I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Sisters of the Vast Black by Lina Rather Published by Tor.com on October 29 2019
Genres: Adult, Science fiction
Pages: 176
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon
Goodreads
The nitty-gritty: Nuns on a galactic mission to heal and offer comfort are forced to make some hard decisions in this stunning and thoroughly original science fiction adventure.
I had no idea what to expect when I started reading Sisters of the Vast Black, touted as “nuns in space” by the publisher. But it didn’t take long to come to the conclusion that I was going to adore Lina Rather’s unique world, filled with interesting world-building ideas, living, breathing characters, and even some unexpected nail-biting action. This is another novella that felt just right to me: just the right length, a perfect blend of character development, action and mystery, and just enough emotional depth to hook me good.
The Order of Saint Rita is on a mission to bring spiritual support and healing to the colonists scattered throughout the galaxy, after a devastating war made Old Earth an unfit place to live. Now the Reverend Mother and her Sisters travel from colony to colony aboard a living ship called Our Lady of Impossible Constellations. But their comfortable and predictable lives are about to change. Sister Faustina receives a distressing message from the Pope stating that the church will soon be sending a priest to board their ship to manage their day-to-day lives, and that Central Governance will be watching and guiding their every move. After years of freedom in the black, Sister Faustina knows nothing good can come from this, and so she keeps the message a secret.
At the same time, several other events are unfolding. The Reverend Mother is starting to show signs of mental decline, and the Sisters fear that if anyone in power finds out, they will remove her from the ship. And Sister Gemma, whose main responsibility is to care for Our Lady, discovers that it has imprinted on another ship and wants to mate with it in order to fertilize it’s latest clutch of eggs. Because the ship is considered a holy vessel, the Sisters aren’t sure what to do. Let nature take its course and allow it to mate? Or deny it the freedom to act on impulse to ensure it remains a consecrated vessel?
When the Sisters get word of a deadly ringeye breakout in a nearby moon colony, they know they must help in any way they can. But Central Governance doesn’t want them to help and will do anything to stop them.
That’s about all the recap I’m willing to give you, so as not to spoil the story. There is so much to love about Sisters of the Vast Black, but let’s start with my favorite part of the story, the living ship. I’ve read other “living ship” stories, but what makes this one so special are all the scientific details about how ships are “bred” and grown, and how the Sisters take care of it. I loved reading about baby ships—almost tadpole-like in their egg sacs—being raised in farms and sent out into the world to be used as actual ships. I never actually got a sense of what the ship looked like, but it felt like some big, lumbering beast, like a giant cow. Rather describes the feeling of living inside the ship, listening to its never-ending heartbeat, hearing the blood pump through its arteries, touching its moss covered walls and feeling it breathe. It was both intimate and magical. And let’s just say there is a mesmerizing scene of the two ships having sex—yes, you read that right—that blew me away with its beauty.
Rather’s nuns are a wonderful group who love and support each other, although there is friction from time to time. We know from the start that Sister Gemma is hiding a big secret and is being pulled in two directions. Should she follow her heart? Or stay with her “family” where she can continue to do good? Making her decision even harder is the fact that she and Sister Lucia are working together to develop a vaccine against the dreadful ringeye virus, using tissue samples from the ship’s immune system. Leaving the ship means she won’t get to finish her research. And then there’s the Reverend Mother, a woman who took a vow of silence forty-three years ago (although no one on board knows why) and is slowly being crushed by the big secret she’s been keeping all these years. I really loved her backstory and everything that happens when her shocking secret is finally revealed.
I also loved Rather’s beautiful writing, simple yet evocative. Because the Sisters spend so much of their time eating rations on the ship, the times when they get to mingle with other people and try new foods were delightful. The author’s descriptions of an alcoholic drink called honey wine, for example, had me salivating:
She swallowed another mouthful and this time the honey came to the fore, sugar and muskiness coating the inside of her mouth. She had tasted real wine only rarely, and had never understood the words in the old cookbooks and romantic novels that came across the relays. Oakey or dry or soil-tasting. This was sweet, then warm, then bitter in the back of her mouth, gently encouraging her to take another sip for the sweetness.
Rather brings up such weighty subjects as how religion is used to control people, but she incorporates it seamlessly without bogging down the story. Certainly her characters are strong enough to think for themselves and make good choices, and even during some tense scenes where I worried about their fate, I never gave up hope that Gemma, Lucia and the rest would do the right thing.
