Martine captures all of that really well. So we also feel that initial displacement, the feeling of not belonging as a true citizen but only as a misfit subject of an annexed kingdom. We see it all through the eyes of Mahit and there’s so much affection and respect there.Īt the same time, Mahit is a diplomat from another country. Mahit greatly admires the erudition of the Empire, and has studied their literature, poetry and art forms for years. There’s a complicated nomenclature system and elaborate cultural norms of the ruling kingdom. Martine has created a unique world here, with undertones of Central Asian, Byzantium and Aztec influences. Mahit finds that Yskandr’s imago in her brain has been sabotaged! Also, it seems imago technology isn’t so hush-hush after all - and several people are fighting over it… And the city where Mahit has been posted is an AI hive-mind which is malfunctioning… Oh, and there are new monstrous aliens at the gate… What I liked about the book The trouble just keeps on piling up from there. (Phew, hope I got the description right!) Imago is essentially a bio-chip that carries the endocrine memory of a person, and can be embedded and integrated into the brain of another person. More curious still is the fact that Lsel Station possesses a secret and unique technology: the imago machine. Mahit is deputed as ambassador from the tiny Lsel Station to the mighty Teixcalaanli Empire when her predecessor, Yskandr, dies in mysterious circumstances.
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