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Do you like robot nuns? How about robot nuns commanding and telepathically puppeteering four-armed cyborg soldiers? Okay, how about a young woman, Asher, who will become a robot nun once she completes her studies and her soul is uploaded, unexpectedly ending up in command of a mission in which one of the cyborg soldiers is actually a mole?
I mean mole as in a spy from the other side. Not a burrowing rodent. This novella has such an awesomely wild premise, a rodent mole cyborg soldier seems completely possible.
This is basically a perfect novella. It has a great premise that it completely leans into, fascinating worldbuilding, a likable ensemble cast, a solid adventure/winter survival story, an equally solid mystery, emotional and cultural complexity, and a very, very satisfying resolution. It's one of those stories where every single one of the characters has their own motivations and agency, which is ironic/appropriate considering how central it is to both plot and theme that many of the characters are literally puppeted by others.
There's a lot going on but it's all very integrated and doesn't feel overloaded. But I would LOVE to see it expanded into or continue into a full novel, or to see a full novel in this world.
I can't say any more without spoilers, other than that you should all read this. If it doesn't get nominated for SFF awards, I will throw things. Anyone who intends to make Hugo nominations should definitely read it.
So HOW SATISFYING was that ending? I adore stories where characters who seem to be minor end up being absolutely central, and that delivered. I also really liked that there were effectively multiple different yet equally satisfying endings/beginnings for each set of characters.
The issues of identity and resistance and the pervasive way that war damages everyone were really well-done: the insignia and the names and different units of the cyborg soldiers, how they're individuals despite having their visible identity markers almost entirely erased, how they preserve their senses of self despite being not only enslaved but physically moved around by others, how the commanders are in charge but at the cost of their entire physical bodies.
Ester is a study in identity in hiding/in flux all by herself. The suggestions of Jewishness made me think of the crypto-Jews, but of course there are many more resonances.
Content notes: It's a war story and involves child soldiers and issues of consent (not sexual) and mental/physical autonomy. There's some war violence but nothing graphic.
I mean mole as in a spy from the other side. Not a burrowing rodent. This novella has such an awesomely wild premise, a rodent mole cyborg soldier seems completely possible.
This is basically a perfect novella. It has a great premise that it completely leans into, fascinating worldbuilding, a likable ensemble cast, a solid adventure/winter survival story, an equally solid mystery, emotional and cultural complexity, and a very, very satisfying resolution. It's one of those stories where every single one of the characters has their own motivations and agency, which is ironic/appropriate considering how central it is to both plot and theme that many of the characters are literally puppeted by others.
There's a lot going on but it's all very integrated and doesn't feel overloaded. But I would LOVE to see it expanded into or continue into a full novel, or to see a full novel in this world.
I can't say any more without spoilers, other than that you should all read this. If it doesn't get nominated for SFF awards, I will throw things. Anyone who intends to make Hugo nominations should definitely read it.
So HOW SATISFYING was that ending? I adore stories where characters who seem to be minor end up being absolutely central, and that delivered. I also really liked that there were effectively multiple different yet equally satisfying endings/beginnings for each set of characters.
The issues of identity and resistance and the pervasive way that war damages everyone were really well-done: the insignia and the names and different units of the cyborg soldiers, how they're individuals despite having their visible identity markers almost entirely erased, how they preserve their senses of self despite being not only enslaved but physically moved around by others, how the commanders are in charge but at the cost of their entire physical bodies.
Ester is a study in identity in hiding/in flux all by herself. The suggestions of Jewishness made me think of the crypto-Jews, but of course there are many more resonances.
Content notes: It's a war story and involves child soldiers and issues of consent (not sexual) and mental/physical autonomy. There's some war violence but nothing graphic.
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