Activation Degradation by Marina J. Lostetter, a nice little read that comes at an odd angle to a story. A biological robot that is forced into a situation that its completely unprepared for and which challenges its programming.

There’s a lot of comparisons flying around about how much this book is inspired by The Murderbot Diaries, and while there are definite similarities (especially at the beginning) the character of Unit Four is quite different. There is more inquisitive nature and less snark than Murderbot, and the story is different also. The book starts off with action but I felt it got bogged down in technobabble that kept things from progressing at a good pace. In fact, the beginning seemed so slow that I almost DNF’d at the end of chapter 4, but I’m glad I hung in there because it got more interesting. Overall I thought it was just okay.

Marina Lostetter's Activation Degradation is a solid science fictional action story about the clash between robots and humans. We are introduced to Unit Four, one of a team of biological robots operating a space station near Jupiter that manages an important energy mine on the planet's surface. Suddenly the station comes under attack from an alien space ship, and Unit Four is guided in its response by its handler, based on earth and communicating in real time through an ansible transmitter. Once the action settles down about mid-book, all sorts of complications arise as Unit Four is forced to rethink who the aliens really are, his own nature as a biological robot and the intentions of its handler. Some of the action and plot seemed too predictable and often chapters drew out the all-too-obvious reveal in the prose equivalent of slow motion, taking us through each detail even when it's obvious where the story is going. But apart from that problem, largely confined to the first half of the novel, the story evolves into a deeply interesting meditation on our expectations about robots, aliens and humans. I wasn't always convinced by Unit Four's later epiphanies about its nature, but there is a lot to get from this story.

!!! I'll be honest: when I started this, I was a bit annoyed because it seemed like a Murderbot ripoff, and I was close to DNF'ing. Glad I kept going because it is definitely NOT THAT. Unit Four is a completely different character, and I love it.

There is so much more to this book than meets the eye. It says so much about the world we live in today, kind of an allegory maybe.

Love, love, love these characters, and that ending--oof. I seriously hope this is the start of a series!

A huge thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for a copy of the ARC!

I absolutely adored this fresh new take on robots and humanity. The story was engaging and impactful while being fast paced and tugging at your heart. Can’t recommend this enough.

This one was between a four and a five star title for me but got the nod for a five based on quality of narrative and some snappy internal monologue. A think the cover copy is misleading - while the book features a biological “robot”, it isn’t Murderbot. Nor, to be fair, do I think the author trying to replicate Martha Wells’ series character. I think the marketing copy does a disservice.

What the book features is a hastily awakened biological robot trying to defend its mining station off Jupiter with the urgent prompting of its ansible connected handler back on Earth. Action ensues immediately, and mysteries start piling up shortly thereafter, centering around questions of identity: of the protaganist robot, it’s controllers, and it’s foe.

I found the book easy to read and I found the unraveling of the mysteries generally well done. I thought the resolution less likely, both from an emotional and intellectual standpoint.

So 4.5 stars, rounded up to 5 for a a largely engaging work.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for a fair review.

An exciting read and great Sc-Fi story. The book is a quick read and has all the action and suspense you could want, coupled with an intriguing look at an individual’s discovery of their humanity. I highly recommend this book.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

First of all, this book is nothing like the Muderbot Diaries (referred in blurb) other than the fact we have Cyborg (?) MCs. If you’re looking at a Murderbot’esque read, this is not it. This book offers something unique on it’s own which got muddled (initially) because of that reference.

The book just throws you right in the middle of action from Page 1. We have a just (and incorrectly) reconstituted Unit 4 waking up on a mining station which is being attacked by Invaders. We follow Unit 4 as it tries to orient itself not just to the ‘grogginess’ of premature waking up but also to the crappy tactical situation it is waking up to. The battle scenes are vividly done and the prose actually put me in the shoes of Unit 4. Very realistic!

The plot progresses as we get to know details of the dynamics of the immediate battle from Unit 4’s discussions with it’s handlers and the overall macro world opens up nicely. It’s done very organically and though there are a few info dumps the book does not suffer for them.

The way the book plot is structured makes it hard to write a review without spoiler-ing the whole shebang, but let’s just say Unit 4’s decisions leads it to a new journey of discovery that will rock both itself and the reader to the core. I managed to predict few of the twists, but then the author still successfully pulled the rug from out under me closer to the climax. Interesting turn of events, to say in the least!

Whereas Murderbot is more charming and fun, Unit Four is a more realistic and gritty. We get to see it on the back foot from the get go as it tried to get a handle on a shitty tactical situation it woke up to and then we see it struggling to keep its head up as the events and their implications spiral out of context and control. The human elements in the plot though done well had a Hollywood-y convenient feel to it and without having the time for natural progression. I had a similar impression with the climax too. It had the feel of a movie script. Not that it’s bad, but just didn’t have a take I found novel.

Overall, I had a good time reading it. If you’re looking for a space drama with action, this should be in your TBR!