Excellent, clever, and often funny stories mostly about Shuos Jedao, a primary character from Lee's trilogy set in the same universe. drawing on Lee's own experiences as an Asian-American in Texas. I loved these origin stories and escapades and gaining an even better feel for the world in which they're set. I recommend these stories and the full Machineries of Empire series.

Reviewed on podcast: http://mainebeacon.com/collins-claims-its-inappropriate-to-discuss-impeachment-but-was-happy-to-with-clinton/

Reading short stories set in a world you love is like coming home. It just feels so familiar and emotional in a different way to the original books. And that’s exactly how Hexarchate Stories felt to me.

For the most part, these stories are more like vignettes, snapshots of life before and after the main events of the trilogy. There are a handful of longer ones (a couple of which were already published as short stories elsewhere), and the last 40% or so of the book is a kind of sequel novella to the entire series (and, incidentally, my favourite of the collection).

The best thing about this collection is the insight it gives you into both the familiar characters of the trilogy and characters outside of them. Not new characters, really, because they’re mostly all related somehow, but characters you don’t see a lot of. Jedao’s family gets a few stories (and those ones really did make me cry, particularly the story from Rodao’s POV). And there are stories which do a little bit to further the worldbuilding of the universe. How it was before, how it was after, more about when the heptarchate became the hexarchate. It’s not things that are necessary for understanding the main trilogy, but it’s things that add to it later on.

Like I said, the story I loved most was the sequel novella to the series. If the ending to Revenant Gun left you heartbroken, then this story will resolve all that heartbreak. Yes, it left me sad about Cheris and Jedao yet again, but it was a good kind of sad this time.

And now all I have to do is stave off the inevitable desire to reread the whole series.

[this review will be up on my blog, acquadimore.wordpress.com, on June 24, 2019]

Hexarchate Stories is a collection of stories – from flash fiction and prose poems, both old and new, to a sequel novella – set in the universe of the Machineries of Empire series.
While many of these stories develop the worldbuilding, give a PoV to characters that were only minor in the trilogy, and give you some insight into how this series came together, they’re not necessary to understand it. Nor – I think – would mean a lot to someone who isn’t familiar with the main trilogy. I would recommend this mostly to those who loved this universe and want more.
As I’m part of said those, I’m glad these stories exist, and I’m glad that I can find most of them in only one place now.

This collection starts with The Chameleon’s Gloves, following Rhehan, an alt (non-binary person) who is trying to pull off art theft and gets roped into something much more dangerous instead, something that will make them question their loyalties. This was interesting mostly because of its worldbuilding, as it’s set before everything we saw in the series came into being.
Of mostly historical significance is also Seven Views of the Liozh Entrance Exam, snapshots about a faction then gone heretical, which made me realize just how much the Hexarchate misunderstands its own history.

And I can’t not mention the gorgeous prose poem How the Andan Court. I’ve always been intrigued by the Andan faction, mostly because a) pretty and b) we see a lot of the inner workings of the Shuos, but not of the Andan, but from the little we see of actual Andan in the series they’re equally terrifying.
And now I want them to court me instead

There are also stories following Jedao’s childhood and family. They’re bittersweet, especially if you know what happens later, and really interesting, because Garach Ledana is a very fascinating person and because foreshadowing. The one in Rodao’s PoV was especially heartbreaking, as I can’t help but wonder about all the what ifs.
(Also, of course kid!Jedao cut class to play jeng-zai)

Then there’s Extracurricular Activities, the novelette that introduced me to this series. It has all the humor of the series, but it's much lighter in tone; I’ve read it probably more than ten times by now, and every time I catch some new detail that makes me laugh. (The part about eating utensils and Jedao’s thoughts about knives never fail.)
It’s just – Jedao. He’s a charming, murderous bisexual disaster?
Also, here you’ll get more details about his mother, about the Gwa Reality, and you’ll get to read probably the closest thing to a (m/m) romance there is in this series, apart from the Brezan/Tseya storyline, maybe.

Far less romantic is Gloves, in which Jedao visits a brothel, feat. forbidden Kel uniform kink. Basically PWP, but as I suspected, there was some seriously ugly context, because my experience told me that when this author takes the time to describe a sex scene instead of just mentioning it – at least in this universe – there’s always some seriously ugly context.
And I mean, that was one messed up ending.

