A review by jdamae11
The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson

adventurous dark reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Read this back in January but I'm back to give a full review of one of my favorite books, probably taking the crown for my top book of 2023 tbh. Micaiah Johnson took a common Sci-Fi concept—the multiverse—and created a super Queer adventurous narrative exploring classism, exploitation, and race, and identity. In the world of the novel, it has been discovered that multiverse travel can be fatal if one’s alternate self is still alive on another universe that one travels to. So the tech-run ultra capitalist govt on Earth 0 creates a class of “traversers” comprised of the mostly Black and Brown working-class poor to travel to other universes. Our main character, Cara, is a traverser and is only alive on 8 versions of earth. There are so many satisfying plot twists and moments of exciting action throughout the book. We also experience Cara’s internal crises as she grapples with the idea of her true self, mortality, and the fallout of having lived a life constantly in survival mode no matter the universe. The author’s writing is just beautiful and made me want to pick up my own pen again. In Johnson’s world, gender is fluid and Trans elders are widely regarded with the highest respect, as they should be always! It also features a central wlw love story that’s really heartfelt and the ending leaves you full of hope and imagination for what could be. In terms of setting there’s a bit of both Mad Max and Hunger Games Capitol vibes, which was very fun! 
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