All Systems Red [Dramatized Adaptation]

Murderbot Diaries, #1

by Martha Wells, David Cui Cui, Michael John Casey, Rayner Gabriel, Khaya Fraites, Zeke Alton, Alejandro Ruiz, Aure Nash, Bradley Foster Smith, Holly Adams, Megan Dorminy, Natalie Van Sistine

Audiobook

English language

Published Sept. 11, 2023 by Graphic Audio.

ISBN:: 979-8-89055-052-1

(33 reviews)

A murderous android discovers itself in All Systems Red, a tense science fiction adventure by Martha Wells that interrogates the roots of consciousness through Artificial Intelligence.

"As a heartless killing machine, I was a complete failure."

In a corporate-dominated spacefaring future, planetary missions must be approved and supplied by the Company. Exploratory teams are accompanied by Company-supplied security androids, for their own safety.

But in a society where contracts are awarded to the lowest bidder, safety isn’t a primary concern.

On a distant planet, a team of scientists are conducting surface tests, shadowed by their Company-supplied ‘droid — a self-aware SecUnit that has hacked its own governor module, and refers to itself (though never out loud) as “Murderbot.” Scornful of humans, all it really wants is to be left alone long enough to figure out who it is.

But when a neighboring mission goes dark, it's up to the scientists …

A murderous android discovers itself in All Systems Red, a tense science fiction adventure by Martha Wells that interrogates the roots of consciousness through Artificial Intelligence.

"As a heartless killing machine, I was a complete failure."

But in a society where contracts are awarded to the lowest bidder, safety isn’t a primary concern.

But when a neighboring mission goes dark, it's up to the scientists and their Murderbot to get to the truth.

Performed by David Cui Cui, Khaya Fraites, Zeke Alton, Alejandro Ruiz, Aure Nash, Bradley Foster Smith, Holly Adams, Megan Dorminy, Natalie Van Sistine, Michael John Casey, Rayner Gabriel, Shanta Parasuraman, Tanja Milojevic and Wyn Delano.

11 editions

Amber Herbert reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (Murderbot, #1)

A Light and Quick Read

3 stars

This introduction to Murderbot is swift, concise, and light. While I read it in a single two-and-a-half-hour sitting, I wouldn't say it hooked me. Rather, it provided the same level of entertainment as a run-of-the-mill genre film. Martha Wells delivers on her authorial promise but doesn't offer compelling prose, deep character work, or much in the way of worldbuilding. I found myself underwhelmed, especially after the endless hype I've heard over the past few years. This is another classic case of "I'm not the target audience".

Tilde Lowengrimm reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (Murderbot, #1)

Just as good as I remember

5 stars

After finishing the show (which has been renewed for a second season!) I thought I'd go back and check out the original to recall exactly what changes they made for the screen.

There weren't many — the show is pretty darn close to the novella. I guess having such tight clean source material means there isn't as much you need to cut. A lot of it was pretty streamlined — a couple of characters were merged, human thoughts and feelings get more screen time, making it more of an ensemble piece, and the addition of Leebeebee to make Murderbot more visually scary for us.

After finishing the show (which has been renewed for a second season!) I thought I'd go back and check out the original to recall exactly what changes they made for the screen.

There's less detail to the tech/interface/hacking/hub system interactions. I don't think I've ever seen a hacking scene I really liked which both felt genuine and was visually interesting. (If you're wondering, the two best onscreen hacks are: 1. Trinity's use of nmap and the SSH1 CRC32 exploit in Matrix Reloaded, which is realistic but visually mundane and only appears on screen for a few moments, making it more of an easter egg than anything else, and 2. Hugh Jackman assembling a hacking cube from an ancient server in Swordfish, none of which has any relationship to reality, but which is very flashy on screen and includes Hugh Jackman.

The biggest thing which felt different to me was the absence of Murderbot's ubiquitous use of micro drones and remote cameras as extensions of its sensorium. In the novella, I really felt like Murderbot was deeply connected to the feed and that looking through a remote camera or accessing a database was was as natural for it as reaching out a hand or looking in a particular direction is for us. There were definitely nods to this — it wasn't exactly forgotten — but it was considerably less ubiquitous and visceral than in the novella.

And I think this contributed to making it more of an ensemble piece. In the novellas, the reader doesn't have any senses: we're not watching or listening. We are reading an account composed by someone whose sensorium & perception are comprehensible but alien to us — like reading a cuttlefish talk about light polarization and how it's using chromatophores. And in fact I think that this is one of the deep strengths of the series. Murderbot is a killing machine with guns in its arms who experiences the world through drones & feeds and minimal fear of pain or death. But also, it's an autistic nerd treated as less than a person in a corporate dystopia and just wants to be left alone to watch its shows, just like the reader.

