My whole approach to reading this book was shaped by the dedication--"to anyone who finds themselves falling in love with a culture that is swallowing theirs". We have an ambassador from a tiny nation (space station), not even a Tuvalu to America, trying to save it from being swallowed and digested by a huge empire. Even though it's already happening through cultural exchange. And Teixcalaan is beautifully crafted to play the part--an incredible façade of high culture and wealth. A place where official business is conducted in poetry. Obviously the author is a poet, and a literary person, since the book is suffused with inside baseball commentary on the literary worthiness of state pronouncements.
It is also spot on in the high handedness of upper class Teixcalaan citizens (we only briefly meet any other kind). The Lsel ambassador is a "barbarian", and all complements on their intellect are backhanded. We get brief glimpses of the brutality of the empire, but mostly we get the glitter.
Teixcalaan culture is sort of Aztec, but the approach is British. The empire expands and brings its own version of "white man's burden" to the colonies. This is only hinted at, since the protagonist is from a still (but not for long) independent state. The ambassador has studied them and knows the very literary way in which Teixcalaan views the universe (or world, or city--in Teixcalaan, the words are all the same and only understood in context).
It's a fascinating read, and the relationships between the characters are special and well-drawn. Being around such literate folks makes us feel good and smart ourselves. It will be interesting to see where he takes this.
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