A Fire of Ten Thousand Flags — Aliette De Bodard

Aliette de Bodard is 'one of the most influential voices in fantasy today' (Starburst). A Franco-Vietnamese writer living in Paris, she's the mother of two, qualified as an officer in the French military, is a very talented cook (http://aliettedebodard.com/recipes/), understands everything it's possible to understand about Applied Maths and, in her day job, literally keeps the trains running.She has won:* The Nebula Awards (twice)* A Locus Award* The British Science Fiction Award (three times - most recently for The House of Shattered Wings)* Writers of the Future* And she's been a finalist for: The Hugo Awards, the Sturgeon Awards and the Tiptree Awards.Aliette is a high profile author, a regular Guest of Honour at events and conventions, and recommended by booksellers in the same breath as Zen Cho, Naomi Novik, Cixin Liu and V. E. Schwab.'It's brilliantly written; and the story is gripping' Civilian Reader