God’s War

Bel Dame Apocrypha, Book 1

By: Kameron Hurley

Narrated by: Emily Bauer

Nyx had already been to hell. One prayer more or less wouldn't make any difference...

On a ravaged, contaminated world, a centuries-old holy war rages, fought by a bloody mix of mercenaries, magicians, and conscripted soldiers. Though the origins of the war are shady and complex, there's one thing everybody agrees on - there's not a chance in hell of ending it.

Nyx is a former government assassin who makes a living cutting off heads for cash. But when a dubious deal between her government and an alien gene pirate goes bad, Nyx's ugly past makes her the top pick for a covert recovery. The head they want her to bring home could end the war--but at what price? The world is about to find out.

©2011 Kameron Hurley (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

A thought provoking rarity

This is one of those rare sci-fi novels that uses the genre to explore our own culture and assumptions by turning them on their head in a far-flung fictional world. The true beauty and success of the narrative is that the book does this without becoming preachy.

This is not a simple book. It explores questions of gender, religion, morality, violence, war, bio-engineering and what it means to be human. The protagonist is an anti-hero... complex, morally ambiguous, someone who I could believe as a scarred war veteran.

You should read this book and appreciate it for the nuanced examination of social structures, belief and the affect of war on the human psyche. Or, you could simply read it for the action, the pacing, the unique sci-fi world building and the interesting story.

The narrative and the narration flow so well together that I didn't experience any of that disconnect you sometimes feel in an audiobook.

I rarely give 5 stars. I gave this 5 stars across the board.

Unending bugpunk theocratic holy war

Kameron Hurley's God's War is the first installment in her Bel Dame Apocrypha trilogy. The tale takes place in a bizarre universe where a planet has been settled by an Islamic-like theocratic orthodoxy. At some point in the past, the world split in mirror images of each other along gender lines and has been fighting a nearly non-stop war with the classic WWI/II 'front' motif serving as a meat grinder for both sides with extensive biological warfare. There are smaller bit players that provide unique characters. The world is 'powered' by insect where 'magicians' serve as medical specialists directing the bugs which also serve as an electricity source. The main character is a female version of the typical male anti-hero who has managed to piss everyone off. She is given the assignment to run down an alien who possess some sort of ultra-weapon.

Hurley's bizarre world building is offered without any explanation for its origin. As to how half the planet split into 180 degree reversal of traditional Islamic culture is provided by a weak explanation. Given the attrition rate from the war, one would suppose that men would command even greater influence given their reduced numbers. At the same time, the hard drinking, aggressive nature of the female population seems more a caricature of traditional society and as such, the women have little imagination. The backstories on the supporting characters are not that engaging. In the end, there is little redeeming value in any of characters or the whole planet in general.

The narration is well done with reasonable character distinction and smooth pacing.

Challenging and refreshing

This book has some fresh perspectives on women, war (particularly holy war), and technology. I enjoyed it, and look forward to finishing the series.
NOTE: The person who referred this book to me said it was good, but awfully violent, and I have seen that in some reviews. I didn't think it was particularly violent in comparison to other books in the genre. Sadly, our real holy wars are probably more violent.

A well-developed story of politics, religion & war

Nyx has been serving as a bel dame, a state-sanctioned bounty hunter who is paid to track down and collect deserters - dead or alive - by *almost* any means necessary. But it's the almost that gets her in trouble. After breaking one too many rules, Nyx finds herself cast out of the bel dames and imprisoned. Not a great position to be in.

Until the government has a somewhat dubious contract go bad and needs a covert recovery. Suddenly, Nyx's name is at the top of the list.

But with the war, which has been ongoing for centuries, still raging, the job isn't going to be easy.

Set in a world that is largely disconnected from the other planets in space due to an outdated spaceport, the planet is very religious, and the religion seems very strongly based on Islam. As tends to happen over time, while the different countries both have foundations in the same religion, their particulars have divided sharply over the years. Nyx is from Nasheen, which has a strongly matriarchal government and culture. Men are sent off to fight in the war and are only allowed to return home if they survive to 40. Sexuality is open, and lesbian relationships are very normal. Even with this very unbalanced society, Hurley still manages to create characters who are nuanced; whether male or female, they all have varied backgrounds, ethics, and morals, all of which affect the decisions they make.

In this matriarchal society, the only men who are exempt from fighting the war are those who have the ability to control the bugs. Termed Magicians, these men have the ability to manipulate the bugs and their energy. As some of the technology is a hybrid with organic material, the bugs are used in power generation and healing. Though the magical system underpinning this ability isn't fully fleshed out. Perhaps in the next book. In that way, though, with the magic and other aspects, the book reminded me of Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee - terminology and societal setup without explanation. Like when I was reading Ninefox Gambit, though, God's War works without a lot of explanation. That's not to say there is no information given - there is some - but it's unlikely to be enough for some readers who want explanations for everything, or for those readers who aren't used to reading books in the genre without full explanations.

As for the actual storyline, it is dark, and that's where it really lost me. While I have read some dark novels in the past that I loved, I tend to steer away from them in general. As it was, this was a book that I had to force myself to continue - not because it wasn't good (it was), but because it just wasn't my cup of tea. Despite that, I can recognize that it is a really good novel, and if I liked reading dark stories more, I would have truly enjoyed this book and be looking forward to continuing the sequel. Overall, the pacing seemed inconsistent to me, but I'm not sure if that's because it actually was or if that's more a reaction of my having to make myself continue it.

I will say that the narrator of the audiobook - Emily Bauer - did a wonderful job. She's probably the main reason I was able to finish the novel. Her narration was engaging and easy to listen to. This was the second book narrated by her that I have listened to, and I look forward to listening to more.

One of the most surprising new finds in ages- highly recommend

The cover caught my eye, but the characters ( flawed, gritty as wet gravel, heroic & self-serving & wonderfully authentic and oh-so-real) & story pulled me in deep. I’m hooked!