3.5 stars rounded up

I'm always happy to be back with Murderbot! I didn't realize though that this continued on from Network Effect and I might have done better following what was going on right away if I had re-read that one. Not one of my favorites of the series, but still fun and interesting. They're on a planet trying to get colonists to advocate for themselves and discover that an unreported colony also exists. Meanwhile, something strange is going on with Murderbot internally and they are dealing with that, while interacting with ART and other loved characters. If you like the series, this is definitely worth reading. I received a copy of this book for review from the publisher, all opinions are my own.

Another phenomenal entry in the Murderbot Diaries series. System Collapse picks up where Network Effect left off (the order of the series is a bit odd due to the placement of the Fugitive Telemetry novella, which is out of chronological sequence with the rest). and begins to tie up some of the loose ends of the previous novel. Like the earlier entries, this one has a lot to say about mental health, relationships, and what it means to be a person with free will while also taking you on a breathless, futuristic space adventure. Murderbot is, perhaps, my favorite character I've ever encountered in SFF and I hope these books continue forever.

System Collapse picks up almost immediately from the end of Network Effect which did initially throw me. I went back, reread Network Effect, gave myself like a month (I can't binge read) and then devoured System Collapse in two sittings. Murderbot is at their best (or their worst, depending on who you ask) in this new installment that might just be my favorite yet

System Collapse the next highly anticipated Murderbot novella series delivers yet again. Being back in this world of corporations, of robots, and gun fights is a thrill. I loved being immersed in this action packed detailed world. It's these installments which advance how Muderbot realizes themselves especially with this recent problem. It operates on this larger plot level with Murderbot's problems, while also navigating the individual story.

System Collapse was another fun foray into the world and mind of Murderbot. This is such a comforting series. Even when everyone is in peril you feel secure knowing that Murderbot will be there to save the day with both sass and warmth. What would the humans do without MB!? Also, I always love it when the character of ART is included in the story. I gave this one 3.5 stars but rounded up to 4 for NetGalley.

I receive an advanced e-copy from the publisher via Netgalley though all thoughts are my own.

This was one of my most anticipated books of the year and it was well worth the wait. I enjoyed getting back into Murderbot's point of view which is equal parts snarky, hilarious and relatable particularly with some of the events that happen.

While there wasn't a lot of action that happened, there was a lot of banter between Murderbot and ART which is what I am very much here for and can't get enough.

I highly recommend reading this particularly if you have gotten this far in the series and enjoy reading more about character than adventure though there is some.

I will happily read any book involving Murderbot and that added bonus of ART making appearances.

Trigger warnings: violence, death, contract labor

System Collapse by Martha Wells is the new Murderbot book. I won’t spoil anything here! I definitely recommend reviewing the previous volume (Network Effect) if you don’t remember details, as this book follows on directly with very little time interval; I feel the action is subordinate to Murderbot dealing with the personal fallout of those events. It was gripping! Also, Tarik rocks.

Martha Wells’s Murderbot series has won both the Hugo and Nebula awards. The latest sends the independent secunit as part of a university to help a colony in System Collapse (hard from Tordotcom). The colonists had been fighting one another, one group had gone into hiding near the Terraforming device at one of the poles. Everything would have been fine except the Barish-Estranza corporation has sent ships hoping to grab what was left of the colony and indenture the surviving solonists. Murderbot eventually has to face several ecunits still under control, and help his humans and the colonists survive. Probably this will also be on the Hugo and Nebula lists.

Martha Wells has captured so many of us with the Murderbot series. While I am most eager for another full length novel, I will never turn down another novella. Once more Murderbot is trying to save settlers and their own team. Our hero is dealing with a lot, keeping their humans safe, dealing with PTSD, trying to ignore their PTSD, working with ART who's snark is always on point, and still grappling with the past, plus the newest fear of an alien virus. I enjoy the duality of snark and humor intermixed with conversations about dealing with trauma. The series has always been about what really makes us or doesn't make us human and Martha continues to really make her readers think about it while having us follow a character we can all root for.

Included as a top pick in weekly November New Releases post, which highlights and promotes upcoming releases of the month (link attached)

In SYSTEM COLLAPSE, everyone's favorite cranky SecUnit is stuck on a planet again, working with ART's crew to protect some colonists from the evil corporate overlords, Barish-Estranza.

Honestly, despite being one of my most anticipated reads for the year, this was not my favorite -- it felt low on the snark factor, and I think I need to re-read all of the prior books because I was having a hard time keeping everyone straight. That said, it was still super enjoyable and a must-read for existing fans. I will happily read any and all future Murderbot books because Murderbot is the best.

I absolutely enjoy reading these stories. I like that we get a full length novel.from time to time because the novellas tend to be to short and there.is such a long time between them that it makes it hard to remember all the details for the next book.

Officially known as a Security Unit, or SecUnit for short, it refers to itself as Murderbot. And it's just about the most identifiable Murderbot you're ever going to meet! System Collapse picks up after the events of Network Effect. The Barish-Estranza Corporation has sent rescue ships to a lost colony planet in trouble due to alien contamination.
Anyone who knows Barish-Estranza, or most corporations, knows that they are up to no good. They've also brought along a contingent of SecUnits of their own. Normally this wouldn't be much of a problem for Murderbot, especially with ART on its side. But something's wrong with Murderbot and if it doesn't figure out what that is quickly, things could go sideways in a hurry.

