A review by bethanycrowepowell
System Collapse by Martha Wells

adventurous emotional funny tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Murderbot and ART are back, with Murderbot redacting its feelings and ART trying to steal more colonists from the Corporation Rim! The project to get this particular planet its walking papers gets even more complicated when it turns out one of the splintered groups has disappeared into a communications blackout area. Of course Murderbot has to go help initiate contact. Fighting both a trauma response and an old enemy corporation determined to mine indentured labor from a tainted planet, the day is not going particularly well for it. This latest installment of The Murderbot Diaries has a little bit more of everything that makes this series great: action, snark, begrudging friendships, and an ongoing complex recovery process.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence

Minor: Trafficking

Murderbot spends a lot of this book processing a traumatic event that isn't so much about violence as it is about an anxiety and triggers. Not the lightest of the Diaries.