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Book Review
A human has been murdered on Preservation Station, and of course one of security’s first assumptions is that Murderbot did it. But Murderbot would know better than to leave the body out where people could find it. And while station security doesn’t trust Murderbot, they’ll soon realize if they have any hope of finding the killer, they’re going to have to at least try to work with it. It’s not like Murderbot wants to work with them either, but if it keeps Mensah safe Murderbot will do just about anything. Ok, maybe not anything, but most things.
After reading Fugitive Telemetry, I can honestly say, give me an entire series about Murderbot solving murder mysteries and I will be one happy reader. Seeing Murderbot in combat action is great, but watching them sleuth around the station is a whole new level of entertainment. By now we all know Murderbot doesn’t like talking and this new adventure is going to make them do a whole lot of it. And would it really be a Murderbot story if it didn’t contain sarcastic comebacks and snarky internal thoughts?
The beauty of this novella was watching Murderbot earn respect and a myriad of trust from humans. Of course, Mensah’s crew knows to trust Murderbot, but everyone else judges it by sight alone. And Murderbot even managed to sneak in some nonsarcastic dialogue. Having Murderbot along for the mystery, not only showed the humans how their thinking can be flawed, but it also showed Murderbot how working together with humans can help iron out anything it may miss in its analysis.
I also appreciate the fact that Martha Wells doesn’t treat being an introvert like a character flaw. Instead, she embraces it and shows how it can be an asset. Murderbot uses its processing power to see things from every possible angle before forming a conclusion and it isn’t rash in its decisions unless forced to be. Murderbot won’t ever be comfortable working with a group, but it is learning how to handle these social interactions and the possible benefits from them.
Fugitive Telemetry was another fantastic addition to the Murderbot Diaries. Each book takes Murderbot’s character development a step further and I can’t wait to see where the next adventure takes it. I can’t recommend this series enough to fans of sci-fi stories!
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