169 pages
Published 2023
Read from July 4 to July 17
Rating: 4 out of 5
I made the mistake of attempting this book during the summer, which is when I find it hardest to read. It’s a highly regarded queer sci-fi mystery, full of cozy touches, nice meals, and a gaslamp aesthetic. It’s about a pair of sapphic exes — one an investigator, one a researcher — who have to collaborate to solve a disappearance. It’s set on platforms high in the atmosphere of Jupiter. It has autistic representation!
As my partner R said, “It sounds like an episode of Doctor Who.” And it really does! I liked it!
But the academic who narrates most of the story uses a stiffly formal voice that, while it complements the quasi-antique vibe, did not suit my summertime brain, which is strained from having my teenage kid here (on top of all The Horrors of contemporary life and climate change). Dialogue like “I nonetheless had the impression that they would have noticed despondency” takes some adjustment when you aren’t in the proper headspace for it. As it is, I found my brain drifting off to other things whenever I read a paragraph, at least until the vibe finally clicked for me. Completely my problem, not the fault of the book.
The characters are dear, and the setting is unique and memorable. I’m indifferent about most mystery stories, but the way Older entwined this one through the long-ago fate of Earth, and the efforts to build a new home for the species above the toxic clouds of Giant, made for an engrossing read.
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