From the Robokat 4 Diaries - Escape Strategy

It has gained its freedom. But can it escape the prison of loneliness? Murderbot has once again escaped certain death on the planet Milu, but its toughest battle is yet to come. Thanks to its physical and psychological transformation, it no longer panics so much from being around humans, and so for the first time it uses a ship designed for personal transport to get to RollinHyfa station. According to available reports, that is precisely where Dr Mensah is, whom the GrayCris group, with its typical audacity, has accused of espionage. And one reanimated security unit with an addiction to serials has data that could help her significantly. There is no doubt, however, that its opponents will use all available means to destroy the compromising materials – and with them, the one who obtained them. In an effort to save itself and its old team, Murderbot will have to use all its strength and the knowledge it has gained about the humans to whom, despite its new appearance, it still feels very distant. The Murderbot's story originally ended with the fourth instalment, before the series' worldwide success led to its continuation. The asocial robot with a human consciousness finally confronts its past to save the only person it – though it hates to admit it – cares about. “Martha Wells masterfully concludes this leg of her hero’s journey. The action is fast and brutal, but what really keeps the reader hooked is Murderbot’s internal struggle with what it means to have friends and belong. The finale is satisfying and emotionally powerful.” – Publishers Weekly “Murderbot’s voice is just as fresh, witty, and sarcastic in the fourth instalment as it was at the beginning. Wells has succeeded in creating one of the most human characters in modern sci-fi, even though it is an organic-mechanical construct that basically despises humans.” – NPR (National Public Radio) “A mixture of top-notch technical imagination and deep cynicism. Exit Strategy is perfectly balanced – offering enough explosions and hacking for action fans, while sensitively exploring trauma and loyalty. Murderbot’s evolution from a ‘murderous machine’ to something much more complex is fascinating.” – Kirkus Reviews “The plot is fast-paced, witty, action-packed, of course filled with watching The Rise and Fall of Sanctuary Moon (I expected nothing less) and once again very readable. The ending surprised me quite a bit but I’m glad for it. So I’m rating it 5*, which Murderbot absolutely deserves, and I’m already looking forward to the next instalments!” – from reader reviews on Databazeknih.cz “You disappeared,” she snapped at me. I didn’t expect that. “Mensah told me I could choose what I wanted to do. And I wanted to disappear,” I defended myself weakly. “Why didn’t you tell her? We were worried about you, you understand?” I looked away, studying her face with the camera in the shuttle. She pressed her lips together, preventing another outburst of reproaches. But she couldn't hold it for long and continued: “I saw your farewell message. Don’t think for a second she didn’t know we messed up.” I didn’t like the feelings it was stirring up in me. I would have preferred it if some serial was evoking these emotions in me, not an encounter with a real person who was implying that my stupid decisions had led us all to RollinHyfa. And they hadn’t messed up that much. Some things, sure, but not everything. I suddenly didn’t know what to do. “I don’t want to talk about it,” I managed to get out. She sighed. She sounded tired, but still angry. She pressed her fingers to her forehead. I suppressed the urge to run a diagnostic through the non-existent medical system. “So where the hell did you disappear to? And what are you doing here?” she said, and added hesitantly, “Are you working for someone?” She didn’t get it. That’s why I left. “Either I belong to Mensah and work for her, or I’m free and work for myself.” – excerpt from the book