Rogue Protocol was another enjoyable read in the Murderbot series – I definitely liked it, but I have to admit, it lacked the spark that the two previous episodes had. You can read my reviews of All Systems Red, aka Murderbot #1 here and Artificial Condition, aka Murderbot #2 here. For those who have not read my previous reviews, I use the pronoun ‘them’ for Murderbot, because they don’t really have an assigned gender, and even though Murderbot is a construct, they are too human to just be referred to as ‘it’, in my opinion.
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★★★★☆ 4 stars
Murderbot is still roaming free, and slightly missing the presence of ART (Asshole Research Transport…) But while at first their travels seem to be aimless, even to Murderbot themselves, it appears they are not. Because even though Murderbot ditched the friendly company of Mensah and the other people who freed them, they still feel a moral duty to them and want to help. More than that… Murderbot is becoming increasingly more… human. They’re developing all these weird emotions, notions and urges, and they’re not sure what to do with themselves. Rogue Protocol will introduce a whole new set of problems for Murderbot, but it might also give them a new direction.
As Usual For Murderbot, The Crew Is Nice
The crew in this book is nice, but in a different way than normal – because Murderbot doesn’t actually have any contracted clients this time. I would not want to spoil too much, but the deal is like this – Murderbot is free, but they’re having a hard time really figuring out what to do with themselves. Everyone is made for something, or at least, that’s what they say – and in Murderbot’s case, that holds true literally, because they were made for one purpose, and one purpose only – to take care of security concerns (the fact that Murderbot is into all that media is just a nice bonus.) So as much as they don’t want to admit it, Murderbot is drawn towards making sure their crew is safe. And when they don’t have a crew? They find one, against all odds.
However, this time, like I mentioned, Murderbot isn’t contracted – it’s more like they hitch a ride. In secret. That entails all sort of potential problems that Murderbot kind of naively ignores, and that’s adorable to watch – the way Murderbot isn’t entirely a reliable narrator, as in all the previous books of the series. The humans they’re trying to protect this time are the usual kind of crew for Murderbot stories – they’re nice, they believe in the right things and… they are in danger. However, this time, there’s not just humans. Murderbot will make a friend, and the friend will be somewhat like them. I think you will like Murderbot’s friend. Will Murderbot though, being the grumpy cat that they are?
A GIF of Grumpy Cat, slowly turning its head to look at you. Grumpy cat is cute.
The #Feels Though
I mean, Murderbot books were always full of ups and downs. But this one? My boyfriend had to comfort me for 15 minutes after I finished the book – legit. It’s a quick read, so don’t start reading it when you know you’ll have to put it down, or even worse – in public. You’ll be setting yourself up to bawl your eyes out in plain sight. It’s a touching ending, and I can see why it worked like that, but honestly? DID IT HAVE TO? The ending of this book felt like one of the 9th Doctor episodes from Doctor Who – you won’t walk away without damage, and the author knows which ropes to pull to trigger those #feels.
Rogue Protocol feels like one of the 9th Doctor episodes from #DoctorWho – you won't walk away without damage, and the author knows which ropes to pull to trigger those #feels. Click To TweetA GIF of David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor, looking into the distance, and the caption says *Emotions*
Murderbot Learns To Know Themselves Better
In Rogue Protocol, Murderbot starts getting to know themselves better as a personality, because suddenly, they can make so many different choices they weren’t able to make when they were still a SecUnit. Do you know all those times you say, for example, “oh, if I was rich, I’d do this…”, or, “if I didn’t have a day job, I’d start doing this…” Well, would you though? Without all those impeding factors? You don’t really know, because this hasn’t yet happened to you. This is entirely what’s going on with Murderbot – they thought that if only they’d be set free, they’d watch shows non-stop and would never want anything more to do with humans. But that doesn’t seem to actually be the case. Because while Murderbot still loves the shows, for some inexplicable reason, they start being drawn towards humans more and more. They start having all of these emotions that they ‘need to go experience in private’, and some of them are jealousy, hurt or pride. Murderbot wants to be treated more and more like another personality, another human being – although they have always thought themselves different and sneered at humans from the side. Murderbot is slowly finding their own identity and figuring some important things out.
