A Memory Called Empire

This book starts with a woman who has just become the ambassador for her station after the death of her predecessor. She has had the conscience of her predecessor implanted into her brain, but it is 15 years out of date. When she arrives on this planet, mostly unprepared, she is shocked at what she finds. The story follows her journey in uncovering the mystery of the death of her predecessor, as well as navigating this planets customs while it falls apart around her.

I went into this book knowing nothing about the plot. I was presently surprised. This book was incredibly fast paced. I could hardly keep up. My favorite parts were the interactions between Mahit and the 2 friends she made along the way. They were very fun and relatable. The biggest downfalls to me were how difficult I found following the politics to be, as well as how quickly the plot moved. Normally a fast paced plot is a good thing, but this book only spans like a week or so. I feel like Mahit is able to gain trust from so many people in such a short amount of time. People risk their professions and even their lives for a foreigner who they think is barbaric. It was hard to accept.

However, the plot is a intense and I didn't want to put it down. The characters were all unique and fun to read, while also being incredibly complex. The themes throughout of colonization and imperialism created a story that was frustrating and powerful, in a good way. I am excited for the next one. I'm interested to see where we go from here.

TW: blood, chronic illness, confinement, cursing, death, grief, gun violence, medical content, medical trauma, murder, panic attacks/disorders, police brutality, racism, suicide, violence, vomit, xenophobia