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The Galaxy Game
The sequel to critically acclaimed The Best of All Possible Worlds from award-winning Barbadian writer Karen Lord.
For years, Rafi Delarua watched his family suffer under his father’s unethical use of psionic power. Now the government has Rafi under surveillance. Hating their crude attempts to analyse his brain, he escapes to the planet Punartam, where his abilities are the norm, not the exception. Punartam is also the centre for his favourite sport, wallrunning – and thanks to his best friend, he discovers a way to train with the elite.
But soon Rafi realises he’s playing quite a different game.
The galaxy is changing; unrest is spreading and the Zhinuvian cartels are plotting, making the stars a far more dangerous place to aim. There may yet be one solution – involving interstellar travel, galactic power and the love of a beautiful game.
‘A smart science fictional fable as inventive and involving as it is finally vital’ – Tor.com
For years, Rafi Delarua watched his family suffer under his father’s unethical use of psionic power. Now the government has Rafi under surveillance. Hating their crude attempts to analyse his brain, he escapes to the planet Punartam, where his abilities are the norm, not the exception. Punartam is also the centre for his favourite sport, wallrunning – and thanks to his best friend, he discovers a way to train with the elite.
But soon Rafi realises he’s playing quite a different game.
The galaxy is changing; unrest is spreading and the Zhinuvian cartels are plotting, making the stars a far more dangerous place to aim. There may yet be one solution – involving interstellar travel, galactic power and the love of a beautiful game.
‘A smart science fictional fable as inventive and involving as it is finally vital’ – Tor.com
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Reviews
every bit the book The Best of All Possible Worlds was: a smart science fictional fable as inventive and involving as it is finally vital
a leisurely exploration of multiple societies, power-politics and race relations . . . The Galaxy Game will only add to her [Karen Lord's] considerable reputation
Lord writes social science fiction reminiscent of Ursula Le Guin . . . I would recommend both The Best of All Possible Worlds and The Galaxy Game to anybody who craves mature social science fiction
There is a weight and grace to [Lord's] prose that put me in mind of pewter jewellery
This novel is a satisfying exercise in being off-balance, a visceral lesson in how to fall forward and catch yourself in an amazing new place
Lord is at her best describing vividly alien bioformed landscapes and exploring subtle differences among uneasily allied cultures
With The Galaxy Game, Lord presents a gripping adventure that showcases her dazzling imagination as never before
If you're looking for classic sci-fi, introspectiveness, political intrigue and something to make you think, Galaxy Game is a star
Another intelligent science fiction story set in an increasingly detailed fictional universe and full of nifty concepts to tickle your brain
Lord's world-building is richly and carefully imaginative
A subtle, cerebral novel
Her world is vast and inventive and her many variations on "humanity" startling and interesting. The fear and expectation, exhilaration, are all very well elucidated
A very enjoyable sociological exploration of Karen Lord's universe