Reviews

Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie

bhnmt61's review against another edition

4.0

It's been a long time since I fell in love with a character in a book the way I did with the narrator of this one. Who knew you could fall in love with a spaceship? But really, you have to practice such enormous patience while reading Ancillary Justice that I almost threw it aside half a dozen times. I dislike feeling stupid, and being so thoroughly in the dark about what was going on for at least the first third (half? two-thirds?) of the book made me feel stupid. There is a complex, far-flung universe with ornate religious practices and byzantine political intrigues, not to mention gender ambiguity, cloning that means multiple versions of the same person exist, and single AIs that exist over multiple bodies. It's complicated, and I have to seriously admire Leckie for working it out, even if I wanted to strangle her on multiple occasions while slogging through parts of it.

Still, I'm glad I read it, and by the time I got to the last 50 pages I couldn't put it down. Worth reading, not the least because of the memories it brought back of Ursula LeGuin's Left Hand of Darkness and Dan Simmons' Hyperion series, which I adored back when I was more interested in science fiction than I am now. And I do love One Esk/Breq. If you enjoy complex world building and stories that challenge your brain, don't miss it.

swansm4's review against another edition

mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

craac's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

davidschejtman's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

outcolder's review against another edition

4.0

It's not that the gender stuff or the stuff about artificial intelligence is all that ground breaking, but it's an exciting, well-told story. Particularly appealing is the Lord of the Radch who exists in multiple bodies working with conflicting motives. This device also invites useful meditations on imperial motivations and the nature of empire. The Radch culture is sketched in a way that is detailed enough to let the reader imagine a complex cosmology and ethical system without going overboard and overwhelming the action or character development. At the same time, the Radch do not come across as just an old recognizable Earth culture set in the future, or even as a rough pastiche. There are similarities with recognizable historical empires, and we are told again and again that the Radch (and the people they conquer) are human, but overall it feels new and not like a thin allegory. Also excellent are the truly alien aliens who we do not meet but whose minds and cultures are definitely not human or understandable. That's always especially difficult in science fiction, I think.

There were a couple of places where the kind of Joseph Campbell Hero with a 1000 Faces moments were just screaming, like, the character who warns the hero not to go on, or the reluctant sage who has the magic item needed to complete the quest, but I was "into it" enough that it was more of a "Oh, she's studied classic myth structure" than a "Groan, following the formula" kind of thing.

Definitely will read the next in the series.

mkonrad's review against another edition

5.0

Great sci-fi in the classic tradition of "what if cool premise" instead of using the sci-fi as simply flavor. Complex but at the same time very easy to read. And so many fun identity feels!

curiouslyjade's review against another edition

4.0

Enjoyable and original sci-fi read -- actually unapologetically sci-fi-y. I want to do a second read to catch the details I missed the first time around.

amblygon_writes's review against another edition

5.0

Fun, unique, well written! This book is exciting, and I loved the unique main character. I also really liked the fact that not everything was clear from the start, and the world slowly unraveled. I can't wait to read more! The exploration of culture and the approach to gender were fresh and interesting. (Despite knowing a language that uses gender neutral pronouns, it was still a bit confusing - but I love the challenge to how we think about gender in English).

taytots24's review against another edition

dark reflective slow-paced

3.75

Very creative concept, and a very well developed world. My only hang up was that the audiobook was kind of hard to follow (in my situation - I.e. in the background while doing chores and chasing a toddler). The narrator’s difficulty in identifying people’s gender was a clever and honestly brilliant device, but with my not being able to focus, I had a harder time keeping track of the side characters. This book deserves a re-read in about 5 years - I’m guessing my rating will improve significantly when I can give this book the attention it deserves. 

jazjaz's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

2.75