Murderbot Diaries
Aug. 7th, 2025 09:32 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alobearSubsequent to watching the recent TV adaptation of Murderbot, I decided to revisit the book series - the first of which I listened to on audio a few years ago.
All Systems Red - as with the last time I tried this, it took a while for me to get into it because Murderbot is very detached and unemotional at the start (which is the point but it makes it hard to connect to the story or the characters) and the other characters are given very little in the way of description, attributes or personality. Having watched the TV show really helped because I could picture them and had previous attachments to them, and I also understood what was going on, which I think I would have struggled with if that hadn't been the case. It does pick up towards the end, with Murderbot's growing investment in its human clients, and the very end is quite affecting and interesting.
Artificial Condition - the second book was new to me, and also didn't have the benefit of a TV adaptation to help me out, so I did struggle a bit with understanding the details of the mission in the second half. However, the characters aside from Murderbot are given a lot more detail and individuality this time around, so it was easier to engage with the inter-relationships. I loved Art, the research transport, and the development of its relationship with Murderbot was my favourite aspect of the book. I also liked the throughline of Murderbot trying to understand things from its past, which was carried over from the first book. I may carry on with the series at some point, but I'm not invested enough to want to jump straight back in.
All Systems Red - as with the last time I tried this, it took a while for me to get into it because Murderbot is very detached and unemotional at the start (which is the point but it makes it hard to connect to the story or the characters) and the other characters are given very little in the way of description, attributes or personality. Having watched the TV show really helped because I could picture them and had previous attachments to them, and I also understood what was going on, which I think I would have struggled with if that hadn't been the case. It does pick up towards the end, with Murderbot's growing investment in its human clients, and the very end is quite affecting and interesting.
Artificial Condition - the second book was new to me, and also didn't have the benefit of a TV adaptation to help me out, so I did struggle a bit with understanding the details of the mission in the second half. However, the characters aside from Murderbot are given a lot more detail and individuality this time around, so it was easier to engage with the inter-relationships. I loved Art, the research transport, and the development of its relationship with Murderbot was my favourite aspect of the book. I also liked the throughline of Murderbot trying to understand things from its past, which was carried over from the first book. I may carry on with the series at some point, but I'm not invested enough to want to jump straight back in.
