First trailer for MURDERBOT adaptation released

Apple TV+ has released the first trailer for Murderbot, their adaptation of Martha Wells' Murderbot Diaries novel/novella series. The show will launch on 16 May 2025 and will consist of ten episodes.

The TV show follows the story of the books, with an android SecUnit breaking its programming to "go rogue," though in this case that means doing jobs for hapless groups of humans between bingeing TV shows.

The show stars Alexander Skarsgard as the titular Murderbot, with David Dastmalchian, Norma Dumezweni, Sabrina Wu, Tattiawna Jones, Akshay Khanna and Tamara Podemski as the humans it has to constantly bail out of trouble. In an amusing device, the series will also feature show-within-a-show The Rise and Fall of Sanctuary Moon, with its own cast including Clarg Gregg, John Cho, DeWanda Wise, Jack McBrayer and Anna Konkle (interesting to see how big a thing this is, given that cast can't be cheap).

Murderbot confirms Apple TV's impressive commitment to the science fiction genre. The streamer is also hosting For All Mankind, Silo, Foundation, the genre-adjacent Mythic Quest and current hit-of-the-moment Severance.

The Murderbot Diaries consists so far of seven books: All Systems Red, Artificial Condition, Rogue Protocol, Exit Strategy, Network Effect, Fugitive Telemetry and System Collapse. These were recently reissued in omnibus editions.

New MURDERBOT editions criticised for poor quality

As I noticed previously, readers have been calling for omnibus editions of the critically-acclaimed Murderbot Diaries science fiction series for some years. The series, by Martha Wells, consists of five novellas and two short novels which has been positively festooned with awards, praise and strong sales, but their high prices for a short page count have put them out of the reach of more frugal SFF fans.

The books have been reissued in the last few weeks in new omnibus editions to hopefully address the issue. Whilst the format is still not generous - with only two books per edition rather than a more appropriate three (the first three novellas combined only come to 450 pages) - it was still a marked improvement over prior editions in terms of value for money. Unfortunately, the new editions have been called out for terrible proofing and formatting.

The problem appears to be that the books have been released in a print-on-demand format, with all the hallmarks of shoddy formatting and/or corrupted files being used. Given the publisher is Tor Books, the largest and most popular SFF publisher in the United States, and its UK off-shoot, the poor quality of the books is most surprising, especially given they are charging the price of a full, properly-formatted and edited paperback edition.

Images from Amazon

The three omnibus volumes are each a different height and size to the others, with the cover images not aligned correctly, and in the interior there is an inefficient use of space.

Multiple reviewers have pointed out the problem on the Amazon review pages, and via BlueSky, noting they have returned the books for a full refund.

Hopefully this problem can be fixed quickly; as one of the highest-profile science fiction book series of recent years, and with an imminent TV adaptation on Apple TV+, it would be a shame for new readers to be put off by poor quality books. The series, and readers, deserve better.

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+.

System Collapse by Martha Wells

Murderbot is back, navigating a tricky situation on a frontier planet where the interests of its employers are tested against those of the Barish-Estranza megacorp. Murderbot's team are working with the colonists to secure their own self-governance, whilst Barish-Estranza is trying to get them classified as indentured servants of the corporate interests and get them shipped offworld as effective slave labour. The situation is complicated when a hitherto unknown group of colonists is discovered underground in the polar region, with both factions rushing to contact them before the other.

System Collapse is the seventh book in Martha Wells' Murderbot Diaries series. It follows the misadventures of "Murderbot," a former security robot or SecUnit which has achieved sentience and aligned with a group of humans seeking equal rights for sentient machines, a position the megacorp-dominated far future is distinctly opposed to. Murderbot is once again operating undercover along with its powerful AI ally, ART, and a group of humans on a frontier colony being divided by legalese and moral controversies.

