# Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie



## Werthead (Oct 5, 2013)

*Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie*





> Breq is an ancillary, an animated corpse possessed by the controlling intelligence of a vast starship, the _Justice of Toren_. The _Justice_  was destroyed more than twenty years ago, with Breq as the sole  survivor and the only person to hold a secret that could tear the  interstellar empire known as the Radch apart. Breq, now driven by grief  and vengeance, goes in search of the only weapon that can accomplish her  goal.
> 
> 
> _Ancillary Justice_ is the debut novel by  American author Ann Leckie, who has already established herself as a  writer of short stories. It's an interesting SF novel which riffs on a  whole load of ideas. The most striking is the one of identity. Breq is a  tiny, splintered part of a much vaster, destroyed intelligence and has  difficulties in relating to other people and the world around her. She's  also effectively possessing a dead body and suffers from a cultural  bias. The Radchaai do not believe in gender differentiation and go to  some lengths to keep their gender unclear. The culture defaults to  describing everyone in the feminine, resulting in odd moments when a  character you've spent a dozen pages mentally picturing as female  actually turns out to be male. This playing around with gender roles is  not new - Ursula Le Guin did it rather more literally in _The Left Hand of Darkness_  more than forty years ago - but it's something that relatively few SF  authors have dealt with before and forces the reader to confront their  own biases.
> ...


----------



## Moggle (Nov 15, 2013)

That last paragraph pretty much sums up this book.  I usually give a novel about 25 pages to capture my interest, and if they can't do it within that time the story is a failure, imo.  I know that it won't get any better the further I read.  Needless to say, Leckie and Ancillary Justice did not pass my test.  I read the first 50 pages and came away confused and simply bored, and I refuse to read any more.  This book is DOA.


----------



## Siberian (Nov 27, 2013)

I loved this book. True, the beginning was somewhat confusing (mirroring the confusion in Breq's mind) but it was still intriguing enough to keep me going. I like to puzzle things out for myself. It also strongly reminded me of Le Guin's Left Hand of Darkness - another classic I loved.


----------



## Bick (Jul 10, 2014)

A brief review of this novel.  I wrote this review and then noticed there was a review thread on Chrons, so I'll add it here:

*Ancillary Justice* by* Ann Leckie*

This is the first novel by american author Ann Leckie, and it has so far won the Nebula Award, the BSFA Award, the Arthur C. Clarke Award and the Locus Award.  It’s nominated for the Hugo as well, though the 2014 winner of that is not yet announced. Clearly it comes highly recommended.  I don’t read very many newly released novels, as I like to see how they are viewed after a few years (well, decades) to be sure they stand the test of time.  I figured I’d make an exception in this case, and I’m glad I did.

I’ve read other reviews that suggest the novel starts slowly yet builds in a satisfying way to a good conclusion.  In fact, I disagree with this appraisal of the start: it actually begins in quite a sprightly way, and it makes for quite compulsive reading.  The reason it’s reviewed as a slow starter is probably because you have to keep at it (and maintain your concentration) to work out what’s going on.  There is no spoon-feeding of plot here, and the rules of Leckie’s SF universe are probably distinct from those of any other I’ve read.  I was reminded of early Iain Banks’ SF – when I first read about ship Minds and the Culture, it was as though Banks had invented something wholly new, not just in ideas, but in voice and scope.  I felt the same with Leckie’s novel.  The primary SF idea presented here is that ships not only have an AI mind, but also multiple human bodies that they can control, obtained from past prisoners of war (the original bodies’ owners are ‘dead’).  These are known as the ships’ ancillaries of the title.  The ancillaries _can_ act independently of the main AI and they have a degree of individualism, though they are ultimately controlled and regulated by the ship as a tight network of interconnected conscious segments of the whole.  It’s a neat idea and allows Leckie to address ideas of what makes for individualism and self.  

