The Murderbot Diaries
The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wellsby Martha Wells
Hacker ApprovedShares rank 29 of 179 science fiction novels by recommenders
Readers recommend it as a fun, easy-to-read comfort series with a distinctive narrator; critics find the ideas not especially new.
Readers recommend it as a fun, easy-to-read comfort series with a distinctive narrator; critics find the ideas not especially new.
18 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 17
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 94%
Recommended in 10 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 17 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 17 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 10 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Fun, easy comfort reading
“it's a fun read but there's no big new ideas there”
Comment from 16 Jul 2026 in “Book Prizes Don't Work How You Think” “It's basically easy-to-consume comfort food.”
Comment from 16 Oct 2026 in “Ask HN: Which books did you read at least twice?” “both are just great entertainment”
Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Ask HN: What did you read in 2025?” - Comment from 16 Jul 2026 in “Book Prizes Don't Work How You Think”
Series praised as excellent or enjoyable
“Martha Wells hit it nicely in The Murderbot Diaries.”
Comment from 18 Aug 2026 in “Google buys crashed airline Spirit's data at auction, because AI” “The Murderbot series is excellent, too.”
Comment from 18 Mar 2026 in “Ask HN: Which book are you reading these days?” “The Murderbot series is enjoyable”
Comment from 16 Jul 2026 in “Book Prizes Don't Work How You Think” - Comment from 6 Nov 2025 in “Show HN: I scraped 3B Goodreads reviews to train a better recommendation model”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Not very original ideas
“it's a fun read but there's no big new ideas there”
Comment from 16 Jul 2026 in “Book Prizes Don't Work How You Think” “the inner voice didn't feel particularly novel and had a young-adult feel to me”
Comment from 16 Jul 2026 in “Book Prizes Don't Work How You Think” Narration seemed challenging
“The narration seemed incredibly challenging”
Comment from 27 Dec 2025 in “Ask HN: What did you read in 2025?”
Other science fiction novels people recommend
The four most recommended other science fiction novels, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Project Hail Maryby Andy Weir | 117 | 24 | 83% | 12 | — | Approved |
| There Is No Antimemetics Divisionby qntm | 98 | 34 | 74% | 9 | 1.5 yrs6 owners | Approved |
| Blindsightby Peter Watts | 96 | 27 | 78% | 12 | — | Approved |
| Duneby Frank Herbert | 82 | 25 | 77% | 12 | — | Approved |
| The Murderbot Diariesby Martha WellsThis page | 17 | 1 | 94% | 10 | — | Approved |
What people said
15 of the 18 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“It's basically easy-to-consume comfort food.”
“Martha Wells hit it nicely in The Murderbot Diaries.”
“the inner voice didn't feel particularly novel and had a young-adult feel to me”
“Murderbot is a really unique character and it is written very well.”
“it's a fun read but there's no big new ideas there”
“The Murderbot series is enjoyable”
“if the Bobiverse is there then MurderBot should be to”
“The Murderbot series is excellent, too.”
“'Murderbot' makes it clear which alternative is preferable”
“both are good and different enough that you can get something from each”
“The narration seemed incredibly challenging”
“If you enjoyed the books I think you'll enjoy the show”
“I also reread the Murderbot Diaries.”
“both are just great entertainment”
“a series I have read and did like”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.