SYSTEM COLLAPSE, the latest entry in Martha Wells's Murderbot series, is another fantastic offering. Longtime readers will be pleased with the development, while the story continues to offer the same pleasures that drew them to the series - most especially, Murderbot.

It took a while for me to get into the groove of this installment, but that makes sense given the state we find Murderbot in since we saw them in Network Effect (it was difficult coming in with Fugitive Telemetry in between, given how much this installment's events rely so much on Network). Oddly enough, though, this is the first book where I really appreciated the action once it did pick up, and by the end I was once again gleefully reading through Murderbot's adventures. ART likewise seemed to take a while to warm up and embody all of its wry, petty glory, but it made it, and I can't wait until the next book!

Another wonderful installment in the Murderbot Diaries! Such great action and a riveting plot. Well-written and as always a joy to read Martha Wells.

System Collapse is another killer entry in the Murderbot Diaries. The story is a continuation of the events in Network Effect and includes ART, Murderbot, their humans, other humans (who may or may not be contaminated), and some questionable B-E personnel. I have been excited to see how the relationship (don't tell Murderbot I used that term) between ART and Murderbot would develop; I was not disappointed.

My favorite part about System Collapse was the continuation of Murderbot's character development. Before starting System Collapse, I wondered how much room their was for Murderbot to grow—by the end, I found Murderbot to be more layered than ever, which played a major role in System Collapse being a 5-star read.

Thank you to Tor Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book. This review is my own.

"System Collapse" by Martha Wells, the latest installment in the Murderbot series, was a bit of a mixed bag for me. While I've been enamored with Murderbot's adventures in the past, this time around, the struggle was real.

Our beloved SecUnit is grappling with the aftermath of previous events, leading to a plot that delves deep into internal conflicts. While exploring Murderbot's emotional struggles was interesting, it did feel like the external conflict took a backseat. The narrative became more introspective, and at times, the pace suffered as a result.

Martha Wells' unique writing style, which has been a defining feature of the series, posed a challenge in this installment. The journey to any real events felt prolonged, and the payoff took longer than expected. Navigating the story with Murderbot's internal musings required more patience than I had anticipated.

Despite these challenges, "System Collapse" still offers a glimpse into Murderbot's evolving character and emotional landscape. For fans of the series, it's worth the read, but be prepared for a narrative that leans heavily into internal conflicts before reaching the external excitement that the Murderbot series has featured in the past.

The marvelously misanthropic self named Murderbot returns with a new adventure! Except this time, for some REDACTED reason, they are off their game, constantly second guessing themself and caught up in memories and past experiences. Will they be able to keep the humans of the Preservation team safe as they negotiate with the colonists that the corporation Barish-Estranza wants to ship off into a life of servitude?

Unlike other books in the series, this one is much slower paced. It begins in media res, jumps pack to the planet side arrival and then when catching up to the beginning moment slowly unfolds until the climatic end.

The Preservation team has arrived on a colony planet, imperiled by some sort of alien contagion that keeps debilitating their farming equipment. The colonists are also split in to many different factions, and as negotiations begin, it is revealed that there is another colonists faction that went off to live in a communications dark zone, below the large scale equipment to terraform the planet.

Wells uses this entry in the series to demonstrate and reflect on Muderbot’s character growth. No longer a SecUnit who just wants to watch entertainment (note the ‘just’), Murderbot instead has developed a found family that is supportive of their needs and shows concern for their emotional well being. And those who have kept up with the series know Murderbot has been through a lot of trauma. Good thing ART (Asshole Research Transport AKA Perihelion) has modules for helping its crew psychologically address their experiences.

A more somber entry for the series that has Murderbot grappling with their identity, still neither human nor robot, but something in between with a growing sense of their self. I just hope the next adventure is a little longer.

System Collapse is the direct sequel to Network Effect (Book 5), therefore, it is highly recommended to review it prior to diving into this one. There is no introductory summary, and initially there are characters aplenty that would make you feel confused if you've totally forgotten the previous story.

