Rating: 
Summary: good science, even better fiction
Review: In the far future, people wear nanotech uniforms that will each second reform themselves to the wearer's shape, pilots will "fly" vessels less than a millimeter in diameter, AI's will take over planet-wide information systems and devices and form a "compound mind", and cultures will war with each to death and destruction. All of this is semi-interesting in its own right and is handled extremely deftly in this work, but it still is standard science fiction. But also in the future? The dead will rule, empathy will be treated with drugs as a side-effect, and oh yes, one of the more interesting characters/narrators will be a house. This is poetry.
While there was once a time when I read mostly science fiction, I long ago moved into fantasy when looking for lighter reading and while I still dipped into the pool now and then, I never was impressed enough to wade back in fully, though I sometimes found things I liked quite a bit (Dan Simmons' Hyperion series for instance). If I thought there were more books out there like this one, I'd throw on my goggles, suit, and fins and jump in for an extended stay.
As mentioned, the science part of Risen Empire is smoothly handled--the jargon never gets in the way, the devices themselves and their application are fascinating, and it's all tied so tightly into what's happening that you never feel lost or confused in a sea of technological jibber-jabber. Even better than the science, though, is the human side of this novel. The political premise, that one empire, ruled by the dead--eternals tightly tied to the emperor who alone can grant that immortality--is slowly stagnating and is starting to face internal dissent by some of the living is wonderful. Politics and social analysis is given nearly as much space as the technology, and while some will find it mere digression slowing down the "operatic" parts of the space opera, I personally found it as or possibly more interesting. Even better are the human relationships, the main one between a senator fighting the emperor back "home" and the starship captain fighting for the emperor on a light-years away where the Emperor's sister has been taken captive.
Westerfeld cuts back and forth among the attempted rescue of the hostages, the political maneuvering back at the Empire, and flashback scenes that flesh out the main characters' individual histories as well as their relationship's history. Again, some will be off-put by this structuring, wanting more "action". I think it heightened the suspense of the rescue mission, helped make the characters three-dimensional (all too rare in both science fiction and fantasy), and made for a more interesting and stimulating reading due to the fractured structure. Subplots abound in the story beyond the main story--the hostage crisis that is the opening move in the new war between the Empire and its old enemy the Rix--who seek to "seed" artificial compound minds on industrialized worlds. Along with the war, the reader is introduced to a possible mutiny attempt, a spurned love-interest, a secret that may or may not bring down the Empire, a Helsinki-syndrome in yet another hostage situation, a sentient house, and more. All of them juggled nicely and neatly, even if all are not of the same story quality.
Very little is resolved at the end of this book, and if there's a complaint, it's that the book itself is pretty slim and so I wonder at the need to divide it into two as is seemingly going to be the case. But that's a minor if annoying flaw, and it will not prevent me from picking up the second book as soon as it comes out. After all, I want to see what happens to that house.
Rating: 
Summary: Smart, well-paced space opera
Review: In this series Westerfield really puts together an interesting, cohesive synthesis of technological, sociological, and political factors to create a background that's less two-dimensional and more vivid than one typically expects for a space opera. Even though he does wrap up his storyline in this two-volume series, hopefully he will return to this universe he's created for another series or two; there is enough detail and many intriguing ideas that just beg to be made into their own story.
The Risen Empire is a stratified society defined by its conquest of death. The living compete for the right to be brought back after their death (a privilege granted only to an aritocratic few) and the Emperor - the man who discovered the cure for death - uses this reward to keep his subjects in line. The dead are cold, conservative and unanimously supportive of the Emperor; aloof and isolated from the majority of the population, they are viewed with distrust on some worlds and worshipped religiously on others. But the Emperor has a terrible secret that he will stop at nothing to protect which could bring the whole thing down - and the Empire's enemies have just come one step closer to revealing it...
There have been several complaints in these reviews about the length of the book. This probably has less to do with the adequacy of the story (it is a bit short, but definitely a novel's worth of material) and more to do with it only having been available in hardback, which made it not such a great value for your sci-fi dollar. It is now finally available in paperback, however, which should make this less of a worry.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant political sf novel
Review: It's so refreshing to read a space opera that zooms along full of adventure, battles, excitement, romance and disaster which is also witty and smart. At times it was hard to remember that it was a space opera. Yes there's an emperor (with a collection of dead cats and wacky theories about the influence of cats on human history) but he presides over a constitutional monarchy with a sophisticated and savvy senate. In fact, _Risen Empire_ is as much a political novel as it is a space opera. Economics, public opinion and party machinations send the plot careening along every bit as much as the emperor's shenanigans, military hardware and the love interest. I could not put this book down and am waiting with bated breath for volume two.
Rating:
Summary: Oh pish. And also tush.
Review: OK. So you have to buy two books, instead of one to get the complete story. This book, while not up to the level of Alastair (no relation) Reynolds or M. John Harrison's brilliant Light, is so crammed full of ideas and oblique perspectives that the first volume ended at just the appropriate place to let it simmer and percolate in the old subconscious for a bit. ("Brilliant Light." Ha ha.) The anticipation of a return to the universe of The Risen Empire, alone justifies this approach.If this were not as good a novel, then I probably would have been testy about having to buy two (rather short) volumes. Of course, I would not have bought the second. This book is full of poetic images, like the dead cat farm, that are scattered as if thrown away. I enjoyed it so much that if I had been able to finish it in one swell foop I would have been left regretting that it ended so soon. It faintly embarrassing that I now love Space Opera this much. It is out of character that this sub-genre, which, except for Nova, never really interested me, has now become vital literature in the wide spectrum of science fiction. I'm a slipstream/new wave kind of guy. What am I doing reading this stuff? (Having a great time - that's what.) (I apologize for the second sentence of the last paragraph.)