Two other ideas enrich the story: Firstly, in the empire where the novel is set, gender is no longer even considered or acknowledged in speech.  All characters are referred to as ‘she’, ‘her’ or ‘daughter’, regardless of sex.  This makes for some difficulty in working out if characters are male or female, and it slightly irritated me, until I realised that it didn’t actually matter, and I stopped trying.  I ended up really enjoying this device.  The second complexity comes from a plot point: the emperor, in addition to ship AIs, inhabits multiple (thousands) of interconnected human bodies, and by doing so, is practically immortal.  This makes for a great plot device.

It is hard to say too much about the plot without providing annoying spoilers.  I will limit comments on the plot to those mentioned on the cover blurb: the protagonist is the single remnant segment body of an old warship that was otherwise destroyed.  This ‘ancillary’ is after the titular ‘justice’ of the novel… how she/he/it goes about that I’ll leave future readers to discover.

Overall, I found this to be a very satisfying read.  It’s got several big ideas, and while it is described as space opera (no doubt due to its large geographic scope), it’s not really in that sub-genre, given it is ideas driven and thought-provoking. A worthy winner of the Nebula, I wouldn’t be at surprised if it picks up the Hugo gong as well. I understand a sequel is coming (“Ancillary Sword”, Oct 2014), but this book stands alone well, so readers shouldn’t feel they are committing themselves to an ongoing series if they pick up this novel. That said, I will doubtless be reading more Leckie in future.


----------



## Anthony G Williams (Aug 2, 2014)

This is my review from my SFF blog: Science Fiction & Fantasy

This new novel has received rave reviews and awards (Arthur C Clarke and Nebula Awards so far), so was selected as one of the monthly reads by the Classic Science Fiction discussion group. This is a story in which the circumstances are only gradually revealed, some of the major revelations occurring late in the book. So if you prefer to discover everything as the author drip-feeds it, it's best to avoid reviews like this one. Suffice it to say that after a slow first half, the story gathers pace and turns out to be an original and intriguing tale.

To explain the context some spoilers are necessary but I'll avoid any major ones. 

*Ancillary Justice* is set in a far future in which humanity has spread over a large volume of the galaxy, living uneasily alongside a powerful alien empire, the Presger. The human zone is ruled by the Radchaai in general and the immortal Anaander Mianaai in particular, relying on a fleet of powerful starships inextricably linked to their Artificial Intelligences and given names accordingly (in this respect, reminiscent of Iain M. Banks' _Culture_ novels). Each ship carries a force of soldiers, mainly ancillaries: captives who have been given various enhancements to turn them into super-soldiers but have had their personalities wiped, being replaced with advanced fighting skills and an absolute obedience to the Radchaai. They are mentally linked to each other and to their ship, and are considered to be no longer human.

The story is told in the first person by Breq, whom we soon learn is an ancillary from the One Esk fighting unit of the starship Justice of Toren. Uniquely, she has been separated from her ship for nineteen years. Now on a remote, frozen planet, she rescues from death a drug addict called Seivarden, a Radchaai former starship captain who had escaped the destruction of his ship in a survival pod and had been recently found – a thousand years later (echoes of Campbell's _Lost Fleet _here, but Seivarden is no hero). Breq is on a mission, but exactly what and why we only discover later in the story.

Reading this book requires some concentration since there are two aspects liable to cause confusion. One is that the story frequently hops between events in the present and the past. The other is the question of gender. The Radchaai language does not distinguish between male and female, and Breq refers to everyone as "she" regardless, including Seivarden (although we know from the start that he is male). In fact, we only know that Breq is female from a remark made by a non-Radchaai at the start of the book. Working out the gender of other characters requires a degree of guesswork, since Breq frequently can't tell herself. 

I am not sure whether this gender-blindness is just a gimmick, or if the author has a serious point to make. It does deflect attention away from all of the usual gender prejudices and male/female interaction issues that fill most novels, but on the other hand Jack Campbell – to give one example – achieves that quite effectively in his _Lost Fleet_ series (the first one, anyway; all I've read so far) without concealing the gender of the characters.

