Reviews - Ancillary Mercy | The StoryGraph

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2.1k reviews for:

Ancillary Mercy

Ann Leckie

4.29 AVERAGE

avlexx's review against another edition

3.0

funny tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

aevalorbin's review against another edition

4.75

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

pikabzh's review against another edition

So much tea, I really need to make a stop at the bathroom now. Forget all the classical end of the universe scenarios, here comes the Big Pee.

As much as showing the very regimented, victorian-like manners and customs of Radch society could explain some peculiarities of the second book, I'd have expected some aspects to be put back in the background after the point was made.
Yet, there's hardly a page without someone rushing to make tea, even in the middle of a crisis, and it feels like Radch military officers foremost duty is to ensure tea remains available at all times. That's Radch military supply chain for you.
I also felt the flurry of inter-personal dramas to be overweighted over the plot. It might have something to do with setting a cosy ambience, however the lack of depth of the characters involved made those uninteresting.

I would also have appreciated more balance in the characters.
Breq is the main badass and most others have gone soft, likely an effect of the Radch having slowed down on its conquering ways, but still surprising as the last annexations happened some 20 years before.
Thankfully, the station AI and other ships are here to show more spine than the human protagonists do.
And the Presger translator, to act weird, shock the tea drinkers out of their wits now and then, look foolish before reminding everyone they are all but, representing as they do a race that could settle everyone's disputes in a radical way if they were drawn in.

Overall, an entertaining read, but definitely a drop from the first book.

karen_gareis's review against another edition

5.0

A satisfying conclusion to a series that really kind of blew my mind. How can a swashbuckling space opera deal with issues of power, identity, colonization, war crimes, consent, slavery, personhood, guilt, plural consciousness, class, justice, gender-blindness, and a million other things while also being so fun, gripping, suspenseful, interesting, entertaining, thought-provoking, and, at times, quietly hilarious? Breq is obviously my favorite character, but I loved all the scenes with Sphene and Translator Zeiat in this book. It's also fun to get to know (Athoek) Station better. I spent the first half of Book 1 (Ancillary Justice) pretty dang confused, but that's purposeful, and it is very well worth sticking with it to learn what's going on and to see things getting resolved. I recommend the shit out of this entire series! Best books I've read in a long time.