Sex Slave: Jana'ata nobles keep both concubines from their own species and from the Runa. Sandoz is sold into sexual slavery by Supaari based on a misunderstanding, and it's heavily implied that this also happened to the second human party from the United Nations who made it to Rakhat and rescued Sandoz, since they abruptly disappeared without a trace and Supaari worries that he inadvertently created a 'market' (that or they were eaten). Aliens Speaking English: Averted. Learning each others' languages fuels much of the plot and character development. That evening, Jimmy meets Emilio Sandoz, a Puerto Rican priest he met through George and Anne Edwards. Jimmy asks Emilio his opinion about whether or not he should cooperate with a vulture. Emilio advises him to "hold out for a while" and to ask for "someone good." Emilio admits that he has been “done” by a vulture and mysteriously describes it as "an interesting experience." The 1996 James Tiptree, Jr. Award". tiptree.org. James Tiptree Jr. Literary Award Council. Archived from the original on 2008-03-13 . Retrieved 2008-05-03.

While on assignment in Sudan, Emilio receives a transmission from the Society instructing him to report to Cleveland to allow artificial intelligence experts to codify his method of learning languages. Candotti and Behr secretly transport Emilio to the retreat home in Naples. Although the journey is exhausting for Emilio, he still insists on practicing with his braces upon arriving to his new room. Emilio doesn’t complain, but Brother Edward finds the painful exercises difficult to witness. I realize I’m being fairly vague about the plot here. I simply don’t want to spoil anything from the first book by recounting the happenings in this one. I can say that it also a novel about what it means to be oppressed versus an oppressor and how the tables can be turned. We learn further about the species that inhabit Rakhat – the Runa and Jana’ata. What the effect of introducing a new species (that of homo sapiens) to the planet will have on the balance of power. Much of this will have a familiar ring to it from our own world history. It may bring to mind revolutions, such as that of the French and the Russian, as well as the settling of North America and the displacement of the Native Americans. The question as to whether the ends justify the means will recur in the book and in your own thoughts. Ultimately, it causes one to understand that we are all part of this world (or this universe) and that each serves a purpose, each life has meaning, all are dependent on one another in some way, shape or form. We find Emilio Sandoz where we left him, on earth and struggling with his relationship to God, his fellow man, the fate of those he has left on Rakhat and how to live a life devoid of the faith he has so long trusted and relied upon. If there is one theme that I believe recurs over and over again in these books, it is the theme of faith. How much of what happens to us is God’s doing, how much has purpose, how much is our failure to listen closely enough and understand God’s voice when he is speaking to us?There is a moment toward the end of the book when one of the priests makes an observance that I believe sums up what we are meant to take away from this story:

I can't say I liked this any more or any less than The Sparrow. I think there was an emotional distance in this book that didn't exist in The Sparrow, but in both there were the Contracted by her broker to develop artificial intelligence programs, Sofia first meets Emilio to develop a language-learning program. Later, she works with Jimmy Quinn at Arecibo. Both Emilio and Jimmy are attracted to her from the beginning, and both of them develop a deep love for her. Other crew members are assembled: Marc Robichaux, Alan Pace, and, acting as the leader of the mission, D.W. Yarbrough. Spoiler: His return visit to Rakhat allows him to realize a certain capacity for forgiveness, which gives him a degree of peace.The Women of the Copper Country (Atria Books, 2019) is a painstakingly researched novelabout the Copper Country strike of 1913–1914,the first unionized strike againstall the coppermines in the Copper Country of Michigan's Upper Peninsula.The central character, "Big Annie" Clements, is based on "America's Joan of Arc," Anna Clemenc, who founded the Women's Auxiliary of the Western Federation of Miners andproudly carried the flag in many marches against the Calumet and Hecla Mining Company. Other historical figures, including James MacNaughton, General Manager of Calumet and Hecla, Woodbridge N. Ferris, governor of Michigan during the strike, and Mother Jones, prominent activist and union organizer, are also elaborately and credibly portrayed. The book received a Michigan Notable Book Award for 2020 from the Library of Michigan. Alan Pace is a musicologist, a Jesuit priest, and a member of the mission to Rakhat. He dies unexpectedly and inexplicably shortly after their arrival to Rakhat. Anne completes an autopsy, and his body is buried at their initial landing spot. Askama Must Have Caffeine: Coffee is several characters' drink of choice, especially Sofia, who likes "awful damn Turkish mud". They take lots of coffee with them to Rakhat. Coffee beans become a trade item, and then a plot point. Dreamers of the Day (Random House, 2008) is a historical romance set in the Midwestern United States and the Middle East during aftermath of the First World War and the Great Influenza. It focuses on the 1921 Cairo Peace Conference, when Winston Churchill, T. E. Lawrence, Gertrude Bell and a group of British oilmen invented the modern Middle East, thus setting the region up for a hundred years of war.

