The Murderbot Diaries Books by Martha Wells in Order
0.1 “Obsolescence” published in Take Us to a Better Place
0.5 “The Future of Work: Compulsory” published in Wired Magazine.
1. All Systems Red
2. Artificial Condition
3. Rogue Protocol
4. Exit Strategy
4.5 Home: Habitat, Range, Niche, Territory
5. Network Effect
6. Fugitive Telemetry
7. System Collapse (to be released Nov 2023)
What is The Murderbot Diaries?
The Murderbot Diaries is a series concerning a violent, self-hacking cyborg searching for the meaning of life. The series follows the sarcastic SecUnit that wants to consume media, especially soap operas, but instead finds itself entangled with human affairs. It’s a story full of humour, mystery, action and deeper questions around sentience. The series is primarily made up of novellas with there currently being two full length novels out of the main seven released stories.
Who is Martha Wells?
Martha Wells is an American writer of speculative fiction in the sci-fi/fantasy genre. She has published a number of fantasy novels, young adult novels, media tie-ins, short stories, and nonfiction essays on fantasy and science fiction subjects. Her work includes The Books of the Raksura series, The Death of the Necromancer, the Fall of Ile-Rien trilogy, The Murderbot Diaries series, media tie-in fiction for Star Wars, Stargate: Atlantis, and Magic: the Gathering, as well as short fiction, YA novels, and non-fiction. She has won Nebula Awards, Hugo Awards, and Locus Awards, and her work has appeared on the Philip K. Dick Award ballot, the BSFA Award ballot, the USA Today Bestseller List, and the New York Times Bestseller List. She is a member of the Texas Literary Hall of Fame, and her books have been published in twenty-five languages.
WARNING: There may be slight spoilers for some of the books mentioned. These are taken from the official descriptions but can sometimes spoil parts of previous books. So please be careful!
The Murderbot Diaries Books in Order
1. All Systems Red
Murderbot Diaries Book #1
31,468 words, 156 pages, 3 hrs and 17 mins to read.
Published by Tordotcom
4.16 out of 5 on Goodreads
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 future where corporate entities rule space exploration, planetary missions rely on Company approval and resources. These expeditions are accompanied by Company-provided security androids to ensure safety, but in a cost-driven society, safety isn’t always a top priority.
On a remote planet, a team of scientists conducts surface tests under the watchful eye of their Company-supplied android, a self-aware SecUnit that has hacked its own governor module and secretly refers to itself as “Murderbot.” Disdainful of humans, all Murderbot truly desires is solitude long enough to discover its own identity.
However, when a nearby mission goes dark, it falls upon the scientists and their reluctant Murderbot to uncover the truth and confront the mysteries that lie ahead.
2. Artificial Condition 
Murderbot Diaries Book #2
32,422 words, 149 pages, 3 hrs and 21 mins to read.
Published by Tordotcom
4.28 out of 5 on Goodreads
It has a dark past—one in which a number of humans were killed. A past that caused it to christen itself “Murderbot”. But it has only vague memories of the massacre that spawned that title, and it wants to know more.
Forming an unexpected alliance with a Research Transport vessel known as ART (with a less-than-reputable “A” in its name), Murderbot embarks on a journey back to the mining facility where it once went rogue. What awaits it there will shatter its preconceptions and forever alter the way it perceives itself and the world around it.
3. Rogue Protocol 
Murderbot Diaries Book #3
35,204 words, 150 pages, 3 hrs and 46 mins to read.
Published by Tordotcom
4.27 out of 5 on Goodreads
Who knew being a heartless killing machine would present so many moral dilemmas?
Sci-fi’s favourite antisocial A.I. is back on a mission. On a new mission, the challenges are twofold: the case against the formidable GrayCris Corporation is unraveling, and authorities are becoming increasingly curious about the whereabouts of Dr. Mensah’s SecUnit.
And Murderbot would rather those questions went away. For good.
4. Exit Strategy 
Murderbot Diaries Book #4
35,811 words, 163 pages, 3 hrs and 46 mins to read.
Published by Tordotcom
4.39 out of 5 on Goodreads
Murderbot wasn’t programmed to care. So, its decision to help the only human who ever showed it respect must be a system glitch, right?