Anyway, this novella continues to delight. If you enjoyed the show and like to read, check it out. The books are very short and easy to get into, which makes it very easy to start and equally disappointing when you run out.

enne📚 reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (Murderbot, #1)

All Systems Red

4 stars

I've been watching the recent tv show and thought I'd give the books a reread so I could ground myself in the text again. Also brains have been bad, and Murderbot is such short grippy comfort fiction. I think what makes me come back to this (personally) is my empathy for Murderbot's exhaustion and horror around being asked to be a person.

Murderbot also epitomizes the mortifying ordeal of being known (but simultaneously the even more mortifying ordeal of being loved). There's so much joy for me in the grumpiness of the internal monologue. If I had to come up with a one sentence emotional arc for each book, this one would be Murderbot moving past apathy and learning that it does in fact want to protect (some) humans.

Confession time: I don’t actually know where we are

On a reread, I had also forgotten the level of indifference that …

Confession time: I don’t actually know where we are

On a reread, I had also forgotten the level of indifference that Murderbot has, in terms of not even knowing what planet they're on. It's an aspect that comes through so much stronger in the original text.

technicat@bookwyrm.social reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (Murderbot, #1)

now I want to see The Rise and Fall of Sanctuary Moon

5 stars

This was a fun read, breezed through it in a couple of days. I haven't seen the tv show yet, but it sparked my interest, and generally I've found it better to read the novel before watching the show (that's been my experience with Pachinko and Silo). Also a general rule, there should be more stories centered on robots/androids/cyborgs, especially ones who feel like I do at parties and corporate meetings (maybe if I call myself "murderbot" they'll let me skip the daily scrum). I'm going to get the next book ASAP.

Claudia reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (Murderbot, #1)

Un constructo, una tripulación y lo que hace el aburrimiento

4 stars

Después de tres años lo he releído (a causa de que la serie de Apple TV+ basada en la novela va a salir en breves) y lo he entendido mucho mejor y me ha gustado muchísimo más. ¿Será cosa de que mi nivel de inglés ha subido o de que he entendido mejor de qué iba la vaina? Ni idea, pero el resultado es que esta novelita corta, entretenida y con une protagoniste más que especial se hace un huequecito.

Como siempre, la culpa de todo es del capitalismo. Incluso el del futuro.

73pctGeek reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (Murderbot, #1)

Lovely sci-fi

4 stars

A re-read so I can catch up with the series. The story, writing, and world building are all still enjoyable, and Murderbot remains adorably, yet suspiciously, relatable.

Dav Ito (they/them) reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries, #1)

I'm not sure how I feel...

3 stars

is it weird that I can feel myself heavily identifying with the murderbot? it feels like it should be weird.

mouse reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries, #1)

what a fun little read

No rating

it's hard to pull off a sardonic robot protagonist, and I think this did it

Gary reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (Murderbot, #1)

Good story and beginning of a series

4 stars

This book was just a simple joy to read, a lot like traditional first-person sci-fi from an intelligent robot's perspective. Of course, by the title of the series, you probably will figure out quickly that this robot is a murderbot, and he's having some emotions about things he's done in the past... and the story evolves quickly with the team he is contracted to work for, with a bit of a twist. Overall, this was a fun and interesting story. It evolved quickly and read like a simple first-person descriptive tale of the bot's experiences and thoughts, but it leaves me wanting just a little bit more. Of cousre, it's a series, so I'll read more and expect that desire will be satisfied as I learn more about Mr Murderbot. I recommend this book!

Greg Grossmeier reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries, #1)

Fun short novel with a strong voice

4 stars

It's a short novel so I can't expect much in character development outside of the main one, but that is my one critique: I'd like to know more about the other members of the crew and their situations.

But overall it was a fun listen; engaging, interesting, suspenseful.

ju reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (Murderbot, #1)

Short and fun

4 stars

I was surprised that it was only the length of a novella, but it's a fun read.

Mark de Vries reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (Murderbot, #1)

Quick reread

4 stars

As I’m doing a reread of the Murderbot Diaries book 1-3 before starting on the rest, this was book 1. It’s fairly short, straightforward and fastpaced. Read it within the day. On to the next

Alph reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (Murderbot, #1)

Review of 'All Systems Red' on 'Storygraph'

5 stars

Murderbot has hacked himself out of main control.

The idea of an android, part bot with lingering organics, gives rise to ideas of a machine that sometimes feels human, a very introverted and relatable human; with its increasing independency situations develop more unexpectedly than what I anticipated, and that kept me reading the whole book almost in one sitting.

The secondary characters add enough depth to the story and help the development of Murderbot throughout it, queer characters are also a welcomed presence.

It was a very fun and fast read 😁

laundry0099@bookwyrm.social reviewed All Systems Red by Martha Wells (Murderbot, #1)

Review of 'All Systems Red' on 'Storygraph'

5 stars

It’s rare to find a compelling sci-fi book that also has a hefty helping of humor and sarcasm baked into its tone. I will definitely be reading more of this series.