I used to be happy to see this one arrive for evaluation – in spite of everything, this collection has been one among my favourites in recent times. (The 2 books to date – Guide 1, Artifact Area, and Guide 2, Deep Black – have been in my ‘better of the 12 months’ lists in each 2021 and 2024, for instance.)
Whalesong, Guide 3 of the Arcana Imperii collection, follows on instantly from Deep Black (and subsequently there are minor spoilers right here on this evaluation for Guide 1, Artifact Area, and Guide 2, Deep Black.)
Though Deep Black clearly tied issues up with one story arc (the massive battle between the Directorate of Human Companies (DHC) and the PTX, and Nbaro’s ascension in political energy), Whalesong begins one other story arc, because it follows on instantly from the top of Deep Black.
It additionally signifies that though Whalesong is the primary a part of a brand new story arc, it’s not the story to start with on this collection – there are revelations right here that may imply little in the event you haven’t adopted what has gone earlier than – however in case you have, you may be rewarded.
We begin Whalesong with Marca Nbaro & Horatio Dorcas adjusting to a life again at house base and likewise married life. Dorcas turns into obsessive about salvaging an alien Hin spaceship, now lifeless but intact exterior the Kuiper Belt of Extremely-Medulla and travelling out of the galaxy. We even have Nbaro arranging for a whale to be transported to speak to the alien Starfish, as this was one of many alien’s requests in Deep Black.
My preliminary thought was that this could be the principle plot of the novel, though this third ebook truly focusses away from our most important characters so far, to give attention to Thor Stokel, their pal and ex-colleague. Thor has retired from lively responsibility and is now (due to some actions of Nbaro and the AI Morosini) the captain of the Silver Star, a refitted spaceship and is ready to be a service provider spacer, buying and selling throughout the galaxy.
Which means that the subsequent a part of the novel is fairly like a Heinlein-esque travelogue as Storkel travels from planet to planet – anybody who is aware of the traditional laptop sport Elite will get the concept. Storkel additionally has to assemble a crew for his new spaceship. He employs Cawo Elmi-Mahmoud as a reliable second-in-command and the enigmatic Badal-Mehra as an astrogator. When Marca results in hospital, Dorcas later joins the crew, in addition to Feyyan Zhao as a weapons officer, regardless of Zhao being an individual with connections to the PTX, (a competing group to the DHC.)
As is typical of this collection to date, all the most important characters are attention-grabbing. Storkel himself is especially noticeable, as a result of figuring out himself to be paranoid (a results of the battles in Deep Black and the medicine taken to deal with high-g manoeuvres) he questions every thing – his ship, the AI, his colleagues and himself. This results in tough decisions being made tougher as he thinks and even overthinks each determination – for instance, is the ship’s erratic AI working with him, or towards him? Can or not it’s trusted to do what it’s requested to do?
Moreover, as he delivers items across the galaxy, Storkel finds that others need him useless, for causes that evolve throughout the story. The final a part of the ebook is a tense and thrilling chase with every thing to lose.
To complement this, Dorcas, as seen in Deep Black, is that this ebook’s Spock – usually aloof, all the time questioning, his connections with the AI by way of a neural lace and his work to speak with the alien Starfish in Deep Black which is paramount to this story.
With that in thoughts, then, Whalesong deftly juggles political intrigue, philosophical musings, and area battles at a ridiculously excessive velocity, however utilizing correct science and math. There’s espionage, deep cowl workouts, loyalty and treachery concerned, all filtered by way of Storkel’s growing paranoia that retains issues transferring and the reader questioning every thing.
As befitting a narrative from a grasp plotter and storyteller, it’s nicely performed. I did really feel that, nearly as good because it was, the earlier novel (Deep Black) sagged a little bit within the center with its countless descriptions of area journey in an enclosed setting. I’m happy to say that there’s no such points for me right here.
Though the story (as earlier than within the first two books) is centred on a couple of characters, Miles is adept at additionally enjoying the lengthy sport. I preferred the truth that though the story focussed on a comparatively small group of characters, there are greater points at stake, though most of those are nonetheless unresolved. The previous few chapters, as with Deep Black, deliver us again to the larger image and set issues up for the subsequent ebook. There are clearly extra revelations to comply with – in actual fact, ebook 4 is due in 2026.
In abstract, Whalesong continues to indicate the creator’s strengths in characterisation, tempo and plotting. It’s a tight, fast-paced and shorter story that successfully builds on what has gone earlier than, earlier than leaving with a humdinger of a cliffhanger ending.
© 2025 Mark Yon
Hardback | Gollancz
WHALESONG by Miles Cameron
October 2025 | 416 pages
ISBN: 978-1399615082
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