The Last Contract of Isako

Fonda Lee
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The Last Contract of Isako

Fonda Lee
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Found in: SCI-FI/FANTASY, Sci-Fi General

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*Valid July 20, 2026 - July 26, 2026 at indigo.ca, while quantities last. Not valid on previous purchases or in conjunction with other offers.

Overall rating: 4.6666665 / 5 from 3 reviews.

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Reviews

Surprising sci-fi with heart and space samurai

"Book rating: 4. 25/5 ⭐️ Genre: sci-if Themes: samurai, space colony, company politics, heirarchy I will admit I had three false starts with this book. The first couple of chapters give an uncertain direction and being dropped in a new world always leads to a little disorientating. The politics and idea of floating extraneous workers when they are no longer useful was both harsh and not so far-fetched, as was the social structure on a potential space colony. The company men can have cats, lush gardens and second bodies, while the rest ration water, air and food, sacrificing themselves when the time comes. It was a place of extremes and of harsh realities, of capitalism personified in its possibility and cost. Then there is the legendary swordswoman Isako who is loyal to the ideas of the agency and her client. If you don’t think too much about having a corporate samurai in space, the story can become quite engrossing. Isako is complicated and unrelenting, making her a fierce FMC to follow. She battles warring emotions and loyalties as she is forced into a last contract before she can retire. It is one that forces her to confront her own mistakes and choices. Then there is the vague relationship she had with a daughter raised by others, which raised questions about motherhood and community infrastructure. It was also nice to have an older character taking centre stage who at the end examined the cost of her career. The plot became interesting a third of the way through at which point I was hooked. There was corporate espionage, well kept secrets and plenty of bloody action. The friendship between Kob and Isako rooted the questionable morality of the mission, and the mystery of Martim came with some excellent twists. I wanted there to be a different ending for him, but I can see why it could never be. The world building of Aquilio was excellent, both from a technological and historical perspective. Then there was the division between the reunionists and terraformists, company politics and agency dynamics and ideology that added further layers to this story. The social commentary was a stark mirror to reality with systems of inequity and an endless need for power and more life leaving a lasting imprint. There were a lot of serious themes that play throughout the landscape, but this is a quieter sort of mystery with one woman’s search for the truth and her own role in the machinery central to the story. It was not what I was expecting, but by the end I loved this story. It was original, and yet reflective. It is the sort of speculative sci-fi I always tend to enjoy with a style of writing that is immersive and draws you in. Thank you to Orbit Books and Netgalley for the eARC."

karisbookclub (4/5)

you will not regret reading it

"Loved it ! The whole idea, the characters, a completely unexpected turn at the very end. . Very well written"

Elizabeth 1. (5/5)

Arc review

"This book was so different from anything I’ve read lately. I don’t even know how I feel about it as I’m still processing the ending. but I know I’ll keep thinking about it for a long time."

Teeleereads (5/5)

Q&A

  • Published date: May 05, 2026
  • Language: English
  • No. of Pages: 528
  • Publisher: Orbit
  • ISBN: 9780316568654
  • Dimensions: 6.05" W x 1.0" L x 9.25" H
"The Last Contract of Isako proves yet again that Fonda Lee is an author at the top of her game. Flawed, hardscrabble characters stalk across a harsh landscape, through an intricate plot that twists and turns with deft precision. An absolute masterpiece!" —Andrea Stewart, author of The Bone Shard Daughter
Fonda Lee is an award-winning and New York Times bestselling fantasy and science fiction author. Her modern epic, the Green Bone Saga, has been translated into fifteen languages and was named one of Time magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time. She is also the author of the novella Untethered Sky and several young adult novels: Zeroboxer, the Exo duology, and, cowritten with Shannon Lee, the Breathmarked duology. Fonda is a winner of the World Fantasy Award and the Locus Award, as well as a six-time winner of the Aurora Award and a finalist for the Nebula Award and the Hugo Award. A former corporate strategist and black belt martial artist, she hails from Canada and the Pacific Northwest and currently resides in New England.

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