I can only assume that this novella would be better understood by first reading the authors other works which seem to precede this one (the first of which seems to no longer be in print). Unfortunately, judged on it's own, this novella has a few flaws. The work is thick with imagined sci-fi jargon, only some of which is accompanied by sufficient context to decipher. Characters receive little to nothing in the way of introduction, and in the latter half new characters show up at an alarming rate. The text could also use an editor, as there was at least one typo that I caught while reading.

However, the novella also had some redeeming qualities. It contained what appeared to be a quite thrilling political drama, but without the knowledge of what happened in the authors previous works, reading it was akin to showing up for the third act of a play. The writing itself was not bad, although the inclusion good old fashioned English swearing amidst the miasma of alien terms was somewhat jarring.

Overall, I think this work is worth a read, but only for those who are already invested in the world the author has created. ( )