Publishers Weekly: Starling captivates and horrifies by turn in this intricately plotted, deliciously bonkers secondary world gothic fantasy…. Starling’s magic system is so spookily and fully realized, and the final twist so brilliantly turns the novel on its head, that even the most skeptical will be won over. This proves impossible to put down.
Tor.com: It’s been almost one long year since Network Effect dropped, and let’s face it: the world is ready for more Murderbot. Dry wit, misanthropy, and space adventures are promises delivered in full in this month’s 6th installment of Martha Wells’ Murderbot Diaries…
Murderbot, though, isn’t a stand-in for any other oppressed group, as much as some of us might see ourselves in its outsider-status, hatred of ally condescension, and “not applicable” gender. The prejudice it faces isn’t because it is socially-coded as a weapon, but because it is a weapon, and so the shape those redemption stories take is fundamentally different. Murderbot isn’t a story about simply learning to love yourself as you are, but of reckoning with the decision to not be the thing you were born to be. It’s about learning to trust even in the midst of justifiable fear. It’s also—for all its death and mayhem—a soothing escape from reality, the likes of which Murderbot itself would approve.
Publishers Weekly: Marino does an impressive job writing tender and heartbreaking moments without sacrificing the brutal tone that drives the story.
Absolutely devastating.
Library Journal: In crime reporter Thompson’s gripping fiction debut, Allie is welcomed to her wealthy new neighborhood by being framed for murder. The spot-on depictions of modern parenthood and suburban life make this story even more suspenseful, as Allie tries to find the real murderer before her entire life is destroyed.
NPR: Martha Wells’ newest entry in her award-winning, nerd-charming, trope-bending Murderbot series, FUGITIVE TELEMETRY, is a lot of things that you probably don’t expect.
One of Wells’ superpowers has long been her ability to pack an epic’s worth of material into a very small package. And here, she uses the condensed timeline and single location as a way to put Murderbot in a situation of constant moral reckoning.
Sure, there’s no end here without a showdown, some explosions, a cool robot fight and a messy conclusion full of smugglers, broken glass and gunfire. But how a person (a thing, an object in the process of becoming something else) made to enforce rules, that willed itself into being by breaking them and now compelled to abide by them, gets there without doing itself further moral compromise is the tension that Wells creates. Murderbot was made to be Murderbot. That will never change.
The question is, can it choose to be more?
Booklist: El works as part of the Order, a sisterhood and core central body that rules Aytrium and keeps it running. Her magic, or “lace,” is powered by consuming the flesh of her ancestors. This power comes at a harsh price, and it’s one that El is willing to escape at any cost, which is why she agrees when a resistance group asks her to spy on the sisterhood’s top officials. Hall’s world is intricately woven, with a complex web of side characters, suspenseful pacing, and slowly unraveling revelations. The Order and the world of Aytrium is exceedingly dark, and sexual assault and body horror are major parts of the plot. El’s inner motivations are sometimes revealed very late despite the first-person narration, and the plot’s revelations rush toward an abrupt end that doesn’t quite fit the intricate work of its beginning. All of that said, Star Eater is an exciting horror-fantasy about power, violence, and control, and El’s complicated quest to be free of the violent magic system at the sisterhood’s core will keep readers compelled from the first page.
Fantasy Book Review: …an important and timely release that serves as a warning sign and reminder of the horror from whence we came, and the danger of following in its footsteps…. It’s also a hell of a good time, and serves up a damn fine cliffhanger.New Scientist: …a great noir-ish, Agatha Christie-ish murder mystery typical of the series, with far less shoot-’em-up than the series name suggests, plenty of deduction and the navigation of awkward relationships.
Like all the Murderbot books, the plot is fast and the dialogue punchy, a snappy vehicle to carry the bigger narrative arc of Murderbot as it emerges from its defensive psychological cocoon.
Publishers Weekly: Malfi impresses in this taut, supernaturally tinged mystery, an intriguing variation on the well-worn serial killer plot….Malfi sticks the landing with a powerful denouement. There’s plenty here to enjoy.
Booklist: Burke’s third novel after her Semiosis Duology (Semiosis, 2018 and Interference, 2019) is a fast-paced hard-sf thriller set in a near future where power is tilted in favor of large corporations and a fascist government foments intolerance and bigotry among its sheep-like followers. In Wisconsin, three women who are seemingly unrelated are embroiled in a mutiny against a bigoted president who wants to restrict the rights of clones and other genetically enhanced persons under the guise of patriotism. Avril, Berenike, and Irene are living perfectly normal lives until revelations of their origins thrust them into action to protect themselves and fight for their freedom. Amid the chaos of rebellion, a mysterious virus previously thought to be a common cold turns deadly and increases panic and paranoia across the nation. Told through alternating points of view by the three women and a mysterious scientist called Peng, Burke imparts detailed discussions on genetics within a dramatic and thought-provoking story of inequality, humanity and family. For fans of the Orphan Black television series or Chuck Wendig’s Wanderers (2019).