306 Rogue Protocol

by Martha Wells, 2018

The third installment in the Murderbot series finds our titular android on a new quest to get to a place called Milu in the hopes of finding out why it turned murderous in the first place. Having jumped aboard a new transport ship, it’s surprised to find that it misses its sarcastic previous companion ART (short for Asshole Research Transport), who had even more difficulty understanding human emotion than the eye-contact averse, helmet adoring Murderbot is. In this chapter of the adventure, Murderbot is introduced to a new non-human ally while inadvertently doing its best to keep the humans on the ship safe. It’s kind of the same old story, but, thankfully, Wells’s characters never fall flat.

305 Artificial Condition

by Martha Wells, 2018

When we last left our murderous android protagonist, it had left its crew in search of answers about the incident from which it adopted its name. Artificial Condition picks up exactly where All Systems Red leaves off, with Murderbot trying to surreptitiously find its way to the site where it killed a number of its then-crew. Why did Murderbot go rogue? What prompted it to turn from a SecUnit to a killing machine? When will everyone just leave it alone so it can rewatch all the episodes of Sanctuary Moon? These are the questions at the heart of this second installment in the series featuring the lovably cynical, socially awkward, eminently relatable, terrifying Murderbot.

243 All Systems Red

by Martha Wells, 2017

Winner: Nebula Award – Best Novella 2017; Hugo Award – Best Novella 2018

Aside from winning the above two awards, I don’t think I would’ve known about this novella had it not been for Liberty’s constant proclamations of love for the character Murderbot on All the Books. Just the name alone – “Murderbot” –  intrigued me, let alone that it could apparently inspire such delight in another human being. Indeed, in this slim volume, the first in a series, Wells has created a character not quite like any other. Think Marvin the android from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy meets April from Parks & Rec and you’ll get an idea of the sullen teenage contempt running through these pages. It’s pretty darn delightful.