A Memory Called Empire

I can recommend A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine. Heartily recommend in fact. And if you're like me, always looking for a series to fill the time, I can recomend the Solar Clipper series by Nathan Lowell. It's nothing dramatic, just human interactions, which I found refreshing.

> Teixcalaan #1 & #2, "A Memory Called Empire" and "A Desolation Called Peace" by Arkady Martine for being very different feeling sci-fi books that are not your typical western-centric fare. Highlights are the language, and that the story feels both very small and contained, and also all-encompassing, at the same time. These were marvellous, well worth reading for any fans of Malazan/other fantasy or sci-fi.

I'll plug some excellent work that is underrepresented here: CJ Cherryh's "Cyteen". Won the Hugo for best novel in '89. The backdrop is Cherryh's Alliance-Union universe -- which is arguably one of those classic "cold war in space" type space opera settings of science fiction of a certain vintage -- but that conflict isn't the focus of this novel. Cyteen is set in the research organisation that designs, grows and conditions the "azi" clone slave caste that generates population of labourers and specialists required to keep the Union society running. I found it initially slow going, but it turned out to be one of the best novels I've read in a long time. The plot is a kind of coming-of-age / political-intrigue / murder mystery tale. Not a space opera - power games, paranoia, abuse. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyteen…

This year I've put myself to the challenge to read at least one book per week which I primarily could complete by reading in the middle of the night while holding our sleeping baby in my arms. It has been an interesting challenge which gave me a lot of fulfilment and has certainly changed my mind on how I view the world. This comment became quite a long read, apologies for that. Books I highly recommend: Churchill by Andrew Roberts (p:1105) A biography about one of the most interesting figures in politics and WWII. Roberts gives a very detailed description of the life of Churchill and manages to keep you interested the entire length of the book. The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins (p:374) In The God Delusion Dawkins gives arguments why there is no God, why we do not need a God and why religion is damaging to our society. If you are religious it might not be the book for you unless you are open to hear his arguments and line of reasoning. Dawkins will challenge your worldview. The Bomb by Fred Kaplan (p:384)…

I recently read and liked A Memory Called Empire and A Desolation Called Peace.