All Systems Red Book Review – Spoiler Free
All Systems Red is Martha Wells‘ first novella in The Murderbot Diaries. Murderbot has gained a lot of popularity in the last few months. I first heard about this series through booktuber Daniel Greene. I read this novella as part of acouplereads book club last month. All Systems Red was written in first person from the perspective of a sec unit called Murderbot.
All Systems Red is a 149 page story about a sec unit who hacked his governor module and works on contract for a group of scientists on a research mission. Not all things appear as they seem…..
I really enjoyed the story Martha Wells crafted here. It was simple and to the point. At times this story had vibes similar to the movie Alien (1979).
Murderbot is a fantastic character!
The entire story feels like a character study. The one thing that is interesting about the story is we don’t have a gender for Murderbot. I read the story like Murderbot was a he and it reminded me a lot Alan Tudyk’s impression of K-2SO in Star Wars Rogue One. Some people read the story as if Murderbot was a female. I love things that are open to interpretation which gave this story another dimension.
“Seriously, I don’t know why I didn’t just say you’re welcome and please get out of my cubicle so I can sit here and leak in peace.“
All Systems Red is a story that puts character ahead of things like worldbuilding. While worldbuilding is present, it’s only handled in very small quantities.
Final Thoughts
I highly recommend this story if you have never tried Sci-Fi. It’s short and still gives you that hardcore Sci-Fi feel without going overboard. Martha Well has created something truly special!
