The Murderbot Diaries Reading Order (Martha Wells)

Martha Wells’ The Murderbot Diaries follow a security android that hacked its own governor module, would rather watch soap operas than talk to humans, and is one of the most lovable narrators in modern sci-fi. With the Apple TV+ adaptation drawing new fans, here is how to read them.

The reading order

1. All Systems Red (novella)
2. Artificial Condition (novella)
3. Rogue Protocol (novella)
4. Exit Strategy (novella)
5. Network Effect (full novel)
6. Fugitive Telemetry (novella)
7. System Collapse (novel)

There is also a short story, Home: Habitat, Range, Niche, Territory, that sits after Exit Strategy.

Where to start

Start with All Systems Red. It won the Hugo and Nebula, it is barely 150 pages, and it tells you instantly whether Murderbot’s dry, anxious voice is for you (it is).

Read in order?

Yes — read in publication order. The novellas form a continuous arc, and Network Effect pays off relationships built across the earlier books.

More bingeable sci-fi

If you fly through these, see our picks for the best space opera series.