A review by lailybibliography
Rogue Protocol by Martha Wells

adventurous dark emotional sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I wasn’t annoyed at all. Not one bit.

I will never get over Miki dying thinking its first ever bot friend was mad at it. Screw you, Martha Wells (affectionate, devastated).

This instalment grew to be far more emotionally powerful and resonant than I expected. It broke my heart seeing Murderbot react so strongly to the possibility of humans and bots being equals, able to be trusted friends and companions with genuine love and respect for one another. For all its hilarious dark humour and misanthropic attitude, Murderbot is a deeply emotional, empathetic bot, and utterly traumatized by the violence its owners coerced into committing. I hope the reunion with Dr. Mensah gives it some of the kindness and tranquility it desperately deserves and needs.

Really hope we run into Don Abene sometime in the future novellas. I found her bond with Miki touching and fascinating and would love a more in-dept exploration of the (relatively) egalitarian universe hinted at outside the Corporation Rim. I love the diversity of the human experience Martha Wells has weaved into this world in regard to societal norms, structures and political systems. So much of classical sci-fi literature had a tendency to stick to generally homogeneous political conventions and power hierarchies (monarchies, nobility, grand authoritarian regimes, etc.); its refreshing to see the thriving existences of more… dare-i-say… socialist societies in our futures. I’m not sure if that’s the intended message in any way, but it’s a strangely hopeful one to me. 

((Obviously we have our archetypal hyper-capitalist, cyberpunk dystopia in Corporation Rim, but even that feels more realistic to our modern world with its constant over-surveillance and conglomerate indifference to human liveability than the neon-skies and desolate megacities of previous science fiction.))
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