The Murderbot Diaries, Network Effect, System Collapse, and the Compulsory Broadside, with The Witch King

The Murderbot Diaries

Subterranean Press is pleased to present The Murderbot Diaries, which includes the four novellas and a bonus short story about Martha Wells’ singular creation, appearing for the first time in one volume. This limited edition will be printed in two colors, on 80# Finch, the paper we use for higher end limited editions. The dust jacket will be printed on Mohawk.

SubPress favorite Tommy Arnold has contributed a full-color dust jacket, black-and-white endpapers, and a full-page black-and-white-illustration for each story.  

Those who own The Murderbot Diaries will get first crack at the signed limited edition of Network Effect, the full-length Murderbot novel, and will be available from Camelot Books for those individuals who have purchased a copy of The Murderbot Diaries from us.

About the Book:

Designed for duty and destined for adventure, the secretly autonomous cyborg SecUnit with the self-awarded nom de guerre Murderbot really just wants to access media feeds and leave its human charges to their own devices. Unfortunately, Murderbot’s days of high-bandwidth soap opera viewing come to an end when an alien creature attacks the off world expedition it is assigned to guard. Here begins the award-winning and instantly beloved series The Murderbot Diaries, in which Murderbot investigates its own past and present, and ultimately rises to meet a threat to its former owner—and possibly friend—Dr. Mensah.

With Murderbot, New York Times bestselling author Martha Wells has created one of the most engaging characters to emerge from science fiction in decades. Witty observations, troubling memories, a sardonic voice, and the rendering of action-packed combat sequences with élan and panache combine for a virtuoso performance in all four of the novellas collected here: All Systems Red, Artificial Condition, Rogue Protocol, and Exit Strategy. This collection also includes an original short story appearing in print for the first time, “Home: Habitat Range Niche Territory.”

Across alien environments, corporate intrigue, and high tech adventure that reinvents and reenergizes genre staples like aliens, powered combat armor, and spaceships, Wells exhibits her mastery over an entire subgenre that stretches all the way back to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the awakening into independence of an artificial being created by humans.

The Murderbot Diaries have earned Wells rave reviews around the world, as well as Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Awards. But, most important of all, they’ve earned a legion of devoted and delighted fans.

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• All Systems Red
• Artificial Condition
• Rogue Protocol
• Exit Strategy
• Home: Habitat Range Niche Territory

Network Effect

Subterranean Press is pleased to present Network Effect the first full-length novel about Martha Wells’ singular creation. This limited edition will be printed in two colors, on 80# Finch, the paper we use for higher end limited editions. The dust jacket will be printed on Mohawk.

SubPress favorite Tommy Arnold has contributed a full-color dust jacket, black-and-white endpapers, and a five full-page black-and-white-illustrations.  

Everyone’s favorite security unit Murderbot would much rather be watching new episodes of Lineages of the Sun, but is burdened, as usual, with clients who don’t trust their SecUnit’s situation assessment. And the situation in Network Effect, the first full-length novel in Martha Wells’ acclaimed Murderbot Diaries, quickly becomes dire.

It’s hardly Murderbot’s fault that its human employers are captured in, shall we say, heightened circumstances, but, of course, it falls to Murderbot to save the day. Again. And then a third party from its past enters the picture, also in desperate need of help. Will Murderbot never get a break?

Wells’ creation has amassed a devoted legion of fans whose minds were blown--figuratively--by the first four novella-length entries, which featured antagonists whose minds were blown--literally. Here readers will find a continuing masterful reinvention of the science fiction adventure story, with healthy doses of sardonic humor, high stakes interpersonal relationships, and some of the wittiest introspection to be found anywhere.

The Murderbot Diaries have been bestsellers and have won the coveted Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Awards. Now, in Network Effect, an instant New York Times bestseller, Wells takes things even further, shakes things up even more. This is a story that will satisfy both readers who’ve been along for the ride from the beginning, and those just jumping onboard the runaway space freighter that is the life of Murderbot.

Second Signed Limited Printing: which includes the four novellas and a bonus short story about Martha Wells’ singular creation, appearing for the first time in one volume. This limited edition will be printed in two colors, on 80# Finch, the paper Subterranean uses for higher end limited editions. The dust jacket will be printed on Mohawk.

Limited: 400 signed numbered copies

Lettered: 26 signed leatherbound copies, housed in a custom traycase

System Collapse 

Dust jacket and interior illustrations by Jaime Jones.

Everyone’s favorite security unit Murderbot is still reeling from the events of Network Effect, so much so it is redacting information from itself. Who can blame it? Barish-Estranza has dispatched more SecUnits and supposed rescue ships, but the colony of humans on this planet may be in grave danger of becoming permanently indentured workers for the predatory corporation.

Meanwhile ART’s crew and the humans from Preservation are running interference to protect the colonists. But unless Murderbot’s operating parameters start functioning again, they may be a lost cause…

Martha Wells’ The Murderbot Diaries have been bestsellers and have won the coveted Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Awards. This seventh novel installment, System Collapse, was a New York Times, Washington Post, and USA Today bestseller. System Collapse more than thrills, delivering Wells’ trademark blend of action and humor with deep questions about what it means to be sentient, all told, of course, in the inimitable voice of Murderbot.

Both editions will be:

• Printed offset in two colors (black and Pantone®) on 70# archival quality paper in Opaque Bright White
• Signed by Martha Wells
• Art by Jaime Jones
• Seven pen-and-ink interior illustrations
• Smyth-sewn binding
• 208 pages

The limited edition will be casebound in cloth, with foil stamping on the spine of the book. It includes a full color wraparound dust jacket.

The lettered edition will be quarter bound in dark brown leather, with marbled paper by Papiers Prina covering the boards. The endsheets will be Huun handmade paper, which will be repeated in the traycase. (This description is subject to change, depending on availability of materials.)

This will be the first SubPress lettered edition to feature spine hubs in a decade-and-a-half!

Limited: 750 signed numbered hardcover copies

Lettered: 26 signed copies, bound as listed above, housed in a custom traycase

Compulsory Broadside

Illustrated by Tommy Arnold.

Printed by DWRI Letterpress.

Note: There are no rights associated with Compulsory.

About the Broadside:

Murderbot—the sardonic, almost-homicidal, media-loving android created by Martha Wells—has proven to be one of the most popular characters in 21 st century science fiction. Everything that makes this protagonist (it would be wrong to call Murderbot a hero) beloved of fans is on display in Compulsory.

While trying to watch episode 44 of The Rise and Fall of Sanctuary Moon, Murderbot is—again, what is it with humans?—distracted by something that is technically outside its purview. A miner is suddenly in danger following a pointless (to Murderbot’s way of thinking) argument, and the choice is to risk discovery and leap into action, which would require hitting the pause button during a very exciting part of Sanctuary Moon, or to follow orders and stay still.

This is a tougher choice than it seems. But then, when has Murderbot ever been faced with an easy choice?A shorter version of this story originally appeared in Wired magazine.

Limited: 400 signed copies. Printed letterpress on Mohawk Superfine 80# cover. Illustrations by Tommy Arnold printed via offset lithography.

Lettered: 26 signed copies. Printed letterpress on Somerset Velvet 80# cover with a deckled edge, and custom hot foil stamping. Illustrations by Tommy Arnold printed via offset lithography.

For information regarding The Witch King, follow this link.