Murderbot is having more feels, even if it doesn't like it. It continues bonding with more humans, and consuming digital media on the side to help it cope with everything going on. We still see it analyzing and overcoming the many situations it gets into (or rather dragged into by its humans), but it is struggling as it bears the weight of the recent events.

This new story has a more introspect and trauma-overcoming tone compared to Fugitive Telemetry's murder mystery and the action-focused Network Effect, but the action scenes are still there and still great.
The series has been really relatable to me so far, and this is no exception. I continuously see glimpses of my own experiences and inner monologues in Murderbot. This one went a bit deeper though. I also have a diary where I've redacted a traumatic event that I tend to not think or talk about, and I had to learn how to process it. I don't blame Murderbot for not knowing how to process things; I'm human and I don't know how to process 90% of my emotions (yeah, I just had my performance reliability drop by 4 points). This read left me feeling emotions so I'm going to the couch to process them in private.

I'm really glad to have given the whole series a read over the last couple of months 🤖💜

4.75 A delightful time as always. System Collapse picks up right where Network Effect left off, so it would be a good idea to reread.

In this one, Murderbot is in a blackout zone with only a couple of drones. It was interesting to see it working with fewer inputs and less data than normal.

Can’t wait for the next one!

Thanks to NetGalley and Tordotcom for providing me with an advanced copy to review.

System Collapse by Martha Wells is the 7th book in the Murderbot Diaries series. Murderbot, a SecUnit that hacked his own Governor module, is helping his group of humans help some colonists that have found themselves on a planet with alien contamination and another corrupt Corporation trying to convert them to indentured servants.
Murderbot (his nickname that he gave himself) is fun to watch. He has a moral code - Protect his humans - Corporations are bad - Don't get killed. Too many emotions shut him down and he likes to recharge by watching media - specifically reruns of Sanctuary Moon.
Lots of mayhem in this one - eventually. I have read the first four books in this series but not the two books previous to this one. It felt like there were parts of the story I had missed so definitely read these in order.

This series is full sci-fi, but like all good science fiction it starts with a great character - one you don't want to miss. Murderbot will make you think.

Great addition to the series.

Thank you Netgalley and TOR for the ARC copy of the next book in Martha Well's beloved Murderbot series!

I picked up this book right after finishing book five, Network Effect. With the plot fresh in my brain, I easily transitioned into System Collapse.

While this book still provides the things that keep me reading this series, Murderbot's loveable character and dry humor, I found that this addition was much too drawn out.

I found myself getting bored, skimming for pages, and easily putting down the book, even in the middle of a chapter (which is a total no-no for me!).

I think the next books in this series would benefit from being even shorter, staying within the 150-200 page range, like the first few books did. This would hopefully keep Murderbot's hilarious internal dialogue and interactions while also keeping readers engaged.

I will absolutely continue reading this series, however, because of how much I love Murderbot!

Today was an AMAZING book release day. I’m having a hard time settling on just one book.

However one I’m excited about for NEXT week is “System Collapse” by Martha Wells. This sequel does not disappoint. It picks up right where “Network Effect” left off. Murderbot and their friends are scrambling to protect the colonists from Barish-Estranza corporation while being hampered by their own operating issues.

This has all the humor and touching moments you expect from a Murderbot book. I’m excited to add this one to our library.

Thanks to @netgalley and @tordotcom for the ARC. These were my honest thoughts. #netgalley

Taking off right where Network Effect left off, Murderbot must once again save their humans, this time from the greedy Barish-Estranza corporation intent on exploiting the colonists and tricking them into indentured servitude.

Not only must Murderbot fight against the corporation and the alien-contaminated bots left on the planet, but also against its own leftover trauma. Faced with nightmares and memory gaps, Murderbot worries their lapses will harm the crew, leaving them feeling more helpless and human than ever before.