Another story I read before the actual trilogy is The Battle of Candle Arc, about of one of Jedao’s most well-known battles, in which he was outnumbered eight to one. I’ve read it a lot of times by now, and every time, my favorite parts are the ones about cross-faction bickering and the Jedao/Menowen dialogues.

Then there’s Calendrical Rot, which started out as the prologue of Ninefox Gambit but was then removed. It's just a fragment about one of the many places in which the story began, and now I have questions, and is it weird that unanswered questions just make this world feel more real?

The following stories (Birthdays, The Robot’s Math Lessons, Sword-Shopping, Persimmons) are about Cheris, her Mwennin upbringing, and her relationship with servitors.
The servitors have never been my favorite part of this series, but reading about how they see humans and how they interact with them, especially with Cheris, is always interesting.

Then there are two stories following some of my favorite characters: Irriz the Assassin Cat, of course, which is probably my favorite of the flash pieces, because it’s about Zehun and cats and Shuos parenting, and Vacation, about Brezan and Tseya, featuring questionable Nirai experiments.

The last short story is Gamer’s End. I’m not sure where it’s placed timeline-wise, but it’s a really interesting piece in second person about Shuos Academy’s new ethics curriculum. This is probably the most unethical way to have a test about ethics anyone has ever come up with, but what can you expect from the Shuos?
Also: a medical unit decored with knitted lace? Mikodez, why. (No, seriously, half of the reason I like this series are this kind of details.)

And then there’s the sequel novella, Glass Cannon, in which Jedao Two escapes the Citadel of Eyes to get his memories back from Cheris, and the two kind of reconcile in the process. I have some mixed feelings about this, because it has an exposition problem. I think there was an attempt to make this novella accessible to those who haven’t read the main series or don’t remember it that well, but it… really didn’t flow smoothly the way the rest of the series does. (How many times did you need to directly tell me that Kujen liked luxury?)

Also, I’m not sure if there are going to be more stories in this universe, but reading a very open-ended sequel novella after the trilogy had a pretty satisfying conclusion is… somewhat disappointing? However, there were some things left open in the third book, and this novella started to deal with them (servitor rights! moth rights! Seriously I love the Harmony), and Jedao Two was in a terrible place mentally when we left him - at least what happened here seems to have made that better. Also, Cheris now knows more details about what happened with Dhanneth, which is something I had hoped would happen in Revenant Gun, and I’m glad that was addressed, if somewhat obliquely.

I realize that so far what I’ve said about this novella sounds mostly negative, but I actually really liked reading it – it's hilarious. As Cheris/Jedao and Jedao Two are both Jedao to a level but not fully, and as no one alive hates Jedao quite as much as Jedao himself does... well, it goes exactly as messily as one could think. It reminded me of Extracurricular Activities, as it has all of the humor and some of the darkness of the main series but none of the heaviness. And since I'm always there for mirroring, something about this ending made a lot of sense to me, too.
(My favorite parts were the ones in which Jedao was described as “the regenerating menace from outer space” and “what did the void vomit forth”.)
Also: Niath cameo (I’m so glad he seems to be doing ok, even though I hadn’t really met him before), Hemiola cameo, and poor Mikodez.

Many of the Hexarchate Stories center on details of Cheris or Jedao's early life. They're sweet on their own, or filled with doom if you start thinking about the fates of Cheris and Jedao's families. Jedao's family menagerie often appears, including his mother's geese and a laid-back, tractable cat (I expected said cat to end up having kittens on a pile of clothes in the back of someone's closet, but apparently that memory belongs only to my childhood, not to Jedao's). Of the domestic stories, one from Jedao's older brother's point of view and another about Cheris's birthday particularly stand out.

The final story is "Glass Cannon," a novella which picks up a few years after Revenant Gun left off. Much of "Glass Cannon" is straight-up adventure, echoing the exuberant action scenes of the beginning of Revenant Gun. I was spoiled for lots of plot points (in fair disclosure, I have a beta-reader's credit at the end of this book, though I hadn't actually read any of the "Glass Cannon" text). The spoilers didn't really matter, though, because Jedao's quest to recover his memories pulled me along faster than I could recollect who shot whom with what type of bullet.

