Shinn’s Samaria series has always had a sort of unspoken communication with the reader: savvy sci-fi readers quickly catch on that “Jovah” is an AI satellite tasked with protecting the population on the planet, said population including genetically-engineered winged “angels” able to soar into the sky and sing coded communications to Jovah asking for anything from weather intercessions to dropped deliveries of medication. But in this installment, mysterious aliens arrive on Samaria dealing random destruction and death, and the populace (not knowing what the reader knows) has no idea how to deal with the problem. Shinn takes advantage of the reader’s knowledge of sci-fi space wars without having to explain anything, letting us enjoy the characters’ journey towards understanding, while juggling love and politics as well. One thing I haven’t been gushing over enough in this series is the description of how perfect it feels to sing harmonies and accompaniments with other wonderful singers and different types of voices; it’s really beautifully described and makes me wish that I could be singing with the characters.
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