Raven Stratagem: Volume 2 (The Machineries of Empire)

Excellent. The sequel to the Hugo nominated Nine Fox Gambit, and I will be shocked if this doesn't make the 2018 Hugo ballot too!

Continuing the story of Shuos Jedao following the finale of Nine Fox Gambit - Raven Stratagem had me doubting myself as I was trying to figure out where the story was going. But then - BOOM. The plot twisted so hard in such a satisfying direction that left me wanting more.

Hopefully there will be another novel in the series as one character was pretty much put on the back burner and must surely be up to SOMETHING!

If you read Nine Fox Gambit, read this. For lovers of complicated science fiction.

As the sequel to the amazing Ninefox Gambit I went into this novel with high expectations that were mostly met. I read this book with my book group so I’ve spent more time discussing the story and how it’s put together than I usually do. All in all we liked it but there were a few divisive issues.

The first oddity of this novel is that we don’t get the same Point of View as the first book. The main character, Jedao, is there but we don’t see events from his perspective. Arguably this was also the case in the first book but Cheris was a lot closer to him than the characters in Raven Stratagem. It’s always a problem with great tactician characters that they have to be a little mysterious but in this case it might have gone too far. Anyway, I personally thought it was really well done but one of my friends thought it was a bit of a bait and switch.

This is maybe exacerbated by the fact that in general we don’t spend as much time around him as in the first book. In that one we were in mostly the same location throughout. In this one we are jumping between a number of different characters in different locations. This lets the world develop and gives it more depth, while letting us know more about what’s going on. However, the action in the book falls off towards the second half. There’s a lot of plotting and manoeuvring from several different people in reaction to Jedao but as we don’t know what he’s plotting in any way, because he’s not telling anyone, it mostly boils down to people making probing strikes at him.

The characters are all good and interesting. The action we see is on par with what we got to enjoy in the first book. The world is fascinating. But the slow down towards the end kind of takes away from this.

All in all I think that this book depends a lot on the third novel, which is a general weakness of second books. Either it’s set everything up amazingly or it’s wasted a hundred odd pages. I have the upmost faith that it’ll turn out to be the former and I can’t wait to read it

I've been looking forward to this book for ages, and it didn't disappoint. It's a hard thing to follow such a stunning first book in a series, but Yoon Ha Lee has done an utterly marvellous job. Compelling new characters that you can't help but care for, haunted all the while by the presence of the uber-competent and more-than-a-little-unhinged Shuos Jedao. A deeper look at the Hexarchate, its factions, and its exotic tech. Space battles galore (OH MY THE BATTLES!), but that's only scratching the surface of this delightfully devious and thought provoking tale.

It's taken me a long time to get around to reading the second book in this series and there are a couple of reasons for that; the first and perhaps most important is that whilst I enjoyed Ninefox Gambit, I found it very difficult to follow. It was heavy going and hard to read and so I kept putting off moving on in the series. And of course, once I'd put it off enough I then couldn't remember anywhere near enough of the plot to be able to jump into this one and so had to re-read it.

Raven Stratagem is actually a far easier book to read than its predecessor though and that really works in its favour. It's a far more character driven book than Ninefox Gambit, and whilst it does suffer from some of the same issues - a large cast of characters, complex and often similar names and a reliance on maths magic - it is far easier to fall into the story. You see events from three main character perspectives, dipping between the past and the present at times, and it's significantly easier to follow that Ninefox Gambit.

What I really liked about the book though was that I didn't have a clue where it was going until the penultimate chapters. And it wasn't because I didn't understand half of it, which was half the problem with its predecessor. It's just twisty and unexpected in all the right ways. I got attached to the characters and sometimes even thought I knew what was coming next, only to be blown away by what actually transpires. I thought I had a handle on Jedao's personality and possible motivations, only to be proven wrong. I thought I knew what the Shuos leader was up to... and I was proven completely wrong. It's a book full of twists and turns, steering the plot in unexpected directions whilst drilling into the characters.

All in all, it's a pity I didn't get to this book sooner as I actually enjoyed it far more than Ninefox Gambit. Ninefox is clever, don't get me wrong, but it's almost too complex and the author doesn't bother to explain things to mere mortals. Here there's a little more exposition and a lot more character focus and it works brilliantly well.

There is a lot less exposition than in book one, just a good multi-layered story to sweep you along in your own calendrical heresy... Enjoy!

This series has been an interesting case for me. I have enjoyed the first two books quite a lot, they have neat ideas but I feel like the author Yoon Ha Lee doesn't actually know how to communicate them to the reader leaving them feeling like a missed opportunity of something far greater.

