Description
Book SynopsisInterstellar Vehicle Archimedes has been hurtling through space for more than five generations, an oasis of heat and light in the middle of absolutely nowhere. But now the ageing starship is preparing to brake, for it is arriving at Destination Star: Tau Ceti, the new home for the space-born descendants of the First Crew.
For trainee engineer Ravinder MacLeod, the world he knows is coming to an end. Once Archimedes succumbs to the gravitational pull of the Destination Star and its (hopefully) habitable planet, there will be no going back - or anywhere else. As Braking Day approaches, Ravi finds himself caught between the rigid requirements of the officer class to which he aspires and his blue-collar, ne'er-do-well family. Unfortunately for Ravi, Boz, his brilliant ex-con cousin, seems determined to make his life difficult - not least by her experiments with forbidden technology.
Then Ravi is assigned to routine maintenance deep in the massive engines of the Archimedes, where, alone and out of contact, he comes face to face with something impossible - mind-breakingly impossible.
Plagued by nightmares and visions and worried that his grip on reality is slipping, Ravi turns to Boz for help. Their search for answers takes them to the jagged place where the ship's future intersects with its long past. For not everyone is excited to be reaching journey's end, and the ghosts of the First Crew may not have been fully laid to rest.
Trade ReviewEngaging, fast-moving, and inventive. The
characters and the
space environment f
eel totally real, as do the l
ife-and-death challenges that never miss a step * New York Times bestselling author JACK CAMPBELL *
Adam Oyebanji's BRAKING DAY
blows the airlocks off the science fiction mainstay of generation ships with a
vibrant world within bulkheads that's
as convincing as it is fresh. The
characters are fabulous, the
world-building impeccable yet never in-your-face, and the
plot is breathtaking. All I can say is this is
the best SF novel I've read in decades and it
may be the best I've ever read. This author is now
a must-read for me, and I'm sure he will be for you.
Bravo!! * JULIE E. CZERNEDA, Aurora Award-winning author of IN THE COMPANY OF OTHERS *
Oyebanji crafts
an amazing lived-in world aboard a sprawling generation ship, and
a twisty mystery that'll
keep you guessing to the very end * DAN MOREN, author of the Galactic Cold War series *
BRAKING DAY is an
outstanding debut novel that features
exceptional world-building and a
really well-realised generation ship society. Filled with
twists and turns, it
kept me guessing in the best way right up until the end * MICHAEL MAMMAY, author of the PLANETSIDE series *
Oyebanji's
brilliant debut [is] a
vibrant exploration of society aboard a generation starship. Oyebanji
builds intrigue upon intrigue through the novel's first half and
pays off the suspense with a series o
f jaw-dropping revelations. Innovative world-building, a plot
packed with surprises, and Oyebanji's nuanced exploration of social and cultural shifts make this
a must-read for space opera fans * PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, Starred Review *
A
crystalline, dazzling debut, teeming with life and data and full of
breathless, rip-roaring twists and turns. From its first pages, BRAKING DAY g
rabs you and never lets you go * LENA NGUYEN, author of We Have Always Been Here *
At its best,
Braking Day captures
the awe of deep space travel but it remains
a personal story about one engineer trying
to better their life * SFBOOK REVIEWS *
This
richly imagined, intricately plotted adventure is
crammed with ideas, and has
many surprises in store * THE GUARDIAN *
An i
ntelligent, complex work of science fiction . . . combined the
qualities of classic Golden Age science fiction with the
social issues found in contemporary SF * MUSE'S BOOK JOURNAL *
I doubt I'll read a better SF novel this year * PARSEC MAGAZINE *
This
well-realised debut adopts a
refreshingly pragmatic, hopeful stance, showing people overcoming division to secure a common goal * FINANCIAL TIMES *
The
twisting story keeps you guessing until the end. Generation ships are definitely coming back into fashion and this is
a fine addition to the canon * STEPHEN COX, author of Our Child of Two Worlds *
If you're after
action, mystery and mind-bending mega-structures, look no further. It
zips along with some
wonderful world-building and
a lot of unexpected turns * LAVIE TIDHAR, World Fantasy Award-winning author, in THE WASHINGTON POST *
An
excellent and tense thriller . . . an
impressive start for a debut novelist and
a very satisfying read * BIRMINGHAM SCIENCE FICTION GROUP NEWSLETER *
Fast-paced,
character driven story,
full of action and
compelling twists. Oyebanji is definitely
an author to watch * GRIMDARK MAGAZINE *
Richly imagined * NEW SCIENTIST *
