Ancillary Sword (Imperial Radch #2) by Ann Leckie

First impression

After really loving the first book on the Imperial Radch series, Ancillary Justice, and seeing that I was not the only one (is there any price Leckie didn’t win?) it was a no brainer to continue with the series. It was hard to though, because as it turns out, the changed the narrator (First book was read by Celeste Ciulla and this one is Adjoa Andoh) and so several of the pronunciations, names, etc changed and for the first quarter of the book it was hard to fully engage. Once I was past this, the story was great. Leckie has a gift in building and sharing this new different cultural groups and the Radch universe can be very dark and very colorful at the same time.

Final thoughts

While the first book was intended to be obviously the introduction to the world and developed the revenge sentiment in Breq, this book went deeper into her as character, and that was great. I really appreciated the character growth and development not only for Breq, but for Seivarden and all the rest of the team in Mercy of Kalr.

Breq is still the main voice in the story, but as she herself points out, she is missing her extra ancillaries, and while she still has the connection to Ship, there is a void on how she can “see” or perceive multiple events, compared to what she was in her past with Lieutenant Awn. Her getting accustomed to her new “unique” self was a very different part of the story, but one I really did enjoy, actually feeling her confusion and somewhat sadness to “just be one”.

At first I disliked Lieutenant Tisarwat but by the end of it I was quite fond of her and I am hoping to see her again in Ancillary Mercy. While in this book the focus is settled in character development I feel there is still room for surprise from all the main characters.

The book is set in Athoek Station, far away from the lord of the Radch, but certainly not far from political intrigue. In case you haven’t noticed, the Radch are very keen to maintaining or improving their social status and what is “proper” might change according to what is convenient. Not for Breq; in my own opinion she sticks to the parameters of being a Radchaai even better than any other character even if she despises a big deal of this façade based behaviour.

As much as I liked the book and even if I wasn’t expecting the final twist (no spoilers, don’t worry) there was something missing and I can’t help but to think that this feeling comes from the struggle to engage with the story at the beginning, due to the change of narrator. While both narrators did a terrific job, I am used to a certain continuity of voices by now when I am listening to a series.

This does not dissuade me from waiting anxiously for the next book. I still loved the whole world that Leckie has constructed for us, and contrary to some reviews I saw, I didn’t feel like the political critique was heavy or obscured the rest of the story; on the contrary I think that it is one of the sides I enjoy the most of the series. Let’s hope the trilogy closes with all the spirit and strength present in AJ.

Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie

If everything that happens is the will of Amat; if nothing can happen that isn't already designed by God, why bother to do anything.

Why I read this book?

This was the November pick for the Sword and Laser Book club. It sounded like a very good book, so much that my boyfriend wanted to read it too, so we decided to get it with Audible and listen to it while driving to the lab.

What the book is about?

The book is told from the point of view of the Ancillary Justice of Toren a AI whose main "body" was a Radch spaceship and that also used to have hundreds of ancillary bodies, all connected to one same mind. Through the book we learn what happened to all of her bodies and to her as one episode describes us the present and the next the past until the story merges. This new single body, called Breq, is dealing with being a single identity, learning how to be human and getting all the way to get revenge.

Final thoughts

Both my boyfriend and I really enjoyed the book!. At first it was hard to get used to the absence of genre distinction amongst the Radch, but before you realize it you stop thinking about the characters as a he or a she and just concentrate on the story alone; it was a nice twist on language and it accentuates the fact that genre doesn't really matter for the story.

Another good point is the struggle of the AI being one or several and how this unity could be fractured. I think it was an interesting take on how we are also one and several at the same time. Even more, the fact that most of people would consider the Ancillaries as just machines incapable of feelings or moral clashes.

The whole political situation of the Radch was very well written too, a nice critique I think to the belief that people are just civilized if they are doing stuff the way we do them. A continuous thought during colonization centuries ago and actually still around, sadly.

Also the position on religion, I found it very interesting how the author created the whole Radch mythology that would also absorb the basics of religions all over the planets they "civilized"

Celeste Ciulla, the narrator was amazing, not only doing the different voices but giving a "mechanic" voice to Breq while filling her sentences with full intentions.

If you are going to do something that crazy, save it for when it will make a difference.