Though I adore me some sci-fi, I’ve muddled through so many mediocre novels that I tend to wait for awards season to come around. Last year this aerodynamic novella won everything (Hugo, Nebula, Alex, Locus) so here we are.
Since the title contains the whole premise, it’s no spoiler to say that Murderbot—a hacked security construct—is our narrator. It is self-aware, competent, and thoroughly bored guarding a scientific expedition on a remote planet. (Luckily, it has hacked its systems so that it can watch future YouTube during downtime.) For a cyborg Murderbot has plenty of personality and lots of opinions—which must be hidden safely away if it’s to avoid being junked by “the company”. After all, no client wants their contracted superweapon to come with feelings that could interfere with its ability to deliver mass death with its machine gun arms at the slightest provocation.
The action kicks off in the first five pages and keeps going till the end. Poor Murderbot has to keep its weird humans alive while pretending to be a standard SecUnit. The squishy scientists are not alone, you see. The company briefing book neglected to mention they would be sharing the planet with enormous creatures that would like to eat them. And the map? Whole sections are blacked out. And is that…another away team? When is Murderbot going to have time to catch up on its bootlegged feed with the latest serials?
Highly recommended if you enjoy plot-driven sci-fi action with a fun protagonist whose greatest strength is creative thinking. The human supporting cast also feel plausible; an increasingly lethal situation brings their individual strengths and weakness to the fore. Plenty of graphic violence that avoids being gratuitous. It’s the first in a series, too!
Winner: 2018 Hugo Award for Best Novella
Winner: 2018 Nebula Award for Best Novella
Winner: 2018 Alex Award
Winner: 2018 Locus Award