Absurdly Sharp Claws: Jana'ata claws are described as sharp enough to potentially cut off Emilio's head. For The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, chief editor John Clute calls Russell an "author who established a strong reputation for cognitive subtlety and narrative power in her brief [science fiction] career; after the Emilio Sandoz sequence... she turned her interest to other fields." [1] Other novels [ edit ]

In many ways, this novel rivals the scope of The Sparrow in both worldbuilding and theme. By the same token, both are portrayed in a much more dilute fashion. Even in the case of the Jana'ata, it leaves the hands useless (the Jana'ata just don't risk bleeding out and experience far less pain from the procedure). The uselessness is the point, it's a status symbol for someone of extreme power and wealth... it indicates that the wealthy person can afford a useless dependent. At each stage in The Sparrow’s history, someone has fallen in love with it and taken it to the next level. So. Now we’ve got a director who’s in love, but Scott is only one piece of a big, expensive, risky puzzle. In the current Hollywood climate, an SF drama (as opposed to a SF action-adventure spectacle) is a hard sell. An SF drama about Jesuits in space will be an even harder sell. Love Dodecahedron: Emilio, Jimmy, and even George all seem interested in Sofia; Sofia seems to return affections for Emilio but there are issues, and she eventually ends up with Jimmy. Meanwhile Anne also has feelings for Emilio and D.W Yarbrough is implied to as well.

The novel is peppered with wisdom, philosophical morsels that are easy to read through, but also offer a basis for reflection when read closely, such as: At the Arecibo Radio Telescope cafeteria in Puerto Rico, in February 2019, Peggy Soong talks with Jimmy Quinn. She has heard that Jimmy has been "assigned a vulture," and she urges him to refuse to cooperate. Jimmy tells Peggy that he wants to find a way to meet the interests of Arecibo's Japanese owners and its employees. To those he is uncomfortable with, however, Emilio is stoic and mysterious. Vincenzo Giuliani initially describes Emilio as “a puzzling man”; John Candotti, meeting Emilio after his return to Earth, “could not imagine this man laughing.” It is not until later, when trust is gained, that Candotti sees the witty, relaxed side of Emilio. In March 2019, Jimmy comes up with a plan that he believes will allow him to keep his job longer, satisfy his superiors, and help his coworkers. During his recovery, Emilio admires his new gloves and says that "everyone will be wearing them." Father John, his assistant and confidant, recognizes it as a Princess Bride reference.Years later, on Rakhat, Emilio recalls that moment in Sudan and wonders if it was not "the punchline to a three-year joke," as he had initially called it, but part of the punchline of a joke set up over a lifetime. Chapter 3 A priest from Chicago, John Candotti is a “bony, big-nosed, half-bald man” who “once waded into a street fight simply because he thought the odds were too lopsided.” It is this sense of compassion that draws Candotti to befriend the ostracized Emilio. This story isn't as perfect as The Sparrow. I had some doubts along the way, which didn't happen in the first. But it's still a brilliant story. Didn't rate it 5 stars for a couple of reasons. One, occasionally Russell has the habit of dropping non-plot vital but important information in the space of a sentence, so if you tend to skim or even if your attention wanders, comprehension will suffer. An example would be along the lines of "It was many years into her widowhood when..." lets you know that the husband in the prior paragraph died. She actually does this again with one of the most pivotal characters, The Paramount, after a battlefield confrontation. I had to re-read the section two or three times to make sure I understood this is where the story ended for the alien man that was mainly responsible for Emilio's repeated rape. It was a jarring note to have such a central character's story fizzle out with someone mentioning his dead body on the field. Second, because the scope of the story covered decades, not just years, time was treated in a very disjointed fashion, moving very slowly in the beginning, and then jumping through the years at the end. I got a little of the sense of, "let's just wrap this up now, shall we?" from the narrative.