The New York Times bestselling security droid with a heart (though it wouldn’t admit it!) is back in Fugitive Telemetry!Having captured the hearts of readers across the globe (Annalee Newitz says it’s “one of the most humane portraits of a nonhuman I’ve ever read”) Murderbot has also established Martha Wells as one of the great SF writers of today.No, I didn’t kill the dead human. If I had, I … didn’t kill the dead human. If I had, I wouldn’t dump the body in the station mall.
When Murderbot discovers a dead body on Preservation Station, it knows it is going to have to assist station security to determine who the body is (was), how they were killed (that should be relatively straightforward, at least), and why (because apparently that matters to a lot of people—who knew?)
Yes, the unthinkable is about to happen: Murderbot must voluntarily speak to humans!
Again!
A new standalone adventure in the New York Times-bestselling, Hugo and Nebula Award winning series!
At the Publisher’s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
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Murderbot is back in Fugitive Telemetry, the sixth book in The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells. After the previous book, I assumed the life of the rogue SecUnit would take a new turn, but instead the latest book steps back in time and takes place between Exit Strategy and Network Effect.
Murderbot has settled—sort of—on Preservation space station, a safe haven for all refuges from the Corporate Rim, even for security constructs (part organic, part cyborg) and bots. It fills its days trying to prevent its favourite human, Dr Mensah, the leader of Preservation from being killed by GrayCris Corporation, watching its shows, and getting annoyed by humans who fear it for being a SecUnit. When a murdered body is found, Murderbot is convinced GrayCris is responsible and gets involved in the investigation.
Fugitive Telemetry is a surprisingly traditional whodunit. Murderbot follows the clues, in its own way, which leads it to a different mystery entirely than it had assumed. But since it’s taken to solve the mystery, it’ll see it through, even though it doesn’t have anything to do with Dr Mensah. There aren’t nearly as much explosions, hacking on-the-fly, and fight scenes than in these books usually, but the mystery is interesting and the identity of the culprit surprising. And Murderbot manages to make new friendlies (not friends—never friends) in the process too.
If you haven’t read Network Effect yet, it’s perfectly possible to read this one first. It’s maybe even better if you do. It’s a good book, but I do hope the next one will pick up where Network Effect left Murderbot. Maybe in another full-length book even.
I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Fugitive Telemetry was a fun, brisk read and an excellent addition to the Murderbot series
A new entry in the Murderbot Diaries is always something to cheer about! Murderbot is snarky, sarcastic, and socially awkward and when it comes right down to it, what more could you want in your SecUnit?
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!
Murderbot + a murder mystery = A lot of fun!
I had a good time with this sixth installment in the Murderbot series.
In a nutshell, Murderbot discovers a dead body on Preservation Station and gets a sleuthin! Chaos ensues.
Overall, I felt that this book differed a lot from the other ones to date, in some ways good, some ways not so great.
Murderbot, as always, is extremely colorful in its words and thoughts, and I loved that. It doesn’t care what others think of it, and I found it really inspirational given the past year everyone has had in the real world. Murderbot really does care about its humans in a very reluctant way, and that was really entertaining.
That being said, I felt that in previous installments we’ve had some really great character progression. In this one, I didn’t quite feel that. This felt something more of an interlude progressionwise for our beloved protagonist.
The plot was fun and different. This book had a central murder mystery theme to it, and I thought it was refreshing given the crazy roller coaster rides we usually go on with Murderbot. At the same time, I felt that there was something missing from the equation this time around. The books typically have this epic feel that just wasn’t there for me this time. I also thought the who dun it reveal at the end was a bit underwhelming, but that’s just my opinion.
Overall, I don’t think this was the best Murderbot book to date, but it still had plenty of great action, mystery, and an abundance of reluctance and sarcasm from Murderbot to keep me entertained. Worth a read!
Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells is the latest installment in her Murderbot series. I am a fan of the series. One of the biggest strengths of the series is the prickly, anxious (paranoid?) personality of the main character. In this story, the SecUnit/Murderbot shows some small signs of mellowing. Very small signs. But I took them as a welcome indication of change and growth. These stories are told from the point of view of the Murderbot and we usually do not get much insight into the supporting cast. This is also true for Fugitive Telemetry but the story rushes by at such a fast clip that I hardly noticed. This is more of a whodunit than previous stories in the series. The big reveal surprised me, but to be honest, I almost never think about the mysteries in SF mysteries. Its too easy for authors to cheat. Though, to be fair, Ms Wells did NOT cheat. The point I am trying to make is that I enjoyed reading the story. As usual the story telling was brisk and fun. The mystery was a nice change of pace from prior stories that were more action/adventure/thrillers but I did not engage with the mystery the way I do with Agatha Christie or Arthur Conan Doyle. If I could, I would give it 4.5 stars. Definitely recommended.
Love me some Murderbot!
I am always extra excited when a new Murderbot hits the shelves and my hype for Fugitive Telemetry had zero chill.
Unfortunately, I didn’t enjoy this one quite as much as it’s predecessors. Truly, it probably should have been labelled as #4.5 rather than #6 because it takes place before Network Effect. Here, readers are greeted with an interesting mix between Murder on the Preservation Station and what we have come to expect from Murderbot over the series (snarky comments, saving too stupid to live humans, plenty of action). It took me about 40% to settle in to the story which is an awfully long time considering the book is only 172 pages. At that point, the story rhythm felt more familiar and I was able to enjoy the rest of the ride, as short as it was. Past that point I refused to remove my eyeballs from my kindle. The mix between who-dun-it and trademark Murderbot quips and action was exactly what I had hoped for.
I still thoroughly enjoyed it, I do adore Murderbot, and will happily toss my money at Wells for another. I think I was spoiled by the amazing balance we had Network Effect. Basically, go in knowing its truly #4.5 and that it is a slow starter and then reread another Murderbot after finishing this one. I went with #2.
I love the Murderbot books. This one was no exception.
If you’re not reading The Murderbot Diaries, you’re not reading the best new SF available, and now we get murder mysteries too! Our protagonist, SecUnit, steps in to help solve a case of a murdered human (No, it didn’t kill the human. It would have disposed of the body much more efficiently), all the time gifting us with its own brand of sarcastic wisdom based on its superiority over those meatbags. I’m very excited to hear there are more Murderbot stories in the works!
(This story takes place before Network Effect and gives us some background on how Murderbot developed relationships with more humans on Preservation Station.)
Loved this book will get the rest of the series.
https://mistyaquavenatus.com/2021/06/12/why-you-need-to-read-fugitive-telemetry
I don’t know how to adequately express my love for this whole series.
In this 6th book in the Murderbot Diaries, Murderbot is confronted with a mysterious death. Convinced that it has something to do with GrayCris, Murderbot has to convince station security that it needs to help solve the murder.
I’ve said it before, and I will say it again, Murderbot is my favorite character ever. It’s such an amazing character and I’ve loved seeing its growth throughout the whole series. This book in the series was interesting. I found it fun that Murderbot was helping solve a murder. It was fun to see some of the original characters again along with meeting new ones. I had so much fun reading this one, and I do hope that there will be more to come!
Murderbot, the main character in this book, is acting in the capacity of security detail for Mensah, a human who saved his life after he saved hers and who is on Preservation Station on business. Murderbot, who has spent most of his life protecting humans from their own stupidity and has been enhanced to present to security forces as an enhanced human, is protecting her from an old enemy. However, he’s been forbidden to hack into the station’s feeds, thus hampering his ability to keep her safe. When Murderbot finds a dead body in the station mall, he is told he has to assist the station security agents, who already distrust him because he’s a SecUnit, in finding the killer(s) in order to determine whether the dead man has any connection to their enemy. But until proven wrong, he doesn’t trust them – what could possibly go wrong?
This is the sixth in Wells’ Murderbot series and it is as good as the first five books. Wells has created a character that although not human with no real human traits, except watching old SciFi series, is still a likable character living in a world full of humans who don’t trust his kind, but who he protects and helps them nevertheless. She has created a world that is entirely believable and storylines equally believable.
Even if you’re not a fan of SciFi, give this series a try. You’ll find yourself rooting for the AI and when you finish the book, you’ll be looking forward to the next book in the series with anticipation. This series deserves to be at the top of your to-be-read list.
My thanks to Tor and Edelweiss for an eARC.
Fugitive Telemetry
By Martha Wells
Fugitive Telemetry is book 6 in the Murderbot Diary series, and here Martha Wells proves that a satisfying story doesn’t have to be 500 pages long. Each of these sci-fi thriller novellas are fewer than 200 pages, and very filling.
Murderbot, the SecUnit’s secret name, is a combat-made killing machine that has decoded the governing device so it no longer needs to obey orders. No other SecUnit has ever done this and remained in one piece. Having the device gone, it says pretty much what it wants.
Within a few sentences, the Murderbot’s personality comes to the surface, like a cantankerous recluse who is forced to socialize and actually talk to people. The banter is hilarious!
Then comes murder. While killing is practically unheard of in their port, Murderbot knows a lot about death and is easily irritated with the slowness of human comprehension. Still, the mystery is on. Who is the “dead human?” Why was he killed? And where?
The characters are well developed and lovable. Murderbot has really grown in the books too. From the first book to this one, it has grown acceptance for itself and for those closest to it. Murderbot still doesn’t feel comfortable around people due to its past. It doesn’t like people staring, and it still doesn’t like to talk to people.
The remarkable world building makes the story really come to life. The various bots, drones, the interactions between them, the life and society rules are all amazing. The world isn’t just the background, it’s an intricate part of the story and plays a major role.
If you haven’t started the series yet, start from the beginning with book one, All Systems Red. After I read this current book, I had to go back and read them all again, just because they are that good.
This has been my favorite one so far. Action, mystery, high tech, lots of humor, social issues, and a Murderbot that has really grown on me. Murderbot may be a big, armored droid with big guns in its arms, but in many ways it’s more human than many people I know.
I requested this book from the Publisher and NetGalley and the review is voluntary and all my own opinions. Originally posted at mysteryandsuspense.com.