Captain Jani Kilian has been living in hiding for the last 18 years, living with the memory of the things she did during a disastrous mission to the idomeni, living behind an altered face, and a patched-together body. But she has been discovered by her old lover, now an important politician, and asked to investigate the death of his wife. But all is not as it seems, and she is caught in a web of intrigue, in danger of being arrested and executed by both the humans and the idomeni for her 18-year-old treason, and with her rebuilt body beginning to break down.
A great page turner. The story of what happened 18 years ago gradually unfolds in parallel with Kilian's current investigation, which itself proceeds at a breathless pace -- most of the action takes place over just four days. I like the alien language and philosophy, although I'm not convinced by an alien race that can "pass" for human at a pinch -- but as that is a necessity for some of the deeper plot threads, I'll let it go. And I like the protagonist -- intelligent, pragmatic, with a past.
Although there are plot threads left open for a sequel -- which I'm off to read next -- this story does have an ending.
