Top 15 Martha Wells Quotes

Maybe exploring every possible outcome of each action in an inescapable loop of paranoia and anxiety wasn’t the most normal reaction-state but hey, if it was, there would be a lot fewer stupid murders.

I can’t tell if that’s you being passive aggressive or you being willfully obtuse.

Since she was human she was doing it slowly (it was like watching algae grow).

I had archives of everything that had happened since I hacked my governor module, but I hadn’t had as much relevant experience in that time. But what I did have were thousands of hours of category mystery media, so I had a lot of theoretical knowledge that was possibly anywhere from 60 to 70 percent inaccurate shit.

The big danger to humans is not raiders, angry human-eating fauna, or rogue SecUnits; it’s other humans. They kill each other either accidentally or on purpose and you have to clear that up fast because it jeopardizes the bond and determines whether the company has to pay out damages on it or not.

Because change is terrifying. Choices are terrifying. But having a thing in your head that kills you if you make a mistake is more terrifying.

Wow, that sounded pathetic. Like the “I want to be special! How come I’m not?” crap humans pull all the time.

But I couldn’t ignore it. I mean, I guess I couldn’t. Ignoring stuff is always an option, up until it kills you.

It wasn’t a foolproof method but it was 90 percent effective. (Foolproof is another weird word. Shouldn’t it be smartproof? It’s not like you’re going to breach and seize control of a ship attached to a space dock by tripping or forgetting to bring your weapon or something.)

For a being as sophisticated as you are, it is baffling how little understanding you have of the composition of your own mind.

Self-determination was a pain in the ass sometimes but it beat the alternative by a lot.

(If I got angry at myself for being angry I would be angry constantly and I wouldn’t have time to think about anything else.)
(Wait, I think I am angry constantly. That might explain a lot.)

Was that a subtle threat?
I said, "No. It wasn't subtle."

She said that in the normal human adolescent exasperated and borderline whiney tone. (That’s actually statistically normal for human adults, too.)

Data suggests family dramas bear a less than 10 percent resemblance to actual human families, which is unsurprising and also a relief, considering all the murders. In the dramas, not Mensah’s family.