Ancestral Night

3.0 out of 5 stars

My first foray into Elizabeth Bear's work was her excellent 2017 fantasy novel The Stone in the Skull, which I enjoyed immensely. I knew that Bear is known for writing in a multitude of genres, but I wasn't prepared for the genre whiplash I experienced when I picked up the space opera Ancestral Night. The book follows Haimey Dz, a space salvager who uncovers a piece of ancient alien technology that, in the wrong hands, could be catastrophic for the galaxy at large. ...lo and behold, space pirates are hot on Haimey's trail.

This is really sharp, smart science fiction that goes deep on the details and philosophy of its world and Haimey herself. Bear's vision for the future of space is so intricate and sophisticated that a lot of it flew way over my head. Tonally, it's quite cold and calculated, which made it difficult for me to form lasting emotional connections to the characters. I enjoyed learning about Haimey's backstory and witnessing her connection to her shipmates, but those moments of humanity seemed fleeting. I think the plot description makes this sound like an exciting space adventure, but I found it to be quite slow, contemplative, and unevenly-paced overall.  The prose is dense and difficult to penetrate at times, with many of the scientific elements pushing well beyond my realm of understanding.

I could certainly see this winning some awards because it really feels like next-level science fiction and more advanced than most of what I've read in the genre. Personally, I wasn't able to connect with the story, but I come away from the reading experience even more impressed with Bear's skill as a writer and would not be surprised if others enjoyed this more than I did.

My thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf.