Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Activation Degradation | 2021 | Marina J. Lostetter | Buy |
Activation Degradation (2021) is Marina J. Lostetter’s standalone novel and one of her most accessible books. It follows a robot that wakes up mid-mission with no knowledge of where it came from or why it was built, then has to survive long enough to find out. The setup is simple but the execution is sharp, with the mystery of the robot’s origins feeding a plot that moves at a thriller’s pace.
The book works well for readers who enjoy science fiction with a strong identity question at its core (what does it mean to be a person if you were made rather than born?) without requiring any familiarity with Lostetter’s other work. It stands entirely on its own.