For the Kel, instant obedience to orders is necessary for their military success, which is based on the use of mathematically derived soldier formations adapted to the particular circumstances of battle. Many readers will struggle to absorb the contours of this universe by osmosis, which is the only option Lee presents. Like many of the concepts in Ninefox Gambit, the precise nature of this instinct is not entirely clear, though its effects are plain enough. Any momentum this plot line generates is diffused by chapters in the form of communiqu%C3%A9s within the target fortress that skirt dangerously close to parody (one dates itself as 'Year of the Fatted Cow, Month of the Chicken, Day of the Rooster'). You’re pitched into the world without any immediate explanation. The first few chapters are an especially hard go. Cheris offers a novel solution to the problem: she'll enlist the assistance of the undead General Shuos Jedao, whose persona will become part of her. Ninefox Gambit is undeniably a challenging read.

This phenomenon threatens the entire hexarchate society, which is dependent on calendrical stability (an intriguing concept that unfortunately remains opaque to the reader). Kel Cheris has survived a bloody campaign against the heretic Eels on the outpost world of Dredge, only to be drafted by her superiors to scour the 'calendrical rot' centered at the Fortress of Scattered Needles. Lee's imagination isn't matched by his execution in this awkward debut, which kicks off a hard science fiction trilogy.

Ninefox gambit review