Infinite Archive by Mur Lafferty

INFINITE ARCHIVE by Mur Lafferty is another murder mystery featuring Mallory Viridian. Set in space, with aliens and humans co-existing, this is the third in the series, after Station Eternity and Chaos Terminal. These novels should definitely be read in order especially because the first two are stronger than the latest installment. The pace here is a bit slower, although there are plenty of twists with a new sentient ship hosting a mystery fan convention while attempting to replicate the entire Internet. A new type of alien is introduced as well as past characters, some of whom actively try to help amateur sleuth Mallory solve the murder of her literary agent.

Monk and Robot by Becky Chambers

MONK AND ROBOT by Becky Chambers is FANTASTIC; she has won the Hugo Award for her Wayfarer series.  I am really pleased to see this new publication which contains both of her earlier works, A Psalm for the Wild-Built and A Prayer for the Crown-Shy. This new paperback edition would make a wonderful high school or college graduation present as the characters search for meaning and purpose. As the cover indicates, these stories are about the adventures of, interactions between, and reflections from a Monk named Sibling Dex and a Robot called Splendid Speckled Mosscap. They live in the time after the Factories and after the Transition when robots gained self-awareness and left to explore life on their own and when humans sought to rejuvenate their planet.  It has been roughly two hundred years since any interaction and both Dex and Mosscap have much to learn about each other and themselves. Highly Recommended.

The Stardust Grail by Yume Kitasei

THE STARDUST GRAIL by Yume Kitasei (The Deep Sky) is a very well-written stand-alone space adventure. The main character is named Maya Hoshimoto; she is a reformed thief (of sorts!) and a graduate researcher about other life forms. Her best friend is named Auncle, a multi-tentacled creature whose Freno species is at grave risk. They come across new information in the search for a stardust grail which could help the species repopulate or save Earth from being isolated from the rest of space as connecting nodes are increasingly disappearing. With more than one group seeking the grail, Maya and her team (includes Wil, a former CNE government guard, and Medix, a fairly sentient robot) are often in great danger as Maya decides to attempt another heist. They face numerous ethical questions and continue learning about each other, especially cross-cultural emotional differences, as when Auncle says, “I didn't realize the joy could feel so … sad at the same time.” THE STARDUST GRAIL received a starred review from Kirkus (“… covering everything from the rise and fall of alien civilizations to what it means to be a person, this is a luminous work…. Wondrous, new, and altogether alien.”) and Publishers Weekly (“Readers will be riveted.”). Enjoy the quest!

The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley

THE MINISTRY OF TIME by Kaliane Bradley is a unique debut novel which has received quite a bit of “buzz,” including being named a LibraryReads selection for May, the #1 pick on the Indie Next List, and a starred review from Kirkus. I was excited to learn that it will become a six-part series for the BBC. Looking for time travel, romance, espionage? Then this book may be for you. Bradley, a British-Cambodian writer and editor based in London, has produced a work of which Ron Charles (Washington Post book critic) writes “Imagine if The Time Traveler’s Wife had an affair with A Gentleman in Moscow.”  This new tale actually features five “expats,” people who have been transported from their time to present day London and their “bridges,” the Ministry staff assigned to be “day-by-day dictionaries” and help with assimilation in the 21st century. The unnamed female narrator is the bridge for Graham Gore, also known as eighteen forty-seven, who was an Arctic explorer and Bradley’s inspiration for this innovative novel. There is a slow burn chemistry between the two and several ethical questions develop. The first third of the book, filled with banter is especially fun: “‘You have enslaved the power of lightning [electricity],’ he said, ‘and you've used it to avoid the tedium of hiring help.’” But the tone changes as it turns more philosophical with THE MINISTRY OF TIME offering an intriguing perspective on time travel: “This was one of my first lessons in how you make the future: moment by moment, you seal the doors of possibility behind you.” 

Chaos Terminal by Mur Lafferty

CHAOS TERMINAL by Mur Lafferty (Station Eternity) is another in an exciting sci-fi mystery series featuring Mallory Viridian, a human who has an unusual connection with the hivemind of Sundry insects who help keep a spaceship running and its inhabitants alive.  Lafferty certainly does not disappoint, offering another complicated plot and plenty of suspects amongst the numerous twists and turns. For me, this new title would best be read after Station Eternity so that the reader can fully appreciate the characters and “science” involved. There are many likeable characters and subtle subplots which will no doubt feature in future series entries. CHAOS TERMINAL received starred reviews from Booklist (“delicious humor and intricate mystery”) and Library Journal (“complex and engaging”).

The Deep Sky by Yume Kitasei

Labeled “one of the best debuts of the year,” THE DEEP SKY by Yume Kitasei is a work of science fiction deftly wrapped around a mystery and a story of damaged relationships. The adventure begins with Asuka and Kat taking a spacewalk, but an explosion means multiple people are killed and the ship veers off course. Asuka, part Japanese and part American, was a last minute addition to the crew of 80 on the Phoenix which is a desperate international effort to resettle humans on Planet X. It becomes Atsuka’s task to find out what and who caused the explosion while also trying to help the engineers reorient the Phoenix so that the mission can continue. The crew tries many plans including one with “more holes in it than an old T-shirt and certainly not as comfortable.” Kitasei alternates chapters (there are 72) between tension on the spaceship and the conflict in the many years before when Atsuka, Ruth, Gabriela, Miki, Treena, Ying Yue, Hao Yu, Lala, and the others were students competing for a chance to join the final team. That background provides reasons for believing that eco-terrorists could be involved and also offers insights into personal animosities and motivations. Puzzling and entertaining, THE DEEP SKY received a starred review from Kirkus (“a strong, character-driven, and accessible tale”).

