System Collapse (The Murderbot Diaries, #7)

by Martha Wells

Planets where you have to investigate the probably-not-empty, possibly-alien-contaminated Pre–Corporation Rim occupation site while wearing an environmental suit instead of armor are especially not boring in the bad way, maybe the worst way. Especially when you could have been wearing armor, but you decided to be weird about it instead.

So the next time I get optimistic about something, I want one of you to punch me in the face. Okay, not really, because let’s be real, that would end badly. Maybe remind me to punch myself in the face.

argucussion—with

I’d seen documentary-style series about this before, but this one mixed parts that were realistic with fun stuff like space battles and rescuing people and space monsters and throwing asteroids at planets. (That last part is actually realistic, too, but if you try they will send a bunch of gunships to fuck you up.)

Yeah, I’ll just code a patch to stop feeling anxiety, wow, why didn’t I think of that earlier. (That was sarcasm, I have too much organic neural tissue for that to work.) (Of course I’ve already tried it.)

This changed the whole strategic whatever of our situation from “somewhat tricky” to “oh shit.”

TIE-IN NOVELS Stargate Atlantis: Reliquary Stargate Atlantis: Entanglement Star Wars: Razor’s Edge

Wells wrote these three as fanfiction and has been quoted as saying "Sanctuary Moon" references are loosely in response to these three.