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booksthatburn's review
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-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? Yes
4.5
*I received a free review copy as part of 2022 Hugo awards voting.
A DESOLATION CALLED PEACE is a collision of cultures bleeding into war, trying to find the bounds of personhood in more than flesh and bone.
The plot follows several parallel threads, centering on various characters. I love Twenty Cicada’s storyline. He’s one of my favorite characters, followed closely by Eight Antidote. Mahit and Three Seagrass are working together again, this time to find a way to communicate with the aliens whose proximity Mahit had used as leverage in the previous book. The worldbuilding focuses on intra-empire politics as much as it focuses on the empire’s communications with Mahit and with the aliens. It balances stress and war with levity and intimacy, exploring connections and communication as characters with conflicting methods and competing aims collide.
This answers a few things left hanging from the first book, showing the next steps without closing much off. There’s a new storyline involving aliens which is almost entirely new (the existence of those aliens was pivotal in Mahit’s big move at the end of A MEMORY CALLED EMPIRE). A few major things involving those aliens are both introduced and resolved. It specifically leaves aspects of Mahit’s relationships to other characters to be resolved later, but with substantial changes from how they were at the start of the book. Some of narrators are the same, with the addition of a new perspective between sections. I don’t think Eight Antidote was a narrator last time, if he was it was brief, but he, Mahit, and Three Seagrass are all narrators this time.
This story likely wouldn’t make sense to anyone who hadn’t read the first book. Because Mahit was on her first journey as an ambassador last time, A MEMORY CALLED EMPIRE had a lot of exposition which could fit naturally into that story. A DESOLATION CALLED PEACE is therefore (assuming one read the first book) free to focus on building up descriptions of the fleet, the Shards, and the aliens, leaving the Empire and its basic details to be shown but more rarely explained.
The ending utterly devastated me, wrapping up the main story and leaving me sated, but promising more in the vast future now made possible by the resolution.
A DESOLATION CALLED PEACE is a collision of cultures bleeding into war, trying to find the bounds of personhood in more than flesh and bone.
The plot follows several parallel threads, centering on various characters. I love Twenty Cicada’s storyline. He’s one of my favorite characters, followed closely by Eight Antidote. Mahit and Three Seagrass are working together again, this time to find a way to communicate with the aliens whose proximity Mahit had used as leverage in the previous book. The worldbuilding focuses on intra-empire politics as much as it focuses on the empire’s communications with Mahit and with the aliens. It balances stress and war with levity and intimacy, exploring connections and communication as characters with conflicting methods and competing aims collide.
This answers a few things left hanging from the first book, showing the next steps without closing much off. There’s a new storyline involving aliens which is almost entirely new (the existence of those aliens was pivotal in Mahit’s big move at the end of A MEMORY CALLED EMPIRE). A few major things involving those aliens are both introduced and resolved. It specifically leaves aspects of Mahit’s relationships to other characters to be resolved later, but with substantial changes from how they were at the start of the book. Some of narrators are the same, with the addition of a new perspective between sections. I don’t think Eight Antidote was a narrator last time, if he was it was brief, but he, Mahit, and Three Seagrass are all narrators this time.
This story likely wouldn’t make sense to anyone who hadn’t read the first book. Because Mahit was on her first journey as an ambassador last time, A MEMORY CALLED EMPIRE had a lot of exposition which could fit naturally into that story. A DESOLATION CALLED PEACE is therefore (assuming one read the first book) free to focus on building up descriptions of the fleet, the Shards, and the aliens, leaving the Empire and its basic details to be shown but more rarely explained.
The ending utterly devastated me, wrapping up the main story and leaving me sated, but promising more in the vast future now made possible by the resolution.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Medical content, Death, Grief, Blood, Gore, Medical trauma, and War
Moderate: Cursing, Colonisation, Violence, Genocide, Fire/Fire injury, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, and Vomit
Minor: Suicide, Ableism, and Self harm
thoughtsontomes's review
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
While the end of the last book was promising, this added so many POVs that felt pointless and distracted from the story I wanted, which was more exploration of the imagos and more of the first contact. Some of those POVs played a part in the last part of the book, but I still think it could have been done in a more condesned and less meandering way. I found myself not caring about the extra POVs. We went from 1 POV in book one to 4+ in this book. Also, there were a lot of loose ends not tied up with those POVs in any satisfying way. The authors writing is good, but I didn't like how it was applied to this plot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: War
Moderate: Death and Colonisation
tangleroot_eli's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
I enjoyed A Memory Called Empire, and this book blew it out of the danged water. The world-building was even richer, the characters more distinct, the perspectives more tightly controlled, and the intrigue more intriguing. Basically, Martine took everything she did well in Book 1 and did it even better here. Gosh I hope there's more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Death, Vomit, and Injury/Injury detail
deedireads's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.