Rogue Protocol was a good adventure, but in my opinion, it didn’t have the spark that the two previous Murderbot books had. It felt as a sort of connecting story between Murderbot #2 and the one to come. Rogue Protocol still does end in a very good cliffhanger of sorts, giving us a taste of where the series will go after this and giving Murderbot more of a direction, so you will still definitely want to keep reading! But make sure to bring those tissues, if you’re like me. You will not walk away unscathed.
A GIF of a woman, pulling tissues out of a tissue box and dabbing at her face
The Triggers
As usual, the triggers in this book are violence and combat, blood wounds. Murderous and traitorous humans, as well as humans who think they’re better than constructs, might also have side effects.
Other Murderbot Books
Here are the previous two Murderbot books, you can add them to your Goodreads (click the cover), and you can read my reviews of Murderbot #1 and Murderbot #2. I’m also including the next Murderbot book so you can put it on your wishlist!
I thank Tor.com for giving me a free copy of the book in exchange to my honest opinion. Receiving the book for free does not affect my opinion. You can buy the book here at Book Depository and buying using this link supports the blog.
Are you following the Murderbot series? And if you are, which one was your favorite and why? Will you be reading the next book?
I’m Evelina and I try to blog about books that matter, with a bit of fun there too! Disability and equality will be topics you see a lot, but there’s also a lot of scifi, fantasy and… GIFs. I’m also the proud founder of #ARCsAnonymous.
Oh my goodness, the release date totally snuck up on me! Going to be reading this ASAP because I love Murderbot!
It does that 🙂 almost snuck up to me too 😀 I hope you liked it! I have just recently finished this series and absolutely loved the finale.
I’ve never heard of murdetbot… More books to add to the list lol.
Oh yeah, this series is definitely worth it 🙂
I enjoyed Rogue Protocol as well, but I agree that it was the only one I was tempted to rate 4 stars instead of 5.
And yeah – Did the ending HAVE to be like that? 🙁
I think my favourite is still the first one, but I do like how the first and the fourth kind of connect. I’m curious what you’ll think about the fourth.
I know right! Broke my heart. And agreed, NY favorite one is also definitely the first one! But I think that’s how it goes with series a lot of times. And I still need to properly request the fourth… I don’t even have it. Vacation -.-
That’s it. I’m ordering the series. I can’t not get to know the characters and I want those feels!
Yay! I’m glad to hear 🙂 I hope you like it. Have you started reading yet, by any chance? 🙂
This is the second review I’ve read for this and both have now mentioned that Murderbot is becoming more human, so I’m really anxious to see how that plays out! And I like that they “find” a crew, one way or another. 🙂
That ending though… now I’m nervous. 🙂 I must read this aSAP.
Great review!!
I wonder what you thought about that ending 🙂
Woah these books sound really intense, I love it when books give you such a huge emotional reaction. Lovely review Evelina!
These books are amazing, and I can wholeheartedly recommend them 🙂 thank you!
Awesome review!
I really like the sound of this series and given how short the books are it’s not even as daunting as usual 😀
Once i’m done with all the ARCs and whatnots this will move higher up the list for sure <3
Thank you 🙂 yeah, this series is absolutely amazing. To be fair, it’s probably a good idea to get like 3 or 4 of these and just binge read them all 🙂
I haven’t read any of these yet but I still need to! Sorry this wasn’t AS good as the first two for you, but it still seems like a fairly good addition to the series. 🙂
-Lauren
http://www.shootingstarsmag.net
Yeah, and I still adore the series 🙂 you totally need to read these.
I’ve not read the previous two Murderbot books so would probably need to start the series at the beginning? I’m intrigued by the what-to-do-with-freedom idea though because I recently read a nonfiction book, Dancing Bears, about people and animals coping with just that dilemma
Interesting, I might have to check that one out 🙂 but yes, you should start that series at the top, and it is definitely very recommended 🙂
I am so intrigued by this concept. The character sounds so interesting and not really like anyone I’ve ever read about before. It’s pretty far outside my usual thing – not so much a sci fi person – but it sounds interesting enough that I might take a risk and pick it up!
I think there’s a chance you could like this, it’s just based in space and has some tech lingo, but it’s not much more than that 🙂 it’s mostly about psychology and human relationships. It’s a great series!
Well I love Murderbot. The humor is killing me. I enjoyed this one just as much as the first 2. The journey Murderbot is taking is great. And the feels are certainly there. These are short so it’s easy to be ready for more. Anne – Books of My Heart
I know right, it’s just so good 🙂 I guess for me the ending was just a little bit too sad. But the journey is definitely great!