Having traveled the width of the galaxy to unearth details of its own murderous transgressions, as well as those of the GrayCris Corporation, Murderbot is heading home to help Dr. Mensah—its former owner (protector? friend?)—submit evidence that could prevent GrayCris from destroying more colonists in its never-ending quest for profit.
But who’s going to believe a SecUnit gone rogue?
And what will become of it when it’s caught?
4.5 Home: Habitat, Range, Niche, Territory 
Murderbot Diaries Book #4.5
3,634 words, 19 pages, 18 mins to read.
Published by Tordotcom
4.08 out of 5 on Goodreads
This short story is told from the point of view of Dr. Mensah and follows the events in Exit Strategy.
Home: Habitat, Range, Niche, Territory was originally given free to readers who pre-ordered Martha’s Murderbot novel, Network Effect.
You can now read it for free here – https://www.tor.com/2021/04/19/home-habitat-range-niche-territory-martha-wells/ – How good is that?!
5. Network Effect 
Murderbot Diaries Book #5
88,000 words, 348 pages, 12 hrs and 48 mins to read.
Published by Tordotcom
4.48 out of 5 on Goodreads
The first full-length novel in Martha Wells’ New York Times and USA Today bestselling Murderbot Diaries series.
You know that feeling when you’re at work, and you’ve had enough of people, and then the boss walks in with yet another job that needs to be done right this second or the world will end, but all you want to do is go home and binge your favorite shows? And you’re a sentient murder machine programmed for destruction? Congratulations, you’re Murderbot.
Come for the pew-pew space battles, stay for the most relatable A.I. you’ll read this century.
When Murderbot’s human associates (not friends, never friends) are captured and another not-friend from its past requires urgent assistance, Murderbot must choose between inertia and drastic action.
Drastic action it is, then.
6. Fugitive Telemetry 
Murderbot Diaries Book #6
38,152 words, 172 pages, 3 hrs and 46 mins to read.
Published by Tordotcom
4.32 out of 5 on Goodreads
No, I didn’t kill the dead human. If I had, I wouldn’t dump the body in the station mall.
When Murderbot discovers a dead body on Preservation Station, it knows it is going to have to assist station security to determine who the body is (was), how they were killed (that should be relatively straightforward, at least), and why (because apparently that matters to a lot of people—who knew?)
Yes, the unthinkable is about to happen: Murderbot must voluntarily speak to humans!
7. System Collapse (to be released Nov 2023) 
Murderbot Diaries Book #7
Published by Tordotcom
4.61 out of 5 on Goodreads
Following the events in Network Effect, the Barish-Estranza corporation has sent rescue ships to a newly-colonized planet in peril, as well as additional SecUnits. But if there’s an ethical corporation out there, Murderbot has yet to find it, and if Barish-Estranza can’t have the planet, they’re sure as hell not leaving without something. If that something just happens to be an entire colony of humans, well, a free workforce is a decent runner-up prize.
But there’s something wrong with Murderbot; it isn’t running within normal operational parameters. ART’s crew and the humans from Preservation are doing everything they can to protect the colonists, but with Barish-Estranza’s SecUnit-heavy persuasion teams, they’re going to have to hope Murderbot figures out what’s wrong with itself, and fast!
Yeah, this plan is… not going to work.
Overall
Martha Wells has created a memorable character in an engaging world that is ever growing. With the popularity of the novellas she has quickly expanded the series into a fan favourite and has since added a very popular full length novel, with another coming soon. This is currently one of our favourite sci fi series and we hope she can keep bringing more to the series of the same quality.
If you have enjoyed any of Martha Well’s work and want to learn more about her or any other of her work, then feel free to check out her website.
Let us know what you think about Murderbot in the comments! Do you like the novella length stories that make up most of the series? How did you find the novel length story? So many questions!
Happy reading!
Total Words for The Murderbot Diaries Books!
- Total words: 264,691 words
- Total pages: 1,157 pages
- Total reading time: 31hrs 2mins
More of the same, but different:
Things to Note:
- Word count is an approximation.
- Amount of pages may differ due to different publications, font style and/or size etc.
- Time spent reading is generally an approximation based on the word count and the average reading time. The average reader will read 250 WPM (Words Per Minute).
- This is the original publisher of the books.
- The current Goodreads score at the time of writing.
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