This is a serious Science Fiction story about social change, dealt with at all levels of society. The cast of characters includes members from the lowest feral human to the highest ruling alien, and we see fragments of the story from the points of view of all of them. This presents a problem in the early chapters, as we cannot tell which we are supposed to sympathize with. Given this difficulty, I question the wisdom of using the first few, important pages for a vignette from the POV of a character who then disappears and is never seen again.
After all these disparate characters have played their parts for a while and we get the cast list and the alliances straight we begin to enjoy the read.
Although “enjoy” may not be the best word. The book is about a basic problem of social change; it’s never quick enough for some people, while others don’t want change at all This novel uses the uncomfortable subject of human slavery (by an alien race), and sometimes we view the action from inside the head of some unpleasant people.
The world building is competent and creative, with a complex and believable social and political structure, and beautifully portrayed setting descriptions (placed only at appropriate moments) to put us in the picture.
Once we get straight who we’re supposed to be cheering for, the emotional content builds. The conflicts are heartfelt and believable, and our sympathies are strongly aroused. Kali, the main human character, is fully developed, often by contrast to the aliens who try to understand her. Henek and Santi, the two main aliens, are likewise fully rounded characters realistically conflicted at several levels. Unfortunately, Santi makes her appearance further into the book, and it’s a while before we realize how important she is. The next level of supporting personalities is also interesting and sympathetic. Except for the antagonists, who remind us of certain people in modern political life.
The format and objectives of the novel create fragmentation of the various plotlines and there are quite a few characters to keep track of. If you’re a good enough mental juggler to keep all these stories in the air, you’re going to love this book.
Four stars.
This review was originally published on Reedsy Discovery.