2022 Arthur C. Clarke Award (nominee)
2021 BSFA Award for Best Novel (nominee)
ARTHUR C. CLARKE AWARD FINALIST 2022
Drink down the brew and dream of a better Earth.
Skyward Inn, within the high walls of the Western Protectorate, is a place of safety, where people come together to tell stories of the time before the war with Qita. But safety from what? Qita surrendered without complaint when Earth invaded; Innkeepers Jem and Isley, veterans from either side, have regrets but few scars.
Their peace is disturbed when a visitor known to Isley comes to the Inn asking for help, bringing reminders of an unnerving past and triggering an uncertain future. Did humanity really win the war?
Genre: Science Fiction
Drink down the brew and dream of a better Earth.
Skyward Inn, within the high walls of the Western Protectorate, is a place of safety, where people come together to tell stories of the time before the war with Qita. But safety from what? Qita surrendered without complaint when Earth invaded; Innkeepers Jem and Isley, veterans from either side, have regrets but few scars.
Their peace is disturbed when a visitor known to Isley comes to the Inn asking for help, bringing reminders of an unnerving past and triggering an uncertain future. Did humanity really win the war?
Genre: Science Fiction
Praise for this book
"Whiteley [is] one of the most original and provocative voices in contemporary science fiction." - Nina Allan
"Visceral and unsettling - I loved it." - G V Anderson
"Clever and touching: a book of cosmic scope but with real characters and a human heart." - Chris Beckett
"A powerful and surprising examination of colonialism and its unintended consequences. Highly recommended." - Helen Marshall
"A story of the future that is an appeal to the present. The best kind of science fiction. A novel of its time, confronting current and terrible misjudgements with which humanity assures its own demise. All made startling by a typical Whiteley strangeness." - Adam L G Nevill
"Intense and consuming writing, constantly challenging expectations." - Adrian Tchaikovsky
"The absolute best kind of philosophical SF, & indisputable inheritor of Le Guin. Aliya Whiteley forces us to confront difficult ideas, but they are important, and will become even more so. Exactly what SF should do." - Marian Womack
"Visceral and unsettling - I loved it." - G V Anderson
"Clever and touching: a book of cosmic scope but with real characters and a human heart." - Chris Beckett
"A powerful and surprising examination of colonialism and its unintended consequences. Highly recommended." - Helen Marshall
"A story of the future that is an appeal to the present. The best kind of science fiction. A novel of its time, confronting current and terrible misjudgements with which humanity assures its own demise. All made startling by a typical Whiteley strangeness." - Adam L G Nevill
"Intense and consuming writing, constantly challenging expectations." - Adrian Tchaikovsky
"The absolute best kind of philosophical SF, & indisputable inheritor of Le Guin. Aliya Whiteley forces us to confront difficult ideas, but they are important, and will become even more so. Exactly what SF should do." - Marian Womack
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Used availability for Aliya Whiteley's Skyward Inn