This is a novel rather than a novella, but still a short one at only 250 pages. The book is also slightly out of pace chronologically, taking place soon after the events of the fifth volume, Network Effect, whilst the sixth volume, Fugitive Telemetry, took place earlier in the series. Not a major issue but a quick refresh of Network Effect might be in order before tackling this book.

As usual, Wells delivers an effective mixture of action, existential musings, and light comedy. Murderbot's ongoing development towards being a fully-realised sapient being is here interrupted by an involuntary shutdown, leading to a crisis of confidence as it fears what would happen if the problem recurred during a dangerous situation, resulting in its own destruction or that of allied humans. Murderbot's attempts to fix the problem are complicated by its discomfort with the well-meaning but overwhelming attempts by ART and its human allies to help. This introspection could become a bit too much, but the limited page space means the story has to proceed at a clip, and it ends up being an effective personal crisis for Murderbot to navigate whilst it deals with more traditional action-adventure and mystery plots.

There is also a nice subplot as Murderbot has to create its own media to convince a bunch of colonists about corporate corruption and indentured service, which is an interesting twist given Murderbot's own addiction to TV shows. This is a nice idea but it's given relatively short shrift, when it feels like it could have been expanded into a much larger episode. Interesting to see if the author revisits the concept later on.

The book also has an interesting line where an antagonist is turned into an ally, and seeing how Murderbot deals with this trope it's familiar with from its media exposure should be more interesting and fun then it ends up being.

Still, System Collapse (****) does what the series does best: a short, punchy story with enough time for thoughtful musings on the nature of sentience and self-volition, whilst fitting in some very nice action setpieces, worldbuilding and characterisation. The book is available now. New omnibus editions of the previous books should also be launching around this time, and the Apple TV+ adaptation of the books looks like it will launch later this year.

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MURDERBOT DIARIES TV series greenlit at Apple+

Apple+ have greenlit a television adaptation of Martha Wells' science fiction book series, The Murderbot Diaries.

The series comprises seven works published to date: All Systems Red, Artificial Condition, Rogue Protocol, Exit Strategy, Network Effect, Fugitive Telemetry and System Collapse. Network Effect and System Collapse are (short) novels, the other works are novellas.

The series depicts the adventures and misadventures of "Murderbot," a former assassin droid which has broken free of its programming and achieved sentience and volition. The droid now wants to do nothing more than be left alone to enjoy binge-watching TV shows, but it constantly finds itself drawn into human misadventures, eventually building up a number of recurring allies and enemies.

Apple+ have taken the step of ordering the TV version to series immediately (apparently the groundwork was laid a year ago but delayed by the writers' and actors' strikes). Producers Chris and Paul Weitz are also serving as showrunners, writers and directors for the series, with David S. Goyer serving as producer. Goyer's involvement may have helped the project land at Apple, as he is the current showrunner and executive producer on Foundation for the same streamer.

Chris Weitz has previous genre adaptation form, having directed the film version of Phillip Pullman's The Golden Compass and was previously involved in an attempt to bring Scott Bakker's challenging Prince of Nothing trilogy to television. With his brother Paul, they worked on the American Pie movie series. Chris also co-wrote the Star Wars movie Rogue One.

Actor Alexander Skarsgard (True Blood, Succession) has already been cast in the lead role of Murderbot and production of the 10-episode first season is expected to begin in the next few months for a 2025 debut. It is unclear how many of the books will be adapted in the first season.

Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells

Murderbot is settling into their role providing security for their client Dr. Mensah on Preservation Station when they are asked to do something they've never done before: investigate a murder. Murderbot is more at home providing security in high-risk combat situations, rather than the finesse and subtlety that a homicide investigation requires. Still, with a potential killer or killers loose on the station and the inexperienced station security slow to find them, Murderbot takes up the case.

The sixth and (at this time of writing) most recent entry in The Murderbot Diaries returns to the novella format of the first four books, after the novel-length experiment of Network Effect. Fugitive Telemetry is set before Network Effect and sees a shift in format, with Murderbot going from security consultant to murder investigator, a task they initially seem ill-suited for but soon get to grips with. It's not a complete left-field transformation for the series - Murderbot has had to piece together mysteries and incomplete pictures before - but it's enough to freshen up the series when familiarity might be setting in.

