A must-read for fans of dystopian and speculative fiction, Deborah Tomkins has transported us to multiple different planets and, in turn, forced us to take a long hard look at our own, within this short but captivating novella.
Magnus lives on Aerth, a planet on the brink of an ice age and under threat from various viruses, one of which is limiting the population significantly. As the only child of his parents, he is forced to spend birthdays mourning the loss of his siblings before him who have not made it. To escape his mother’s all-consuming grief and find some answers that might save his planet, he vows to become an astronaught and explore the newly-discovered planet Urth. But when Magnus arrives after a short stint on Mars to find he is the only one of his crew who survived the journey, all is not what it cracked up to be. Urth is a hostile place obsessed with greed and infamy and it certainly doesn’t contain the answers he was looking for.
This is a story on migration, climate and interplanetary homelessness that borrows 1960s-style space race fears and combines them with modern moral dilemmas. Through this, Tomkins holds up an uncanny mirror to society and asks us to question where we are headed. Despite the heaviness of this debut, it remains a genuinely fun read and I loved the author’s experimental style. I would definitely recommend this read and I hope to see Tomkins nominated for some literary prizes this year. Big stuff in this little novella!
Reviewed by Abi.
Published on 30/01/25 by Weatherglass Books
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