A Memory of Empire
*- tags: books
– Arkady Martine
Enjoyed this. It's written well, and it's fun. At first I didn't find so much to sink my teeth into, ideas-wise, but I think maybe it's just ideas I'm not so familiar with. Empire, colonisation, displacement, culture clash and culture shock all feature heavily.
Plot-wise, it's a little bit of murder mystery, but mainly kind of like court politics and the machinations of power.
Couple of interesting sci-fi-y ideas. The imago machines, where current generations incorporate the personalities of individuals from previous generations directly via neural implants. The AI city in Teixcalaan - theme there of how a neutral algorithm is not as neutral as you may be led to believe, which is very relevant to present day.
At first it felt maybe a little slow to get going, but I definitely was gripped the more I went along with it.
Finished January 2020.
1. Elsewhere
1.1. In my garden
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