"All this he saw, for one moment breathless and intense, vivid on the morning sky; and still, as he looked, he lived; and still, as he lived, he wondered."

― Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows

Two Murderbot Short Stories

While I wait to get my paws on the right edition of the latest novel, which comes out in April, I caught up with two short stories.

The first one is Rapport: Friendship, Solidarity, Communion, Empathy (classified as #2.5, meaning it’s right after our favourite SecUnit met with ART, the Asshole Research Transport). It’s technically a Murderbot story without Murderbot. No thanks, you might say. But what if I tell you it’s a Murderbot story with ART pondering on the newly discovered rapport (its words, not mine) with a certain Rogue SecUnit? It’s true, I miss the narrating voice, and maybe the only way to make this perfect would have been to have it in Peri’s voice, but I understand it would have been extremely difficult to pull that off.

The second short story is Home: Habitat, Range, Niche, Territory (classified as #4.5, meaning it’s after Exit Strategy and before Network Effect). Unless you’re completely in love with the characters and suffering from withdrawal, which is fine and understandable if you are, I’m afraid this one makes for a very brief and almost pointless read. It adds very little if not nuance, as its central topic is Mensah’s trauma and that gets explored in the other novels.
Spooktober

Spooktober 2026 – That’s a wrap!

…and that’s a wrap! Eighteen classic stories, if my math is correct, 29 posts, and the candle’s waning. It’s almost time. Are you all set up? Who are you celebrating with, and what are you dressed up as? Whether it’s true crime or contemporary politicians

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October 31, 2026 10:00 am
books and literature

Bulgakov’s The Fatal Eggs

Mikhail Bulgakov (Kyiv, 1891–1940) was a novelist, playwright, and former physician, whom I’m sure you know for The Master and Margarita, published posthumously. His work blends sharp satire, fantasy, grotesque comedy, and moral seriousness, often targeting Soviet bureaucracy and ideological hypocrisy, but I had no

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October 31, 2026 9:00 am
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Spooktober 30 – The Black Monk (5)

Conclusion Kovrin received a professorship at the University. The inaugural address was fixed for the second of December, and a notice to that effect was hung up in the corridor at the University. But on the day appointed he informed the students’ inspector, by telegram,

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October 30, 2026 6:00 am
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Bulgakov’s The Fatal Eggs

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Mikhail Bulgakov (Kyiv, 1891–1940) was a novelist, playwright, and former physician, whom I’m sure you know for The Master and Margarita, published posthumously. His work blends sharp satire, fantasy, grotesque comedy, and moral seriousness, often targeting Soviet bureaucracy and ideological hypocrisy, but I had no

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