The stranded colonists are so long removed from the wider universe, that they are unaware of the corporations' reputation, and have no reason to trust one set of humans over the other. Murderbot and ART must work with their human crews to come up with a compelling way to convince the colonists or risk seeing them hauled away as slave labor.

Martha Wells has created a fascinating universe with corporation-heavy governance, built on top of a little-understood pre-corporation settlement system, with a sprinkle of very poorly understood alien influence. This creates fertile ground for interesting politics and exploration. Add a sarcastic killer robot who just wants time to watch soap operas and you have an unbeatable combination.

Murderbot is the driving force and for all its sarcasm, the humanity it is coming to find within itself gives tremendous heart to this story. Murderbot knows it is not operating correctly, and furthermore realizes that the lives of the colonists and the humans that it has come to care about are in danger unless it figures out how to repair itself. Fortunately, ART is there to offer assistance and understanding that maybe nothing and no one else is equipped for. Murderbot and ART is one of my favorite buddy pairings. (A Murderbot/ART buddy cop movie is something I'd pay to see). Hopefully, it's enough to let them figure a way out of this mess.

Martha Wells delivers again with another outstanding story with my favorite character.

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher.

Murderbot is not itself and its people are concerned, which...yuck. Dealing with trauma, alien contamination, colonists and corporate baddies makes watching entertainment media even more enticing, but...
The start of this one was slow for me, because I didn't remember what had happened previously. It took me a while to realize that I was reading how Murderbot was processing, or not, its trauma and the insecurities it was dealing with in respect to keeping its people alive and how things were changing for it. Happily, by the end Murderbot is finding its feet again, kicking butt, solving problems and dealing out snark. I loved it, and of course am already looking forward to the next installment.

3.5 stars rounded down for the middiest of mid reads I can remember. I became a somewhat enthusiastic fan of Murderbot after binging the first 4 novellas, but the series kinda lost its luster and momentum with me with the full-sized novel in Network Effect. Then we went back in time strangely with the next novella that has left very little trace in my memory before returning to the present time directly after Network Effect with this one.

And what an awkward transition it was into the new story -- the beginning of System Collapse is one of the clunkiest starts to a sequel I've ever experienced with just way too many human names bandied about for characters that are basically indistinguishable. But thankfully it didn't take overly long before we set off on a new mission that got me settled in more comfortably and feeling like I was reading something closer to a Murderbot plot from the earlier books. I still enjoy the way Wells writes Murderbot's POV, with lots of sardonic inner monologue and copious use of parentheticals, which is a fantastic touch that so few writers do.

We also got plenty of Murderbot interacting with other non-human intelligences, and that also continues to be engaging for me. However, I just wasn't really engaged by this particular plot, and I found everything pretty hard to visualize. The humans continue to feel un-compelling, and so I don't really care if Murderbot can keep them alive, and I can't muster emotion to care about Murderbot's own emotional investment in keeping them alive. For such a short book it took me 5 days to get through it since I rarely found myself eager to pick it up.

I do think this short-novel length of 240 (slim) pages seems like possibly an ideal size for a full Murderbot adventure to play out without overstaying its welcome. It was ok and besides the beginning I generally enjoyed my time with it, but I fear it will be yet another book from the series that leaves barely any kind of mark in my memory. I guess Murderbot is just kind of drifting away from being something that holds my interest.

I am a huge Murderbot fan, but with this installment I am starting to feel like the character's story has run its course. I didn't love this as much as previous outings, and part of that was that our construct hero's constant discomfort at every single situation they are in has become a bit grating.

At 250-ish pages, I also think this book suffered from in-between syndrome - not long enough for a fully sketched out narrative with the usual novel beats, not short enough to squeeze a fun, thrilling, roller-coaster plot into the fast-paced novella format. That said, the story is still pretty fun and thrilling with plenty of action to satisfy and a new setting - underground caves at the pole of the planet Murderbot helped liberate from a terrible hybrid virus in the last book.

The introduction of a new and unfamiliar (and decidedly human) experience to Murderbot's growing list of personal problems as an independent entity was interesting. Without spoiling, I will say that I liked that it was explored both internally in their usual wry inner monologue and externally via relationships with AI ship ART and their "humans".

I'll keep reading these as long as Wells continues to write them, but I do have to wonder where Murderbot will go from here and what their ultimate fate will be.

Another gripping episode from Murderbot, this one more so as the MC Bot is struggling with it's own internal troubles in addition to the volatile atmosphere the entire cast find themselves in.

The relationship between Murderbot & ART is sublime and one of the best arc's, I've read in sci-fi.

The pacing is spot on and the book balances delicately between the emotive content and the action sequences.

Another feather in Martha's and Murderbot's metaphorical cap!

This slid right into one of my top favorite spots for this series. I could tell from the second I started it, I was going to love it. Murderbot is such an endearing character, incredibly relatable, and has the perfect dry sense of humor. Experiencing the story through a robot's eyes (with sarcastic asides to the reader) is so unique. The world building is perfectly done, no info dumps, just immersion. I love figuring it out as I go! This book we see Murderbot grappling with its own growth and change and as it embraces more human like characteristics and emotions, I started to wonder, is it less effective? The character growth and various arcs for Murderbot and ART are so compelling, I couldn't put this down and binged it in a day.

I really enjoy this series and how intelligent it makes me feel without it being super long. This installment actually had a lot that relates to modern day as well, such as using social media to get the word out about something that’s going on.

This was a great edition to the series!! I love Murderbot and I just want this series to go on forever. So glad I could read the eARC.