A Desolation Called Peace (Teixcalaan Book 2)

The Teixcalaanli Empire stands on the brink of war with an unknown alien race. Fleet Captain Nine Hibiscus and her fleet stand at the edge of the conflict, tasked with defending the Empire from an enemy whose numbers, capability and disposition are all unknown. She calls in Envoy Three Seagrass to help formulate a way of talking to the enemy...who in turn calls on her friend, Lsel Ambassador Mahit Dzmare, for aid. These are the same two people recently involved in the circumstances surrounding the accession of the new Emperor, and this triggers a tidal wave of political intrigue stretching across light-years. But their mission must succeed, for the aliens pose a threat to far more than just the Empire.A Desolation Called Peace is the second book in a loosely-connected duology, following up on A Memory Called Empire. That novel was as dramatically impressive as any space opera debut from the last couple of decades, a confidently-written novel about politics, identity and intrigue that won a Hugo Award. This book is the continuation, although the main story (about the first encounter with an unknown alien race in deep space) stands alone.Desolation is not quite as striking a novel as Memory, maybe because it is trying to do a bit too much. The novel continues the political intrigue on the Teixcalaanli homeworld from the previous novel, albeit with some new players (most of the intriguers from the previous novel having been fired, killed, imprisoned or exiled), whilst also throwing in a widescreen, big-budget space war and an Arrival-style subplot with the protagonists trying to understand the aliens' language, which is difficult because it is rooted in concepts, ideas and fundamental biology that humans are completely unfamiliar with. Further subplots revolve around the new Emperor trying to assert their authority, the Emperor's heir learning important lessons about statecraft and Seagrass and Mahit's relationship, which was left on an awkward pause in the first book. There's also internal politicking within the Teixcalaanli fleet and a lot of business on Lsel Station as well.It makes for a busy, breezy book with a lot going on, but the tight page count (480 pages in paperback) means a lot of these ideas are not explored in as much detail as maybe they could have been. Extending the duology to three books or making A Desolation Called Peace into a Peter F. Hamilton-class shelf-destroyer might have been a better way of expanding these stories more satisfyingly. Still, leaving readers wanting more and making novels as tight as possible is not a bad thing either.Many of the themes from the first novel continue to be explored, such as the tension between the semi-decadent Teixcalaanli, whose overwhelming power makes them both arrogant and overconfident when faced with a potentially greater threat, and the much more pragmatic inhabitants of Lsel Station. The aliens are an added wild card here, with an interesting biology and impressive technical prowess, and a truly alien way of thinking that the author evokes well through the text. The aliens are also not over-used, deployed just enough so we get a sense of their strangeness but not so much that they lose their effectiveness.If poetry was a theme of the first book, language is a theme here, and how language shapes ideas and ideology (and vice versa). Like some other plots, the Arrival-like storyline of talking to the aliens is a little curt, but what we do get is fascinating. There is also the way the Teixcalaanli use language themselves, and how they communicate and what methods of communication they use. This becomes a key point of the subplot involving the Emperor's heir, which initially feels detached from the main narrative but loops back in satisfyingly later on.A Desolation Called Peace (****) is an accomplished, page-turning, idea-packed space opera which tells a lot of great stories, but the sheer number of stories it is telling in a constrained page count means that occasionally you find yourself wishing more greater elaboration of a storyline or character arc. But it also gives the novel a relentless, compelling pace.

This sequel wove in more threads and more story than the first. There’s something lovely here about the exploration of the boundaries of the self through different alien and human interpretations. Really creative writing.

It’s rare for me to think a sequel is better than the first book, but in this case I could make an exception.It may have been the chance to revisit some intriguing characters and find out more about them. Or the delights of revisiting such a sophisticated and immersive world.The author cleverly mixes emotion, action and humour to weave an intricate plot from many threads. The reader has to pay attention to follow the story, but the rewards of doing so are very much worth it. The climactic scenes are well paced with the right amount of tension as the elements come together for an exciting (and unexpected) resolution.And the aliens are absolutely fascinating!

This is much more space opera than hard SF: though the world building is excellent and the technical background plausible (once you accept a sufficiently advanced technology) the author clearly isn't much interested in the nuts and bolts of how things work. She doesn't spend long on descriptions of spaceships or weaponry, even though the story is largely set around the opening stages of a huge interstellar war. Her focus is more on the politics and the culture behind the politics - but especially on the individuals who embody the culture and develop the politics. Very much character driven, in spite of it's broad sweep of events.This attitude does leave some questions hanging - such as how both the aliens threatening the Empire and certain elements within it have achieved a level of communication which is not only fully immersive but (far harder to explain in my opinion) instantaneous over interstellar distances?But such nit-picking didn't really effect my enjoyment of the story. Well paced, intricately developed and centered on well developed characters it had me absorbed throughout, and I'd certainly recommend it to any SF fan - unless you're put off by slightly wobbly science!I'd also recommend that you read the first book, 'A Memory Called Empire', before this one. It could stand alone, but the background to both the plot and the characters adds a lot to the story.

The first book in this series, A Memory called Empire, built a fantastic civilisation in Teixcalaan and another in the Station Lsel. Having established those contrasting cultures, this book flings them together with another, much stranger alien culture.I reflected reading this that it is really difficult ro do something completely new in SF these days. All the old cultures of Earth have been mined for models, and innumerable novels and TV shows have explored the possible forms of space warfare and space soldiery. This novel doesn't contain anything wildly new. Hive minds? Check. Vast bureaucratic empires? Check. Loyal soldiers, impressive generals? Check. Wily politicians? Check. Subversive foreigners? Check. But what brings it together for me is the author's wonderful command of character and of language. Each of her characters is real, differentiated by everything from backstory to vocabulary, varied and interesting even if you hate them. The relationships between them are subtle and carefully explored. And her language is splendid, taking no prisoners. Personally, I enjoy a glossary at the back, and recognise that you can't always translate a word exactly - sometimes you need to use the original, even if it is in Aztec.So, just as enjoyable as the first one, slow to start but really picking up the pace as it goes along, satisfactorily resolved with the possibility of more to come... I LIIKE this book.