What I've Been Reading

 

This week I'm actually reading two books 'cause that's how I roll sometimes.

The first one is Network Effect by Martha Wells. It was published in 2020 by Tor Books and it's award winning. It won a Hugo, a Nebula, and a Locus award.

I'm happy that while this book is the first full length novel in the series, I am still enjoying it. It's about 348 pages according to Amazon and I'm about 50% through.

As in earlier books, Murderbot has its humans that it is trying to protect in dangerous situations. And the transport vehicle from one of the earlier books, ART, is back. In fact it's possible that ART has caused some of the danger and/or maybe its people have. At any rate, it's an interesting story and it's well done. I still really like Murderbot and I suspect I will be reading on in the series when I finish this one.

And as of December 2023, Apple TV+ has announced it has ordered an adaptation of the Murderbot diaries.

The other book I am reading is Broadcast Blues by R.G. Belsky. It's the sixth book in the Clare Carlson series  It's my first foray into the series. I'm given to understand that each book can be read as a standalone. It was just released today from Oceanview Publishing.

Clare Carlson is a newswoman approaching 50 with a somewhat precarious employment situation as her boss doesn't like her. Clare finds herself investigating and reporting on the murder of Wendy Kyle. Wendy was a former NYPD officer who was currently self employed as a private investigator. She specialized in working for women who thought their husbands might be cheating on them. That was until a car bomb went off ending her life. Because of her line of work, there seems ro be a long list of possible suspects.

And that's as far as I've gotten. The synopsis says there will be danger. And Jonathan Kellerman described the book as a, "page-turning, meticulously plotted crime novel." So, I'm looking forward to reading more and seeing where things take Clare.

What are you reading?

What I've Been Reading

 

The past week or so, I've been working my way through the Murderbot books. They are short books. I'm really enjoying the character of Murderbot and reading from its point of view. I'm going to give you an example, the opening line from the first book, All Systems Red  by Martha Wells.

"I could have become a mass murderer after I hacked my governor module, but then I realized I could access the combined feed of entertainment channels carried on the company satellites. It had been well over 35,000 hours since then, with still not much murdering, but probably,  i don't know, a little under 35,000 hours of movies, serials, books, plays, and music consumed. As a heartless killing machine, I was a terrible faiilure."

Basically, Murderbot is introverted. It would prefer to avoid interactions with humans, and be a couch potato of sorts. I think a lot of people can relate to that. But acting as a secunit, Murderbot must interact with humans from time to time that it is supposed to be protecting. I enjoyed reading these interactions from its point of view, especially how it must protect the humans even if they are deciding to do something stupid that could turn into an accidental suicide. 

Books 1, 2, and 3 are all dealing with different groups of humans in different situations, but Murderbot continues to feel the need to protect the humans. As the books go on, Murderbot experiences growth and change, things that wouldn't happen if it hadn't hacked its governor module and maybe even if it hadn't consumed all that entertainment that showed human interactions with others including bots and secunits.

At this point as I prepare to start book 4, I would recommend the Murderbot series. The books are short and have adventure to them. Even though I don't often read science fiction, I am enjoying them. If you're looking for a short read, like 156 pages or so for book 1, give it a try.

What have you been reading lately? Drop a line in the comments and let us know what you're reading and if you would recommend it and to who. Thanks for coming by. Happy Reading!