Hadrian seems to be really good at having bad luck. Starting out as a Palatine lord, but not wanting to live that life, he manages to find himself in worse and worse situations, trying at each turn to make the best of his situation or to find a way out. A natural linguist, Hadrian had learned several languages under the tutelage of his tutor, Tor Gibson. He has even learned to speak the language of the Cielcin, the alien enemies that humans have been at war with for some time, now. Hadrian never really seemed to have a strong idea of what he wanted or a sense of direction until he met and spoke with one of the Cielcin. He found it more... and less... like humans than he expected, but ultimately found it a creature of reason, not like the demons the Chantry made them out to be. At that point, he became determined to be instrumental in ending the war, finding some common ground or understanding... But there's no clear road from here to there.
I loved the way Empire of Silence is written. It's a first-hand account by Hadrian Marlowe, but written after-the-fact, looking back to set things straight and provide clarification of the details of widely-known events that occurred in the series' mythos. In the first book. This is strange, in that it allows things to be mentioned that wouldn't have been known at the time, sort of like foreshadowing, but blatantly stated, perhaps with an "of course, I didn't know that at the time" type of matter-of-fact presentation. Additionally, as Hadrian is the author of the account (not merely the narrator), specific references to writing down the account are mentioned. Finally, as the author, Hadrian can address the reader directly, and does so infrequently, but to good effect. (Mind you, the intended reader would be someone living in the far future in the universe of the book, not us.)
As a book reviewer, I get the opportunity to read a lot of books. Some endings are good, while others are disappointing. Sometimes, the last book in a series might not give the closure you hope for or a middle book will feel too much like a bridge. A first book in a series can have a problem juggling the need to define the characters encountered, tell a story, and to set up the next book in the series. Christopher Ruocchio's Empire of Silence is the first book in a series, yet it did a great job of telling an entertaining tale with a great ending and set up the premise for upcoming books in the series. I look forward to reading the ongoing adventures of Hadrian Marlowe, but would enjoy this book just as much if there weren't additional books on the way.
If you're a fan of science fiction, realistic space travel (you know, with cryo-sleep, not FTL drives) and a post-Earth multi-planet empire with an old-school caste system, where A.I. is outlawed and power comes from a church that seeks to limit technology, then I highly recommend Empire of Silence.
