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4.29 AVERAGE
4.29 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
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
Well, I've arrived at the end of another trilogy. Unfortunately, I do feel a little disappointed.
As a quick summary, Ancillary Justice, showed a great deal of promise, particularly as a debut novel. Ancillary Sword was enjoyable, but served the small-scale purpose of "proving ground" for Breq and her crew. I really didn't mind exploring the politics/worldbuilding of Athoek as much as I thought I would. It was a great opportunity to explore interpersonal reactions, and I did enjoy it. However, Ancillary Mercy doesn't take our characters back out into the universe. It stays small, doesn't solve anything, and--while fun to read--is ultimately unfulfilling.
Perhaps it's that I prefer books that play the long game, plot wise, and Breq isn't much of a strategist. To Ann Leckie's credit, she did show the metaphorical gun before it went off, but the ending still felt rushed--mere chance, really--lampshaded by Breq's own response. There's a certain discordance between the predictability of events and their seeming-haphazard nature that really gets under my skin.
More than the 'rushed,' feeling, however, is the dissatisfaction with the ending itself. While Breq has come to terms with her new existence, and the status quo has (potentially) changed, the overt antagonist from the first book remains at large. In some ways, it feels like the author simply got tired of writing.
In general, I think the characters were underutilized, virtually interchangeable, even. Seivarden is the obvious one to point out here, but after the first half of the novel Ekalu seems to disappear entirely. Even Tisarwat, who had a lot of potential in the second book, fell by the wayside, replaced by the oddities that were Sphene (what was her narrative purpose?) and the Presger translator (extended plot device).
There were some great moments here (I have a lot of feelings about ships, now), but they are outweighed by a suffocating sense of stagnation in the plot and character development departments.
I don't regret the journey, but the trilogy--and this installment in particular--left me feeling underwhelmed.
As a quick summary, Ancillary Justice, showed a great deal of promise, particularly as a debut novel. Ancillary Sword was enjoyable, but served the small-scale purpose of "proving ground" for Breq and her crew. I really didn't mind exploring the politics/worldbuilding of Athoek as much as I thought I would. It was a great opportunity to explore interpersonal reactions, and I did enjoy it. However, Ancillary Mercy doesn't take our characters back out into the universe. It stays small, doesn't solve anything, and--while fun to read--is ultimately unfulfilling.
Perhaps it's that I prefer books that play the long game, plot wise, and Breq isn't much of a strategist. To Ann Leckie's credit, she did show the metaphorical gun before it went off, but the ending still felt rushed--mere chance, really--lampshaded by Breq's own response. There's a certain discordance between the predictability of events and their seeming-haphazard nature that really gets under my skin.
More than the 'rushed,' feeling, however, is the dissatisfaction with the ending itself. While Breq has come to terms with her new existence, and the status quo has (potentially) changed, the overt antagonist from the first book remains at large. In some ways, it feels like the author simply got tired of writing.
In general, I think the characters were underutilized, virtually interchangeable, even. Seivarden is the obvious one to point out here, but after the first half of the novel Ekalu seems to disappear entirely. Even Tisarwat, who had a lot of potential in the second book, fell by the wayside, replaced by the oddities that were Sphene (what was her narrative purpose?) and the Presger translator (extended plot device).
There were some great moments here (I have a lot of feelings about ships, now), but they are outweighed by a suffocating sense of stagnation in the plot and character development departments.
I don't regret the journey, but the trilogy--and this installment in particular--left me feeling underwhelmed.
adventurous
mysterious
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:
Complicated
Toujours sur la Station Athoek, Breq, autrefois le vaisseau Justice of Torren, semble tout avoir sous contrôle … Jusqu’à ce que, non.
Je n’en dis pas plus, parce que c’est une suite directe des deux derniers, et que la surprise vaut vraiment le coup. Si j’avais trouvé le deuxième un peu molasson, ce dernier tome conclut parfaitement la saga, avec des enjeux forts, des batailles épiques, des discussions politiques bien amenées, et toujours des personnages intéressants - Tisarwat mise à part, parce que passé son dilemme de départ, elle ne sert qu’à chialer, et est vite agaçante. Le débat autour du genre (je rappelle qu’ici, tout le monde est “elle”, et on ne sait jamais vraiment qui est quoi, parce qu’on s’en fout) et sur l’identité (le Radch ne considérant au final pas grand monde comme humain) reste un des plus cools que j’ai pu voir récemment. En définitive, une très bonne série, qui même si possédant un maillon faible, reste d’extrêmement bonne qualité.
Je n’en dis pas plus, parce que c’est une suite directe des deux derniers, et que la surprise vaut vraiment le coup. Si j’avais trouvé le deuxième un peu molasson, ce dernier tome conclut parfaitement la saga, avec des enjeux forts, des batailles épiques, des discussions politiques bien amenées, et toujours des personnages intéressants - Tisarwat mise à part, parce que passé son dilemme de départ, elle ne sert qu’à chialer, et est vite agaçante. Le débat autour du genre (je rappelle qu’ici, tout le monde est “elle”, et on ne sait jamais vraiment qui est quoi, parce qu’on s’en fout) et sur l’identité (le Radch ne considérant au final pas grand monde comme humain) reste un des plus cools que j’ai pu voir récemment. En définitive, une très bonne série, qui même si possédant un maillon faible, reste d’extrêmement bonne qualité.
adventurous
hopeful
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
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
emotional
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