The ending is satisfying in that it brings Breq's mission to a conclusion while still leaving plenty of scope for sequels, and in fact we learn in an interview attached to the end of the novel that the author is planning a trilogy. I wasn't at first sure that I was going to like this story, as the pace is slower than I prefer and the gender ambiguity is confusing and somewhat irritating. However, the writing quality is very good – I was reminded of Ursula Le Guin – and I was intrigued from the start, so I persevered. My involvement in the story and the characters gradually increased to the point at which I didn't want to put the book down, so I will certainly be looking out for the next volume.


----------



## Brian G Turner (Mar 10, 2015)

I just tried reading more of the sample of Amazon - apparently, the POV character can figure out nuances about money and politeness of speech, as well as gender is (such as the wounded officer) - but still refuses to acknowledge gender identity.

As the whole issue of gender is mentioned repeatedly on the first couple of pages, my cynicism is beginning to kick in that this is not really a science fiction story, but merely a thinly-disguised platform to discuss gender politics - by manipulating the English language in such an artificial manner that anything except gender will be acknowledged.

And if the POV character claims a background where gender isn't recognised, then why do they insist on using the feminine gender pronoun for everyone, rather than a non-gender term that would perhaps make more logical sense?

I looked because I wanted to find a good story to read, but I fear this is going to be more a socio-political agenda.

Am I being far too cynical? (I know it's a common failing of mine!  )


----------



## Bick (Mar 11, 2015)

Brian Turner said:


> Am I being far too cynical?


I think so. There's a lot more to it than the gender thing, which I might usually expect to put me off. There's a good deal of plot, and if you've been only dipping into the free bit from Amazon you won't have read much of it. I'm not saying its for everyone, but I don't see the reference to people with a female pronoun as a necessarily defining element.


----------



## cyberpunkdreams (Mar 19, 2015)

I'd give it the thumbs up (especially given that I've just ordered its sequel!) The main thing for me was how _different_ it felt; as if it was written by someone with no previous exposure to SF (I have no idea whether or not this is true). Well written certainly, interesting ideas, and although it started slowly the plot was definitely compelling.


----------



## Dinosaur (Mar 19, 2015)

I gave up quite early on after the whole "my culture is superior because we have moved beyond gender but I will still call everyone she despite despite recognizing the difference between genders" thing.

Far too much like one of those websites where your not sure if they are taking the poss.


----------



## cyberpunkdreams (Mar 19, 2015)

Dinosaur said:


> ...my culture is superior because we have moved beyond gender...



But _is_ it really superior? That's the question and the direction in which the book goes. And the main character is meant to be literally unable to tell the difference between genders.


----------



## Brian G Turner (Apr 6, 2015)

Bick said:


> I'm not saying its for everyone, but I don't see the reference to people with a female pronoun as a necessarily defining element.



The opening pages make it plain to me that the novel is looking to make a big statement on gender issues - it's a repeated theme in the opening chapter.

I really don't mind books with a political message - Heinlein comes immediately to mind, not least _Stranger in a Strange Land_ and _Starship Troopers_, both of which IMO explore different parts of the political spectrum. Socio-political themes can be very thought provoking.

However, there's been so much apparent politicisation in SFF awards recently that I can't tell if Leckie's nominations are a part of that, or because she's writing astonishing science fiction.



cyberpunkdreams said:


> But _is_ it really superior? That's the question and the direction in which the book goes.



Now that does sound a much more interesting proposition.


----------



## cyberpunkdreams (Apr 9, 2015)

It's kind of odd that by trying to make gender a non-thing, the author has actually emphasised it to quite a degree. To be fair, it is a bit heavy handed in the first novel. In the second it's barely mentioned, apart from using the same pronoun for everyone.


