Martha Wells's MURDERBOT DIARIES series gets omnibus editions

Martha Wells' The Murderbot Diaries has been one of the most critically-acclaimed science fiction series of the past eight years, winning two Nebula Awards, four Hugo Awards and a Locus Award. The story of a former combat SecUnit which gains sentience and tries to find its way in a corporate-dominated future is compelling and very moreish. It's also been famously expensive, with each short novella being sold as a full-priced novel, making getting a full collection a questionably pricy endeavour.

Fortunately Tor Books has heard the complaint and the series is now being reissued in omnibus format, with two novellas to each omnibus. These will also act as a tie-in with the upcoming TV show based on the books, starring Alexander Skarsgård.

There is some minor confusion because of the seven books in the series so far, five are novellas, one (Network Effect) is a 350-page average-sized novel and one (System Collapse) is a 250-page short novel. The books are also not published in chronological order.

Publication order is as follows:

1. All Systems Red (2017)
2. Artificial Condition (2018)
3. Rogue Protocol (2018)
4. Exit Strategy (2018)
5. Network Effect (2020)
6. Fugitive Telemetry (2021)
7. System Collapse (2023)

Chronological order is as follows:

1. All Systems Red (2017)
2. Artificial Condition (2018)
3. Rogue Protocol (2018)
4. Exit Strategy (2018)
5. Fugitive Telemetry (2021)
6. Network Effect (2020)
7. System Collapse (2023)
   

The omnibus editions collect the books as follows: 

1. All Systems Red & Artificial Condition
2. Rogue Protocol & Exit Strategy
3. Fugitive Telemetry & System Collapse

Presumably Network Effect, the full-length novel, will be reissued on its own to match these new editions.

The Murderbot Diaries omnibus editions are hitting stores and digital platforms in the United States about now, and will arrive (for the first time for the series) in the UK on 17 February. Some foreign language editions have had omnibus versions for some time, and those that haven't will hopefully now get in on the act.

The Murderbot Diaries TV series is expected to launch this year on Apple TV+.