The Raven Stratagem continues not that long after the first book as Kel Cheris/Jedao arrives at a Kel Swarm in the midst of chasing down heratics and seizes command. The Kel, being indoctronated to follow orders as perfect loyal soldiers nearly all immediately fall under command leaving Cheris/Jedao with an entire swarm. The Hexarcharte tried to kill her, what will she do with it?

Pretty much nothing to be pretty blunt. This book meanders with no real plot is the problem. By the end I don't really feel like a huge amount happened to push the overall story. It suffers from the same issue as the first book where the calendrical system (appears to be that working out a calender by math somehow changes the physics of the universe?) is the keystone of everything that happens yet it's barely explained in two books. It's practically magic based which in a sci-fi is a real crux in my opinion. I'm just not a fan of his writing style, i'm all for letting the reader fill in the blanks when reading but there is just far too much of that, the universe it's set in has very little exposition as do many of the characters which outside one or two feel like throw away fillers. It's weird as I feel the book focused on too many unimportant aspects yet still explained very little which is one hell of a talent.

As afore mentioned though, I enjoyed reading it anyway. I still like the Cheris/Jedao set up and the way she is written in this book, often from other peoples perspectives was a really nice touch. There are some really interesting revelations as well towards the end of the book but it just took far too long to get there.

+ Some clever moments.

+ Cheris/Jedao are still great.

+ Universe has some great ideas...

-....that are barely explained or hand waved away.

- Too many characters are simply filler.

- Story takes too long to get anywhere.

Although Ninefox Gambit made my head spin, I ultimately enjoyed it. Enough, at least, to continue with the rest of the series.

Cheris is presumed dead, her body inhabited by the undead general, Jedao. He’s apparently after a new enemy, the Hafn, and hijacks an entire swarm in order to go after them.

Khiruev was the highest in command until Jedao came along. After attempting to thwart the madman, she accepts her fate and starts to feel loyalty towards Jedao. Khiruev was a strong character: she risks everything to try and stop the threat, then risks everything to help. If you want a woman on your side, Khiruev is the one: she certainly commits to the cause.

Not everyone is controlled by form formation though. Brezan resists and tries to stop Jedao. He’s both kicked out from the swarm and promoted far beyond his comfort in order to stop Jedao. Brezan felt the most human to me: he is deeply uncomfortable with the situation and determined to make things right.

Mikodez was my favourite. He’s a politician (for lack of a better way of describing him) but you seem him love and loss, function the way an over-worked politician would and have a sense of humour. You experience Mikodez’ emotions, especially when the stakes are high.

It was towards the end when an event reveals how human Mikodez’ emotions are that made me realise that’s lacking from the other characters: their Kel instinct means you never truly know what they are feeling. It’s why connecting with them was challenging.

I made a big mistake with the second book: I left it too long after reading the first to remember the intricacies of how this world worked. It meant that I spent a good chunk of the first half of Raven’s Stratagem wondering what on earth (or not, as the point might be) was going on.

That meant the second half was stronger as I felt the stories were coming together, the characters interacting and the pace picking up. I understood what was going on, who was where and whose loyalty belonged to who.

During the first half, however, the story felt fragmented: there was different story arcs taking place as the characters developed, but I couldn’t connect them as a whole; I didn’t have the sense of the full story.

This is a really hard review to write because I was lost for quite a lot of the book. When the stories started entwining, however, I really enjoyed it. Part of me guessed the twist, but I wasn’t certain; it wasn’t a surprise, but I wouldn’t have put money on it happening either.

The characters grow on you, despite the lack of emotions, and there is so much going on that you do get absorbed. I’d say the pace and tension felt quite low for the first half, but then pick up nicely in the second half.

My only suggestion would be make sure you read the series close together.

A well thought out plot, with interesting characters and written at a pace that kept me glued to the book. This the second book in the series didn't disappoint me. Recommend this book to anyone.

At this point I love Machineries of Empire with my full heart. The story is captivating from the start to the end.

Although I am posting based on the audiobook edition of this book, I also received an ARC copy from Solaris and Net Galley in exchange for an honest review. I also bought the Kindle edition of this book.

“What good is immortality if nothing has been done to repair the fault lines of the human heart?”

At the outset I want to recommend to any reader of the Machineries of Empire series that they check out Yoon Ha Lee's extremely helpful Hexarchate Faction Cheat Sheet. Please note that the individual links he offers, which link to the Solaris website for his series, provide some extra information, especially about the Heptarchate Liozh faction.

