I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but publishers like Tor are trying very hard to reintroduce readers to novellas – you know, something about 150 pages long, long enough to pique your interest but easy enough to be read in one sitting. The Ghost Line is one of the latest of these – a story of space wreck recovery but with a touch of horror added that manages to reuse the tropes in a way that keeps the story chugging along.
From the publisher: “The Martian Queen was the Titanic of the stars before it was decommissioned, set to drift back and forth between Earth and Mars on the off chance that reclaiming it ever became profitable for the owners. For Saga and her husband Michel the cruise ship represents a massive payday. Hacking and stealing the ship could earn them enough to settle down, have children, and pay for the treatments to save Saga’s mother’s life. But the Martian Queen is much more than their employer has told them. In the twenty years since it was abandoned, something strange and dangerous has come to reside in the decadent vessel. Saga feels herself being drawn into a spider’s web, and must navigate the traps and lures of an awakening intelligence if she wants to go home again.”
The Ghost Line is a surprisingly good debut that reminded me of Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s Diving stories, mixed in with a touch of Greg Bear’s Blood Music and even James S. A. Corey’s Expanse series. It’s a great story that feels like it could have come straight from Asimov’s Magazine or Analog, of competent workers doing something well until they are put under stress.
Being a novella there’s not a lot of time spent filling in the background. The story is told mainly from the perspective of husband and wife team Saga and Michel, who are cyber-hacking specialists able to revive AI systems from hibernation safely. They are hired by Wei to revive the mothballed Martian Queen. Since the owners went bankrupt, the Queen has been running a ghost line route between Earth & Mars, keeping a company’s rights on it even though it is currently unused. Wei’s plan is that they can move the Queen off course and allow her employers to claim the route for themselves. Wei, Saga, Michel and their pilot Gregor arrive quickly at the Martian Queen and initially things go well. But then, nearly as quick, strange things start to happen…
I liked the fast pace and the setup of the story. It all quickly establishes a setting and creates characters that are recognisable and likeable. The ship itself is appropriately grand and elegantly creepy. As we explore the corridors I’m sure there’s something in the descriptions about the effects of the passing of time and the fleeting nature of material things in there as well.
That’s not to say that it’s perfect. The pacing is a little uneven, though perhaps this is to be expected in a novella. As a shorter piece of writing, the novella can result in things happening a little too quickly at times, and The Ghost Line is a little guilty of this. This also means that the characters are not as nuanced as they might be in a longer form. This is particularly noted here in the case of Wei, whose abrupt manner is a little manic and at times rather annoying. Ultimately she becomes a tool of the plot, with a few key plot points being conveniently waived away by Wei just not telling people why things are happening or being done.
But the fact that I read The Ghost Line in one sitting is a sign of a promising debut. If you like your science fiction at a fast pace with a little bit of the creepy thrown in, The Ghost Line is an entertaining story that does its job and keeps your attention. I look forward to reading more from these two authors.
The Ghost Line by Andrew Neil Gray and J. S. Herbison
Published by Tor, June 2017
146 pages
Published by St. Martin’s Press. E-book also available.
ISBN: 978-0765394972
Review by Mark Yon
yes, good review I feel the same : a nice and entertaining story
I only have a difficult time to believe in the end (what, sentient spores ? ) I also will be looking forward to your review of the next book…