I was expecting a cliffhanger ending, but actually the final scenes in "Glass Cannon" had a satisfying feeling of clarity. In each successive hexarchate book, more and more of the plot is driven by nonhuman figures' agendas. Two of my favorite "Glass Cannon" characters--or, more accurately, two of the characters I found most interesting--were a moth named Harmony and an installation named Avros Base, each of whom has very strong opinions about what Cheris and Jedao ought to do. At the end of "Glass Cannon," other humans finally figure out what we, as readers, have known since Revenant Gun: the moths who power the hexarchate's spacedrive are intelligent, and they do not want what humans want.

Great anthology featuring stories in The Machineries of Empire universe. Most of the stories feature Jedao or Cheris but there a few that feature secondary characters, like Ledana or Nidana. Most stories are only a few pages long.

All of the stories were good with How the Andan Court being the least enjoyable as it was a poem. My favorite stories were The Chameleon's Gloves, Bunny, The Robot's Math Lessons, and Irriz the Assassin-Cat.

I really looked forward to the author's note after each story as it added a new depth, the inspiration behind Irriz the Assassin-Cat had me laughing. This is a must read to fans of the series. For anyone interested I would read the series first otherwise spoilers will be revealed and some parts may be confusing.

<b>The Chameleon's Gloves</b> ★★★★★
Rhehan, a ji-Kel, is trying to steal some art when he is abducted and forced to help out the Kel in a life or death situation. The story was great as I loved the art heist and I got to learn a lot more about the Kel.

<b>How the Andan Court</b> ★★★
The only poem in the novel. Alright but I found it added nothing to character development or world building.

<b>Seven Views of the Liozh Entrance Exam</b> ★★★
A confusing story about the Liozh exam. I still liked it even if I didn't fully understand it as I hated school exams which I thought were horrible, until you learn what happens if you fail the Liozh exam.

<b>Omens</b> ★★★★
Ledana (Jedao's mom) sets up a date with Shkan at the theatre. This story reiterates how sexually free everyone is.

<b>Honesty</b> ★★★★
A great story about Jedao, as a child, and his sister Nidana. I liked reading about Jedao's childhood more than about Nidana (as I completely forgot her from the series).

<b>Bunny</b> ★★★★★
Cute story about Jedao looking for his families missing cat. Nidana was super cute.

<b>Black Squirrel</b> ★★★
Strange story about Jedao fishing for black squirrels on campus. The inspiration behind the story was interesting.

<b>Silence</b> ★★★★
Great story featuring Jedao visiting his mom and siblings while on leave. I loved the bad cooking joke and the siblings playful bickering.

<b>Extracurricular Activites</b> ★★★
Shuos Jedao is tasked with an undercover mission to save a small spacecrew that has been captured behind enemy lines. I thought the battle ending was great but my favorite parts are how sexual free everyone is.

<b>Gloves</b> ★★★★
Jedao has some down time at the station so he visits a brothel. Story was more graphic than the rest of the series but this was necessary for the story as it shows Jedao's sexual preferences and bedroom fetishes.

<b>Hunting Trip</b> ★★★★
Jedao and Garit go to the zoo. Good, short story.

<b>The Battle of Candle Arc</b> ★★★★
Jedao is injured and facing superior odds against the heretics Lanteners. Great story with lots of action, little suspense (we all knew Jedao would win) and some world building.

<b>Calendrical Rot</b> ★★★★
A story on the origin and potential side effect of calendrical rot. Was meant as a prequel to Ninefox Gambit until it was cut by the author.

<b>Birthdays</b> ★★★★
A bittersweet story of Cheris no longer being able to celebrate her birthdays. I liked learning more about Mwennins.

<b>The Robot's Math Lessons</b> ★★★★★
A super sweet story of a servitor and a little girl who met and slowly develop a friendship. I had a big smile on my face by the end. One of my favorite stories.

<b>Sword-Shaping</b> ★★★★★
Cheris goes sword shopping with her girlfriend. The addition of impulse buying was amazing, glad to see it still effects people in the future.

<b>Persimmons</b> ★★★★
A new servitor gets lost and goes to pick some persimmons. I liked how the stories MC was a servitor as this isn't normally done in novels.

<b>Irriz the Assassin-Cat</b> ★★★★★
My favorite story in the novel. I am a huge cat lover so this story hit close to the heart. I love the idea of junk removing fabric being bested by cat hair.

