Review: Provenance

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Provenance Provenance by Ann Leckie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Another winner from Ann Leckie, set in the same universe as her previous works, but with a different race/set of characters. Part of what Leckie does so well is gender-bend characters, making the reader see them and their interactions in an entirely new way.

However, the protagonist of Provenance is clearly a young woman, dealing with so many of the same issues young women deal with every day: her job, her friends, her siblings, and, most of all, her mother. Ingray needs her powerful mother's approval to secure her place in their political fiefdom and she risks all on a mission to recover revered artifacts.

Part of what I loved about Ingray was that she's not superwoman. She makes mistakes, she can't manage her hair, she gets upset, and she cries. Just like some real women do.

I was concerned about whether I would enjoy Leckie's writing after the Ancillary series, but now I know she can be added to my autobuy list and I'll get an entertaining story with memorable characters and settings that help restore the "sensawonder" I first received from reading science fiction.

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