I feel like the first disclaimer of a Planet of Exile review should state that this is far more coherent and interesting than Rocannon's World; nonetheless, we only glimpse the Le Guin we have come to know from her later books through themes and philosophies within the pages of this story.

Given the miniscule page count, it's not a surprise that this story felt overly ambitious and strangely paced. In one of her later introductions to an Earthsea novel, Le Guin mentions not wanting to write conflicts in the form of war; this thought would have vastly improved the net of narratives found in Planet of Exile. In all honesty, I didn't much care for the impeding barbarian siege, nor for the love story - a pity, as these two points function as the main plot anchors of the story.

A more anthropological look at these differing societies and their clashes of customs, culminating in a need to work together to stand fast against the 15 years of winter would have been a far more interesting approach to this story. The thoughts Le Guin throws into the room regarding belonging, alienation and community are thought-provoking and have surely inspired modern-day scifi authors in their writing; nonetheless, I think I would enjoy rereading Arkady Martine's Teixcalaan books over this one if I wanted to revisit an exploration of those ideas.

I'm not saying that this book was bad - it was simply average and lacked the philosophical edge and careful writing that I have grown to appreciate so much from Le Guin. I have high hopes for the next Hainish novel nonetheless; I am sure that things will only get better from here.