As with the earlier books, the novella format means a tight, focused structure and an excellent pace (like the earlier books, you can easily finish this off in a single sitting). Wells writes the mystery with panache, providing enough misdirection to make it intriguing. However, she does not provide enough information for the reader to solve the mystery themselves until quite late in the day, which is a shame.

The twists and turns, brief action bursts and nice pacing make this as fiendishly readable as earlier books in the series, but arguably it's lighter on character than prior books in the series. Murderbot continues their development nicely, but there's a lack of a great foil for Murderbot like ART in prior books. Security Chief Indah has some promise, but they don't really get enough time in the sun to really fulfil the same kind of role. There's also some repetition in Murderbot, once again, having to prove its capability and volition to people keen to dismiss it as just another robot.

Fugitive Telemetry (****) is Martha Wells doing what she does best, delivering a witty, well-written slice of SF, this time more of a thriller than an action novel. The book is available now in the US and on import in most other territories. Three more Murderbot Diaries books are under contract, with the first anticipated for 2023 or 2024.

Network Effect by Martha Wells

Murderbot is adjusting to the unusual circumstances of being free and accepted among people who know exactly who and what they are. A simple escort operation turns bad when the crew are kidnapped, Murderbot along with them. Murderbot now has to find out who the kidnappers are, what they want and how to resolve the situation without getting their new human friends killed.

Network Effect is the fifth instalment in the Murderbot Diaries and is the first full-length novel in the series, clocking in at more than twice the length of any of the previous novellas. We start in media res with Murderbot already in a tricky situation, which it extricates itself from James Bond-style, before we get into the main story.

Martha Wells handles the transition of the series from the shorter form to a longer one quite well. Many of the previous novellas have felt like they ended just as they were getting going, or a little on the rushed size to fit in so many big ideas into so few pages, so Wells takes advantage of the longer length here to focus on more characterisation, more worldbuilding and more of a balance between action and Murderbot planning their next move. The story breathes more and benefits for it.

There's also some nice subplots as Murderbot befriends the daughter of her main client and helps her adjust to being in a dangerous situation, as well as Murderbot being put in the position of having to help other AIs become as independent as it has, and working out if that is a good idea or not.

That said, the ending feels a bit under-developed. Potentially big ideas (like alien technology interfacing with humans) that just kind of peter out without much closure (in this book, anyway). This is a shame as Wells sets up the mystery of what's going on superbly, so the resolution being lacking is a disappointment.

Still, those who've enjoyed Murderbot so far should still enjoy this one. The writing is fun, the characterisation sharp, there's a welcome return for one fan-favourite older character and Wells also delivers some great action sequences. Network Effect (****) handles the transition to the novel format well, despite the abruptness of the conclusion. The novel is available now in the US and on import in other territories.

Thank you for reading The Wertzone. To help me provide better content, please consider contributing to my Patreon page and other funding methods.

Exit Strategy by Martha Wells

Murderbot has acquired data vital to the legal case between the Preservation Alliance and the GrayCris corporation, but quickly discovers that their old friends in the Alliance are in hot water. Diverting to a GrayCris stronghold, Murderbot discovers they need to rescue their comrades and defeat the security forces of one of the most powerful corporations in known space, whilst preserving their evidence.

Exit Strategy is the fourth novella in The Murderbot Diaries series and brings the events of the first four books to a head. Our titular hero starts off already on a mission, bringing the evidence it acquired during the events of Rogue Protocol to its allies, only to find that they already being held over a barrel by GrayCris's legal and security teams. This prompts Murderbot to intervene and face seemingly insurmountable odds.

