A Memory Called Empire

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine is one of those gigantic worlds in a book. An epic start to what will surely be an epic series (the Teixcalaan series). But if epic series scare you, don’t worry. This book has a nice resolution and is a complete story unto itself.

The main character, Mahit is an ambassador from a small system with no habitable planets (everyone lives on space stations, and they call themselves Stationers). She has been assigned as an ambassador to the gigantic Teixcalaan Empire. Her job is to keep her system from being gobbled up by the empire. She is replacing the previous ambassador who is dead. How he died is one of the first things she must figure out.

The Stationers like Mahit may not have the rich culture of the empire, but they have a secret. They have a machine (an Imago) infused in their brain that gives the host access to the memories of a previous host. It’s not really immortality, but it is a way to keep memories and experiences alive. In her case, her imago carries the memories of the dead previous ambassador, which would be helpful except for the fact that the recording of his memories was made 15 years prior, so she has no idea what has been happening in the imperial capitol when the prior ambassador was killed. Mahit is a stranger in a strange land. She has studied Teixcalaan, but she is as obvious an outsider as a gorilla attending the opera. She does have an ambassadorial liaison named Three Seagrass who is there to help smooth the way for the barbarian. But Mahit is never sure of who she can trust. (All Teixcalaani names begin with a number and end in a noun. This can be amusing like when we meet an annoying bureaucrat named Six Helicopter).

These are treacherous waters as Mahit survives two assassination attempts, though we are not certain if she was the target for the first one. Also, her imago is malfunctioning (possibly sabotage), denying her access to the previous ambassador’s memories and knowledge. If this was not enough, the empire is in conflict. A potential war of succession looms as the old emperor grows closer to death. Three co-emperors have been named to succeed him, and also a general is maneuvering to take the throne. The empire has split itself into factions (not unlike what is happening to my country right now. Coincidence?) The political intrigue calls on every bit of Mahit’s wits to stay alive and protect her home.

It is no surprise that this book won the 2020 Hugo award. Martine has crafted the world building with care and attention to detail. The pace begins slow, but escalates to an edge-of-your-seat thriller. I had a hard time putting it down. Even though this novel is satisfying in itself, I am looking forward to the sequel.

Star Liner

Comments

Iron Fist in a Velvet Glove

Despite both of us having science backgrounds, my wife and I share a leaning toward the artistic, though we may express it in different ways. In her life, my wife has been a painter, a poet, a singer, an actor, and a fiction writer. Not to mention a mother. I don’t remember what precipitated this event, but my wife, my son, and I were at home in the front room. My wife was responding to something my son said. She said, “remember, you get half your brains from me. If it wasn’t for me, you’d be a complete idiot.” To which my son started howling with laughter and said to me,” I think you have just been insulted.” Sometimes I feel like Rodney Dangerfield. I get no respect. But that is not an uncommon state of affairs for fatherhood. When my son was going to middle school and high school, my wife was always the one to go in with him to get him registered for classes. One time she was unable to go and I had to be the one to get him registered. “Ugh,” he said. “why can’t Mama do i...

Empathy

Websters defines Empathy as: “the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experience of another.” Empathy is what makes us human, though lord knows there are many humans who don’t seem to have any. A person without empathy is like a caveman, only concerned for himself. Selfish. It is a lack of community and by extension, a lack of the need for civilization. The person who lacks empathy can have a bit of community, but only with others exactly like himself. It seems like societies go through cycles of empathy and less empathy. Sometimes a single event can change the course of society. Prior to America’s involvement in WWII, the general feeling in America was not very empathetic. We had our own problems. We were still dealing with the lingering effects of the Great Depression, and had been for years. That kind of stress makes it hard to think of others. Hitler was slashing through Europe. He and his fol...

All That We See or Seem by Ken Liu

My first experience with cyberpunk as a genre of science fiction was Neuromancer by William Gibson. Neuromancer was one of the early works that defined the cyberpunk genre. It was insanely influential. It won the Hugo Award, the Nebula Award, the Philip K. Dick Award. But for me, it just did not resonate. I had a hard time visualizing the concepts. It left a bad taste in my mouth for cyberpunk. I mostly avoided the genre. Then a couple of years ago I read Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson which is cyberpunk (although some people say it is a parody of cyberpunk). Whatever, I liked it. I recently picked up All That We See or Seem by Ken Liu and it immediately became apparent to me that this was cyberpunk. Julia Z is the main character, and I think this is going to be the start of a series following her. She is a hacker (hence cyberpunk). She has got herself in trouble and so she lives on the margins, barely making it. Then a lawyer asks her for her help. His wife has been kidnapped. The ...

A speculative mind

Search This Blog