On Exit Strategy

I’m back to Murderbot. I read the first three last year and figured it was time to see where the series goes. Where Rogue Protocol veered off the sci-fi/action formula of the first two books into something more like horror, Exit Strategy is a classic hostage-and-escape story — the title is apt, especially next to the earlier books. Like the rest of the series it isn’t deep or literary, but it’s a fun story, and Murderbot’s character develops a fair amount over this short volume, which is always satisfying to watch.

The way he just wants to bury himself in his hole while observing the world around him is so relatable. I suspect Murderbot’s central problem is what we’d now simply call social anxiety; I have it too, and there’s something profoundly satisfying in seeing it depicted here. As Murderbot says of Sanctuary Moon: “It made me feel like a person.” Nicely done, and I’m glad to keep going through the series.