Our favourite neurodivergeant construct is back, and is heading to the mining colony where this run-of-the-mill Security Unit became Murderbot. This is a fitting sequel to All Systems Red, exploring a little more of the back-story of Murderbot. There is also the introduction of ART, as an all-powerful sidekick.
For me, some of the changes introduced in this story diluted the essential Murderbotness that we were introduced to in the first book. Murderbot’s attitude to, and integration with, the humans in the story softens, which is a departure from the extreme awkwardness shown in the first book. Also, the introduction of ART as an all-powerful sidekick is a slightly over-convenient way to get through situations that would otherwise be exceptionally tricky for Murderbot alone - and it does give it a bit of a Deus ex Machina vibe.
Giving Murderbot a companion in ART also makes it a bit more of a buddy story, again softening the isolation of Murderbot that we saw in the first book. But I guess all of these things are necessary in order to provide room for more complex plot and character development to occur, which isn’t a bad thing.
So these two powerful buddies engage set out to uncover some of Murderbot’s back story, and grumpily right some wrongs along the way, deftly covering their tracks lest their true nature be discovered. It’s fun, the plot is fast and snappy, and I did really enjoy Murderbot’s development and the interactions with ART. And I’m looking forward to the rest of the books in the series.
My rating: ★★★★☆
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