----------



## psikeyhackr (Apr 15, 2015)

I have just finished listening to the audio book.   In most ways it reminds me of a Culture story by Iain Banks.  I have tried 4 of his books and finished two.  I do not think I could have read AJ.  I could tolerate listening to the first 2/3rds .  It took that long to get interesting.  I wanted to finish it since Leckie is getting so much positive PR but I don't think I will try any more of her books, just as I won't try any more by Banks.

psik


----------



## Werthead (May 13, 2017)

*Ancillary Sword by Ann Leckie*



> Breq, once a superintelligent AI controlling a vast starship, is now a reluctant agent of Anaander Mianaai, the ruler of the Radch. Mianaai inhabits thousands of different bodies scattered across human space, but is now suffering from disassociation: two distinct factions have arisen in her multiplicity and are now waging war on one another. Aligned with one faction against the other, Breq is ordered to the remote planet Athoek and take steps to secure it against the opposition.
> 
> Ancillary Justice was released in 2013 and won the Hugo, Nebula and Arthur C. Clarke awards the following year. A fine space opera novel which contained thematic musings on identity, consciousness and pre-existing biases, it was a striking debut, if one that was slightly overrated.
> 
> ...


----------



## hitmouse (Jun 4, 2017)

I thought that this trilogy was excellent. The first book was the best. Yes, one had to work at it a bit, but that is not necessarily a problem.


----------



## Stewart Hotston (Jun 5, 2017)

I thought ancillary justice was excellent and am surprised how much people think it's about gender! It's as if because people are called she all the time rather than he or even a mix of both, that this is somehow a grand feminist agenda. I don't see it. I see a context in which it makes sense (and why the hell would an ancillary care about gender exactly? Because it knows there's a difference? What a strange idea).

I thought the second and third were much less edgy - being much more in the mould of normative science fiction space opera but they were still very interesting - bringing well understood tropes out to question them (although fairly gently it has to be said). As for the presgr. They're an effective and interesting alien race as well.

As for books being overtly political. I'm sorry, but if you don't see the political statements in a text that generally means it's because you agree with the basic premises of the statements being made - it's the well known effect of being blind to your own assumptions. This is most often witnessed by people in the mainstream saying 'well I didn't experience it so it can't be a problem.' The comment that AJ is overtly political is really saying 'this is espousing a politics that I wouldn't express myself and that puts me off' which is a fair statement to make both because it's reasonable but also because it's honest. Far more honest than denying that other books we read don't express a form of politics just as overtly. 

For instance - the politics of Joe Abercrombie's books are pretty explicitly patriarchal and hierarchical despotism like that of trump, putin and any other 'might makes right' strong man - what amazes me is that people think it's so cool a world. It makes for an interesting conceptual framework but it's a pretty explicit political statement about how people behave in those contexts (and the necessary subjugation of women that occurs in most of those stories - even the supernaturally powerful females are shown their place, manipulated and defeated roundly because they simply can't compete). And no, I'm not judging it, nor commenting on whether Abercrombie suggests it's a 'bad' thing.

Now, I'm not trying to have a go at anyone, although this does come across as a rant - but I'm just a little surprised that I'm even feeling like I need to write the statement that all texts are political...


----------



## Werthead (Aug 16, 2017)

*Ancillary Mercy by Ann Leckie*



> Breq, the former starship AI-turned-military-officer, has secured the Atheok system and plans to wait out the civil war raging between the fragmented selves of Anaander Mianaai whilst investigating the ongoing mysterious events in the neighbouring Ghost system. But events will not wait for Breq and she soon discovers that the fates of everyone in the Atheok system may depend on what she does next.
> 
> Ancillary Justice was a refreshing, smart and interesting science fiction novel. Its sequel, Ancillary Sword, was a major letdown, a work that sprawled and felt at times that the author wasn't sure what direction to take the story. Ancillary Mercy, which concludes the trilogy, ranks somewhere inbetween. This is definitely a more directed, more focused work that rounds off the thematic elements of the trilogy more or less satisfyingly, but on a more prosaic plot level is less impressive.
> 
> ...


----------



## psikeyhackr (Aug 17, 2017)

Stewart Hotston said:


> I thought ancillary justice was excellent and am surprised how much people think it's about gender!  It's as if because people are called she all the time rather than he or even a mix of both, that this is somehow a grand feminist agenda.