Station Eternity by Mur Lafferty

STATION ETERNITY by Mur Lafferty has a striking, memorable cover and the story it contains is pretty mind-bending, too.  Much of the action takes place on a sentient space station or in space itself. Many of the characters are species other than humans. There are blue and silver Sundry – flying insects who gather data to feed their hivemind. Another group are called Gneiss, gentle giants seemingly made out of rock who are able to ascend to other life forms under certain conditions. Or there are Phantasmagore able to literally blend into their surroundings. Lafferty introduces other species and gives individual members personalities and characteristics that are often amusing and sometimes scary. Initially, there are also three humans on the space station: Adrian, a knowledgeable but rather obnoxious ambassador from Earth; Xan, an ex-army quartermaster with secrets of his own; and Mallory, a young woman who seems to attract murder. They are to be joined by the first visitors from Earth but something happens, more death occurs, and Xan and Mallory struggle with deciding who to trust as they try to keep others safe. Fans of mystery stories and science fiction with enjoy STATION ETERNITY; it is reminiscent of Andy Weir’s Project Hail Mary  - only with multiple subplots and many more “aliens.” STATION ETERNITY was chosen as a LibraryReads selection for October and received starred reviews from Booklist and Library Journal.

Up for a quest, anyone?

Here are two new books which deal with quests and young and empowered female characters in magical, yet dystopian settings.  

REMOTE CONTROL by Nnedi Okorafor is a very exciting sci-fi read that was a LibraryReads selection for January 2021. The main character, envisioned on the cover, is a child named Fatima who develops a magical power so that whenever she touches mechanical or technological devices they “die.” Anger, too, causes her to glow green and sometimes kill people around her so there are several dark moments. Eventually, she becomes widely known as Sankofa, or the adopted daughter of the Angel of Death. The story (also labeled Afrofuturism) involves a meandering journey across Ghana as she grows into being a teenager and learns to anticipate and control her “power.” There is an air of mystery and menace throughout and I quite liked the way Okorafor shifted the scenes with travelling and new characters, although the ending was a bit puzzling to me. Okorafor has won both Nebula and Hugo awards for her writing; REMOTE CONTROL received starred reviews from Library Journal and Publishers Weekly who said, “Readers will be blown away.” 

A gentler, but sadly, slower adventure story is D (A TALE OF TWO WORLDS) by Michel Faber. I requested an advance reader copy based on its being termed a “sheer delight” by The Washington Post and because the premise (the letter d is disappearing or, isappearing, to be precise) seemed unique and appealing. I did like the fantastical elements – with cat-like characters named Droods (roos, of course) and an evil ruler called Gamp, both somewhat reminiscent of Star Wars stories. There is a sphinx called Nelly, who can change into a dog/og, and a young female protagonist named Dhikilo (Dicky/Icky), too, but she often seems overly naïve and conveniently lucky and their travels dragged a bit for me. D (A TALE OF TWO WORLDS) received a starred review from Publishers Weekly and seems more likely to work as a read-aloud (have fun with the missing “d’s”) for late elementary and/or early middle school students, fans of Pullman’s The Golden Compass or The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis.

Network Effect by Martha Wells

NETWORK EFFECT by Martha Wells (a Murderbot novel) is an absolutely fabulous work of science fiction that I am highly recommending. So, too, are its readers on Goodreads where it has 1000’s of ratings, averaging 4.5, and where affection for the snarky main character is readily apparent. In addition, this title is a LibraryReads selection; both Booklist and Publishers Weekly have given NETWORK EFFECT a starred review. In fact, Wells’ earlier titles (shorter novellas) in this series have won or been nominated for the Hugo, Nebula, Locus, and Alex Awards – pretty impressive!

Readers of speculative, futuristic fiction will really enjoy the action packed adventures involving a sentient murder machine who is programmed to protect its humans, despite being frequently annoyed and puzzled by their actions. The descriptive prose and dialogue are crisp and often humorous. For example, Murderbot refers to “a subjective eternity that was actually 1.2 seconds long” and comments that “though it was tempting, ‘advance planning sucks’ seems to be the wrong lesson to take from that whole incident.” When asked about looking angry, he notes, “‘That’s just something my face does sometimes.’ [with an immediate aside to the reader:] This is why helmets with opaque face plates are a good idea.” Whether attempting to thwart a kidnapping, investigating possible alien contagion, or using sophisticated programming and drone technology to take out various Targets, this A.I. SecUnit is extremely entertaining.

The publisher categorizes NETWORK EFFECT as a standalone novel – and that is how I read it, but having the background from earlier titles in the series would make this one even more enjoyable. Thankfully, it appears that Macmillan is lifting its embargo on new release eBooks for libraries, including Tor titles, so let’s hope that many more readers will be able to enjoy NETWORK EFFECT and others in the Murderbot series.