Rating: 5/5 Political Crises
Give me the short version: Many generations on, the indentured Stephen’s Point colony was never meant to survive without Earth. But when supplies cease the colonists’ only chance is to achieve the impossible: they must somehow form the crew who can wake their ship, their own sleeping beauty in AI chains, the Chimera.
I’m pleased Tanger forwarded me a pre-release copy of Chimera for review. Fiery YA may not be my nominal genre (by my age it seems nobody was ever young, vulnerable and foolishly human) but if you’re determined not to miss out on great science fiction then every now and again you need to scrunch up your bravery and trust an author to lead you from your comfortable orbit. Chimera’s great characterization in particular disavows the “shallowness” that so often dogs public perception of YA. An easy-to-process and enjoyable read that anyone will find accessible, although still loaded with concepts and sophistication to please any sci-fi fan, I found Chimera to be genuinely touching and very much look forward to following the Universe Eventual series as it progresses.
My favourite bit:
“The trawler vented atmosphere as it wobbled end over end. Once, this might have filled her with a sense of grief and failure. After hundreds of years inside the Salix prison, it made only a faint ripple across her consciousness.”