The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson is about multidimensional travel. This novel revolves around Cara, a young woman who is a traverser. She goes between all versions of Earth to gather information and data on that version of Earth. The catch to this job? She can't visit a world where she is still alive. There are also limits to what she can do, and every trip has consequences. The twist, Cara isn't who everyone thinks she is, and she must not only hide her own secrets, but reveal the secrets of others.
I wasn't sure, when I started this novel, if I would like it. I thought for sure that it would be another lazy novel to give an author the recourse to continue writing the same characters in different worlds. It was not what I expected, which was a good thing. This novel involves people of different ethnic backgrounds and sexual orientations, which led to some of the interesting ideas and segments in the novel. Not only is Cara of a dark skinned ethnicity, but her manager, Dell is as well. This in itself leads to a disparity that can even be seen today in how people react to and treat each other.
There were moments, on the different versions of Earth, when I thought the book could have used some editing and some of the information could have been left out. Some parts of the novel, especially on Earth 172, were a little long and unnecessary. I would have also like a little more development to Jean, the man who kept trying to help Cara be a better version of herself. There was a little bit of character development lacking, and for characters that were important to Cara, like Dell, Jean, her sister, Esther, and even the tech guy, Adam. This would have pulled me in a little to scenes that seemed to simply happen.
I would have like a little more on Cara's "boyfriend" Nik Nik as well. I can't say much more on this without giving parts of the book away, so I shall end that comment there.
I would recommend this novel to anyone looking for a change in their science fiction. Not only is this written by a woman of color, but it's written by a woman, and the novel itself has diverse characters. Plus, it is a pretty good read.
I wasn't sure, when I started this novel, if I would like it. I thought for sure that it would be another lazy novel to give an author the recourse to continue writing the same characters in different worlds. It was not what I expected, which was a good thing. This novel involves people of different ethnic backgrounds and sexual orientations, which led to some of the interesting ideas and segments in the novel. Not only is Cara of a dark skinned ethnicity, but her manager, Dell is as well. This in itself leads to a disparity that can even be seen today in how people react to and treat each other.
There were moments, on the different versions of Earth, when I thought the book could have used some editing and some of the information could have been left out. Some parts of the novel, especially on Earth 172, were a little long and unnecessary. I would have also like a little more development to Jean, the man who kept trying to help Cara be a better version of herself. There was a little bit of character development lacking, and for characters that were important to Cara, like Dell, Jean, her sister, Esther, and even the tech guy, Adam. This would have pulled me in a little to scenes that seemed to simply happen.
I would have like a little more on Cara's "boyfriend" Nik Nik as well. I can't say much more on this without giving parts of the book away, so I shall end that comment there.
I would recommend this novel to anyone looking for a change in their science fiction. Not only is this written by a woman of color, but it's written by a woman, and the novel itself has diverse characters. Plus, it is a pretty good read.
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