I found that mildly annoying for the first quarter of the book but after that is was not especially interesting.  I decided not to read the rest of the trilogy.  It riminds me of The Culture series by Banks.  I tried 4 of those and finished 2.  No more.

psik


----------



## Vertigo (Sep 30, 2018)

Having only just read this thread (I really should have read it before!) and having just read this book I'd agree with what many others have said and I say below. At first glance it appears that gender is a major issue in this book, that maybe it has some big political gender points to make. And, to be honest, like @Brian G Turner, this put me off and is largely why it has taken me so long to get around to reading it. But in fact the whole point is that gender is not important either to the society ot to the book!

Anyway my thoughts:

The Radsch have always had a policy of expansion steadily increasing their empire by ‘annexing’ other star systems using much the same sort of strategy as the Ancient Romans; once annexed they are integrated into the Radch Empire becoming citizens with all the numerous benefits that entails and their gods absorbed rather than replaced. But this absorption only happens after an initial brutal suppression in which almost all prisoners are effectively murdered, their living bodies being taken over by sentient ship AIs as ‘ancillaries’; sentient in their own right but only as a part of the ship’s overall sentience and permanently linked to the ship and all its other ancillaries. The original personality completely destroyed or at least totally suppressed. Though that totality is occasionally questioned. But what happens when one ancillary is all that remains of a ship and its AI?

Ancillary Justice is the first in the Imperial Radch trilogy (plus a couple of prequel shorts) and has had a lot of hype (Hugo, Nebula and Arthur C Clarke awards amongst others) and is certainly a pretty impressive debut but I’m afraid I’d dispute it being completely worthy of all of those awards, maybe the Locus Award for Best First Novel but I’m not sure about the rest. Don’t get me wrong, this was a very good book, just, for me, not quite that good.

Since it’s one of the areas that seems to generate the most discussion I’d like to mention the gender issues brought up in the book. Whilst interesting, I once again feel they are not nearly as important as is indicated by all that (and yet here am I discussing it further!). Significantly these gender issues are not really particularly relevant to the story; they are an interesting and plausible bit of world building but no more than that as far as I could see. The idea of a society like the Radchaai, where gender is largely irrelevant is perfectly reasonable. But note that it is not, as some people mistakenly seem to assume, that they are physically gender neutral; they have all the simple and ambiguous genders humans have today, it’s just they’re not socially important. In Leckie’s own words:

“…[the Radchaai] really don't care about anyone's gender, and don't mark it socially or linguistically. So, they're humans, and as such come in all sorts of genders, and they know gender exists, but it's not really a thing they care much about. They care about it, maybe, as much as we care about hair color.”

And thank goodness that Leckie simply chose to always use female pronouns; I found that so much easier to work with than other authors’ use of invented pronouns like ve, ver vim etc. that pull me out of the narrative every time I hit them. In Leckie’s prose the familiar pronouns quickly became invisible (as they should) and the genders of the characters equally rapidly became irrelevant. I have seen some people say they enjoyed trying to figure out the ‘real’ gender of characters from their behaviour, but I feel they’re missing the point; gender is not important to the characters or the story and any indications are no more relevant than, as happens in real life, some men exhibiting some feminine traits and vice versa. The trick is to just read the story and, like the Radchaai, ignore gender issues except when it occasionally becomes significant when dealing with non-Radchaai.

Beyond this interesting and successful bit of world building the book had good plotting with some interesting twists and turns, though the suspense was largely generated by having the book running two timelines; one following the present action and one following the actions that led to the present situation. This was sometimes a little frustrating as it was obvious that past facts were being withheld purely to maintain the suspense in the present timeline. This wasn’t always managed as smoothly as it could have been, though it and the slightly disjointed prose early on did improve as the book and Leckie’s writing settled down. I did find it took me quite a while to settle down into the narration. The characterisation was generally strong and well done with just one key protagonist’s character change over the course the books feeling possibly a little forced.