Rating: 
Summary: Not his usual surprising self...
Review: Perhaps a space opera is just a little too much. Westerfeld's previous books are among the most enjoyable books sci-fi has to offer: highly suprising, exciting twists and marvellous characters. Especially 'Fine Prey' is a wonder of quality, ingenuity and entertainment. The Risen Empire is a good read, but lacks the originality of his previous stand-alone books. The themes are almost straightforward extrapolations of 'Evolution's Darling': what if artificial intelligence is not only human, but super-human; what if it does not take bodily form, but is a 'compound mind' made up in information infrastructure? What if people surpass the limitations of their physical self? Take these questions, find answers and voila! The world of the Risen Empire. Please not that this is not a bad book. It's a pretty good one. But given what I have come to expect of Westerfeld, it is only slightly disappointing.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding beginning
Review: Risen Empire takes place in a well imagined distant future with fast paced action, an economy of words and well develped charecters. Most of the negative reviews were because the book was not advertised as a first in a trilogy, but I can easily forgive the fact given the quality of the story telling. Hope book 2 lives up to my expectations.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating and Exciting
Review: Scott Westerfekd has created a very engaging science fiction novel that manages to dazzle and impress the reader with wondrous technology, but does not bore him or her with dry technical description. Also helping the Risen Empire is its characters, who often play second fiddle in other science fiction novels. Not in the Risen Empire though, in this work, the characters are real, with understandable emotions and motivations. There is no more interesting character in the book than the main protagonist, Imperial Navy commander Laurent Zai, who must fight for the cause he has sworn to protect, even if he begins to have serious doubts concerning the system he is protecting. Laurent Zai is a cog in a monstrous machine. Set in a world three millennia ahead of our own, humanity has spread throughout the stars. Various splinter groups have gone off on their own, but the main power in the area known as the 80 worlds is the Risen Empire, a massive imperial power ruled over by the eternal Emperor. The Emperor has ruled for 1600 years, and, through a mysterious scientific process, has been rendered immortal. Along with him, a select few are chosen to join him in this limitless existence, creating a group fiercely loyal to him and the empire. However, one group of humans has become hostile to the empire, those known as the Rix, who worship the entity of the compound mind, a computer being that can spread like wildfire through the empire's computers. In their most daring move, Rix raiders storm the palace itself, and manage to kidnap the Emperor's sister, the immortal child empress. This is a disastrous blow to the empire, and everything is sent out to bring her home. Zai is given command of the rescue mission. He is faced with a choice, save the heir to the throne, or die himself. The Risen Empire has a very good story. Westerfeld avoids the maddening trap that many scifi writers fall into, of all technology and no characters. The characters and the plot of this book are both understandable and enjoyable to the lay reader. That said, one of the most interesting aspects of this book is the amazing and imaginative technology that is described. The nanotechnology presented in this work is both realistic and fanciful, so magical that you could never believe such things could come to be. The futuristic weapons and computer technology are all nicely rendered in a classic science fiction way. Most intriguing of the futuristic technology presented is the compound mind that the Rix can create. The description of an information gathering program becoming slowly self aware was good reading. Besides some slow parts and some rough patches of philosophical hyperbole, the Risen Empire is a great read.
Rating:
Summary: New Space Opera
Review: Scott Westerfeld is one of those really big, new talents that have re-invigorated the SF genre in recent years, along with authors like Iain Banks, Dan Simmons, Alastair Reynolds, John C. Wright & Karl Schroeder. This is suitably vast space opera, wildly exciting, full of innovative ideas and fine worldbuilding. On it's own it's very good, but not a true masterpiece. It has interesting elements though, and the second and final book, The Killing of Worlds may establish it as one of the great finds of the 2000's.
Rating:
Summary: Philosophical science fiction
Review: Succession is as great as the original Dune series by Frank Herbert. Scott Westerfeld is THE new Frank Herbert for new millennium. The writing is deep and philosophical, touching on aspects of modern day humanity and drawing a parallel with our times. I recommend this book to anyone who is remotely interested in Sci-Fi and definitely must read for original Dune fans.
Rating:
Summary: Junk science and technology with lousy ending
Review: The book is full of physics violations, impossibilities. Falls into the common trap of forgetting about energy dynamics for all these devices. I mean, it even talks about a thingamy that falls to the ground and powers itself by "splitting water to hydrogen and oxygen, then burnig the hydrogen for energy." Hello? That's a net zero reaction if carried out perfectly, which isn't possible, so it's a small net loss. This book is riddled with things along those lines. Fairly well written, except that the story just stops, and ...
Consequently it's like reading a .... So? What's the point? This isn't a book that educates or speculates about things that could happen (except in highly limited ways) in the physics of this universe. It isn't a book that takes you through to some completion in a story to escape into - it's fun and meaningless but lacking the fun of something completed at the end. This book has no philosophical depth either, though it nods in that direction. Yeah, it postulates multiple descended from human empires clashing. But at that level its flat. Characters are pretty decently developed, but the overall? So put it together and what's the point?
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