More politics and intrigue with the Atevi and human populations, with more emphasis on the Atevi culture. And I so enjoy Tabini's son, Cajieri, and his human companions. ( )

Another decent book in the series. It's starting to feel its length, though, the majority of the first ~20% was spent on recap. ( )

Fifteenth volume in the Foreigner series. Takes place over about three days centered on Cajeiri's ninth birthday as the group escapes from the country by train, returns to the capitol, and prepares for the official birthday ceremony while the bad guys in the Assassin's Guild are dealt with. ( )

Wow. It's almost impossible to describe what these books to do me, but I'll try. For anyone who's been a fan of this long series, you've got to be in love with exploring an alien society and love, equally, how difficult it is for humans to understand, navigate, and pull through in a world dominated by a species that thinks differently on a fundamental level to us.

The grand sweep of 15 books has built, layer upon layer upon layer, to our own deep understanding, and between the absolutely fascinating politics and the hope for peace finally becoming a real possibility and not just a house of cards, I'm stunned by the weight of the collective story.

Epic? Enormous? It can't even begin to describe how we've gone from an alien society locking off a castaway humanity on a small island in their homeworld, a humanity that, after misunderstandings built up, caused a war that they lost, is now required to hand over technology at a rate deemed *non-destructive* to the natives. A single translator/diplomat on the human side oversees this. The latest was Bren.

Fast-forward through 15 books, many political upheavals, hundreds of hidden dangers and pitfalls, broken communications and promises on both sides of the species, and throw in the returned human starship after generations of living among aliens, and another alien threat out among those stars. The Atevi are thrust into high-technology, getting the capability for orbital insertion before cell-phones or cars on the road, and see just how the traditionalists hate humans.

And here... on the eve of real peace in book 15, I'm sitting in stunned wonder at the long, exciting path that all of this has taken. I never imagined that translation, diplomacy, alien politics and psychology, and even just the oddities of tightly-controlled technology, can turn into something so... grand! Truly. The worldbuilding is one of the most awesome I've ever read, and I'm certain I would have gotten tired of it long before if it hadn't been for how much I'm invested-in and love the main characters. Bren primarily.

I know you guys can't see this, but I'm forced to wipe a tear from my eye. It's kinda overwhelming. I can honestly say that I've never read anything that has been able to quite pull this off... not just the fact of it, but the quality as well. :)

Am I a bit gonzo about this? Perhaps. I have a lot of investment in the series and I've seen it pay off in spades, so I consider this a partnership of sorts. A very happy partnership. I can't simply let the tales fly through my mind like normal popcorn fiction, easily forgotten even if I had a great time during the fluff. This kind of series has very, very deep roots. I'm intellectually invested in ways I can't even begin to describe with efficacy.

Do I recommend the whole series? Hell yeah. Double Hell Yeah. ( )

To read more of my reviews, check out my blog at keikii Eats Books!

Quote:

“For another—you can move faster than she can. You are as recognizable as she is. And you are willing to take cover. We are not so certain about the dowager.”

Review:
BIRTHDAY PARTY PART TWO. Now with more actual birthday party.

I'm not even certain what to say. This really feels like a part two to the previous book that just didn't have a chance to end at the right place. It just finishes up some lingering problems. And finishes the birthday party. Mostly.

Yet it was also a very busy book. There were so many moving pieces. I was enthralled in a way I probably wouldn't have been if I weren't so deeply in love with the series, due to the fact that it is a book about a birthday party for a nine year old. With some not-so-conspiracy theories about secret organizations trying to take over the government thrown in. I suspect this is one of those books that you either hate because it takes so much time to do anything, or you love and overlook all of its faults.

I cannot put into words just how much I love Tabini as a person (Atevi) in Peacemaker. Tabini has always just been this force that hangs out in books. He directs events as much as he is able, he supports Bren in whatever moves Bren has to make. He'll pop in for a chapter before being whisked back away to safety or on important business. Yet in Peacemaker he is much more up front. And I love this man dearly. That's basically the whole of it, I love him and he is perfect and I want more of him.

You would think a child's nine year birthday party wouldn't be that entertaining, right? Even if he is the presumed heir to the leadership of the entire planet and part of the space above the planet, too. It couldn't possibly be entertaining? Well, you would be wrong. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time, almost breathless. You could call it scared. Or anxious (Bren's anxiety disorder is rubbing off on me). I just had to know if Cajeiri could get through the entire event without causing an incident.

Luckily for those who don't care about a 9 year old's party, that isn't the only thing to happen in this book. Bren and his aishid, his bodyguards, are on a vital mission to restore order to the aisdidi'tat and the world. There have been too many things going on in the background, and it's time to put all the plans into action to stop all the conspiratorial background actions.

I should not have loved this book so much, by the rules of everything I know about me. ( )