If you like fast-paced science fiction with a strong emphasis on world-building and politics, A Memory Called Empire is worth a read. It's book one in Arkady Martine's Teixcalaan series, with book two supposed to come out next year.

Blurb:

From Tor's review:

The book pulled me in from the first chapter and kept my interest all the way through with a mix of action and political intrigue. The characters are likable and have hidden depths and strengths that emerge as the story progresses. All in all, I really enjoyed it and would recommend giving it a try if this genre is your thing.

 

Man this was a great recommendation. I read this pretty much daily until I finished it. The intrigue was interesting and nuanced and unexpected the whole way through, and the sci-fi was fascinating. Plus the cultural aspects of Teixcalaan were completely unique. I've never read anything quite like it.

Spoiler: High Level Spoilers

The exploration of the psychology of integrating your brain with the memory of another person was truly fascinating, and it really made sense that people were intrigued by the imago-machines. It's surprisingly often that the core concept of a story isn't convincing... so this was pleasant. I also thought that Teixcalaani society was well developed what with the poetry, the aversion to technological enhancement, and the politics of the empire. It was an incredibly fleshed out world even though they didn't actually experience that many parts of it in the end. And I absolutely loved the characters. Every single one of them felt multidimensional and everyone of them had something that surprised me.

Spoiler: Ending Spoilers

Also, the last part where the Emperor killed himself in front of the entire empire was wild. Really surprised me honestly.

This book really showed off Arkady Martine's storytelling ability in all dimensions IMO. I'm definitely keeping my eyes open for the sequel.

 

This is on my list now. I promise to come back and update with a review. Thanks for the recommendation.

 

The sequel, A Desolation Called Peace, has been nominated for both the 2022 Arthur C. Clarke Award for best science fiction novel of the year and the 2022 Hugo Award for best novel.