As much as I wanted to reread Ninefox Gambit before reading Raven Stratagem it was not possible, due to timing of completing my reading for voting on the Hugo Awards. Shortly before the publication date of Raven, Solaris had been kind enough to gift me with an ARC and I was already sooo late in getting a review out that rereading or even relistening to Ninefox seemed like a luxury I couldn’t afford, especially since I was sure I was going to end up wanting to reread this new book just as much. My feelings of the shock and awe of the immersion into the Hexarchate world of Cheris and Jedao in Ninefox still lingered. I felt like I had been tossed on a tempest for most of that book, much as I loved it. I wasn't sure I really understood it as much as I wanted to. So what to do before I embedded myself fully in Raven? (Which, btw, let's think about raven, shall we?) I felt like I needed a bit more grounding on the world I was reading about. Last week I spent a fair amount of time exploring the Machineries world on Yoon Ha Lee's website. I checked out the very useful cheatsheet he provides (as I mentioned above), plus I enjoyed reading some of the back stories of Jedao and Cheris. (Link with a full list of the short stories here, reviews of the shorts to follow on the weekend) And it's a result of especially one of those short stories that I found that maybe I had a leg up on a bit of the endgame in this, the second book in the Machineries trilogy.

In contemplating the puzzling political world with mathematical zealots, exotic technologies, and the vast array of hexarchate terminology that gets thrown at us, at times it’s been all too easy to be lost in the details and not see the broad view of what’s going wrong at the heart of the world of the Hexarchate, and the ultimate reasons for Heptarchate’s fall. It is little surprise that calendrical heresy is at the root of all. There is an inextricable bond between the technological power of the Hexarchate and its reliance on a faltering, cruel system that places no value on life, while it perpetuating faith and formation instinct based on arcane rituals and the assumption that sacrifice is a fantastic destiny. While the reason for Jedao’s use in Ninefox Gambit was made quite obvious, I had puzzled over what Jedao’s goal or ultimate purpose would be as we move forward in the series. We knew that ultimately Jedao wanted a better world but how to create it? Certainly Hellspin Fortress wasn’t a great start and frankly, after a passage in this book, I'm still wondering about what the hell happened in the seeming fugue state Jedao was in at Hellspin. But, going back to basics, looking at Cheris and Jedao, we see characters that never fit neatly into their factions. Cheris, a Kel with reportedly stunning mathematical abilities that should have made her a Nirai, chose Kel. And then, that sneaky Ninefox Crowned with Eyes, Shuos Jedao, seemed to choose the Kel, as well. Why? Those that don’t fit their factions, in almost every sci-fi or dystopian world, are those who will broker the greatest change. (We could call them Divergent but this is so much deeper a world.) When making change on this scale, you're talking war and in a war, you need an army.

Among new and equally rich characters, we finally meet Shuos Hexarch Mikodez in all his glory. Mikodez is a true delight, probably my favorite character of the new set. From his growing onions, to his knitting, Mikodez, is a character almost as compelling as Jedao. Mikodez is a wonderful addition to the Machineries series, as is General Khiruev. Even Brexan, a character I occasionally wanted to give a good, hard shake, is an interesting mirror reflection of Jedao’s path re: Kel, Shuos and crashhawk status. The depth, quirkiness and complexity of the characters that Lee gives us are a marvel. They are really a pleasure to read.

Many have written about Lee’s masterfully smooth world with respect to gender fluidity and sexual orientation. The world he has built with respect to gender and sexuality feels so natural it just flows. There are horrors here, like attempted genocides to get the attention of Jedao/Cheris, or the Hafn, who horrifyingly use their children as energy sources. Where Ninefox Gambit introduced us to the failings of rigid political systems based on religion, Raven Stratagem offers us a world where, in spite of the slimmest of odds, hearts and minds prevail.

Right now this is my top choice for nominations for best novel for the Hugos next year. Such a great read. Worth all the effort to dig into Lee's vision.

Those wanting some insight into this book are directed to the short story The Robot's Math Lessons which you can find on the author's website.

Sometimes confusing to separate the personalities from their people- but I suppose that was mostly the point- it’s captured my imagination and I’ve chosen my heroine/hero, the only integrated Shuos/Kel, that’s both immortal and mortal and male and female. Complex and captivating space warriors

I enjoyed the increase in characters plotting / pulling of crazy plans. New characters were introduced - all of whom were interesting and many of whom I came to admire. Getting to read the POV of the head spy was defy a treat.

