There are two major themes of Politics of Empire, one individual, one broad. It is written largely during the same time periods as the Preparations for War series, although for the most part later. Book four of Preparations for War takes place during the same short time frame as book three of Politics of Empire.
The viewpoint character is Grace, (Graciela Juarez di Scimtar), the same woman at the center of Rediscovery, but Politics Of Empire is written in such a way as to make prior reading of Rediscovery optional.
As we meet Grace at the beginning of the first novel The Invention of Motherhood, she is mustering out of Planetary Surface forces, intent upon starting a family with the four fertilized embryos she and her husband created upon their marriage, but she and her husband Asto Scimtar decide to add a new baby to the head of the line. Imperial women have used artificial gestation for tens of thousands of years, but Grace is determined to carry their first baby herself, so she can look her older (Earthbound) sisters in the eye when she calls herself a mother. She is also intent upon being employed, so she buys a pilot module with the idea of being a Vector pilot for commercial traffic – sort of a spaceborne equivalent to a long-haul trucker. Unfortunately, being married to a member of one of the Empire’s most important families makes their enemies her enemies, so she has to be careful to avoid notice while carefully nurturing the mind of her unborn son Esteban.
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Book Two, The Price Of Power, opens several years later – Grace is still a commercial pilot, with her niece Tina as an assistant and on-board nanny as necessary. Because carrying Esteban herself made such a difference to his abilities, Grace has also carried his four siblings herself, the final one of which, Alden, is almost ready for birth.
However, her husband has managed to wrangle one of the few jobs in the Imperial military not restricted to base when not on immediate duty, as a Staff Corporal repair team leader in the Scimtars’ home system of Indra, no less. This will enable them to live together in the family residence, and Grace wants to do that very badly. But this leaves her in need of a new profession, and the Scimtars recommend her as an Investigator to one of their vassals being promoted to Secundus rank, a job she is qualified for by being a highly trained Guardian. But a House War with the Cor, another top rank family, interrupts things. Scimtar callously sets her up as a stalking horse for a Cor agent, before her husband explains why it was necessary, but she’s still angry.
In the wake of the House War, she begins her job as an investigator, mentored by a splinter of Asto’s uncle. It’s a nasty case – someone is assassinating important viceroys on Indra, and through twists and turns, eventually they discover it’s not the Cor behind it, but rather an old nemesis of the Empire, the fractal demons. The Empire wants a chance for revenge on the fractal demons, and the fractal demons, for their part, want to take another shot at the Empire. The question is not so much whether there will be a war, but when.
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Book three, End Of Childhood, opens with the Empire discovering the demons have begun moving massive amounts of troops. The conclusion is obvious: Actual battles are imminent. As the two realms are free-falling towards their long-anticipated conflict, Scimtar asks Grace to undertake some investigations directly from him, rather than her usual Secundus, who is in no position to object, since Scimtar is the Nonus in her direct line of superiors.
Grace quickly discovers the fractal demons have discovered some new nasty and perverted tricks with a horrible sting for those who actually take the deal. The first round of demonic assaults are massive and brutal, moved by the Seven Gates on Calmena, and are followed up by the first round of Imperial counter-assaults on the demonic fractals, in one of which Asto goes missing, although Anara, his mother, expects him to make his way back to the Empire with what she has taught him.
Grace, though, can’t simply take Anara’s word. She has to go on a personal search in an attempt to bring Asto home now. After her expedition attempting to trace them ends up in a dead end, albeit after finding evidence Asto and others escaped the destruction of their ship, Grace realizes she has no choice but to wait for Asto to make his way home. However, it gives her an opening for something she’s wanted to do for years: Take her children to Earth to meet their Earth relatives.
Unfortunately, they get caught up in the demonic assault on Earth she should have known was coming, endangering her children and her Earth family. Grace and her children are forced to join in the defense, despite the children all being underage. Many members of their Earth family do not survive. For their part,the other Scimtars are not even mad – Grace has gone so far over any reasonable line they’re not bothering to reprimand her. But after learning a humiliating lesson, she’s recruited for a special mission – a small, elite assault group of powerful Guardians aimed at decapitating the demonic leadership
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The final book, Measure Of Adulthood, begins with Esteban, Grace and Asto’s oldest son, attaining his legal adulthood. However, Grace finds out her son by a long-dead lover has lost his legal adulthood. She gave him up for adoption at birth and has not seen him since, but the Empire believes that does not release responsibility to the child.
Professionally, she’s still an investigator, albeit working mostly directly for Scimtar. She’s now a much stronger Guardian than even a few years ago, figuring she will likely hit a transition to Sixth Order Guardian soon – the highest known tier of power for those who were not born Guardians. She does not hesitate in the least to take on demonic opponents who would have been beyond her just a few years ago.
Meanwhile, the war against the fractal demons grinds on. New technology has appeared from both the fractal demons and the Imperial sides – technology that seeks to shift the balance of war, completely changing how it is conducted. Asto for his part has earned his way into the Sergeant grades, commanding warships sent to destroy demonic habitats – but now he’s retasked with this new method of finding new demonic habitats before they can grow into something dangerous.
Grace discovers her formerly adult son is more of a project than she realized. He’s lazy, believes he’s a victim, and has even let his ability in the two main Imperial languages lapse. She speaks with him about changing that, starting with his attitude.
The war teeters on, with the demons and humanity both having developed new technology, it’s a battle of will, endurance, and determination which side will win an enduring victory.
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