<b>Vacation</b> ★★★★
Brezan and Tseya go to the zoo. Short story but the reader gets to learn more about Brezan, Kel food and Yoon Ha Lee's past.

<b>Gamer's End</b> ★★★
An okay story about the main character in a Shuos citadel taking a test. The beginning was slow, the middle was action packed and the ending was interesting. I didn't like the second person POV.

<b>Glass Cannon</b> ★★★★
A great story featuring Cheris and Jedao as Jedao tries to retrieve some lost memories. I loved learning more about Jedao and the future he may have had if the future was different.

Thanks to Netgalley and Solaris for the ARC.

This is the first work I have read by Yoon Ha Lee. This is important, as it significantly affects my review. I have seen references to his series, “The Machineries of Empire”, which begins with “Ninefox Gambit”. I thought choosing a collection of short stories might be a good way to decide if I wanted to pick-up that series. In hindsight, this was a mistake, as this collection is more appropriate for fans of that universe and I think the enjoyment from this collection would be greatly enhanced by completing the trilogy first.

This collection is an eclectic set of stories. Some stand alone, while others feel like maybe they were sections that were cut from the trilogy. They all appear to be from that same universe that began with “Ninefox Gambit”. The collection ends with a novella which accounts for most of the word count.

I thought about not leaving a review, but this was a Netgalley pick and I decided that my review might help others who also had not read Yoon Ha Lee but were still considering picking up this collection. First off, Lee is a talented writer. There is little exposition here, and he has a knack for blending familiar, every day (things like food, or shopping or clothing) into a strange, complex setting. I’m guessing in any of his works, the reader must do a great deal of work, which I consider a good thing. However, in this collection, I think it’s a challenge that really limited my ability to enjoy the stories. There was just too much about the characters, the background of the setting, for me to appreciate them. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy parts of this. The first story, which is basically a museum heist was fun, and I ran into others such as “The Robot’s Math Lessons” that were fun little self-contained stories. I also enjoyed the author notes that accompany these stories. I read the entire collection, and I did find many spots of enjoyment, and an appreciation of the writing and hints of the complex world-building behind these stories. However, for me, this collection doesn’t really stand up on its own.

I’m giving this collection three stars, but it’s important to keep in mind that’s influenced by my lack of experience with the trilogy. I highly recommend reading the “The Machineries of Empire” trilogy first, and then picking this up as a supplemental work if you enjoyed the trilogy.

To be honest, this was a very easy sell for me as I love the universe in which these stories are set and the Machineries of Empire books (starting with Nine Fox Gambit) are some of my favourite science fiction of recent years. Hexarchate Stories is mostly for completists, though, as quite a bit of the content is short stories that pad out character or plot moments from those books and which are also mostly available elsewhere, though in this case put in chronological order according to the universe.

The exceptions to this are the longer pieces, 'Extracurricular Activities' and 'Glass Cannon'. The former is a heist story, effectively, with Jedao as unwilling criminal mastermind organising a raid on a space station by getting himself arrested, and is a very enjoyable look at the twistiness of Jedao's approach to doing things. 'Glass Cannon' is the story I'd been waiting for, a novella-length follow-up to the events of Revenant Gun which details what both Jedao and Cheris did next. It had me gripped all the way through, as Jedao comes in search of Cheris because he wants his memories back and Cheris discovers all sorts of things about the new Jedao that she really never wanted to know.

All in all, if you're a completist like me you'll love this, if not then those two longer pieces are worth the price of admission on their own in my humble opinion. I can't wait to see what Yoon Ha Lee writes next and I will be right there waiting, money in hand!

I received this book free from Netgalley and the publishers in exchange for an honest review.

Hexarchate Stories is an anthology of stories written by Yoon Ha Lee in his "Machineries of Empire" (Ninefox Gambit, Raven Stratagem, Revenant Gun) universe. Most of the stories have been previously published, with the exception of three, with much of the previously published material being openly available on the web. Most of these stories are tiny snippets of life in the universe of Lee's trilogy, featuring generally one of his two most prominent characters - Jedao or Cheris, and will be of little interest to anyone who isn't already very invested in the trilogy. So if you're looking for an anthology full of stand-alone stories in this universe, you will be mostly disappointed.

