Review: A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

#1 Teixcalaan

Sci-fi

462 pages

Publisher: Tor

Publication Date: 26 March 2019

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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Synopsis

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.

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My Thoughts

Winner of Hugo Award for Best Novel 2020! And I can see why. It is beautifully crafted, and a frankly amazing debut novel. There is a lot going on in terms of plot, worldbuilding, and themes, but it is so perfectly balanced, with so much nuance and depth, that it honestly feels like a masterpiece. I’m still in awe every time I think about it. Every single word was used to maximum effect. This, my friends, is a very clever book. And I love it.

A Memory Called Empire is a sweeping sci-fi saga, filled with political intrigue, and featuring a death investigation to boot. I’d almost characterise it as a kind of comedy of manners as well – the ‘barbarian’ trying to fit in to an alien culture.

Mahit Dzmare is the new Lsel ambassador to the galaxy-spanning empire of Teixcalaan. Not only is she being sent to represent Lsel’s interests, she has to find out why the previous ambassador, Yskandr Agarven, died. All of this, with information that is twenty years out of date.

It’s told in third person present tense, which took a little while to get used to. I actually listened to the audiobook while reading along for large portions of the book, which assisted me a lot. It helped with some of the language, and concentrating on the content. (The narration was one of my all time faves, by the way, and I highly recommend it.)

A Memory Called Empire is very much about politics. Moves and countermoves. Knowing what to say, when to say it, and how to say it. It’s about imperialism and expansionism, and how empires devour everything in their path, and force their own language and culture not only those it absorbs into itself, but on those around it.

Mahit exists in a liminal space – a kind of in-between. She has grown up learning all about the Empire, it’s language, it’s customs, and it’s culture, all in hopes of one day leaving Lsel and travelling to Teixcalaan. She loves it with a xenophilic zeal. But she can also never truly be a citizen. She will always be an uncivilised barbarian, no matter how well she integrates.

She is also in precarious position politically. Her predecessor has been killed, and she finds her life in danger more than once. Her only real allies are her cultural liaison, Three Seagrass, and Three Seagrass’ friend, Twelve Azalea. And she has to decide who she can trust in a game in which she doesn’t know the rules or the players, and where she can’t even see the entire board.

More than anything, Mahit has to make Lsel seem useful enough to continue to trade with the Empire, without making it seem attractive enough to become a target for imperial expansion. And without knowing exactly what her predecessor has said and done for the past twenty years, she has to think fast on her feet.

This is what makes Mahit such a great character. She’s intelligent and adaptable. She’s also quite cunning, and good at reading people. A Memory Called Empire would not work as well as it does without Mahit being exactly as she is.

I also really enjoyed Mahit’s relationships with Three Seagrass, Twelve Azalea and Nineteen Adze. Since this book is all about politics and negotiation, it is, out of necessity, quite character focused. I felt like most of the side characters had a level of development I don’t see very often in third person singular narratives. I find that they often lack depth, but this wasn’t the case in A Memory Called Empire.

Three Seagrass, Mahit’s cultural liaison is the consummate professional, and has a fascination with ‘barbarians.’ She and Mahit develop a strong friendship which slowly blossoms into something more. She’s a talented poet, and very loyal to her friends.

Twelve Azalea is a delightful character. He’s endlessly curious, and loves a mystery. He is reckless, yet a bit of a coward, and completely dramatic. Oftentimes he is the comic relief.

Nineteen Adze is one of the most interesting characters because she is a bit of a mystery for most of the novel. She is a member of the Emperor’s inner circle and has a lot of political power. Which makes her a potential threat to Mahit, yet she chooses to give Mahit her protection.

A Memory Called Empire is also casually queer. Mahit is attracted to women, Yskandr is bisexual, and there are strong hints of a previous polyamorous relationship. And nary a hint of homophobia. Which was fabulous.

One of my favourite parts of reading science fiction and fantasy is discovering new worlds, and this one was inspired. The world is so fully realised and fleshed out – from the history to the language to the politics of Teixcalaan and Lsel, everything has been thought of.

Each society has particular customs and beliefs, which are largely reflections of the environment in which they find themselves. For example, because Lsel is a group of 10 mining stations in which population has to be tightly controlled, they have developed technology called imago machines in order to preserve and directly pass on specialist knowledge throughout the generations. Essentially, they take a snapshot of a person’s mind, personality included, and it is stored on an external hard drive embedded in the brain, which is then removed and implanted in the next candidate when the previous one dies. Such a thing is necessary on Lsel, but is abhorrent to the people of Teixcalaan.

Another example is the poetry of Teixcalaan. It is used to denote shared civilisation, because it relies on knowing much of the existing literary canon in order to understand the references and nuances. Only a society that has the economic and political might to crush it’s neighbours can give its citizens the opportunity to dedicate large portions of their time to creating poetry.

These are only two example of many. And they are all absolutely fascinating. From attitudes toward technology, to reproduction, to customs relating to death and treatment of the body, it feels like the author has completely immersed the reader in a real, living society.

A Memory Called Empire is a book that has gravitas. There is always a sense of ‘serious things are happening here’. But it also has a quiet humour. Even though humour is both subjective and culturally mediated, it still managed to translate from completely alien cultures. I particularly liked a joke about the name 2e Asteroid. Because Three Seagrass thought it was hilarious, I had a chuckle too. I think this is something (else!) that was really clever – translating humour is hard, even in the real world. But humour is something that can tell you a lot about a culture and its people. And that’s what Martine did here. She told me as much about Teixcalaan and its people in this one joke, as she did in several other pages. Moreover, I got to see a part of this culture that could never truly be as effectively explained in any other way.

I will note that the pace is on the slower side in first half of book, but picks up very quickly just after the half way mark. I think that for those who don’t like slower paced books, it might cause you to lose interest. But I assure you, if you persevere, it is well worth it. The second half has plenty of action, and all the foundations that were laid early on set this up perfectly.

A Memory Called Empire was also beautifully set up for the next book, A Desolation Called Peace. The hints were woven throughout the entire book, right from the very beginning. And oh how I appreciate an author who thinks ahead.

If you cannot tell from my effusive praise, I think this book is fantastic. I recommend it to everyone! Even if they hate sci-fi. Because it is so, so good.