The Race to Radiant Sainthood: Review of Ann Leckie’s Radiant Star

David Tierney Under Review:Radiant Star. Ann Leckie. Orbit, May 2026. Ann Leckie’s multi-award-winning Imperial Radch trilogy holds a special place as one of my favorite SF works, and Radiant Star, a standalone novel set in the same universe, is a perfect re-entry point to the series. It draws just enough on the previous books: they are not essential reading, but rather add depth to the novel. Exploring the intricate effects of colonization on an alien culture, Radiant Star is a satisfying read, but it is let down by an overabundance of characters and an unfocused plot. Radiant Star takes place on an isolated planet, Ooioiaa, which has been colonized by the Radchaai Empire. While the overall empire is central to the plot, the book focuses on the planet’s own workings. Class, religion, and colonization create complex interweaving relationships and conflicts between a multitude of intriguing characters. However, it takes a while to fully grasp the world and its characters, and much of…