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A review by thebookbin
Translation State by Ann Leckie
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
While on vacation I finished my ARC of Translation State by Ann Leckie. Again, I’m late to the game because Leckie is clearly a master at her craft and I’ll be moving Ancillary Justice to the top of my TBR.
This book is a fascinating mix of mystery, coming-of-age, political thriller and sci-fi epic. The three main characters, Enae a wealthy but downtrodden heiress whose evil grandma didn’t leave sir anything when she died, Reet a gruff mechanic who is desperately searching for some proof of his genetic background to explain why he has cannibalistic tendencies, and Qven a Presger Translator, a being designed by the mysterious Presger species to mediate with the humans on their behalf.
As all three of these characters move along their journeys, they become entangled in increasingly interesting and complicated ways. As a character, Enae annoyed me a little. Sie felt like sie didn’t have a backbone and just let things happen to her. On the other hand I resonated with her. Sometimes I feel like I get steamrolled by my family.
Leckie is able to craft a mystery that is so interesting, and she does it so well. Pretty early on it is clear to the reader, who gets multiple points of view, what is happening to Reet. But this doesn’t detract from the mystery: it’s a reward for paying attention. Leckie leaves you breadcrumbs to follow to ponder how you will.
The heart of this novel is personhood and identity. Reet isn’t who he thought he is. And Presger Translators must merge with another to become Adults, and Qven, new to the world and kept in the dark, isn’t sure e wants that. Being unsure is not Optimal Behavior and could result in em being “discarded”. Each of them wants diplomatic immunity from being forced to match by declaring themselves human. But are they? An interesting question to ponder, and Leckie does it very well.
From what I understand, this novel takes place in the same universe as her other books. I very much look forward to getting to know this universe. It’s diverse and complicated and this one book barely scratched the surface. And I hope I’ll get to meet some of these characters again.
Side note: from now on I will only read science fiction authors who understand gender as we view it now is an outdated human construct and build that into their universes.
5/5 two bodies-one-person stars
This book is a fascinating mix of mystery, coming-of-age, political thriller and sci-fi epic. The three main characters, Enae a wealthy but downtrodden heiress whose evil grandma didn’t leave sir anything when she died, Reet a gruff mechanic who is desperately searching for some proof of his genetic background to explain why he has cannibalistic tendencies, and Qven a Presger Translator, a being designed by the mysterious Presger species to mediate with the humans on their behalf.
As all three of these characters move along their journeys, they become entangled in increasingly interesting and complicated ways. As a character, Enae annoyed me a little. Sie felt like sie didn’t have a backbone and just let things happen to her. On the other hand I resonated with her. Sometimes I feel like I get steamrolled by my family.
Leckie is able to craft a mystery that is so interesting, and she does it so well. Pretty early on it is clear to the reader, who gets multiple points of view, what is happening to Reet. But this doesn’t detract from the mystery: it’s a reward for paying attention. Leckie leaves you breadcrumbs to follow to ponder how you will.
The heart of this novel is personhood and identity. Reet isn’t who he thought he is. And Presger Translators must merge with another to become Adults, and Qven, new to the world and kept in the dark, isn’t sure e wants that. Being unsure is not Optimal Behavior and could result in em being “discarded”. Each of them wants diplomatic immunity from being forced to match by declaring themselves human. But are they? An interesting question to ponder, and Leckie does it very well.
From what I understand, this novel takes place in the same universe as her other books. I very much look forward to getting to know this universe. It’s diverse and complicated and this one book barely scratched the surface. And I hope I’ll get to meet some of these characters again.
Side note: from now on I will only read science fiction authors who understand gender as we view it now is an outdated human construct and build that into their universes.
5/5 two bodies-one-person stars
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault