I LOVE this series of tiny novellas; they're all glimpses into a much, much larger world than the reader will ever get to see, and it makes them even more precious. Do yourself a favor & read all her Viet books.

In the Shadow of the Ship is all about generational trauma, being the fireman when the universe is on fire, and pursuing the eternally shifting goal posts of parental approval. Our Protagonist is a young woman named Khuyên who ran away from the mindship The Nightjar, Thirsting for Water when she was sixteen. (Why she ran away is not so much hinted at, as hung over your head like a boulder held up by piano wire. I am impressed by Aliette de Bodard's ability to balance the blatant horror while still creating a strong sense of suspense.)

The sentient starship is a former warship turned into a safe haven for a colony of refugees who are avoiding the chaos outside mostly by avoiding it...to the point they've become extremely insular in ways that are kind of toxic! She returns as an adult having become a magistrate of the crumbling remains of an empire torn by war, for her grandmother's funeral.

She does not receive a warm welcome from her family, and it quickly becomes apparent that The Nightjar was never a safe haven, and Khuyên had a really good reason for running away. The highlights of Khuyên's arrival involve parental disapproval that she left, parental disproval that she isn't married yet, and a mysterious woman named Thảo, who asks a lot of questions, but who no one else seems to be able to see. When her teenaged cousin goes missing, Khuyên goes to look for her, assisted by . We then get a slow reveal of who Thảo really is as they attempt to reach the place where the mind ship's brain is housed before Khuyên's cousin meets the fate that she avoided by running away sixteen years previously.

In the Shadow of the Ship is a compelling combination of family drama and psychological horror. This is a great read if you go in for both. Shadow is a fast-paced read, and again, ramps up the tension, though most of the revelations toward the end are more like confirmations of the rot beneath the safety and security promised by the ship.

This review is based off of a copy received from NetGalley

Thank you to NetGalley and Subterranean Press for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions within are my own.

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“You’re the generation that has to live in the ashes of the fires we set.”

This is, fundamentally, a book about war trauma and also about escaping a cult. Here, de Bodard returns to the world of Xuya, and, for my money, she returns to form as well, regaining some of the greatness her writing has seen in On a Red Station Drifting, The Citadel of Weeping Pearls, and The Tea Master and the Detective. She keeps a light hand on the brush with which she paints her setting and characters, and the result is unwordy yet evocative. Some of her imagery is lovely, some eerie or upsetting. All of it adds and adds up.

In the past, romantic writing has been de Bodard’s weakness. Here, she improves on that, though, frustratingly, she still jumps the gun on announcing an attraction that seems to come out of nowhere. Beyond that point, however, she does develop a genuine bond between the characters falling in love, and I find myself cheering for not only their success but their relationship as well.

Conversely, de Bodard’s portrayal of complex and possibly toxic familial relationships has frequently been one of her greatest strengths. Khuyen’s relationship with her mother in this story may not be as dimensional as some, but it’s still chilling, believable, and affecting. But it’s Khuyen’s relationship with her younger cousin, Ahn, which I find myself fascinated by and wishing to see more of. Whereas Khuyen managed to leave her terrifying childhood home, Anh is the one who stayed and tried desperately to find her purpose. While Khuyen thinks of Anh as someone to rescue, de Bodard doesn’t let it be as simple as that.

I may not have enjoyed much of de Bodard’s more recent writing, but I’m giddy to report that In the Shadow of the Ship breaks that mold. Here’s hoping it starts a new trend!

My thanks to NetGalley for making an eARC of this book available to me.

Very interesting world with sentient (A.I.) spaceships and where individual humans have multiple companion drones. Add in the possibility of romantic relationships between human and ship, and families disapproving of children who don't follow exactly their parents wishes and you have plenty of interesting conflict.

This short book from Bodard is set in her familiar Vietnamese flavored alternate history. It also features similar theses to other stories: a universe dominated by women; intricate familial obligations; powerful kinships; queer romance; and vengeance and cruelty. I found the cruelty powerful and oppressive here, with the heroine's estranged mother an exemplar of vile parenting. I also found the oppressive weight of familial obligations to be well described, be it for heroine Khûuen or cousin Anh.

I would have preferred a longer book. The romance feels abrupt and unlikely. I would have liked to have seen, and not been told, the tribulations the heroine experiences is a post-war Empire, wracked with deprivation and chaos. I would have liked the tension leading to the final, fateful encounter to have be drawn out longer and not to have culminated so swiftly.

