Reviewed by Phoebe Bush
Note: There are a lot of content warnings, but each one is navigated in a sensitive and emotive way, and provides a critique on the prejudices of our world – which the main character has to then overcome and begin to work against.
Content Warnings: Cults/eugenics, radicalisation, sexual assault, misogyny/sexism, death/murder, homophobia and transphobia, racism, ableism, depression/suicide, genocide/xenophobia.
Are you in search of a mind-bending piece of science fiction?
Are you into complex characters, whacky world-building, and concepts that will blow your mind?
In that case, let me introduce you to Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh, a book that I certainly think has lived up to its Hugo Award. It is also quite a hard book to review, as I do not want to give anything major about it away. But I can begin with Kyr.
Kyr, or Valkyr, is the best warrior that Gaea station has to offer – she also kind of reminds me of Adora from She Ra and the Princesses of Power, if Adora stayed with the Horde, instead of gaining magical powers and a winged unicorn. Kyr is also dreadful. But stick with her, because I promise that things get better. There is also a great group of female side characters, known collectively as the Sparrows, plus Kyr’s lovely brother Mags and her oh totally fine Uncle Joel. And Avi, who I won’t say much about. They are all super well rounded, complex, and fascinating individuals, who all act in painfully human ways, and who had me tearing my hair out, at various intervals.
As for the world-building that surrounds them, it is pretty simple: Gaea station is a small sub-sect of humans, who have a huge vendetta against the race that destroyed earth and want revenge. Gaea station is packed with cool technology, dystopian categorisations of individuals, and weird engines to get your head around. There is also the world outside of it: explained perhaps less well, and less in depth, to the point that the imagination has to work hard to fill in the holes.
As for the plot, it manoeuvres through this world using the characters like chess pieces, but never once assume that this is going to go the way that it was meant to, because there are twists and turns aplenty in this book. That, on the whole, is the biggest divider: some readers will be delightfully disorientated, whilst others will want to desperately get off of this ride, once it all becomes too much. There is also the matter of the ending, sweet and strong, but perhaps a little too convenient for a book with so many stakes and negative aspects.
Overall, this is science fiction as I have never quite seen science fiction done before, so if you want a unique read with some unique points, check the content warnings and dive in!