alone to enjoy its stories -- has a great voice and I identified with them so much. As with basically every Tor novella I've read so far, I enjoyed this from start to finish and can't wait to (hopefully) explore more of this world/character.

It's over before it started. Liked the character, plot and writing style, but it all resolves a bit too easily; had hoped for some more ups and downs.

Interested enough to read the next, but not for its current price.