I am finally reading an Ann Leckie book! I’ve had Ancillary Justice on my shelves forever and am now getting into the world with Translation State. And what an intriguing world! Keep reading this book review of Translation State for my full thoughts.
Summary
Qven was created to be a Presger translator. The pride of their Clade, they always had a clear path before them: learn human ways, and eventually, make a match and serve as an intermediary between the dangerous alien Presger and the human worlds. The realization that they might want something else isn’t “optimal behavior”. I’s the type of behavior that results in elimination.
But Qven rebels. And in doing so, their path collides with those of two others. Enae, a reluctant diplomat whose dead grandmaman has left hir an impossible task as an inheritance: hunting down a fugitive who has been missing for over 200 years. And Reet, an adopted mechanic who is increasingly desperate to learn about his genetic roots–or anything that might explain why he operates so differently from those around him.
As a Conclave of the various species approaches–and the long-standing treaty between the humans and the Presger is on the line–the decisions of all three will have ripple effects across the stars.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
The world of Translation State immediately comes into a color. I will always read about an adopted character who questions their origins. This triple POV story isn’t rushed. It allows us the time to get to know each of the characters before losing us. As I read more multiple POVs books, I appreciate when it’s done right. Translation State is a story that was more introspective than I thought. It’s this grand story about an existence which could question and destabilize their order. But the story is actually dedicated to exploring identity, agency, and speaking our truths. All the truths we conceal, the pretending, the masking to survive.
It’s a search for belonging, but also about realizing the people who choose us. Who continue to choose us and the ways in which we choose ourselves. I thought it was going to be this expansive science fiction, but instead it focuses on a journey of bodily and identity autonomy and the ways in which our personal lives and choices are political and individual. There’s that balance which I wasn’t expecting especially towards the end.
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Find Translation State on Goodreads, Storygraph, Bookshop. org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.