The Observers

The Human Division #9

by John Scalzi

In an effort to improve relations with the Earth, the Colonial Union has invited a contingent of diplomats from that planet to observe Ambassador Abumwe negotiate a trade deal with an alien species. Then something very bad happens to one of the Earthings, and with that, the relationship between humanitys two factions is on the cusp of disruption once more. Its a race to find out what really happened, and who is to blame.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Audiobook, Short Stories, Space Opera, Ebooks, Aliens

48 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 12, 2013

About the author

John Scalzi, having declared his absolute boredom with biographies, disappeared in a puff of glitter and lilac scent.

(If you want to contact John, using the mail function here is a really bad way to do it. Go to his site and use the contact information you find there.)

Reviews

[Kaethe]

I've started really looking forward to these Tuesday episodes. Shouldn't have left the house this morning without downloading this one.

You know what this one is like? Asimov short space mysteries. Not exactly, but the idea of a puzzle for which the solution lies in the specific setting. And the mildly humorous tone. Loved it, again.

I bought a copy.

[S.A Reidman]

One can't fill the soft spot I have for the B-Team - it's more like a crater in my heart.

Before I rearrange the lyrics to The Real Slim Shady and replace it with The Real B-Team, let me just get on my soapbox and announce that I am once again petitioning for a BrainPal.

My man with the BrainPal, Wilson coming through with the hail mary save. Every.single.time. AND I'm not bored yet.

Plot/Storyline/Themes:
The Earthlings are coming! The Earthlings are coming! By god the earthlings are coming!. Lol okay but the Colonial Union and Earth relations are heating up and "The Clarke's" two earthlings, CDF Lieutenant Wilson and Ambassador Abumwe have one of those missions.

Character Development/Favorite Character:
My Dream Cast for The B-Team if Hollywood or "Streamingland" deigns to put this on screen
🖤Ambassador Abumwe - Viola Davis
🖤Hart Schmidt - Alexander Skarsgard, Lee Pace or Adam Driver(for height and weird hotness appeal).
🖤CDF LT Harry Wilson - Joseph Gordon Lewitt or Tom Hiddleston or Tim Tim Chalamet if he grows a bit more then maybe him.
🖤Neva Balla - Lupita Nyongo
🖤Captain Coloma - Salma Hayek or Penelope Cruz or if we go younger Gina Rodriguez or America Ferrera.
🖤Dr Inge Stone - Christina Hendricks or Emily Blunt or Florence Pugh
🖤Basquez The Engineer- Manny Montana (range keeps him typecast so this would be refreshing)
🖤Hillary Drolet: Hailee Steinfeld

Favorite/Curious/Ludicrous/Unique Scene: :
Wilson and Lowen drinking some potent earth scotch and Lowen drunkenly realizing CDF soldiera can't get drunk.
Favorite/Curious/Ludicrous/Unique Quotes:
🖤 “You’re engaging in the pathetic fallacy. Just because I look like a human being doesn’t mean I am. This body has more genetic material that’s not strictly human than it does material that is human.” (Wilson on being CDF modified)
🖤 “They’re either going to kill each other or start sleeping together simply as a defensive maneuver.” (Wilson on the new Clarke)
🖤 “Wilson realized his long-held wish that Abumwe would actually relax from time to time was clearly in error. This was a person who operated best and most efficiently when she was truly and genuinely pissed off;” (Wilson on Abumwe)
Favorite/Curious/Ludicrous/Unique Concepts:
■ Blblllblblb Doodoodo of Burfinor,🤣 maybe Scalzi fell asleep on the keyboard but this name works wonders
■Magnetic Cups
■ The Human-to-CDF transfer process
■SmartBlood - oxygen sequestration

StoryGraph Challenge: 1800 Books by 2025
Challenge Prompt: 150 Short Stories by 2025

[Anissa]

Another good installment in the serial that centers around a delegation of Earthlings on the New Clark. At this point in the story (there are only 5 installments remaining), I refuse to spoil it by saying much of anything, so trust that it continues to engage, the characters are still great & I'm looking forward to the next.

[Alice]

This is the ninth of thirteen episodes in The Human Division, a serial novel by John Scalzi. So far, all of the stories have been written as stand-alones, with the hint of an overarching conflict tying them all together. Whether they'll be connected by anything more than a loose thread may have to wait until episode 13.

In this installment, Abumwe and Wilson are assigned to a low-priority mission of trading medical technology for ships. The added challenge comes in with an ambassadorial detail from Earth, there to see if the Colonial Union is worth trying to ally with, or if they should try for the Conclave, instead. The Burfinor try to take advantage of the tight spot the CU negotiators are in, and then an Earth resident turns up dead.

I had a theory, at that point, about what had caused the death. But the underlying medical condition I suspected would've led to a far less satisfying conclusion to this installment, narratively speaking. The group seems a lot closer to figuring out who's behind various sabotage maneuvers, and yet so far away.

