This was my first venture into the works of Ann Leckie, an author I've been meaning to get into for a while, and I quite enjoyed it. The canvas spreads quite far with lots of different characters and cultures weaved together to create a story that is compelling for the most part. I was confused by some of the directions it took towards its climax and some story elements didn't add up to much, but I had a great time with it. This is set in the same universe as Leckie's other novels, so perhaps that might have helped. It bears a lot in common with China Miéville's 'Embassytown', particularly in its idea of two separate people/personalities coming together to form a new person for the purposes of acting as an intermediary between alien races who otherwise wouldn't be able to communicate. Though Miéville has greater access with the idea, the relationship between Qven and Reet as they come to terms with who they are and what they must do is one of strongest elements of 'Translation State'. I'd intrigued enough to dive further into this universe!