There are five exceptions to this really, three of which were again already published and two of which are already award nominated (The Battle of Candle Arc and Extracurricular Activities), but the fourth is what fans of the trilogy will really be coming to this anthology for - a brand new novella named "Glass Cannon" that serves as a sequel to Revenant Gun. It's a blast and will have any big fans of the trilogy eager for more (which I don't think is coming anytime soon, so don't get too excited!)

Spoilers for the trilogy after the Jump, so if you're still waiting on reading the books, don't read further:

I'm not going to bother with a plot summary for this anthology as it wouldn't really make sense. Hexarchate Stories can basically be broken down into four categories of stories:

1. Snippets, often as short as one page, about a faction or another in this world. These are fine and usually amusing.

2. Snippets, usually just a few pages long, about short times of life in the various characters of this world, usually dealing with Jedao or Cheris or people around them. These range from cute stories about the time child Jedao was looking for his sister's cat only to find his brother's M-M porn and find attraction to one short almost full on pornographic snippet of an in-service Jedao visiting a sex worker who knows Jedao's tastes. Again, they're generally fine and often cute but they're not really short stories that stand on their own at all.

3. Novelettes that are stand-alone stories in this universe: The Chameleon's Gloves, Extracurricular Activities, The Battle of Candle Arc, and Gamer's End. I'd read all but The Chameleon's Gloves already (Candle Arc and Extracurricular activities are available for free online, the other two were first published in other anthologies, one of which I'd happened to have read).

These are all very good and if you haven't had a chance to read them, getting another chance here is all for the better. I have no idea how "Gamer's End" is supposed to work with the chronology, but honestly it doesn't matter for the story to work. The other three stories feature one that shows how the Kel worked before becoming merely a faction of the Heptarchate and two that feature prominent battles/adventures of Jedao's life that were referenced in the main trilogy.

4. Glass Cannon, the sequel novella to Revenant Gun. Quick little summary: Jedao2 breaks out of The Citadel of Eyes and seeks out Cheris in order to try and regain his full memories, and he and Cheris wind up again on the run after she agrees to help.

Obviously a lot more than that happens, with the novella (which takes up half of the anthologies page count) following up on one specific major plot thread from the last book - namely Jedao2's status as a mothlike-being and the sentience of the moths. It's generally a strong novella, although this version of Cheris, after two years of living at peace in the Mwennin community, is a lot more passive and manipulative or even brilliant than I was used to, which didn't make too much sense to me. Other than that flaw, the novella crescendos to a strong climax and ending that made me desperately want more - hell, it almost begs for a new trilogy. Pretty sure we won't be getting one of those though alas. Still Glass Cannon probably makes this anthology worth getting on its lonesome, at least for those who absolutely loved the trilogy. If you didn't of course, this won't change your mind.

Warning, the following review will contain heavy spoilers for the main trilogy and readers are highly recommended to read the main trilogy before reading this review or the discussed collection.

For fans of Yoon Ha Lee's The Machineries of the Empire trilogy, this short story collection is a must read. Featuring snippets of flash fiction that give insight into the Hexarchate's inner workings, small fluff bits describing Jedao Cheris' childhoods, one memorable 1K word fic on Jedao's uniform kink, and two Jedao-centric novellas "The Battle of Candle Arc" and "Glass Cannon", Hexarchate Stories works as an excellent accompaniment to supplement to main trilogy.

About half of these stories center around Jedao and his life pre-Black Cradle. We get short snippets of this childhood living on a goose farm and more insight in into his mother, younger sister, and older brother. We also get several shorts of his life during the Shuos Academy (with not enough Ruo) and his early military career. These shorts do a fantastic job painting Jedao as a tragic figure who never really got to mature past the age of 17 before vowing revenge on the Hexarchate for Ruo's death. As a reader who was fascinated by Jedao and wished we got to see more of his life, these stories more than satisfied me.

We also get a fair bit of Cheris's childhood, making friends servitors on the beach and "teaching" them math, then joining the Kel Academy. It's nice to see more of her childhood and her backstory, something I thought we didn't get quite enough of in the main series. I was hoping Mikodez would ge a short or two (maybe possibly even featuring Istradez), but alas, I supposed I can't have everything I want.

