Pamela Suffield

Mysterious objects appear out of thin air near an American base in Suffolk, one of them an archetypal American diner. Soon we are deep in weird and following the clues to a secretive project run by the American Government and a private firm owned by a reclusive billionaire. At the brilliant and beating heart of the book is the relationship between Rao and Adam as they grapple with the spread of the strange phenomena they are caught up in. I would have read the book just for that, to be honest.

A gentle slow burn of a book. Sf with heart

I first read this novel when it was published and loved it. Re-reading it now has been a joy. The universe of the Hobb's world comes to life through characters we can see clearly through Tepper's deep understanding of people and her lyrical descriptive talents are amazing. What we slowly see come to fruition is the transformation of a society through the action of the Hobb's world 'God'. It may be just a fungus, but it produces loving and tolerant people. A book to cheer you up and wish the fungus would arrive on Earth as soon as possible

An sf novel that makes you think. The best kind.

This is my fourth Emma Donoghue novel. So I'm a fan. I thought the depiction of impoverished rural Irish life was superbly done. Ditto the credulous belief that a child could live without eating was set firmly in the religious mores of the time and believable to many. In general I enjoyed the novel but the slow pace and Hollywood ending marred it for me

Smorgasbord of gut- wrenching topics, from the influenza epidemic of 1918 through childbirth in ill- equipped Irish hospitals and the mentally shattered soldiers returning from WW1. But it grips you from page one and doesn't ever let go. Full of shining examples of love and compassion to give you hope.