Once again, I listened to this episode on audio, and William Dufris continues to show he's up to the challenge of pronouncing the bizarre names and words Scalzi comes up with for alien races. The world this series is set in certainly feels like it's populated with aliens, for all the bizarre descriptions and near-unpronounceable names within it.

I'm looking forward to episode 10.

[Erin (PT)]

Still enjoying the chapters and overall story very much but I'm starting to wonder when we'll get some answers to the proliferating questions. Only four more chapters to go, none of the chapters are very long, and it still feels like we're lost in the weeds with no clear direction.

I do still trust Scalzi to bring it all together, but now I'm questioning when, at least.

[Scott]

So what do we have with this episode? It's the 9th one (of 13 total) - we have Ambassador Abumwe & Harry Wilson again as the main characters - we have a murder and a mystery AND we are tying everything back to the main story arc...Nice!

Scalzi really latched onto the episodic format and ran with it. I'll save my final review for when the story ends but I'm really loving this so far.

[Nicky]

I liked this episode a lot: it finally felt like something I could hold onto and start making guesses about. And it was pretty darn funny at times, too. Good connections to other stuff in the Old Man's War universe, too.

[Ron]

Cool. Well-told, self-contained story, but contributes to the greater arc.

[Gilbert Stack]

The diplomatic team is back and once again up to their necks in political muck. What looks like a simple observer mission from earth quickly gets complicated when one of the observers dies unexpectedly and it looks like the Colonial Union bumped him off. This is a tight little mystery, but not the Ellery Queen kind in which you have all the clues and can identify who did it. Instead, the high-tech solution points to the growing seriousness of the situation between the Colonial Union and Earth. I am very curious how Skalzi’s going to pull all of this together by the last story.

If you liked this review, you can find more at www.gilbertstack.com/reviews.

[Reader]

The ninth episode of The Human Division, John Scalzi's new thirteen-episode novel in the world of his bestselling Old Man's War. Beginning on January 15, 2013, a new episode of The Human Division will appear in e-book form every Tuesday. In an effort to improve relations with the Earth, the Colonial Union has invited a contingent of diplomats from that planet to observe Ambassador Abumwe negotiate a trade deal with an alien species. Then something very bad happens to one of the Earthings, and with that, the relationship between humanity's two factions is on the cusp of disruption once more. It's a race to find out what really happened, and who is to blame.

[Karlyn]

I enjoyed the series more as I went through each episode. At first I struggled because it seemed like random stories set in this universe. But as it continued and I realized it was interwoven story lines I enjoyed them more. The main characters were enjoyable. It's pretty traditional sci fi fare but still worth the read.

[Norma]

( Format : Audiobook )
"The Earthlings are coming."

In the cramped quarters of the new Clarke, accommodation has to be found for the team of five observers were visiting from earth at the same time as a diplomatic exchange mission was being conducted.
A very human and amusing short murder mystery.
As always, William Dufris helps bring it all to life with his performance.
Recommended.

[Kevin]

During negotiations between Earth and the Colonial Union one of the diplomats dies unexpectedly and seemingly without cause. The culprit gets caught once Harry Wilson gets to use a new toy to ascertain the proper results. Recommended

[Emz]

More political shenanigans await Ambassador Abumwe and Harry, and to make things even more intriguing, there's a murder thrown in for good measure. A frantic whodunit ensues as they race to find out the who and the how before things go from bad to worse.

[Steve Smythe]

Whoa, did not see that coming

I am really digging the tech reveals in this series. It’s so subtle and well done. I love the characters in this one. I lost it when the diplomats were described and when I saw the same.

[Jeeves]

Does anyone want a drink? A somber ending to an uplifting situation. A potentially tragic war caught before it was started. And perhaps a new relationship. So many good things and potentially tragic things.

[Daniel Erickson]

Beautiful to the last word

Once again Scalzy strikes with a thrilling mystery! Fun!

I like how these stories stand alone. (and weirdly, I was compelled to sit and make silly noises by strumming my lips and making out loud burbling noises for the first time in 23 years!)

[Nancy]

Aha! I think things are starting to come together!

[Darren Douglas]

Loving it, plays off like a mystery and keeps you involved. Splendid Sci-Fi! :-)

[Christine]

The dialogue in Scalzi’s books is always so satisfying to read

[Michelle]

A good medical type thriller

[Danny]

G

[Colleen]

Interesting

[Chris A]

Disappointing.

[x x x]

Ouch

Scalzi is dope, and this addiction to tech that makes the difference during discussion is addictive. Old Man's War Universe ain't no safe, sane place to go

[Amy Morris]

Another chapter of the whole

[Karl Schaeffer]

Once again, we are treated to the charming Ambassador Abumwe.

[elsalmon L]

The Colonial Union invites representatives of Earth to observe diplomatic negotiations with an alien race but things go badly.

[Brad Blome]

Read as part of Human Division book

[Jay Collins]

2.5 Stars