An Unkindness of Ghosts
"Aster has little to offer folks in the way of rebuttal when they call her ogre and freak. She's used to the names; she only wishes there was more truth to them. If she were truly a monster, she'd be powerful enough to tear down the walls around her until nothing remains of her world. Aster lives in the lowdeck slums of the HSS Matilda, a space vessel organized much like the antebellum South. For generations, Matilda has ferried the last of humanity to a mythical Promised Land. On its way, the ship's leaders have imposed harsh moral restrictions and deep indignities on dark-skinned sharecroppers like Aster. Embroiled in a grudge with a brutal overseer, Aster learns there may be a way to improve her lot--if she's willing to sow the seeds of civil war"--Page 4 of cover.
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On a generation ship that has crossed centuries, the upper decks live like antebellum aristocrats while the lower decks labor in chains. A young healer begins decoding her dead mother's notes.
An Unkindness of Ghosts uses dialect, neopronouns, and a complex social structure aboard a generation ship. Some readers find the opening chapters disorienting. The world becomes clearer as the book progresses, and the prose is otherwise accessible.
An Unkindness of Ghosts contains depictions of slavery, sexual violence, medical experimentation, and racial brutality aboard a generation ship modeled on the antebellum American South. Readers should be prepared for heavy content.
An Unkindness of Ghosts was written by Rivers Solomon, published in 2017 by Akashic Books.
An Unkindness of Ghosts is 282 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, An Unkindness of Ghosts takes most readers 4 to 6 hours to finish.
An Unkindness of Ghosts is a standalone novel by Rivers Solomon, not part of a series.
An Unkindness of Ghosts is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.
