Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold (4/5). This was a much better book to get into Cordelia’s story and the universe. Interesting worlds at both ends (Beta and Barrayar), with the complicated drawbacks of societies.
A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine (5/5). A wonderful exploration of Teixcalaan through Malit’s eyes. A straightforward ambassadorial post gets loaded up with intrigue and shifting alliances, plus delightful tech.
Ancestral Night by Elizabeth Bear (4/5). As claimed, it’s big idea fiction — about a future built around incredible self-governance and struggles about autonomy. Haimey is delightfully complex, with layers and layers of revelation. And universe altering stakes.
A Murder of Mages by Marshall Ryan Maresca (3/5). Well written and a great enlightenment-ish low fantasy w/ great POV characters. Minox Welling’s precision, logic and annoyances are deftly drawn, while Satrine faces impossible choices and performs exceptionally.