Nova Swing is a science fiction

Science fiction

Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...

 novel by M. John Harrison

M. John Harrison

M. John Harrison , known as Mike Harrison, is an English author and critic. His work includes the Viriconium sequence of novels and short stories, , Climbers , and the Kefahuchi Tract series which begins with Light . He currently resides in London.-Early years:Harrison was born in Rugby,...

 published in 2006. It takes place in the same universe as Light

Light (novel)

Light is a science fiction novel written by M. John Harrison and published in 2002. It received the James Tiptree, Jr. Award and a BSFA nomination in 2002, and was shortlisted for the Arthur C...

. The novel won the Arthur C. Clarke

Arthur C. Clarke Award

The Arthur C. Clarke Award is a British award given for the best science fiction novel first published in the United Kingdom during the previous year. The award was established with a grant from Arthur C. Clarke and the first prize was awarded in 1987...

 and Philip K. Dick Awards in 2007.

Overview

Nova Swing takes place long after the events of Light

Light (novel)

Light is a science fiction novel written by M. John Harrison and published in 2002. It received the James Tiptree, Jr. Award and a BSFA nomination in 2002, and was shortlisted for the Arthur C...

,which focussed on a disturbance in the space-time continuum known as the Kefahuchi Tract. In Nova Swing, which is set in a galaxy light years away in the city of Saudade. At the centre of Saudade, and the novel's thematic focus, is the 'event zone', a space-time membrane created when a piece of the Tract fell to the ground in the city, transforming the appearance and even physics of the event site. The zone draws tourists from Saudade, led by hardened guide Vic Serotonin, who specializes in dangerous "tours" of this chaotic zone. Many of the narratives threads play out as a consequence of 'artefacts' being brought out of the event zone by tourists. The motif of the event zone in this work recalls the 'plague zone' of Harrison's third Viriconium

Viriconium

Viriconium is a fictional city created by M. John Harrison and also the name of the cycle of novels and stories set in and around it.Viriconium is on a future Earth littered with the technological detritus of millennia Viriconium is a fictional city created by M. John Harrison and also the name of...

 novel In Viriconium.

Reception

Publishers Weekly

Publishers Weekly

Publishers Weekly, aka PW, is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents...

said " Harrison privileges atmosphere over plot, using grotesquely beautiful narration and elliptical dialogue to convey the beautifully delineated angst of Saudade's extraordinary inhabitants. Although not for everyone, Harrison's trippy style will appeal to sophisticated readers who treasure the work of China Miéville

China Miéville

China Tom Miéville is an award-winning English fantasy fiction writer. He is fond of describing his work as "weird fiction" , and belongs to a loose group of writers sometimes called New Weird. He is also active in left-wing politics as a member of the Socialist Workers Party...

 and Jeff VanderMeer

Jeff VanderMeer

Jeffrey Scott VanderMeer is an American writer, editor and publisher.He is best known for his contributions to the New Weird and his stories about the city of Ambergris, in books like City of Saints and Madmen.-Biography:...

." Regina Schroeder in her review for Booklist

Booklist

Booklist is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. It is geared toward libraries and booksellers and is available in print or online...

 said " with its gritty, noirish atmosphere, elements of space opera, and some impressive moments of explosive action, this is a tasty, entertaining morsel, deeply flavored to satisfy the thoughtful. Kirkus Reviews

Kirkus Reviews

Kirkus Reviews is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus . Kirkus serves the book and literary trade sector, including libraries, publishers, literary and film agents, film and TV producers and booksellers. Kirkus Reviews is published on the first and 15th of each month...

described it as "a cross between J. G. Ballard

J. G. Ballard

James Graham Ballard was an English novelist, short story writer, and prominent member of the New Wave movement in science fiction...

 intense, static The Drowned World

The Drowned World

The Drowned World is a 1962 science fiction novel by J. G. Ballard. In contrast to much post-apocalyptic fiction, the novel features a central character who, rather than being disturbed by the end of the old world, is enraptured by the chaotic reality that has come to replace it...

 and Arkady and Boris Strugatsky's

Arkady and Boris Strugatsky

The brothers Arkady and Boris Strugatsky are Soviet Jewish-Russian science fiction authors who collaborated on their fiction.-Life and work:...

 terrifying Roadside Picnic

Roadside Picnic

Roadside Picnic is a short science fiction novel written by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky between January 18 and November 3 of 1971. As of 1998, 38 editions of the novel were published in 20 countries. The novel was first translated to English by Antonina W. Bouis...

. The upshot: This science-fiction noir cum literary and social criticism is memorable, perplexing and challenging in equal measure."

Nova Swing won or was shortlisted for several science fiction awards, including:

• 2006 British Science Fiction Association Award nominee

• 2007 Arthur C. Clarke Award winner

• 2007 Philip K. Dick Award winner

• 2007 British Fantasy Award nominee

• 2007 John W. Campbell Award nominee

Critical essays

Leigh Blackmore

Leigh Blackmore

Leigh David Blackmore is an Australian horror writer, critic, editor, occultist and musician. He served as the second President of the Australian Horror Writers Association . His work has been nominated twice for the Ditmar Award, once for fiction and once for criticism...

. "Undoing the Mechanisms: Genre Expectation, Subversion and Anti-Consolation in the Kefahuchi Tract Novels of M. John Harrison." Studies in the Fantastic. 2 (Winter 2008/Spring 2009). (University of Tampa Press). http://utpress.ut.edu/index.cfm/fuseaction/homeItem/PubId/159

External links

• Nova Swing at Worlds Without End