TL;DR REVIEW:
A Desolation Called Peace was a great sequel to A Memory Called Empire. Bigger scope, better pacing, same great characters being pushed even further toward growth — what’s not to love?
For you if: You like hard sci-fi novels (and already ready Memory!)
FULL REVIEW:
A Desolation Called Peace is the sequel to A Memory Called Empire, which together make up the Teixcalaan duology. Memory won the Hugo Award and was nominated for a bunch of others, and Desolation already won the Locus Award and is nominated for this year’s Hugo.
The duology itself is about a woman named Mahit from the space station Lsel, who travels to the capital Teixcalaan as ambassador. Those from stations and planets outside the empire are called “barbarians” by the Teixcalaanli, whose society revolves around things like advanced poetry. But those from Lsel have a secret technology called Imago machines, which basically implants the recorded consciousness and knowledge of another person into their minds. Mahit is given a very old Imago machine from the previous ambassador, who recently disappears, and is thrust into a mystery and revolution in Teixcalaan with just her liaison, named Three Seagrass, for help. This book picks up a few months after that one left off, sending Mahit and Three Seagrass to the reaches of the empire, where the war with mysterious aliens rages — or does it?
There is so much to love in this duology. It’s sapphic, which we always love to see. It’s got lots to say about home and loyalty and even more about colonization and the stickiness of prejudice, even in the face of love. It’s got really really good characters (who grow even more, in better ways, this time), and the scope of the world are exquisitely, intricately built. Nobody can make political relations as exciting as Arkady Martine! I do also think the second book was a bit better paced in the middle than the first one was (mostly because less worldbuilding).
TL;DR, if you like hard sci-fi, don’t sleep on these books!
TL;DR REVIEW:
A Desolation Called Peace was a great sequel to A Memory Called Empire. Bigger scope, better pacing, same great characters being pushed even further toward growth — what’s not to love?
For you if: You like hard sci-fi novels (and already ready Memory!)
FULL REVIEW:
A Desolation Called Peace is the sequel to A Memory Called Empire, which together make up the Teixcalaan duology. Memory won the Hugo Award and was nominated for a bunch of others, and Desolation already won the Locus Award and is nominated for this year’s Hugo.
The duology itself is about a woman named Mahit from the space station Lsel, who travels to the capital Teixcalaan as ambassador. Those from stations and planets outside the empire are called “barbarians” by the Teixcalaanli, whose society revolves around things like advanced poetry. But those from Lsel have a secret technology called Imago machines, which basically implants the recorded consciousness and knowledge of another person into their minds. Mahit is given a very old Imago machine from the previous ambassador, who recently disappears, and is thrust into a mystery and revolution in Teixcalaan with just her liaison, named Three Seagrass, for help. This book picks up a few months after that one left off, sending Mahit and Three Seagrass to the reaches of the empire, where the war with mysterious aliens rages — or does it?
There is so much to love in this duology. It’s sapphic, which we always love to see. It’s got lots to say about home and loyalty and even more about colonization and the stickiness of prejudice, even in the face of love. It’s got really really good characters (who grow even more, in better ways, this time), and the scope of the world are exquisitely, intricately built. Nobody can make political relations as exciting as Arkady Martine! I do also think the second book was a bit better paced in the middle than the first one was (mostly because less worldbuilding).
TL;DR, if you like hard sci-fi, don’t sleep on these books!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Death
hanz's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, and War
Moderate: Grief and Colonisation
kathleencoughlin's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-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? No
4.75
An excellent sequel to A Memory Called Empire. Familiar characters were thrown into new situations. The world was expanded. Martine built on ideas and themes about belonging and self. Overall very interesting and fun.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Xenophobia
Moderate: Body horror, Gore, and Genocide
Minor: Grief and Suicide
criticalgayze's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
First, I would like to thank the publisher (Macmillan Audio) for an advance listening copy of this title that I am very behind on reading.