Many of the shorts in this series have been published online or in print prior to this publication, like "Battle of Candle Arc" and "Extracurricular Activities" and I have a faint recollection of reading several of the flash fiction stories on the author's website way back when. However, the last short "Glass Cannon" is a completely new piece that acts as a direct continuation of the main trilogy. I don't want to spoil anything, but for anyone who thought there wasn't nearly enough Jedao/Cheris interaction at the end of Revenant Gun, you will love this short. It also likely sets up for a brand new conflict and, if I'm reading the ending right, an entirely new series!

Overall, I rate this collection a 5/5. Machines of the Empire fans will adore this collection and for those that haven't started, you're surely missing out!

Review will be posted to my blog on 14 June 2019

Hexarchate Stories by Yoon Ha Lee
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Let me come right out and say that this is definitely a book for uber-fans of the Machineries of Empire.

Most of the stories are little snippets or even flash-fiction giving us every-day glimpses of Jedao and Cheris either in the deep past or the in-between bits of the trilogy or -- my favorite part -- AFTER Revenant Gun.

Most of the stories are great for closing plot points and deepening the un-tortured figure of Jedao and are NOT action filled except for a few instances. I do not consider most of these stories to be complete in themselves, but they are definitely good for the fans. The author gives us neat notes about every story and how they relate to him as an author.

The one big story that blew me away happens to be the novella at the end, written new for this collection. "The Glass Cannon" was extraordinarily good.

It may only be conceived as a "what-if" following the events of the third novel, but MY GOD I would CHEER if I had a full series started up from this. :) It had everything. Funny, action-filled, mind-blowing SF ideas, and all the brilliance of the characters we're obsessed over doing fantastic new things.

Cheris, Jedao as *spoiler spoiler* and both of them taking on the whole galaxy with *spoiler* and *spoiler* in tow? HELL YES.

Please, please! Make it Happen!

I'm pretty confident I would have enjoyed these a lot more had I read any of the Machineries of Empire series. Although, the stories stand on their own. This is an author with obvious talent. I didn't connect with these stories much, but I'll check out his other work since it's so highly praised.

I really appreciate the ARC for review!!

Hexarchate Stories by Yoon Ha Lee-A new story collection by the author of the Machineries of Empire trilogy. These Hexarchate stories center for the most part on Jedao, the infamous ghost general of the Machineries universe, and deliver small snippets of his formative years. A lot of very short character studies, and cultural development in flash fiction form. Also included are memorable novellas and novelettes "Extracurricular Activities", "The Chameleon's Gloves", The Battle of Candle Arc", and a long novella, never published before, "Glass Cannon". This last story takes place after the trilogy and is not to be missed. I don't usually care for story collections because they usually end up being a mixed bag, but here is the same author working within the same universe he has created and everything progresses nicely.

Yoon Ha Lee’s Machineries of Empire trilogy (Ninefox Gambit, Raven Stratagem and Revenant Gun) is one of the most mind blowing and original space opera series in years. In Hexarchate Stories, Lee revisits the main characters of those books (Shuos Jedao and Kel Cheris) and their universe in a series of short stories and a couple of novellas that work chronologically through his universe.

After a palate cleanser about a thief set in the ages before his main tale (“pre-calendar’), Lee moves to the story of how Shuos Jedao’s mother met his father (Jeado and his siblings all have different fathers). This is followed by a number of stories of Jedao as a child, a student and then a successful general answering hints that were scattered through the main novels. This series of tales ends with the famous Battle of Candle Arc, in which Jedao wins against a far superior force. Lee then jumps forward in time to give readers an unused prologue to Ninefox Gambit followed by stories of young Cheris in a similar vein. The collection is capped by a novella, a sequel of sorts to the series which brings the two characters together again (in a way) and potentially paves the way for more stories in a very different universe.

The most fascinating part of this collection is the series of author’s notes after each story. These give insights into Lee, his family and the influences on his works. The Battle of Candle Arc, for example, is based on a famous battle between the Koreans and the Japanese. While the Jedao story Black Squirrels is based stories from his college days and the Cheris tale The Robot’s Math Lessons on his discovery of the joys of mathematics in his youth.

While some of the stories stand on their own, most of these are really only for fans of the existing series and its characters. Most are short pieces of flash fiction, written for various purposes explained by the author. What they reinforce is Lee’s sense of fun but also the humanity of his writing and his deep understanding of these characters and the world around them. Hexarchate Stories is a welcome and enjoyable addition to Lee’s Machineries of Empire universe.

