I have a suspicion that Ann Leckie is to worldbuilding what JRR Tolkein is to languages. I think she loves building a world so goddamned much that she simply has to tell the stories within it.
Listen, if our beloved Ann Leckie is gonna do ONE THING she's gonna construct a world that is so thought-out on a political and material level. Ann Leckie is running up to your constructed world, pounding on the fourth wall, yelling "WHAT DO THEY EAT? WHERE DOES IT COME FROM? DOES IT MAKE SENSE FOR THAT FOOD TO BE PRODUCED IN SUFFICIENT QUANTITIES TO SUPPORT THE POPULATION? WHAT ARE THE WORKERS CONDITIONS LIKE? HOW DO THEY PRAY? WHAT MATERIALS ARE INVOLVED IN THEIR PRAYER? WHERE DO THE PRAYER MATERIALS COME FROM? HOW DOES THAT DIFFER FROM OTHER SOCIOECONOMIC CLASSES IN THIS PLACE?" And then she fucken skateboards away to play seven-dimensional chess with gender.
And we all agree we love Ann Leckie for this.
