2024 SF, fifteenth of its series. Tension rises in the remote Chimera
system, while everyone waits for the inevitable alien attack.
Well, there is of course a great big space battle, though much of
the outcome is determined by prior analysis of intelligence reports
rather than by cunning plans improvised in the moment. So that's good
to see. But I found myself more interested in the other matters; first
the politics, as the Mage-Queen continues to work towards a more
democratic style of government (and for example can't push through a
measure that would be unpopular in parliament, even though she has the
allies to do it, because then the new parliament would feel it didn't
have any real power), and later diplomacy as the negotiator tries to
work out something to make Chimera seem worth saving to a population a
long way away that has plenty of its own problems.
There's a bit more of Roslyn Chambers this time, which I welcome after
Chimera's Star; occasional short cuts to other viewpoints don't
bring her story to a halt. Some loose ends are tidied up, and of
course new ones are left dangling.
If the course of the book is essentially predictable, well, perhaps
I'm asking too much. Still fun, but if I'd started here I wouldn't
have felt enthused to continue the series.
Note that I will only approve comments that relate to the blog post itself, not ones that relate only to previous comments. This is to ensure that the blog remains outside the scope of the UK's Online Safety Act (2023).
Your submission will be ignored if any field is left blank, but your email address will not be displayed. Comments will be processed through markdown.