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December 05, 2008
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 | The Escapement by K. J. Parker | Reviewed by Harriet Klausner |  | Publisher: Orbit
http://www.orbitbooks.com
ISBN: 9780316003407
Genre: Fiction
Subgenre: Fantasy
Release date: Dec 2007
Format: Trade
Pages: 592
Price: $12.99
| Former guild military engineer Ziani Vaatzes once cherished his country, the superpower Mezentine Republic. However, he understands that the flaws in the military-guild-aristocratic complex that rules the region make the neighboring Vadani and Eremians angry. The Empire uses these nations as subordinate states to maintain their superiority. Ziani commits the worst transgression against the Guild and country when he tries to improve on the “perfect” economic model of suppression and is sentenced for innovative efficiencies crimes. He turns traitor, selling military-industrial war machines. Many have since died, yet Ziani remains obstinate. It could mean the destruction of Civitas Vadanis, with over a million people residing in it, though he fears his barbarian allies will fail him.
Mezentine Republic leader Secretary Psellus is stunned by recent events. His country’s enemies have proven formidable in spite of massive slaughters of the civilian populace of his neighbors, as the insurgency remains strong against the occupation. He fears that the ancient texts that guide him are failing. The Vadani and Eremians seem united in a common cause, engineered by Vaatzes into an army of eight hundred thousand savages. Many innocent will die for either a belief system or for someone else’s personal gain.
This third book in "The Engineer Trilogy" (see Devices and Desires and Evil For Evil) is a fascinating look at power; those who have it want more at any cost. The Republic has economic and military power over the region, their premise being that savages are expendable in support of the status quo. Ziani remains narrowly obsessed as he comprehends his actions will leave thousands, maybe millions, dead. Psellus, who has doubts, is almost as narrow-minded and steadfastly stays the course. Other irresponsible leaders, cloaking their motives behind the common good of security, willingly send troops to die for their personal causes. Although at times the explicit details slow down the storyline, readers will appreciate this strong look at the convergence of war, politics, and economics. | | |
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