I think the choice to move all of the characters into unknown territory in the sequel works in this novel's favor and boosts it slightly over A Memory Called Empire for me. My major gripe with Memory was that I felt the reader was not given quite enough world building on the Teixcalaan empire to understand and appreciate all the machinations of the palace intrigue plot. I also thought it focused too much on describing, rather than showing, poems as a cornerstone of the Teixcalaan society's culture. In A Desolation Called Peace, the poetry element plays a much more minor role, and the story moves away from the under built empire to a first-contact narrative. This allows all three societies involved in the engagement to be on unsure footing, and it forces Martine to have to explain for the benefit of all involved. (The issue is not fully resolved, however, as we do still get some of the under-explained dissidence in the empire via the storyline of the empire's heir.)
I also really appreciated the use of a choral narration. The reemergence of choral narration is proving a big stylistic device in recent literary fiction, and I am appreciative of the grandeur of it all.
I would also like to again shout out Amy Landon, who returns to the sequel to provide fantastic narration.
I think the choice to move all of the characters into unknown territory in the sequel works in this novel's favor and boosts it slightly over A Memory Called Empire for me. My major gripe with Memory was that I felt the reader was not given quite enough world building on the Teixcalaan empire to understand and appreciate all the machinations of the palace intrigue plot. I also thought it focused too much on describing, rather than showing, poems as a cornerstone of the Teixcalaan society's culture. In A Desolation Called Peace, the poetry element plays a much more minor role, and the story moves away from the under built empire to a first-contact narrative. This allows all three societies involved in the engagement to be on unsure footing, and it forces Martine to have to explain for the benefit of all involved. (The issue is not fully resolved, however, as we do still get some of the under-explained dissidence in the empire via the storyline of the empire's heir.)
I also really appreciated the use of a choral narration. The reemergence of choral narration is proving a big stylistic device in recent literary fiction, and I am appreciative of the grandeur of it all.
I would also like to again shout out Amy Landon, who returns to the sequel to provide fantastic narration.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Medical content, and Death
Moderate: Sexual content, Genocide, and Xenophobia
greymalkin's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Loved this sequel, though for different reasons than the first one. If the first one was a murder-mystery-political-thriller, this one is a scifi-horror-military-drama. Which is 100% okay with me. I continue to love Arkady Martine's attention to all the little details that make the cultures feel like living breathing groups that can sustain factions within them, instead of sanitized archetypes.
The editing on this one felt a little rushed, there were some repetitions of phrases that should have been caught, but nothing that ruined the flow, just caused an occasional hiccup.
Also I adored Swarm and truly believed Nine Hibiscus as yatolek.
The exploration of Three Seagrass and Mahit Dzmare's relationship was nicely done, and a lot sexier than I had expected given how chaste/demure the first book was. The author notes said it was even more sexy before which I kinda am sad we didn't get to read because that would have been fun. I was also amused at the Tribble references, and the pulp Golden Age comics references.
The editing on this one felt a little rushed, there were some repetitions of phrases that should have been caught, but nothing that ruined the flow, just caused an occasional hiccup.
Also I adored Swarm and truly believed Nine Hibiscus as yatolek.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
readandfindout's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
slow-paced
4.0
Style/writing: 4.5 stars
Themes: 4 stars
Characters: 4 stars
Plot: 4 stars
Worldbuilding: 3.5 stars
Themes: 4 stars
Characters: 4 stars
Plot: 4 stars
Worldbuilding: 3.5 stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Death, Blood, Gore, and War
Moderate: Violence, Medical trauma, Body horror, Xenophobia, Vomit, Genocide, Panic attacks/disorders, and Grief
just_one_more_paige's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
The first book in the Teixcalaan series, A Memory Called Empire, made my favorites of the year list in 2020. It was such a phenomenally detailed space opera that totally swept me off into its world (but also really made me work for it, with the intensity of the world-building). That being said, I bought myself a copy of the sequel as soon as it came out. Though as I'm sure everyone could have predicted, it took me much longer than that to finally get to reading it.
