Mr B's review

How to do a book of this scope and imagination justice in just a few lines? A book of Pulley’s signature charm, wit and originality that defies genre and convention, this is something entirely new that would sit perfectly at home between Becky Chambers and Ann Leckie.

January, principal dancer of the London Royal Ballet, is preparing for a performance of Swan Lake when London finally succumbs to the floodwater that has threatened to drown it for as long as he can remember. With nowhere else to go, January finds himself among the refugees on their way to Mars. There have been populations on Mars for generations now, and January and the other ‘earthstrongers’ are three times as strong as the ‘naturalised’ population, who have adjusted to Mars’ gravity and air pressure. January has always been strong, but he’s never been dangerous – only now he has to wear a cage that supresses his strength.

Earthstronger accidents are the primary cause of death for the naturalised population. Far-Right Extremist, Senator Gale, is running for election on the proposition of a ‘simple path’ to equality; force every immigrant from Earth to undergo the disabling and sometimes fatal process of forced naturalisation. For January, that would be no life at all. When Gale visits the factory January now works at to talk to Earthstrongers, a misjudged joke turned disastrous media encounter threatens Gale’s election prospects – and January’s life.

A gorgeous addition to what we’ve begun to refer to as the Pulley Extended Universe, this is a beautifully realised exploration of the direction that culture, language, technology, politics, social media and art may overlap in a future that feels rich with detail and character. It’s a story to be swept up in with all the drama and nuance we’ve come to expect from Pulley’s writing, with characteristic depth and a deliciously philosophical edge, and her compellingly morally grey characters. Oh, you love to hate them.

Affectionately referred to in the shop as ‘the one about the arranged marriage in space with the mammoth linguistics’.