A Memory Called Empire

A ‘barbarian’ visits the centre of a galactic empire, though in this case the barbarian has technology that outstrips the monolith in the form of a ‘imago’ device that implants the memories of a forebear into the carriers mind. The internal dialogue with the hosted persona sometimes felt a bit like a dungeonmaster having a conversation between two NPCs - a little uncomfortable and something you want to get out of quickly. I think this wanted to be about the outsider experience, but suffered a little because we never find out much about the outsider’s world, so we’re outside both cultures. As a result it was hard to get too emotionally concerned with the political intrigue, and the rapid ascension (and threat) of the visitor to the heights of power was not entirely believable. The diplomatic wrangling was fun to read, with some sharp dialogue and a core of good characters.