Nova

Nоva is a science fiction novel by American writer Samuel R. Delany and published in 1968. Nominally space opera, it explores the politics and culture of a future where cyborg technology is universal (the novel is one of the precursors to cyberpunk), yet making major decisions can involve using tarot cards. It has strong mythological overtones, relating to both the Grail Quest and Jason's Argonautica for the golden fleece. Nova was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1969. In 1984, David Pringle listed it as one of the 100 best science-fiction novels written since 1949. After Delany completed Nova at the age of 25, his published output stopped for several years, although his writing continued. Delany completed the first draft of Tides of Lust (author's title, Equinox) in September 1968 (it appeared in 1973). He first completed Hogg in June 1969 (though the novel itself would not appear until 1995). With the publication of his next major novel, Dhalgren (1975), however, his style had moved on in experimental directions notably different from that of his earlier work.