Embassytown

By: China Mieville

Narrated by: Susan Duerden

Length: 12 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

China Miéville doesn’t follow trends, he sets them. Relentlessly pushing his own boundaries as a writer - and in the process expanding the boundaries of the entire field - with Embassytown, Miéville has crafted an extraordinary novel that is not only a moving personal drama but a gripping adventure of alien contact and war.

In the far future, humans have colonized a distant planet, home to the enigmatic Ariekei, sentient beings famed for a language unique in the universe, one that only a few altered human ambassadors can speak. Avice Benner Cho, a human colonist, has returned to Embassytown after years of deep-space adventure. She cannot speak the Ariekei tongue, but she is an indelible part of it, having long ago been made a figure of speech, a living simile in their language.

When distant political machinations deliver a new ambassador to Arieka, the fragile equilibrium between humans and aliens is violently upset. Catastrophe looms, and Avice is torn between competing loyalties - to a husband she no longer loves, to a system she no longer trusts, and to her place in a language she cannot speak yet speaks through her.

©2011 China Mieville (P)2011 Random House

Critic reviews

“A breakneck tale of suspense...disturbing and beautiful by turns. I cannot emphasize enough how terrific this novel is. It's definitely one of the best books I've read in the past year, perfectly balanced between escapism and otherworldly philosophizing.” (io9)

“Embassytown is a fully achieved work of art…Works on every level, providing compulsive narrative, splendid intellectual rigour and risk, moral sophistication, fine verbal fireworks and sideshows, and even the old-fashioned satisfaction of watching a protagonist become more of a person than she gave promise of being.” (Ursula K. Le Guin)

“Brilliant storytelling... The result is a world masterfully wrecked and rebuilt.” (Publishers Weekly [starred review])

not mievilles best in my opinion

Weird factor was there for Mieville but the story just wasnt captivating for me. Definitely not what I would call a page turner.

Challenging ideas, great world building

with an ending that seemed a bit too pat, the effort to reach resolution too direct and fast.

wonderful performance with great differentiation between characters

creative use of the medium to convey a sense of what the Language of the Hosts sounds like.

what an excellent read well worth the payoff

really extremely well done I need fifteen words but you should just read the damn book

Journey is the Destination

This was a really enjoyable read. Hard to listen to at first, but once you get accustomed to the writing style, the ideas and concepts the character interactions evoke are really interesting. I found myself less concerned about the narrative and more just immersing myself in the strangeness of the world. Eventually, when the story ramped up, I was thoroughly engrossed in the revolution I was witnessing.

must hear to fully appreciate.

Embassytown is a very original and thought provoking story that truly needs the audio touch to be fully appreciated.
Set in an alien world in which humans and the indigenous species of evolved insects called Ariekei coexist; the story centers around language.
Few humans can speak the Ariekei language, those that can have been genetically altered and are called ambassadors.
For reasons that are explained the "ambassador" is always two separate people that share the single title.
Hearing the Ariekei language spoken, by the ambassador and the Ariekeis, is one of the main reasons the audio version of this story is needed to fully appreciate what China Mi??ville has created.
In my opinion most books are enhanced in the audio format but still can be enjoyed as a read; for this story audio is a must.

Absolutely BRILLIANT!!

Susan Duerden did an absolutely brilliant job of narrating this exceptional novel! I am certain that my enjoyment of "Embassytown" was significantly enhanced by her performance.

This is my first exposure to the writing of China Mieville and I am so blown away. This is best scifi I have read in a very long time. A mesmerizing story populated with fascinating characters - human, alien and machine - set (mostly) on a planet at the very edge of the known universe.

I just can't find the words to express how amazing this novel is. Highly recommended for any SciFi fan and for anyone with an interest in language.

Smart Humans-and-Aliens Story

Any additional comments?

Excellent story of two cultures colliding: humans and fascinatingly strange aliens. This story is more focused and tighter than China Mieville's earlier (also excellent) work. Truly great.

Another good Mieville

Mieville continues to entertain and provoke with his latest, his first real science-fiction proper. He has scaled down the rather messy ambitions of Perdido St. Station and now keeps his stories relatively simple. This one's set way in the future and has a bit of space opera along with interesting conjectures on the form of alien languages. It's not quite as magnificent as Kraken, but it's an excellent tale. Good reader, too.

Even if you don't love sci-fi...

Would you consider the audio edition of Embassytown to be better than the print version?

Absolutely - given that the Ariekei speak using two voices, listening to the audio version really allows you to appreciate that. Also, I feel like I would have flown through this book out of desperation to find out what happened next had I read it, and this is one that deserves appreciation of every word.

What did you like best about this story?

I feel like this might be odd, but I was extremely invested in the characters, especially the Ariekei. I was completely riveted, and completely immersed.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I may have pounded the steering wheel in triumph at least once and yes...cried piteously while out on a walk one day (I had to take time to compose myself before returning to work).

Any additional comments?

I am so glad that my brother recommended this book so forcefully and frequently to me. I am not a big reader of sci-fi, and the description didn't really captivate me. However, I trust his judgment, so gave it a try. I'm so glad I did - I think it was one of the most interesting, engrossing, and moving books I have read all year (or longer). I think everyone should give this book a try, regardless of whether it is a genre they usually enjoy. I would think that lovers of serious fiction and young adult fiction alike (although perhaps not actual children - older teens should be fine) would enjoy this book, as I did.

Intriguing and surreal

You're smart enough to understand this book, and the narrator's accent isn't especially difficult for American listeners. It's also excellent.