Fans of Lee will no doubt like this latest addition to her canon but coming in fresh like I did left huge gaps in my understanding. There was a pages-long timeline of events from the universe these are set in that was too long and too terse to sink in. I plunged ahead anyway, thinking I could pick up things in context (and hoping the stories would stand alone regardless).

I found the inconsistent attempts to avoid gender pronouns annoying. Using the plural "their" instead of "he" or "she" can be glossed over by the understanding reader but why mix "himself" or "herself" with it when discussing the same character? And later use "she" instead of "their" for the same character? I don't know if this poor usage originates with the author or the editor but it's distracting to the point of losing the stories' threads. I want to stay immersed when reading.

Hexarchate Stories is a collection of flash fiction, short stories, and novellas all set in the Machinaries of Empire world. Some before the trilogy (starting with Ninefox Gambit) and some after. You get a story of an ex-Kel before the Hexachate was formed, stories of Jedao's and Cheris' childhoods/family's and pre-book life, and the capstone of the whole series, a short story following up two years after the final book in the trilogy.

While Lee still captures the horrors and intensity of the original trilogy, this series explores many quieter and lighter moments. If you found yourself missing some humor in the original books, you'll find it in these short stories. And the authors notes after each one are a delightful insight into Lee's thoughts and worldbuilding. You may also find the Calendar explained in easier to understand words than it ever was in the first three books!

[What really capped it off for me was Glass Canon, the final novella which follows Cheris and Jedao post Revenant Gun in a thrilling, sometimes hilarious and often disturbing, adventure to give Jedao that was after RG all his memories back. I truly hope Lee decides to return to this world, because he certainly sets us up for another entire series in this novella!

I'm happy I requested this book because I discovered a great writer and a wonderful new fantasy series.
I assume it's best to read the other books before but I truly enjoyed this one.
I look forward to reading the other books in this series.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Short – sometimes very short indeed – stories, prose poems and other, unclassifiable things set in and around the Machineries of Empire trilogy. Familiar faces are here, not least Cheris, and of course plenty of Jedao. Not to mention Jedao's remarkable mother, who for saying she's a character in a queer, East Asian-inflected military SF trilogy, always makes me think of someone doing Sexy Wodehouse Aunt as an ill-advised Hallowe'en costume. Still, her most notorious offspring looms larger still, and for all that by the end of the series we knew him as much more than the undead bogeyman he first appeared, it's both unsettling and endearing to get glimpses of the future Immolation Fox in childhood. And then one of his grown-up appearances sees him star in what's pretty much a porn vignette, but a) I can't see any of the Machineries fans I know objecting and b) it does nicely close an arguable plot hole in the novels.

There are also, though, pieces going back before the Heptarchate was even founded, let alone became the Hexarchate, and one set after the novels. Even at trilogy-length Lee is far more oblique than the general run of space opera, and the shortest work here necessarily tends to be even more so. Sometimes this reaches the point where they're more glittering fragments than stories per se – it must have been fascinating encountering these enigmas in isolation first time around, aware that they contributed to a whole, but able only to glean tantalising hints of how that whole might look. Conversely, the last and longest story, Glass Cannon, was for me one of the least successful. Set after the novels, it explains more than is normally Lee's way, both in terms of simple exposition, and by crossing t's and dotting i's which for me had been left in just the most satisfying/tantalising stage of incompletion and implication as they were. But only compared to the very high standard Lee has established in the rest of the series can it be considered at all disappointing, and even here there's some glorious stuff, including one of the best portrayals I've seen of dealing with people who become a problem when they get hangry, and a few brilliant bits which work perfectly well in-world while doubling as affectionate in-jokes directed at the series' fans.

Also, I was pleased to see the collection going with the current trend whereby the author supplies endnotes to each story, which often shed as much light on Lee's own life as his work. For instance: "The hexarchate may be full of cockamamie Asians in space, but since I'm a Texan, some of those cockamamie Asians are cockamamie Asian Texans in space". Which certainly explains the jackalopes.

(Netgalley ARC)

I had not read any of the authors previous works and having read this anthology that is mistake I intend to correct soonest, I think it would probably have helped to know the universe these stories are set in but that did not detract from the pleasure I got reading them, if you have read the previous books you will find this a great companion and if you are new to the author then it will invest a desire to read more in this wonderful universe