The novella ends in such a way that suggests Rather has many more stories about these characters to tell, and I’ll admit I will be devastated if she isn’t already writing a sequel. This is a quick but immersive story that is one of my favorite novellas of the year.
Big thanks to the publisher for supplying a review copy. Above quote was taken from an uncorrected proof and may differ in the final version of the book.
Fantastic review! The living ships sound really cool! Although the nuns thing is making me hesitate… I’ve been frustrated with a couple books this year with religious themes, it sounds like maybe Rather is arguing against it than for it? I think I’d be okay with that, I just worry sometimes with religious themes the books will become preachy.
I really didn’t make it clear that this is NOT a religious story at all. Sorry about that! These nuns are so cool because their main focus is helping people, but they have outside interests like scientific discovery, running the ship, etc. In fact, the author emphasizes that they are not interested at all in following the priest’s instructions, and he’s a very small character who they brush aside like a fly! lol.
Sounds like a great book! You had me at “living ship”.
Riley Moreland recently posted…Penny for Your Secrets (Verity Kent Mystery, #3) by Anna Lee Huber – Review
The ship was so cool! And I loved how the Sisters cared for it:-)
So I don’t think I’ve read anything with a living ship before so that would be new to me. I also don’t see how you could resist something touted as “nuns in space.” That alone grabs my attention. Great review!
It was really good, and I seriously want more stories set in this world:-)
This sounds fascinating and I’d love to read it! Thanks for the excellent review.
Laura Thomas recently posted…31 Days Of Thrills And Chills #28 ~ Something Deadly
Thanks Laura, highly recommended:-)
You just totally sold me on this book! I love adult science fiction but this sounds like a super unique and really great story. Adding to wishlist!
Stephanie @ Bookfever recently posted…ARC Review: The Octopus Curse by Salma Farook
I loved how unique it was, and not what I was expecting:-)
I can’t wait to read this!
Hope you enjoy it when you do:-)
This sounds good, I’ll have to check it out!
It was really good, and a quick read as well, for those times you want to squeeze in something shorter.
Whelp I immediately went out and pre-ordered a copy of this. I love stories about nuns and nunneries, so nuns in space sounds like the ideal sci-fi for me. Can’t wait to read this one for Sci Fi Month. Great review! 😀
Jess @ Jessticulates recently posted…#SpooktasticReads Review | Witches of Lychford by Paul Cornell
Oh cool, I love when people preorder books I recommend:-) Thank you Jess! And yes, this is perfect for SciFiMonth! I almost waited until next week but I wanted to get a review up before release day.
When I first learned about this story I was merely curious, but now that I’ve read your review and shared your enthusiasm, I know this is a book I will have to read sooner or later: living ships fascinate me, and the group of “space nuns” sounds like an intriguing character mix. Thank you so much for sharing!!!! 🙂
Maddalena@spaceandsorcery recently posted…THE WICKED KING (The Folk of the Air #2), by Holly Black
I think you’d really enjoy this one, Maddalena!
Definitely curious about this one! Space nuns out to help colonists on distant worlds is such a great premise.
It is a great premise, and not at all what I was expecting:-)
Oh, wow, what a premise, Tammy. This sounds great and what a wonderful endorsement of it too.
It was unexpectedly great!
Great review, Tammy. I was curious about this book before, but now I definitely want to read it. Just put in a pre-order! Thankfully, I won’t have to wait long (tomorrow). 🙂
Cool! I hope you enjoy:-)
Nuns in space was enough to sell this one to me, but your full review makes this a must-read. It sounds amazing!
It was, hope you get to read it:-)
The last time someone did a twist with nuns (Mark Lawrence), I was sold. This sounds JUST as good! Thanks for sharing this wonderful review, Tammy. 😀
Lashaan Balasingam recently posted…How Objective Are Your Reviews?
I think this might be a less violent nun story than Mark Lawrence’s, but I still recommend it:-)
This sounds great. I can’t say I recall seeing it before but it sounds really good. Nuns in space. What a concept.
Lynn
Amazing review, this sounds like such an interesting read! I love books that tackle issues of control and religion, so it sounds like this might be something I need to pick up for myself!
Kal @ Reader Voracious recently posted…Sci-Fi Month TBR 2019
Just the premise of this one sounds fascinating! Nuns in space? I like the whole concept, the religious angle is an interesting thing to explore. I’ll have to add this one to my list!
If I’m reading this correctly, the space ship is alive and a bit sex-crazed? Sounds pretty unique!
This one sounds fascinating and original.