As soon as I started hearing about this book on #BookTwitter I was incredibly excited. It seemed like such a fresh, new kind of love story that I couldn't wait to get my hands on it but I confess that it took too long. I took the opportunity over the Christmas holidays to finally get stuck into it.
We meet the main characters, Carys and Max, while falling through space. With no way of getting back to their broken ship, and only ninety minutes of oxygen left, things are looking impossible for them.
The novel alternates between their present emergency and their past in Europia, a Utopia made from the countries that made up the European Union and then some. The idea of Europia is that each citizen is on rotation every three years to a different sector, or Voivode.. They act in their own name, rather than the name of a country or religion, with the idea that acting in their own name alone will prevent conflict. The constant moving around adds to this as well - breaking down the unfamiliar, building communities all over the world. As with any Utopia, however, all once seemingly good ideas show cracks over time.
Like the Couples rule. The 'guidelines' are that one cannot get into a stable relationship or begin a family until one's thirties, the benefits being that divorce rates will be lower and a person can be at their most productive, free from the responsibilities of family life. Carys and Max, however, don't take too long before finding out that this rule is not for them.
The story is a clever mix of rom-com and sci-fi, with clearly enough research to make it convincing. The author, Katie Khan, works for a film company, and that certainly shows with the lush visuals of her writing. I really root for Carys and Max as a couple, although my favourite character has to be Liu, Max's best friend.
There are some interesting political undertones, as well. The USA, as far as we know, is as much of a crisis zone as Syria is presently. Europia is the union that everyone wants to be a part of, and outside of Europia is basically a death wish.
The story has lots of twists and turns to keep you reading, particularly towards the end. Several times I was scratching my head, and kept flipping back pages because I genuinely thought I'd missed something, but it was all brought together well in the end. I do look forward to how they'll be translating that particular part onto the big screen. John Boyega and Letitia Wright are going to be taking the leads in this film, so it will definitely be one to look out for next year.
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