Still Bodars is excellent and the book is well written as always. Well worth the time to read and reflect.

I have read almost everything Aliette de Bodard has written in the Xuya universe, and her ability to write about difficult family relationships, trauma, and the aftermath of war is remarkable. This novella is no exception, painting a bleak picture of the choices available to the protagonist and her family. As with many of the Xuya stories, I expect the themes and writing to be even richer on re-read.

I always struggle when trying to advise others where to start with the Xuya stories, and I don't think this novella is likely to be a very accessible starting point. I felt that having a previous background on the mindships and the setting were helpful in understanding what was going on in the story. On the other hand, this story offers a new view of mindships, as the Nightjar is quite different than any ships that have previously been portrayed.

Entering the captivating world of Aliette de Bodard's Xuya universe for the first time was an absolute delight! The infusion of sci-fi elements and the intricately crafted world was done brilliantly. This novella was an emotional journey and a beautiful story. Needless to say, I will be reading more of de Bodard's work—it's safe to say I've become a fan!

I really enjoyed reading this book, it had everything that I wanted from the Xuya universe. It had a great feel for the universe and thought the scifi element worked with everything that I was looking for. It had a strong concept and can’t wait to read more more from Aliette de Bodard.

A chilling Xuya mystery that explores the horror of toxic family dynamics onboard a derelict ship that's protected by a gruesome covenant.

With an ethereal feel, a tangible sadness, echoes of regret and melancholy tone, a science fiction novella about a young woman returning to the ship on which she grew up could be a shadow of the visit of any young adult to an abusive home they escaped. Khuyên’s return to the Nightjar for her grandmother's funeral, the complex emotions she goes through and interactions with family could have taken place in so many locations in our world, in our time. But this story gives us a setting and an abuser that casts a futuristic shadow on a contemporary story. The human characters have a filmy quality to them and the non-human make what could be the heartbreaking earthly plot, supernatural. The language and rhythm of the prose matches well to the mood of the story, and despite its short length, this is not something I would consider a "quick read", but more of a story to linger over. I would suggest this to someone looking for a more pensive or somber read that they want to savor. (3.5 rounder up to 4/5)
I received advanced digital access to this book thru NetGalley (for which I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher, Subterranean Press) for an honest review. The opinion expressed here is my own.

If there's one thing about de Bodard, it's that she's gonna deliver and it's gonna be gloriously painful.

Khuyên fled her home on the Nightjar four years ago, after a string of children's disappearances. Now working for the Empire, Khuyên returns upon receiving news of her grandmother's death. Her grandmother oversaw the Tribute, a deemed necessity for life aboard the Nightjar and one that only children could participate in.

Back for the funeral, Khuyên is forced to relieve her past on the ship, and the night of the funeral, she encounters someone she's never seen before, Thảo, a beautiful woman who is cryptic with Khuyên. When Khuyên asks her mother about Thảo, her mother says she's never seen or heard of her. Then Khuyên wakes up in the same clothes she slept in when she still lived aboard the Nightjar, and there's an eerie silence to the entire ship...

Aliette de Bodard never fails to impress me. I have dipped my toes into so many of her different books, different universes, and her imagination, her writing are always top notch. The creativity that goes into her Xuya stories just boggles my mind. In the Shadow of the Ship is excellence, plain and simple.

I'm starting to think this author isn't for me, which is a shame because there are so many elements that I should love: an interesting sci-fi world, a sapphic romance, and mysteries to be solved, yet I always come out feeling unsatisfied. It must be a me thing, because I am sure many people will love and enjoy this, so keep that in mind. I feel bad giving it such a low rating, but I couldn't find myself caring about the story, and for an under 100-page novella I felt the setup took up way too much of the story time, leaving the second half feeling rushed. I didn't like the main character, she felt underdeveloped and uninteresting to follow, and the love interest/assistant to her journey was confusing. Maybe I would need to read more in this world to understand more, and if that's the case then that's my bad. I do hope this story finds its audience.

Stunning, brilliant, and intensely emotional. It seems I have truly found my favorite author in Aliette de Bodard, who never fails to write stories that cut directly to my heart - and at the same time crafts the most magnificent sci-fi imagery and concepts. This novella was the perfect length and held me captive the entire time I spent reading it. Cannot recommend this enough.