Best Martha Wells Audiobooks

The best Martha Wells audiobooks — 5 titles ranked by listening experience across Sci-Fi, averaging 4.27 ABR stars.

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Martha Wells built her reputation on one of science fiction's most unexpectedly lovable protagonists: Murderbot, a part-human, part-machine security construct that would rather watch serialized TV dramas than deal with the humans it's contractually obligated to protect. The Murderbot Diaries — starting with All Systems Red — runs on wry, deadpan humor and a surprisingly tender examination of autonomy, anxiety, and what it means to want things. Wells writes with sharp economy: her prose is lean and propulsive, her action sequences clean and fast, but the emotional undercurrent catches you off guard. Network Effect expands the world without losing the intimate voice that makes the series work. Readers who are tired of self-serious space opera and want something funny, humane, and genuinely hard to put down will find exactly what they're looking for here.

Martha Wells's highest-rated audiobook in our collection is All Systems Red, narrated by Kevin R. Free (4.33 ABR stars). Performed by Kevin R. Free, January LaVoy. Rankings here weight the listening experience — narrator performance and Audible ratings factor alongside reader scores.

Where to Start with Martha Wells

  1. 1
    All Systems Red cover

    All Systems Red

    The Murderbot Diaries • Book 1

    by Martha Wells

    Narrated by Kevin R. Free

    ★ 4.33 ABR Score (402.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.11 Goodreads (379.7K) ★ 4.49 Audible (22.4K)
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    A security android who's hacked its own protocols just wants to watch TV shows, but keeps getting dragged into protecting humans from corporate conspiracies. Kevin R. Free perfectly captures Murderbot's sardonic internal monologue and social anxiety.

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  2. 2
    Artificial Condition cover

    Artificial Condition

    The Murderbot Diaries • Book 2

    by Martha Wells

    Narrated by Kevin R. Free

    ★ 4.49 ABR Score (232.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.25 Goodreads (219.8K) ★ 4.67 Audible (12.3K)
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    Murderbot teams up with a sarcastic AI research vessel to investigate its own dark past at a mining facility. Kevin R. Free perfectly balances the android protagonist's deadpan humor with genuine vulnerability.

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  3. 3
    Rogue Protocol cover

    Rogue Protocol

    The Murderbot Diaries • Book 3

    by Martha Wells

    Narrated by Kevin R. Free

    ★ 4.47 ABR Score (186.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.24 Goodreads (176.3K) ★ 4.68 Audible (9.8K)
    More about this pick

    Murderbot infiltrates a corporate research facility while dodging questions about its past, mixing sci-fi action with social anxiety humor. Kevin R. Free perfectly captures the SecUnit's deadpan internal monologue and reluctant heroism.

    Start Listening → Get the Book →
  4. 4
    System Collapse cover

    System Collapse

    The Murderbot Diaries • Book 7

    by Martha Wells

    Narrated by Kevin R. Free

    ★ 4.40 ABR Score (81.0K ratings)
    ★ 4.25 Goodreads (76.8K) ★ 4.66 Audible (4.2K)
    More about this pick

    Kevin R. Free perfectly captures Murderbot's anxiety spiral as corporate rescue missions and ethical dilemmas collide on a colonized planet in crisis.

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  5. 5
    Razor's Edge: Star Wars Legends cover

    Razor's Edge: Star Wars Legends

    Star Wars: Legends • Book 1

    by Martha Wells

    Narrated by January LaVoy

    ★ 3.66 ABR Score (886 ratings)
    ★ 4 Goodreads (13) ★ 4.16 Audible (873)
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How We Rank Audiobooks

Rankings are driven by listener ratings and review counts from Audible and Goodreads. Books with high ratings across a large number of listeners rank higher — a 4.5 with 50,000 ratings says more than a 4.8 with 200.

Unlike most book lists, we weight audiobook-specific factors: narrator performance, production quality, and how well a story translates to audio. A great book with a poor narration isn't a great audiobook.

We don't accept paid placements or prioritize new releases. These rankings reflect what listeners actually enjoy, not what's being promoted.

Rankings update periodically as new ratings come in and new titles are added to the collection.

Read our full ranking methodology →