Retour dans un univers complexe…

Le Gambit du Renard nous plongeait dans l’univers de l’Hexacart, une société humaine occupant un vaste territoire interstellaire sous la coupe d’un régime autoritaire tenu par les hexarques, représentants six branches fonctionnelles de la société : les Rahal contrôlent le Calendrier et les lois, les Andan sont financiers et diplomates, les Shuos sont espions et assassins, les Kel qui sont la branche militaire, les Vidonia en charge de l’éducation et des tortures cérémonielles, et les Nirai qui sont les scientifiques et mathématiciens de l’Hexacart. La cohésion de l’Empire est assurée par le Haut Calendrier, à la fois système mathématique et système de lois imposées sur les populations. Pour plus de détails, j’avais expliqué dans la chronique du premier tome l’importance du Calendrier en tant que métrique en lien avec le fonctionnement des technologies au sein de l’Hexacart. Le Gambit du Renard était le récit d’une bataille menée contre une rébellion par un improbable couple formé d’une jeune capitaine Kel, Cheris, artificiellement liée à l’esprit d’un général criminel, Shuos Jedao. Le Gambit apparaissait alors comme un roman de science-fiction militaire, possédant une inclination hard-SF car Yoon Ha Lee, mathématicien de formation, s’appliquait à y développer l’aspect mathématique et technologique de son univers. L’Hexacart y semblait un environnement politique et social monolithique et impénétrable.

… qui se complexifie encore un peu plus.

Dans Raven stratagem, Yoon Ha Lee inverse le point de vue et offre un regard de l’intérieur sur la politique de l’Hexacart. Le monolithe se fissure, révèle des failles, voire des abysses. Si la répartition en castes de la société de l’Hexacart m’évoquait déjà le roman Dune de Frank Herbert, ce sentiment de filiation est encore plus fort dans Raven stratagem. Yoon Ha Lee décrit un monstre politique incestueux et obscène, une hydre à six têtes dont chacune cherche à dévorer l’autre, qui s’ébat dans des intrigues politiques que les Harkonnen ne renieraient pas. Ces craquelures touchent bien évidemment les peuples et si l’on imaginait précédemment une stricte obédience, certes conditionnée, au Calendrier, Yoon Lee Ha construit son roman autour de personnages qui n’y croient plus, qui craquent et se crashent (crashhawks). De nouvelles têtes font ainsi leur apparition dans ce second tome. Du simple soldat Kel à l’Hexarque Shuos, ces figures prennent le devant de la scène, reléguant les héros du Gambit au second plan, mais pour une très bonne raison. Le scénario de Raven stratagem repose sur un mensonge. Le lecteur, ayant lu le Gambit du Renard le sait. Lecteurs, nous avons été les témoins privilégiés de la scène finale du Gambit. Mais personne au sein de l’Hexacart ne sait exactement ce qu’il est advenu de Kel Cheris et Shuos Jedao. L’intrigue qui se met en place dans Raven stratagem possède ainsi un twist qui n’en n’est pas vraiment un puisque le lecteur est déjà au courant. Et pourtant, cela fonctionne, et on joue le jeu. Il n’y aura pas de surprise au moment de la révélation mais le plaisir d’une confidence et d’un tour bien ficelé. Si dans Dune l’épice doit couler, dans les Machineries de l’Empire, l’horloge doit tiquer. Ce sera le cœur du roman.

En conclusion

Après le Gambit du Renard, Raven stratagem est une très belle réussite qui confirme largement l’intérêt suscité par le premier tome. Le roman est tout d’abord nettement plus facile à aborder que son prédécesseur. Nous sommes maintenant habitués à l’univers, aux technologies étranges et exotiques, aux néologismes et aux factions. Tout ceci coule désormais de manière transparente et l’attention est entièrement tournée vers l’histoire. Yoon Ha Lee peut donc développer et complexifier un univers déjà fort riche et le faire vivre. Même s’il est encore très présent, l’aspect militaire n’est plus au centre du roman, mais laisse la place aux intrigues politiques. De nombreux personnages, particulièrement bien développés, font leur apparition. De nombreux éléments, plus ou moins discrètement disséminés dans le premier tome, trouvent ici leur raison d’être et s’assemblent pour délier le scénario. On pourra éventuellement reprocher à ce scénario de manquer de surprise, mais on assiste à la mise en route d’une mécanique lancée dès le premier tome. Et comme il s’agit d’une belle mécanique, je ne boude pas mon plaisir. Yoon Ha Lee nous offre avec cette trilogie du très beau space opera, politique et militaire, audacieux et complexe, créatif et réjouissant.