Network Effect is the first novel-length entry into the Murderbot Diaries and the most recent one published, although it appears as if another entry is forthcoming in April. We pick up with Murderbot as its on yet another seemingly innocuous mission that turns dangerous. We return to our original crew with some new additions and ART from Artificial Condition makes a comeback.
This book is a joy, as are all the books in this series. Murderbot is a misanthropic liar, but the biggest lies it tells are to itself. Murderbot tries to pretend that it doesn't care if people live or die, but the truth is that Murderbot cares very deeply, about its human and non-human friends. There is a pull quote on the back of the book from someone named Annalee Newitz that says "...one of the most human portraits of a nonhuman I've ever read" and that hits the nail right on the head. You learn more about humans and emotions reading this book than you do reading most.
This book was heavy on the battle sequences, so if you're not a fan of the pew-pew, bang, break someone's arm because they're in the way kind of thing, this might not be the series for you. I found myself spacing (no pun intended) through some of these scenes myself because there are just so many of them. However, it's also a book that really emphasizes Murderbot's own qualms about its violence, so the action scenes do have a purpose.
I am enjoying watching Murderbot grow. Murderbot has friends. Murderbot is dealing with trauma from previous missions and is learning how to deal with feelings, even though Murderbot would deny until the end of days that it has such humanlike tendencies. Wells is brilliant and I don't know how I stumbled onto this series, but I'm certainly glad that I did.
Notable lines:
The Targets were anomalous, but they weren't so anomalous they didn't exhibit the same basic types of behaviors as other humans. And something was off about their behavior in the control area foyer, something that couldn't be accounted for their overconfidence or the fact that they were all assholes. (page 112)
I didn't like the idea of saying "I don't know" to Amena because humans panic and I almost don't blame them because right now I feel like panicking and I was not in control of this situation and I could see at least ten instances now where I'd made wrong decisions and being in control of the situation was really important because otherwise it was in control and felt like a short step to being back in the company's control. (page 115)
I had answered that question already, back when it happened. I could get mad at her asking it again, but granted, I do lie a lot. (page 181)
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