To preface my review, I want to point out that I don't read a lot of science fiction. The reason for this is that most of the sci-fi I have read gets bogged down in descriptions of how the technology works, often at the expense of the plot. 
 Embassytown, however, does almost the exact opposite. From the beginning, the text treats you as though you are a citizen of that world, with all the cultural, lingual, technological, etc, knowledge that comes with growing up and existing in a certain world. That is a bit overwhelming at first, and I was, despite my above assertion, wishing for a bit more explanation. However, as I got further into the book, I changed my mind. As you read more about the world, you begin to understand it, and the things in it, in a much more natural and enjoyable way than having the author take sections to sit you down and explain things in minute detail. 
 The real plot doesn't arrive until about 150 pages in, a little less than halfway through. Normally, a plot that takes that long to really get going bothers me, but that wasn't the case here. Without that 150 pages of learning the world and how it works and the significance of certain things, the cataclysmic event that sets the plot off would simply not have the impact on the reader that it needs to. Because you've spent so much time in the world before that point, you can really appreciate the significance of the event and why it is so catastrophic. While the first half of the book took me a few days of short reading sessions to get through, the second half of the book flew by(I stayed up until 2 a.m. to finish it, as I didn't want to put it down. 
 Overall, I enjoyed the writing, I found the world pretty fascinating, and I liked the plot once it really got going. I'm very pleased with this book, and that it was my first foray back into science fiction. It definitely made me want to check out more science fiction.