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Murderbot., a rogue sec-unit, part organic, part cyborg, learns that its friend/former owner Dr Mensah, has been kidnapped by the evil GrayCris corporation, and makes its way across the galaxy to help. Murderbot prefers to watch soap stories on downloaded media, and has never been programmed to work on its own initiative, without instruction. It hasn’t been programmed to care, but it is growing as a person, making decisions contrary to its original programming. I’ve always thought of Murderbot as female, even though it is genderless, but Kevin Free has a neutral enough voice that his narration works well. This is a novella length story, easily consumed in a day. I’ve really enjoyed all the Murderbot stories so far. Highly recommended.
Nov. 20th, 2023
This short ghost story is a classic, featuring Mr Garrett, a librarian who, while searching for a book requested by John Eldred, encounters a black-clad mouldering clergyman, so strange it causes him to pass out and be given recovery leave. On the train to the seaside he meets the Simpsons, a mother and daughter, who offer him lodgings. He learns that they are in an inheritance struggle over the missing will of a clergyman called Rant, and Garrett pieces together their story with John Eldred's search for a very particular book, and the spectre of the long-dead clergyman. Beautifully read, as might be expected, by David Suchet.
Narrated by a young bowman, Camlin, this is a slight story of a gang of outlaws who take in a stranger who then fights for leadership. It could be our world (Medieval) or it could be a secondary world. Hard to tell unless you've read other works by John Gwynne. This is apparently a prequel to the events in Gwynne's book, Malice (which I have not read). I suspect it's for his established readers. As a standalone, there's not much to it, but the fight scene is well written, and well read by John Keating.