A Memory Called Empire

Teixcalaan, Book 1

By: Arkady Martine

Narrated by: Amy Landon

Length: 15 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

Winner of the 2020 Hugo Award for Best Novel
A Locus, and Nebula Award nominee for 2019
A Best Book of 2019: Library Journal, Polygon, Den of Geek
An NPR Favorite Book of 2019
A Guardian Best Science Fiction and Fantasy Book of 2019 and “Not the Booker Prize” Nominee
A Goodreads Biggest SFF Book of 2019 and Goodreads Choice Awards Nominee

"A Memory Called Empire perfectly balances action and intrigue with matters of empire and identity. All around brilliant space opera, I absolutely love it." (Ann Leckie, author of Ancillary Justice)

Ambassador Mahit Dzmare arrives in the center of the multi-system Teixcalaanli Empire only to discover that her predecessor, the previous ambassador from their small but fiercely independent mining station, has died. But no one will admit that his death wasn't an accident - or that Mahit might be next to die, during a time of political instability in the highest echelons of the imperial court.

Now, Mahit must discover who is behind the murder, rescue herself, and save her station from Teixcalaan's unceasing expansion - all while navigating an alien culture that is all too seductive, engaging in intrigues of her own, and hiding a deadly technological secret - one that might spell the end of her station and her way of life - or rescue it from annihilation.

A fascinating space-opera debut, Arkady Martine's A Memory Called Empire is an interstellar mystery adventure.

"The most thrilling ride ever. This book has everything I love." (Charlie Jane Anders, author of All the Birds in the Sky)

©2019 AnnaLinden Weller (P)2019 Macmillan Audio

Okay story, terrible reader

Reader has no talent for interpretation or voices. The story is not bad. I enjoyed some of it quite a lot.

Read by a robot

I ended up buying a physical copy and reading it myself, the reader was so bad.

A Very Exciting Story

The story was a lot of fun once you get used to the names. the names were a little rough, but after you get used to that it's was quite an interesting adventure.

Best thing I've heard in ages

Did you like the Dune books? That series is my all time favorite. This reminds me of them, with the political intrigue and insightful characters. Not as involved (really, what is?) but a very worthwhile listen. The narrator was wonderful, and the book was very well written - a pleasure to listen to. This is the best thing I've heard in ages.

Fascinating poetry-defined empire

This story wraps you in, like a great Sunday brunch, with many visuals, new tastes (concepts), and a story that keeps you interested. Intricate poetry as means of dominant culture, layers within layers of intrigue and subtle meaning - what a fascinating empire. An interesting spin on what could have been a cosmic-scale Aztec empire.

Meh

This book has moments of interest so I pushed through but am sorry I did. The flowery side bar ruined the book for me. I tried it because it was well rated but definitely not a book for me....and I LOVE the genre. I want my credit back!

Interesting read

It’s an interesting story but no Ann Leckie, worry the listen to some but not for all.

Did this win an award?

Flat and lifeless two-dimensional characters throughout. Simplistic dialogue. I resisted to the end but was not rewarded.

Fascinating adventure in an alien culture

First I want to note that I received this book in the Hugo Voters packet, as a PDF, in which the text was too small for me to be able to read comfortably. In self-defense, I took a spare Audible credit and got the audiobook. Because I had to listen rather than read, there are and proper nouns I'm guessing at the spelling of. Because listening rather than reading was not really my choice, well, let's just say there's a limit to how much work I'm prepared to do to find the author's preferred spellings. Accessibility is a thing, people.

Mahit Dzmare is the Ambassador from Lasalle Station to the Teixcalaan Empire. She's young; it's her first assignment; she's well-prepared academically. However, because the Empire demanded a new ambassador "immediately," she's not as well-prepared as she would otherwise be. There was no time, and there's another problem, related to her predecessor not having been as communnicative as he ought to have been.

She arrives on Teixcalaan, the world-city at the heart of the empire, to find that her predecessor is dead, allegedly of a food allergy. Since he had lived on Teixcalaan for twenty years, this seems unlikely. She's met by Three Seagrass, her cultural liaison from the Information Ministry, who takes her to her official apartment, and, it turns out, will be her guide even in opening doors in her own apartment, decrypting official messages some of which are encrypted in a manner she'll never have the key to, and in doing a number of other things in which, as she's a foreigner, and therefore not recognized by the world-city's AI as a person, she'll apparently always be dependent on her liaison or other Teixcalaani.

It's not long before she has met friends of the previous ambassador (including a high-ranking official named Nineteen Adze), a friend of Three Seagrass (Twelve Azalea), and the cultural liaison of the previous ambassador, back when he was new and young and needed one (Nine Engine? Maybe?), who gets assassinated while they're having lunch together, and Mahit is slightly injured herself.

She's soon deep in Teixcalaani politics, uncovering evidence that the former ambassador may have been intending to trade highly classified Lasalle Station technology to the Emperor, Six Direction.

Mahit loves Lasalle Station. Mahit also loves Teixcalaani culture. And Teixcalaani expansion plans include the sector that Lasalle Station is in--and would utterly obliterate Lasalle culture. Can she thread this needle? Can she save Lasalle Station without betraying it?

This is a fascinating, enjoyable adventure in a complex culture alien to Mahit and unfamiliar to the reader. Thoroughly enjoyable.

As mentioned, I did originally receive this book as part of the Hugo Voters packet. I am reviewing it voluntarily.

What a ride

I loved this book. It manages to ask the big questions and be contemplative like all good scifi does and is but also managed to keep me on the edge of my seat.