The treaty was everything. The treaty was why we existed to begin with. The way that Reet had talked about the treaty, the way it was talked about in Pirate Exiles of the Death Moons, you would think that only the treaty stood between all humans and certain death. Which maybe was true... [p. 352]
It's a decade since I read Ancillary Justice, and for some reason I never finished the trilogy: but I did not find Translation State impenetrable or especially confusing. It helps that Enae, one of the viewpoint characters, is being slowly introduced to the wider universe after years spent tending hir recently-deceased grandmother. Sie's free to travel, and encouraged to take up a role that involves invstigating the disappearance, two hundred years ago, of a Presger Translator. The Presger are fearsome inhuman aliens: their Translators are modified humans. Another of our viewpoint characters (and the only one with a first-person narrative) is Qven, a young Translator who's been singled out for great things: and the third protagonist is Reet, who prefers to work alone and shuns social events, instead eating takeaway and watching his favourite show, Pirate Exiles of the Death Moons. (I sympathise.)
These three stories converge, via historical conflict between the Hikipu and the Phen. Enae is caught up in a pro-Hikipi political demonstration; Reet is heralded by the local 'Siblings of Hikipu' group as a descendant of legendary Hikipi rulers, due to his genetic anomalies; and Qven, whose great future is in ruins, is forced to make an alliance of convenience. The three voices are distinctive, and their concerns and actions are convincing. But I wasn't entirely satisfied by the last third of the book, which felt at once hectic (trapped in a maze!) and handwavy (major developments happening off-page, emotional bonds formed very quickly). Plus, my hackles rose at the phrase 'For reasons that it would take too much time to explain just now' -- uttered by a character, felt like the author taking a short cut.
But I did enjoy reading Translation State. It's an interesting exploration of self-defined identity, how a personality is shaped (the Translator juveniles are literally little monsters), and how ancient history can still be acutely relevant.
Having read this, I shall be rereading Ancillary Justice and following it with Ancillary Sword and Ancillary Mercy: I had forgotten how much I like Leckie's writing.
Shortlisted for the Hugo Award for Best Novel, 2024.
Fulfils the ‘About finding identity’ rubric of the 52 books in 2024 challenge.
No comments:
Post a Comment