Best Science Fiction - The Outside by Ada Hoffmann
Publisher – Angry Robot
Price - £8.99 paperback £1.99 Kindle eBook
Super-intelligent AI Gods rule the galaxy. Their algorithms determine the rewards you reap before and after death. But the Gods give and the Gods take away. And Yasira has never been good at Gods...
Autistic scientist Yasira Shien has developed a radical new energy drive on board The Pride of Jai that could change the future of humanity. But when she activates it, reality warps, destroying the space station and everyone left inside.
The Gods declare her work heretical, and Yasira is abducted by their agents. Instead of simply executing her, they offer mercy − if she’ll help them hunt down a bigger target: her mysterious, vanished mentor.
With her homeworld’s fate in the balance, Yasira must choose who to trust: the Gods and their ruthless post-human angels, or the rebel scientist whose unorthodox mathematics could turn her world, literally, inside out.
Science fiction of old had heroes based around the lantern jawed unflappable test pilots that started the space race. Once those perceptions start it creates multiple copycats and that creates the template. In space you are super focused and iron willed not broken by the stresses of space. But shouldn’t SF reflect everyone isn’t everyone entitled to be seen crossing into the final frontier? In Ada Hoffmann’s The Outside be prepared to meet a very different type of lead in a very inventive piece of future based science fiction.
In the far future humanity has created new AI Gods who rule the known universe and prevent people falling into bad ways. These gods reap the souls of the dead and the new pantheon has created augmented humans known as Angels to act as their avatar. They are constantly watching and their agendas unknown. Humanity is allowed some freedom and one experiment is looking at new ways of energy. Yashira Shien is an autistic scientist about to test the rules of physics in a prestigious space station watched over with her girlfriend Tiv watching on proudly. The experiment goes horribly wrong with many lives lost. Yashira expects the punishment of the gods to be fatal but instead she finds herself under the direction of the strange Angel Avaki who serves one of the most dangerous Gods. They are aware that Yashira was a student of the strange Dr Dr Talirr who seemed to have strange ideas on the wider universe – everything is a lie. The impacts that destroyed the space station are being seen across the galaxy and Talirr is a suspect. Yashira is coerced to assist the investigation and finds her old mentor is planning a truly dangerous battle of the gods and she needs to opick a side.
There is a lot to admire in this novel. The worldbuilding is fantastic – it’s a very unique set up of a world where people know the gods to be real and welcome their protection. It’s a hi technology universe with FTL spaceships, dimensional portals, AI interfaces and body augmentation all considered normal. But the threat Yashira has is something more primal and cosmic known as The Outside are forces of chaos that breach the universe and have devastating impacts on the worlds it touches including madness and destruction for the inhabitants. A compelling mix of horror and SF and the joy of the plot is working out what to do.
Bringing the sides of the conflict together we have at the centre Yashira and its really refreshing to have an autistic character as a lead. We see Yashira as a person and how they interpret the world and react to stress and have to battle to overturn their fears. Its not the first tale where we see someone learnt the world isn’t what you think it is, but this approach gives the reader a new look at the way other minds can see the world. And most people we meet don’t have any issues with that again refreshing. On both her sides whispering their worldviews we have the prickly and angry Dr Talirr a former mentor now very struck with a desire to strike back – almost shown as a dark reflection of Yashira. But in contrast we have the personality of Avaki who changes their appearance from human to alien, male to female scene by scene yet keeps a constant personality of cunning and strategy – very doggedly pulling Yashira into their game with Tallirr. Who exactly is in the right here is kept open for most of the novel and the lack of black and white morality in this universe is again compelling. My only issue was some pacing issues that I found dragged the latter half of the story while ideally I was hoping as tension ramped up that things would more quickly come to a head but there is a huge amount to enjoy here.
If you’re looking for some science fiction that is pushing the boundaries of what lead characters look like. If you enjoy inventive worldbuilding then I think this is for you and if you enjoy a touch of horror in your SF you may find this draws your attention. Definitely worth a look.
