Rating: 
Summary: The Redemption of Andrej Andreievitch
Review: The Devil and Deep Space is a story of moral and political conflict in a very exotic culture. The First Judge is dead and Chilleau Judiciary prepares itself for the Selection of his successor. Koscuisko finally gets to visit his family and to meet his son Anton for the first time. All is not well, however, back on the Ragnorok and Mergau Noycannir is a lurking presence.The fifth in the Judiciary series, this novel is itself an engrossing work that riveted my attention throughout and left me wanting more. It expands the richness and complexity of the Judiciary society through this glimpse of the Dolgorukij Combine, reminding me in various ways of the works of Donald Kingsbury and Ursula LeGuin. Although still centered on Andrej Kowcuisko, the story continues to extend to other viewpoints and situations. Remember when Dune was the just the story of Paul Atreides, but then bloomed into an interstellar scope? Matthews could be following in Herbert's footsteps.
Rating:
Summary: Good But Not Great
Review: This book is the latest in the series that began with the stunning An Exchange of Hostages. Unfortunately, while I enjoyed The Devil and Deep Space a lot as a fan of the series, it doesn't have quite the same originality or impact as the earlier books. On the plus side, Andrej Koscuisko returns to center stage here. The last book, Angel of Destruction, was not helped by making him mostly absent. But Matthews' characterization of Koscuisko seems to be getting less daring. I've enjoyed the characterization of Koscuisko as a man in a real moral dilemma, caught up in a sadism that his moral and rational self despises even as a darker part of him enjoys it. Now, though, he seems to be morphing into a straightforward hero--even an action hero. He's relatively sane throughout the book (in contrast to the trend of the previous books, where he seemed to be increasingly out of control) and never even has to torture anybody. In fact, Matthews's overall focus seems to be turning from characterization and ethical exploration into a more typically science fiction approach with lots of action. Some may like this--I don't. The originality of language and atmosphere that made the first couple of books so wonderful is lessened here. Matthews makes less use of the chillingly militaristic, restrictive terminology of the Standard language. There's less of the atmospheric, rather swooning eroticism too--perhaps because the bond-involuntaries (some of my favorite characters) aren't a presence in this book. But there are some enjoyable new things here too. We see much more of the Malcontent than before, and I hope further books will tell us even more about this "scandalous" group. The character of Stildyne also gets a lot of development--and he even gets to have a bit of a life in this book. The slightly more hopeful tone of The Devil and Deep Space will probably appeal to a lot of people too.
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