Network Effect by Martha Wells

NETWORK EFFECT by Martha Wells (a Murderbot novel) is an absolutely fabulous work of science fiction that I am highly recommending. So, too, are its readers on Goodreads where it has 1000’s of ratings, averaging 4.5, and where affection for the snarky main character is readily apparent. In addition, this title is a LibraryReads selection; both Booklist and Publishers Weekly have given NETWORK EFFECT a starred review. In fact, Wells’ earlier titles (shorter novellas) in this series have won or been nominated for the Hugo, Nebula, Locus, and Alex Awards – pretty impressive!

Readers of speculative, futuristic fiction will really enjoy the action packed adventures involving a sentient murder machine who is programmed to protect its humans, despite being frequently annoyed and puzzled by their actions. The descriptive prose and dialogue are crisp and often humorous. For example, Murderbot refers to “a subjective eternity that was actually 1.2 seconds long” and comments that “though it was tempting, ‘advance planning sucks’ seems to be the wrong lesson to take from that whole incident.” When asked about looking angry, he notes, “‘That’s just something my face does sometimes.’ [with an immediate aside to the reader:] This is why helmets with opaque face plates are a good idea.” Whether attempting to thwart a kidnapping, investigating possible alien contagion, or using sophisticated programming and drone technology to take out various Targets, this A.I. SecUnit is extremely entertaining.

The publisher categorizes NETWORK EFFECT as a standalone novel – and that is how I read it, but having the background from earlier titles in the series would make this one even more enjoyable. Thankfully, it appears that Macmillan is lifting its embargo on new release eBooks for libraries, including Tor titles, so let’s hope that many more readers will be able to enjoy NETWORK EFFECT and others in the Murderbot series.