One of the cover blurbs on Arkady Martine's Hugo Award-winning sci-fi novel, A Memory Called Empire (#1,065) calls it a "...brilliant space opera". That's a great way to describe it.
The empire to which Ambassador Mahit Dzmare is summoned from her (for now!) independent mining space colony, Lsel Station, is loosely based on the ancient and powerful Aztec Empire. Their intention is to control and dominate all possible worlds around them. Mahit's mission is to maintain Lsel Station's independence through profitable trade and access to two jump points to unknown territory. It won't be easy, since her predecessor in Teixcalaan is dead - murdered to be precise. She carries Yskandr's out-of-date memories in her head through strictly guarded technology, but is it enough to allow her to carefully pick her way through a minefield of dangers, and both solve the mystery of his death and accomplish her own mission? That's the fun part of this novel!
I really enjoyed the world Arkady Martine created here, with its many cultural norms, enormous bureaucracy and emphasis on poetry as a necessary skill. I also loved the naming convention she used here; every proper name begins with a number, followed by an object. Mahit's assigned cultural aide is named Three Seagrass, and it is her job to guide Mahit through the court of the powerful Emperor Six Direction with enemies and dangers around every corner.
Highly recommended!
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