The Last Hawk: The Saga Of The Skolian Empire 03 by Catherine Asaro

From The Week of April 18, 2010

This stand-alone novel in The Saga of The Scolian Empire is by far its most fascinating and thoughtful entry. Though it does not forego Ms. Asaro's particular brand of science-fiction romance, its plot and its inventive world are, this time, worthy counterweights and strong components in a successful novel.

Kelric, another of Sauscony's brothers, as well as a fellow Jagernaut -- an elite fighter pilot --, crash-lands on a Scolian colony which has been, for some time now, lost to the rest of the galaxy. Though Coba, the world in question, has preserved some of the Scolian customs, its people have lost the ability to travel to the stars, confining themselves to a world divvied up into an array of fiefdoms governed by matriarchal, noble houses. Such a set up is primed for conflict, wars both numerous and brutal. Instead of armed combat,however, a complex game of dice, reminiscent of chess, has developed to take its place. The strength of a noble house is determined by the strength of its quis players. If its quis players are superior, then it succeeds in growing in stature, either through good acquisitions of assets, or by annexing other houses. Kelric, who is unceremoniously dumped into this incomprehensible stew, has his only way home taken away from him before he is imprisoned. But during his time on Coba, his affinity for Quis comes to light and he gradually wins the respect, if not the trust, of his keepers. The only problem is he might be too good at this game of houses, a variable which may throw an ugly wrench into the workings of a here-to-for stable world.

Ms. Asaro can frustrate, but The Last Hawk proves that, when she concentrates her powers upon building a diverse and nuanced world, she can sit with comfort at the same table as many of science fiction's leading lights. There's real pathos in Kelric, real sadness and misery which is balanced by his ever-diminishing hope for the future. There are heroes here, but they are fleshed out by logical self-interest in a way not apparent in her first two books. This is nicely and neatly done. (4/5 Stars)