This is an excellent conclusion to the series. Leckie continues her exploration of what it means to be human and what it means to truly respect others. Here, that study is extended not only to ancillaries but also to AIs in general. She takes the question of when is an AI independent and truly sapient, and examines how the humans who created that AI should interact with it by comparing it to the imperialism and self-assumed superiority of the Radch. This comparison is further emphasized by the presence of a truly alien being, whose opinions and views are quite different from traditional Radchaai. 
 The above examinations of culture and humanity are interwoven with a tense plot of far reaching politics as the events touched off at the end of Ancillary Justice begin spilling over into the Athoek system. The resolution was both satisfying and sufficiently open to allow the world to stretch on its own.