Had another #ThePraxis thought: the "incorporating alien species into your hierarchical society" part is somewhat similar to David Brin's Uplift cycle. It's nice that there's no Earth Exceptionalism here for a change: humans are neither the first nor last species inducted into the Praxis, and they're nothing special (apart from their sexuality, but at least the first book does nothing with that fact).

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There's nice orbital mechanics here: high-g burns and slingshots, which I enjoy (like the early #TheExpanse novels); it's interesting to see an empire without an expansion drive, without any wars of conquest in the part (like the Radch in "Ancillary Justice").

The technology restrictions imposed by the Praxis are interesting (no nanotech, no AI, no genetic manipulation), but nothing much is done with them.

Not sure I'll be read the whole (long) series...

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(4/n, n=4)

Their society is hierarchical, with Peers dominating politics and the military, and commoners having little chances. Women can be pilots and even Fleet Commanders, but are still subjected to arranged marriages or, if poor, pimped out. I'm not sure how that can work...

Through Martinez, we get to see the Peers and their politicking; through Sula's past, we get to see how life is in the society's criminal underbelly. Both have depth and strong characters.

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(3/n)

This empire is founded by the alien Shaa on the Praxis, an ideology of strict rule enforcement and the thought that "all important things are known". They have conquered some other species including humans and brutally incorporated them into their empire and ideology as willing followers.

But the last Shaa dies, and of course the empire changes. "The Praxis" second half deals with the military fallout of these changes, following two officers: Martinez and Sula.

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(2/n)

Finished "The Praxis" by Walter Jon Williams. It's an Age of Sail-type #SF: FTL travel by wormholes, no FTL communication except by courier, wormholes are far and between, so long travel times at high acceleration and speeds approaching the speed of light are necessary.

(Relativistic effects such as time dilation are not discussed; the highest velocities are around 0.7c, where they should be noticeable...)

Such a universe surely is in need of an empire.

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(1/n)

#ThePraxis is extreme in this, but the first #TheExpanse book felt similar; I think Vernor Vinges "A Fire Upon the Deep" tries to subvert it with a nominally matriarchal society where men don't seem to experience any disadvantages...

"[G]randeur and self-importance are what holds the empire together."

That, and bureaucracy, I guess.

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After the #Teixcalaan duology, #ThePraxis is the second one I recall putting such an emphasis von rumors, gossip, and politics in a space fleet.

Given that most of my impression of such fleets come from #StarTrek, that was a bit surprising to me at first. But it makes sense in a society of the estates as this one, which adheres to a strict and complex hierarchy of social classes. Information can be one thing you can use to your advantage there, if not much else.

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So far, the orbital mechanics are nice! I'm wondering about the technology restrictions though. "No manipulation of matter at the atomic level" seems to rule out atomic force microscopy as well as epitaxy, so solid state electronics can't be done on a sophisticated level. Wonder what that might lead to...

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Started reading Walter Jon Williams' "The Praxis" (because of @Bluejo's December reads column).

That the German word "Praxis" can also refer to a doctor's office makes for some fun mental images of nurses shouting "for the Praxis!" as they mightily draw blood, phone patients, and do documentation...

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