Today on Ariel’s Arcs, I’m going to be talking about A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine, which is the sequel to A Memory Called Empire. Like I’ve done in the past when reviewing sequels, I will first have a spoiler-free summary of the series so far as a whole, and then dig a little deeper into the aspects of the second book afterwards, in broad terms so that you can enjoy the review without having had read the first book.
Teixcalaan
If you enjoy cozying up to a complicated and sometimes academic space opera, the Teixcalaan series would be a perfect adventure for you. Welcome to the Teixcalaanli Empire, where a Byzantium aesthetic blends with an Aztec-inspired culture in a technologically advanced society in space. Our main character, Mahit, is who the reader follows most often throughout the books. From a distant planet attempting to keep its sovereignty as the neighbor of the ever-encroaching Teixcalaanli Empire, Mahit is sent to the capital world (A city planet much like Coruscant of Star Wars) as an ambassador and finds herself in the middle of politics, scandals, and high society in A Memory Called Empire.
The pace can feel a little slow sometimes, but I feel as though that is fairly common with complex original science fiction worlds. Both books have the same rhythm to them– a slowly building plot with a fast-paced finale at the end. This series has an adventurous feel to it, as the reader sees through the eyes of Mahit and a few other characters throughout, and it’s easy to imagine myself gazing in wide-eye amazement at the splendor of the Teixxcalaanli Empire and all of its detail.
A Desolation Called Peace
After the conclusion of A Memory Called Empire, Mahit returns home and the story that unfolds takes place gives the reader a different lens of the Empire– more specifically the space travel and spaceship aspects of how an Empire gets to be so large. This different perspective expands the already vast world that Martine has created and provides new horizons that are eagerly awaiting exploration. The sense of wonder I felt in the first book at how cool it would be to explore the city planet transfers into the sequel as well, where I found myself so fascinated with the politics found at the edge of the Empire. Like the first book, language and poetry find meaning and context within the science-fiction world, and it works so well. The characters are loveable, and the worldbuilding is spectacular.
Some parts of the lengthy descriptions started to become a little intimidating when not a lot of plot was happening, but in a vast world like what is built in these books, it did not diminish my enjoyment of the series. This is the type of book that can be read many times and new information would become apparent with each reread.
Final Rating:
** Be sure to check out A Desolation Called Peace. It is out March 2, 2021! **
Cover Photo by Andy Holmes on Unsplash
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