All in all a very good book, an exceptional debut even, but not quite the standout classic I have seen it painted as.

4/5 stars.


----------



## Rodders (Sep 30, 2018)

Thanks Vertigo, I’ve been meaning to pick this up for some time now,


----------



## Vertigo (Sep 30, 2018)

Rodders said:


> Thanks Vertigo, I’ve been meaning to pick this up for some time now,


As I said, when you start do persist; the world building is rather drip fed at the beginning making things a bit confusing, but once it gets going it's definitely a good read.

Incidentally I think that I'd agree with others who have drawn comparison with the Culture books from Banks or possibly Asher's Polity books. Probably mainly due to the sentient AIs and broad canvas. But I seem to recall that comparison shouldn't give you and problems @Rodders


----------



## Vertigo (Sep 30, 2018)

Incidentally for anyone interested in the two short stories I mentioned you can read them online:
She Commands Me and I Obey part 1 of 2   (link to second part at end).
Night’s Slow Poison

I haven't read them but I suspect they are stand alone shorts. GR has them numbered as 0.5 and 0.6 but I don't think they share characters with the main trilogy.


----------



## Rodders (Jul 1, 2021)

I started reading it and i did quite enjoy what i read, but for some reason i just couldn't get into it and didn't finish the book. I will go back to it in a while but i have reverted back to a reread of a book that i know will keep my attention in order to kick start my reading habit.

I did sometimes get confused with the use of pronouns and initially the shift from the present to the past confused me too.


----------



## Vertigo (Jul 1, 2021)

Rodders said:


> I started reading it and i did quite enjoy what i read, but for some reason i just couldn't get into it and didn't finish the book. I will go back to it in a while but i have reverted back to a reread of a book that i know will keep my attention in order to kick start my reading habit.
> 
> I did sometimes get confused with the use of pronouns and initially the shift from the present to the past confused me too.


Yes I don't think Leckie handled the time hopping very well. But I would say that as you build a picture of what is going on in the different time periods it starts being much easier to follow. But, yes, she didn't handle this particularly well. Definitely not a book that grabbed me from the first page!


----------



## Rodders (Jul 1, 2021)

I think once i realised the time hopping was happening, i coped with it better. I enjoyed what i read, but just struggled to find enough interest to finish it. I will try and go back to it after i've read a few other books and finish it off.


----------



## Vertigo (Jul 1, 2021)

Yes I seem to remember struggling to figure out which bits came where in the chronology to start with!


----------



## Danny McG (Jul 4, 2021)

It was cack and DNF


----------



## Rodders (Jul 4, 2021)

Bit harsh, Danny.


----------



## Bick (Jul 4, 2021)

Danny McG said:


> It was cack and DNF


I approve of reviews that give a clear signal, Danny. I'm quite cack-sensitive though, and I finished it, so I think it's perhaps one of those marmite books. I know many others liked it less than me. I don't expect I'll ever reread it or tackle the sequels though.


----------



## Danny McG (Jul 4, 2021)

Bick said:


> I approve of reviews that give a clear signal, Danny. I'm quite cack-sensitive though, and I finished it, so I think it's perhaps one of those marmite books. I know many others liked it less than me. I don't expect I'll ever reread it or tackle the sequels though.


Yeah, I fought on with it to (maybe) two thirds of it read, just to give it a chance to grow on me.
It really didn't gel so I shrugged and gave up - there's a lot more books out there
I


----------



## Bick (Jul 5, 2021)

Danny McG said:


> there's a lot more books out there


Indeed - too many. I think there should a 5 to 10 year moratorium on new books, so I can try and catch up a bit. It's ludicrous publishing so many new ones all the time, I'm never going to get to them all.


----------



## hitmouse (Jul 5, 2021)

Bick said:


> Indeed - too many. I think there should a 5 to 10 year moratorium on new books, so I can try and catch up a bit. It's ludicrous publishing so many new ones all the time, I'm never going to get to them all.


I agree. It is simply wrong. I think you should write to Jacinda and tell her to sort it out.


----------