A Desolation Called Peace throws us right back into the Teixcalaan Empire, as fleet commander yaotlek Nine Hibiscus is facing down an enemy armada, one that communicates in an unintelligible language that makes listeners feel physically ill and whose weapons are nigh on unbeatable. As more of her people die every day, Nine Hibiscus reaches out to the Information Ministry for help, and is answered immediately by Three Seagrass, whose life has felt quite mundane since the events of the last book and Mahit Dzmare's departure. She decides to answer the call by heading to the warfront herself, with a stop along the way to pick up Mahit from her home Lsel Station. Thoroughly surprised by Three Seagrass' arrival, Mahit takes her up on the (only sort of optional) invitation to head to the front as a reprieve from a tense political situation at Lsel (related to the suspected poor integration of herself with her imago predecessor Yskandr). Together, under Nine Hibiscus' tight watch, the two women enter into an unprecedented and very precarious attempt to make first contact (and negotiation) with the aliens attacking Teixcalaanli's fleet, attempting to do the almost impossible and prevent what looks to be an inevitable violent conflict (while simultaneously figuring out what their own interpersonal relationship reality is).
I feel like that was a super long summary blurb, but it also feels ok that I said that much. There's no real secret or twist in this novel that could be given away. And if you read and liked the first one enough to want to read this one, you're in it for the detail, the language and the political intrigue and the continuation of the wonderful subtleties in Martine's world-building. And to get that, you really do have to read the full book anyways. So, all that having laid the foundation, let me just say that this is quite possibly one of the best sequels I've ever read. It builds perfectly on the Teixcalaanli world we were introduced to in the first, all the intricacies of setting and communication and politics internal to the empire, and expands it outward, external. It's the perfect way to grow that both complements and doesn't repeat anything. With that expansion in scope comes an expansion in lingual understanding, Martine's particular speciality, based on how elaborate that aspect is in both novels now. The coded ways of talking, of sharing meaning without saying it directly, but rather approximating the words you actually mean, is masterful and fascinating. And I love the way language is presented in conjunction with cultural ideology here, like the idea of having a word for loss being innately and necessarily connected to the people having the concept of loss and/or pronouns being necessarily preceded by the concept of a self. Amazing and such intelligent writing/philosophy.
I enjoyed watching the way Mahit got to grow in this one, since the shell-shocked "new ambassador" reality was less immediate (though she moved into "shell-shocked for other reasons" pretty swiftly). The point is, though, she had a little more space to work to comes to terms with the duality of her love for Teixcalaan everything (language/culture) and her anger at the way it colonized and labeled her and her people barbarian, along with the additional complications of her feelings for Three Seagrass and the further intertwining of herself and Yskandr's minds. Related, the push and pull of Three Seagrass and Mahit’s emotional connection to each other, despite all ingrained social reasons against it, was written so well. This particular relationship is tightly intertwined, thematically and representationally, with Martine's conceptual exploration of colonization: a nuanced look at colonizers/the colonized and the complex relationships between them, as affection and interest grow, but a deep lack of awareness of how to correctly respect/acknowledge from the colonizer (to the extreme that they don’t even understand how minimizing/insulting they are being), that the gulf between is potentially uncrossable despite all individual want to the contrary. There were some other newer, or more fully developed, characters that I really enjoyed reading as well. Nine Hibiscus and her adjutant, Twenty Cicada, were fascinating to read. And I actually liked Eight Antidote’s narrative sections as well. They were a humorous and mature-childlike way to learn and tell a story to make the political complexity of this story and Teixcalaan's foreign relations, diplomacy and internal affairs, accessible to readers (similarly to the way seeing it through Mahit’s fresh ambassador eyes did in the first book).
Overall, this was a most spectacular, very original, first contact story. The feelings of excitement and terror intermingled and communicated so well that I *felt* them myself. All the pressure of international conflict, mass casualties, time crunch and myriad other horrible outcomes riding on whether or not successful contact/negotiation could be made was intense and I loved it! Plus, all the interpersonal stuff and ideological compulsions and nuances on top of it: nonstop reader engagement. This sequel, expanding on the first but really a standalone in its own right, was simply magnificent.
“This was definitely true and also not very comforting at all. True things weren’t, mostly.”
“…a person who so loved […] that she’d replaced her ethical responsibilities with the appalling brightness of that love, and didn’t care what she burned out to preserve it.”
“For assuming she would come with her, of course she would – and not thinking that when the Empire asked, even in the person of a friend, a maybe-lover, there really was no way for a barbarian to say no and keep being the kind of barbarian the Empire thought of as a person.”
“Language is not so transparent, but we are sometimes known, even so. If we are lucky.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Death, Violence, War, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Sexual content