This was a lot more enjoyable as a reread, since I knew going into it that the first 40% or so of the book would be boring and incomprehensible space This was a lot more enjoyable as a reread, since I knew going into it that the first 40% or so of the book would be boring and incomprehensible space battles, but that it gets much more interesting by the end. (I'd initially had some hopes that the space battles might be less incomprehensible since I've finished the first two books of the series, but nope, they're still totally opaque to me.) So I sped through the first bit and then slowed down to enjoy the part of the book that focuses more on characters and imperial politics than on tactics....more
Fun space opera with a lovely queer romance and interesting characters. I especially liked the aging but forceful female commander, the highly principFun space opera with a lovely queer romance and interesting characters. I especially liked the aging but forceful female commander, the highly principled webmaster, and the amnesiac oathbreaker. The ebook is available for free on the author's website; if any of the above piques your interest, why not grab the book and check it out for yourself? [ETA: The book has since been republished and is no longer available for free.]
Enjoyable as it is, it does have some pretty big flaws. The worldbuilding is intriguing but rather too incomplete. In particular, there are a couple of immortal emperors whose immortality is never explained, which feels like an increasingly glaring omission as the story progresses. The ending is far too abrupt: at a certain point, the plot rockets to its climax and the denouement is almost nonexistent. And Wright should have excised about 90% of her adverbs and used the word "said" a lot more frequently, rather than various synonyms for the word.
Still, I had a great time reading the book (when my fingers weren't itching for a red pen), and I look forward to rereading it sometime....more
This book is my jam. A (very likable) spaceship protagonist, several skillfully written characters with distributed consciousnesses, gender deconstrucThis book is my jam. A (very likable) spaceship protagonist, several skillfully written characters with distributed consciousnesses, gender deconstruction, explorations of colonialism and (galactic) empire, an exciting space opera plot, a supporting character who's my absolute favorite variety of asshole... This is exactly what I want my science fiction to be: bold, thought-provoking, and tremendous fun....more
I liked Empire Star more than Babel-17, though I did enjoy both. Babel-17 has a great setup: an interesting and involving plot, half-science fiction aI liked Empire Star more than Babel-17, though I did enjoy both. Babel-17 has a great setup: an interesting and involving plot, half-science fiction and half-mystery, and a focus on linguistics that's both unusual and appealing. (Delany's take on linguistics is also, technically speaking, wrong, but if you're comfortable letting the Rule of Awesome gloss over the scientific inaccuracies for you, then you should be golden.) I loved several of the characters, and the setting is flawlessly and excitingly drawn.
The book felt too short, though; Delany abandons his universe just as soon as he's resolved the mystery plot, with only a brief nod towards tying up the dangling threads of the intergalactic conflict running through the story. Actually, some of the characters and sub-plots felt abandoned even before the resolution. It could've been a mindblowing book if it were only a few hundred pages longer; as it is, it's still very much worth reading.
Empire Star, by contrast, is only a novella but feels like a complete story. A very nice exploration of provincialism in a multicultural universe and of the complex nature of space and time....more
Awesome science fiction novel about a future human-alien conflict viewed from both sides of the war, with a bunch of space pirates further muddying thAwesome science fiction novel about a future human-alien conflict viewed from both sides of the war, with a bunch of space pirates further muddying the political and martial waters: sort of Firefly meets Avatar (minus the skanky race issues). The protagonist, a young boy who grows to adulthood over the course of the book, is a likable character and is eminently believable despite the precociousness that he shares with so many child protagonists. Add to that several other fascinating characters--both friend and enemy--and an involving and often surprising plot, and you get an exciting, complex, touching story about interculturality and about resistance and survival.
I can't fully recommend this book without first noting that it contains quite a bit of (mostly inexplicit, but disturbing) child abuse. But if that's something you can handle, then it's really a great read.
(Oh, and the second person POV switches to third person after the first few chapters and then stays there, so don't let that scare you off if you're allergic to second person.)...more
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