So, "The Vela", a collaborative science fiction novel written in relatively self-contained chapters by @slhuang, @deuceofgears, Becky Chambers, and Rivers Solomon.
Set in a solar system with many inhabited planets, each with its on distinct politics and culture - without them being monocultures.
But there's a problem here: the sun is slowly going out, because some inner planets overdid the Hydrogen harvesting. This renders the planets uninhabitable one by one.
(1/n)
As this affects the outer planets first, there are many refugees from the outer into the inner system. Which is being dealt with by letting their scrap ships come apart and putting the ones who make it into overcrowded camps in orbit.
Amidst this backdrop, we follow what's on the surface a rescue mission: Asala (mercenary who's also a refugee from outer planet Hypathia) and Niko (hacker kid of inner planet Khayyam's president) are tasked with finding the "Vela".
(2/n)
The "Vela" is a refugee ship gone missing, and very probably more than it seems to be - as is Niko, the hapless privileged sidekick of a hard-boiled soldier. And both of them are sweeped up in the system's politics and struggle for the future.
"The Vela" is a climate change allegory, and a depressing one at that. Everyone tries to survive, even if that means leaving others behind; even the ending is nothing more than a desparate scramble of getting out first.
(3/n)
But it's not all grimdark. There are characters who care, even though they make messy compromises. There is stark beauty in different landscapes, in poetry, sweets and family ties. But they are small glimpses against a hostile world.
I liked the gritty realism, even if it's not really what I want right now: the many disabled characters, the many hurts and pains. I liked that literally everyone we know something about is queer. And the major plot twist is neat.
(4/n, n=4)
Jules