One Alone Against An Empire

Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie (2013) – The Radch empire spans the galaxy, bringing system after system into their hierarchical culture. At the center of that expansion are the massive ships filled with troops that extend and enforce the Radchaii’s hegemony. Each troop carrier is a single artificial intelligence connecting its ancillary soldiers with the ship itself. When one of those ships, the Justice of Toren, is destroyed, a single ancillary survives. Its mission could destroy the Imperial Radch. But that’s not the only threat to the empire. The second will come from deep inside it.

Why I Liked It: A classic piece of science fiction!

This is the first book of a trilogy that has received massive acclaim since this came out in 2013. The series debut made a bit of science fiction history when it won the Hugo, the Nebula, AND the Arthur C. Clarke awards. This is my first exposure to writer Ann Leckie, and I can understand the reaction. “Ancillary Justice” is some amazing science fiction, with a world and story that are textured and challenging. In the first couple of chapters, I was reminded of both Martha Wells’ “Murderbot Diaries” and Ursula K. LeGuinn’s “The Left Hand of Darkness”. The challenge of a part of a larger unitary intelligence that is suddenly separated from the larger identity creates a variety of unique challenges that Justice of Torens’ unit One Esk juggles from moment to moment. The societies annexed by the Radchaii each have unique approaches to the subject of gender, which provides additional social challenges for all the characters. It’s a complicated puzzle that One Esk (who adopts the name Breq as they make their way towards their goal). As they complete each step, they are rewarded with great complexities and trials.

The book is layered enough to make describing it without spoilers a challenge unto itself. There is an entire culture that is revealed slowly but surely. A culture that bears some resemblance to our own, especially in the consequences it faces based on its historic decisions. At the same time, it is alien to ours in vitally important ways. The book is referred to as “space opera” in several reviews, which I find curious. The story is “operatic” because it is grandiose in setting and story parameters. Perhaps it is my age, but “space opera” still reeks of its earlier, pejorative meaning. It means simpler stories set in fabulous settings. The settings here are more than sweeping, but the story is a finely woven mesh of ideas and contexts that go beyond traditional space opera. This may be entirely a “me problem”, I admit. More importantly, Leckie makes it work.

Beyond the strict class-based hierarchy of Radichaii society, Leckie also explores the question of what it means to be human. Ancillaries were once human, but have been changed into something more akin to what I think of as a cyborg. Less Star Trek’s Data and more RoboCop. Their bodies have been changed with weapons and armor integrated into their bodies. On top of that, they are part of that larger consciousness. Think of it as a subtler, more sophisticated Borg from “Star Trek.” At the center is the troopship itself. Which one or ones are “human”? The ship has an emotional basis, one that can cause catastrophe. Is Breq now human? Once they were separated from the larger identity, did they gain/regain their humanity? It’s a challenge that those few who come to understand what they are will contend with.

It’s a fascinating read, and I hope to latch onto the next two books soon. In the meantime, I highly recommend “Ancillary Justice”.

Rating – **** Recommended