Martha Wells changes up a few things in the series in this book, which is good as some predictability was threatening to set in. Murderbot is rescuing people who know they are a rogue AI and going up against enemies who know they are a rogue AI, so their normal paranoia about protecting their true identity is less of an issue this time around (at least after they go public, they need to stay stealthy until then). This time Murderbot is also going into a situation knowing who the enemy is and what they are prepared to do to achieve their ends, rather than going in blind to a hazardous situation. This gives Murderbot some preparation time and it's fun seeing how they stake out the situation, establish fallback plans and gather resources for the operation.

There's also a nice deepening of Murderbot's characterisation. They are reuniting with the first humans who learned their true nature and accepted it, something that they still feel a bit uneasy about because it means having to learn to trust humans, who aren't the most trustworthy of people. How Murderbot squares their desire for some kind of community with their paranoia and (mostly justified) fear of being dissected has been an underlying theme since the first book, but becomes more dominant here.

The result is a satisfying story, being sharply-written, well-characterised and to the point, with little flab. It's still a short book, but Wells packs in a lot of meat here, with corporate espionage, comedic exchanges and satisfying combat all wrapped into a compact package.

Exit Strategy (****) changes up the Murderbot formula as it threatened to become predictable, and the result is another focused, fun slice of SF. It is available now in the US and on import in most other territories.

Thank you for reading The Wertzone. To help me provide better content, please consider contributing to my Patreon page and other funding methods.

Rogue Protocol by Martha Wells

"Murderbot" is once again in hiding after its last escapade, but lingering guilt over how it resolved an earlier adventure leads it to investigate, taking it to a remote, secretive station and an abandoned terraforming project. Murderbot allies with a local droid to protect a bunch of humans who are, once again, in over their heads.

Rogue Protocol is the third volume in Martha Wells's Murderbot Diaries, the multi-Nebula and Hugo Award-winning series about a former security android which has broken free of its programming and become an independent entity, passing for human and addicted to TV shows between security jobs.

Once again, Murderbot is on a mission it didn't really want to do, aided by an allied artificial intelligence, this time a non-combat droid called Miki. The story here ties in with the first novella, All Systems Red, and Murderbot's decision to escape from the well-meaning humans who discovered its status. However, watching the fallout from that story on the news, it becomes clear that this may have been a mistake and it now decides to help out by tracking one line of evidence to a new location, with mayhem resulting.

Rogue Protocol is great because it exemplifies the best qualities of the first two novellas: a knowing sense of humour, some great characterisation and a gift for both knotty plotting and chunky action. If it has a problem, it's that in terms of structure we are getting the same thing we've seen before. Mystery, explosions and a semi-resolution which leads into the next novella in the series, Exit Strategy. It's hard to complain because Martha Wells does this stuff so well, but it's also hard to be too surprised or blown away because this is very much More of the Same (including the full novel cover price for a story that's just 150 pages long), with a few twists. For example, the relationship between Murderbot and another AI was exemplified by the starship AI called ART in the previous story, with Murderbot as the junior partner, but here Murderbot allies with Miki, a servitor droid treated like a pet by its owners, with Murderbot as the senior partner. This leads to some interesting characterisation and ideas, but it does feel like we've been here before.

The finale of the novella is a very effective, extended action sequence as Murderbot takes on a hugely superior force and has to pull out every trick in the book to survive (hopefully that's not a spoiler for Book 3 of a six-book series so far, with more planned), which is great fun.

Rogue Protocol (****) is short, fun, pacy, witty and engaging, overcoming some repetition of structure with sheer readability and a nice line in crunchy SF action. It is available now in the US and on import in most other territories.

Thank you for reading The Wertzone. To help me provide better content, please consider contributing to my Patreon page and other funding methods.

Artificial Condition by Martha Wells

"Murderbot" has managed to escape from its last precarious situation and once again finds itself on its own, happy to amuse itself with TV shows whilst shuttling around the galaxy. A determination to find the reason for its original malfunction leads to a reluctant alliance with a powerful ship's AI and a bunch of youngsters who've gotten in over their heads.

Martha Wells' Murderbot Diaries has become one of the most acclaimed SF novella series of recent years, telling the story of a combat "SecUnit" that becomes self-motivating and decides to leave behind its life of murder for one of comfort. However, it can't shake either a nagging sense of guilt and curiosity about its beginnings and it also can't quite stop itself from helping out humans from getting themselves into quite ridiculously dangerous situations.

Artificial Condition is less of a follow-up to the first novella, All Systems Red, and more of a direct continuation, following Murderbot as it tries to work out how it became self-aware in the first place and if its unusual situation poses a danger to humans. This takes Murderbot back to the station where its first breaking away from its programming took place.

This is all fun stuff, enlivened by Murderbot's sparky relationship with a starship AI called ART, which is so bored by repetitive flights that it decides to help out Murderbot by becoming its "man in the van." This relationship is the core of the novella and is fun, if a little repetitive. Once Murderbot reaches its destination it turns into more of a standard SF action thriller, as it helps out a bunch of kids who've managed to annoy precisely the wrong people. There's some focused action, some brief musings on "found family" (a theme of the first novella) and then off to the next story with barely a pause for breath.

As with All Systems Read, this is a fast, breezy ride delivered through some fun writing, some economical but effective characterisation and some nice action beats. It's also a bit over-reliant on knowledge of the first novella. This feels more like the second half of a (still very short) novel rather than a stand-alone novella in its own right, and it's also doing setup work for the next adventure (Rogue Protocol). That's all fine as long as you know what you're getting into, a series of serialised short novellas (each costing the same as a full-price novel) where the story continues from one installment to the next.

Artificial Condition (***½) is a short, fun, focused read and a solid new adventure for Murderbot. Readers on a budget may want to wait until an omnibus edition is available in their territory, however. It is available now in the US and on import in most other territories.

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

An unstoppable killing android has decided it doesn't really want to do all that murdering any more and has decided to strike out on its own, with a mission to stay low and watch as much TV as possible. But the self-styled "Murderbot" is drawn into a survey mission on a planet that goes wrong, and discovers that keeping its identity a secret is going to be very difficult.

Martha Wells's Murderbot Diaries has become one of the most-praised science fiction series of the last few years, winning multiple Nebula and Hugo Awards between the five novellas and single novel that make up the series so far (three more books are projected). Its central protagonist is an AI that has broken free of the restraints on its programming and become fully sentient, but rather than do anything philosophical with this freedom has become an addict of TV shows, whilst doing security missions it finds deeply tedious.

Murderbot is sarcastic but socially awkward, intelligent but not always understanding of human motivations or emotions, which makes for a lot of good moments of mixed messaging and musings on humanity. Nothing new in science fiction, but here done with a wryness that is rare and a lightness of touch that is enviable. All Systems Red takes advantage of its novella status to keep up a brisk, relentless pace whilst also layering in some nice character work, both of Murderbot and the humans it ends up awkwardly allying with, and the story is intriguing enough in its twists to remain interesting throughout.

There are also some very nice thematic parallels here - Murderbot trying to cover up its true identity and awkwardly being "outed" against its will and dealing with people's varying reactions works as a metaphor for lots of ideas - which make the story more interesting and deeper than its brevity would imply.

There aren't many negatives: the brevity of the story will be frustrating for some, and it feels like it ends just as it gets going, but then it is a novella, that comes with the territory. Harder-up readers may also feel disappointed that there still isn't an omnibus or collection making the stories available in a more economic format: paying full novel prices for 150 pages, no matter how solid, is a big ask in challenging times. Hopefully that changes in the future.

Otherwise, All Systems Red (****) is a fine, focused story featuring sharp characterisation, enjoyable action and some genuine laughs. It is available now in the US, and on import in most other territories.

The original 2017 novella is followed by Artifical Condition (2018), Rogue Protocol (2018), Exit Strategy  (2018), Network Effect (2020) and Fugitive Telemetry (2021).