176 pages
English language
Published April 9, 2019 by Doherty Associates, LLC, Tom.
The sisters of the Order of Saint Rita captain their living ship into the reaches of space in Lina Rather’s debut novella, Sisters of the Vast Black.
A Golden Crown Literary Society Award Finalist
Years ago, Old Earth sent forth sisters and brothers into the vast dark of the prodigal colonies armed only with crucifixes and iron faith. Now, the sisters of the Order of Saint Rita are on an interstellar mission of mercy aboard Our Lady of Impossible Constellations, a living, breathing ship which seems determined to develop a will of its own.
When the order receives a distress call from a newly-formed colony, the sisters discover that the bodies and souls in their care — and that of the galactic diaspora — are in danger. And not from void beyond, but from the nascent Central Governance and the Church itself.
I didn't know what to expect from a novella about a convent of space nuns wandering the vacuum inside a gigantic sea slug, and that's what I got
Content warning Light spoilers in content/trigger warning at the end of the review.
This book is the Gospel and the Good News, disguised as a really well written speculative science fiction novella.
Truly, it's such an incredible book - the universe that the author builds is so interesting and the characters are so relatable.
Do yourself a favor and find a way to read this one.
Trigger warning for readers though - there are a few scenes depicting zombie-virus and some tense scenes that involve death/dying.
Nonnen im Weltall! In einem Raumschiff, das so was wie eine große grüne Meeresschnecke ist! Im Laufe der Geschichte pflanzt sich das Raumschiff sogar mit einem anderen Meeresschneckenraumschiff fort. Das Nonnenkloster ist auch nicht nur ein Witz, die Glaubensfragen sind, so weit ich was davon verstehe, ernst. Leider nimmt die Geschichte gegen Ende eine ärgerliche Wendung, die Regierung infiziert unter dem Vorwand einer Impfung das Volk mit einer tödlichen Krankheit, und diese Krankheit ist von der Regierung selbst hergestellt. Das Buch ist 2019 erschienen, also kein absichtlicher Corona-Kommentar, aber an dieser Stelle enden meine Sympathien trotzdem.
The Reverend Mother harbours a secret. But then, so do the other sisters of the Our Lady of Impossible Constellations.
For such a short book, this novella is loaded with characters and world-building. It's rich in detail and (mostly) leisurely in pace. A quick read that will leave you with warm feelings and a hunger for more.
What a delightful little book!
Nuns in space on a living ship, do I need to say more?
It's short, so just pick it up and enjoy yourself!
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“We should go because I would want someone to come for us. We’re all just scattered, lonely specks out here, unless we try to be more. We shouldn’t be brutal just because the universe is.”
“She was one small part of an infinity, and there was much to be done.”
Wonderfully unique and intense story.
A group of space nuns travel in a biological spaceship years after a great galactic war, each with their own secrets, a growing doubt of their church's and Earth's agendas, and working to develop the cure for space zombies, with a dash of Becky Chamber's Wayfarers series, all wrapped in a tight package. I LOVED it.
