A Desolation Called Peace

A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine, 496 pages

With an empire still finding its feet after the shocking transfer of power at the end of A Memory Called Empire, the Teixcalaanli fleet is not quite sure how to handle a deadly and unknown alien threat where the ships seem to arrive out of nowhere and leave no survivors in their wake. Fleet leader Nine Hibiscus makes the controversial decision to seek first-contact assistance from the Information Ministry (instead of her own military intelligence sources). Now Three Seagrass and Lsel ambassador Mahit Dzmare (you knew they'd be involved somehow) are tasked with negotiating with a hostile new alien species that doesn't use any known method of communication.

Martine has done a wonderful job of once again showing the delicacy of diplomacy within a culture, between two cultures that already have a history, and in a first-contact situation. While the mental gymnastics of the military and political worlds are certainly intriguing, my favorite character was 11-year-old emperor-to-be Eight Antidote, who becomes a spy and learns his own way through the adult world around him. This was fantastic, and I'm not surprised that it won the Hugo. Can't wait to see what Martine writes next!

A Memory Called Empire

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine, 462 pages

I first read and blogged about this book almost exactly a year ago, so instead of rehashing my description of the plot here, I'll simply link to my previous blog post. Basically, it's about the new ambassador from a small space station to an ever-expanding empire that she both loves and fears. It's an incredible novels that has racked up lots of award nominations over the last year, and I'm excited to discuss it with the Orcs & Aliens book group tonight. It's clever, nuanced, and interesting on so many levels, which means it's ripe for discussion.

Binti

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor  90 pp.

I am squeaking one last book into 2018 just under the wire. This brief novella is one of the selections for the Great Stories Club I am leading at Lieberman Learning Center. Binti is of the Himba people in Namib, a race of mathematicians who create technology used throughout the galaxy. She is the first of her race to be accepted into Oomza University on a far away planet. Against her family's wishes she leaves her home to travel to Oomza. The transport is commandeered by a group of Meduse, an alien race seeking to revenge a wrong perpetrated at the university. Binti is the only one who can negotiate a peace and prevent the Meduse from killing everyone at the university including herself. This is a classic science fiction story with an underlying theme of peace between races. I'm looking forward to the discussions with the teens about this story.

Provenance

Provenance by Ann Leckie, 439 pages

In an attempt to get her mother's attention and prove that she's a capable adult, Ingray makes the risky move of buying a political opponent's child out of prison, sure that she can maneuver this act into the recovery of stolen artifacts and ensure her mother's political prowess. Things don't exactly go to plan, however, and Ingray and the former prisoner find themselves mired in a controversy that involves murder and several species of angry aliens.

This was a much lighter book than I expected, given the weight of Leckie's Imperial Radch trilogy. I very much enjoyed the characters, particularly Ingray, whose vulnerabilities and stubbornness rang incredibly true to me. I can't wait to discuss this next week for the Orcs & Aliens book group!