Although I was glad to be back with Murderbot and the crew, I was a little disappointed with System Collapse. It feels like it wanted to tell a novella length story in a novel-length format. It wasn't until at least halfway through the book that the plot really picked up and I was interested in what was going on.

My favorite parts, as always, were Murderbot's internal dialogue and its complex feelings towards its human crew. And their interactions with ART, of course! I just wish there had been more dialogue and conversations. We get hints that Murderbot isn't mentally well, and I wished we'd spent more time exploring that.

If you're a big Murderbot fan, I'd still suggest picking up this book. It's fun to be back with favorite characters and learn what happened after the events of the last novel. I just hope the next book has a more interesting plot and digs down into character development.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Tordotcom for the digital arc. All opinions are my own.

I’m starting to think this series is more suited to the novella form. This book is only 256 pages, but it still felt like a long slog, or at least the first half did. It just felt so same-y with a lot of the other books, with Murderbot and his humans getting into fights—varying in scale and violence—with corporates. The difference is that Murderbot seems to be suffering from PTSD, and is worried that will impair his ability to respond to danger.

This story starts up right after the end of Network Effect, and you really have to read that first—and if you have read it, you might need to refresh your memory to avoid being a bit lost about what exactly is troubling Murderbot in this book. But that’s gradually revealed, just in time for all the action in the second half of the book.

More angst and less snark than in previous Murderbot stories, which is a bit disappointing. I still love Murderbot, and there are definitely some very funny and some touching moments here, but this one is just middling satisfying.

I ❤️ MurderBot.

We pick up right where book 5 Network Effect ends (not book 7 Fugitive Telemetry) which might seem confusing but if you’re a fan of the series and have read them all, you’ll understand.

While I’m still LOVING this series, this last one isn’t a favourite. Network Effect is still top notch for me, and the first instalment All Systems Red of course.

And I highly recommend the audiobooks; somehow MurderBot’s personality just shines more:)

Instagram post link to come….

I read the entire Murderbot Series this year and loved it. A very solid series but I did not like all installments. My favourite was the last one to be released before this one, Fugitive Telemetry. I was therefore a little disapointed to find that this one does not pick up after that one but after Network Effect. Now that is on me, I need to learn to read descriptions better.
Unfortunately System Collapse turned out to be one of my least favourite Murderbot books. For my taste there were to many characters and I never managed to really get into the story, I was quite bored throughout. I found myself just skimming whole paragraphs, which is never a good sign.
I will still keep my eyes open if there ever is a next book though!

I got an ARC of this book.

This is the first Murderbot book I did not at least like. I made it about half way through and realized I didn't care at all. The normal humor and feeling weren't there. The plot was constantly show and constantly about moving things around. It didn't feel like there was any heart at all. It just did not live up to the other books at all. Instead it read just like the sci-fi that made me think I couldn't ever enjoy sci-fi.

I am so sad.

I’ve enjoyed the Murderbot series, but I did find this addition to be a bit boring. It’s surprising this was stretched out to be a short novel when it really didn’t feel like it needed to be more than a short story.

Whats not to like about Murderbot. This is a great continuation to the story featuring my two favorite characters from this series, Murderbot and ART. I appreciate how Murderbot is slowly developing more human emotions throughout the series and how they hate every single moment of it.

If you're a fan of non-human sidekicks and you want them to be the main character. This series is for you.

The next entry in the Murderbot saga picks up on the alien contaminated planet, where Murderbot and their humans are trying to convince the colonists not to sell themselves into slave labor with a corporation. There is a lot less action and plot in this installment, making for a rather disappointing read.

I didn't finish reading this book. I got through about 30%. I think I am done with the Murderbot Diaries. The last one was only okay. This one felt like more of the last one. I was having trouble following or caring what was going on. I have lots of other books I can read.

It could have been improved by having some kind of summary of what has happened in the series before this book. I am sure the book is good. I am just not looking for more of the exact same thing.