Review: The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson

2022 reread, five-star rating: I am bumping my rating up because I have thought about this book since I read it for the first time and because I love a book that really rewards rereading.

I had a tremendous time rereading this book; it is going to be in the rotation of books I go back to and reread every year or so.

I do still agree with the feelings first go around me had; I just think some of my problems with the book were no longer applicable to a reread, so they didn't hit me the same way this go around.

What really struck me this time was the language. I had noted that I loved the way Johnson wrote in my original review, but that factor had not remained top of mind when I picked up the book again. Her prose is absolutely beautiful while also being tremendously easy to read. I loved being stunned by the beautiful words that I also want to sprint through because I need to know what happens next, it is truly the best.

During this read-through I was struck by how much I loved the sister relationship in this book. It took up more space in the story than I had originally remembered, and I was really invested in this storyline.

Basically, I love this book, and I am truly delighted to have read it.

2021 Read, four-star rating: I started this book yesterday, expecting to slowly read this book over the next few days; this clearly did not go as planned.

The Space Between Worlds is a very fast science fiction novel that is set in a world where the multiverse theory is very definitively proven by a man who creates a way to transport people from one world to another, with the important caveat that the person, called a traverser, must de dead in the worlds they travel to. Cara is dead in all but 9 worlds, making her quite the asset. Things really get going when she gets pulled into her old life on another earth where her double there recently died.

This book is packed full of twists and was a speedy read. It does require a certain amount of your attention while reading, the core cast isn't very large, but many characters have duplicates in a way that could be confusing. I didn't have any trouble keeping it all straight in my mind; it helped that Cara assigned people categories most of the time, friend, ally, enemy- all of these made following along pretty streamlined. Even when roles were not the same in different worlds, I think Micaiah Johnson does an excellent job of introducing a world, establishing it firmly, then pulling you into a new one.

There were only two things I didn't fully love. The first was some of the book's middle dragged a little bit. The rest of the book is so fast, and I was so interested, but I wasn't convinced why I should care about the new world we were introduced to for a time in the center of the novel. There are a few points in the novel where things feel unimportant; this middle bit felt unimportant for quite a bit, which is, of course, not the case as the story progresses. I am in conflict about if this should affect my rating because I wanted to get through that bit as quickly as possible, but it contributed to some interesting events later in the book. I have seen a few other reviews where people DNFed seemingly around this area or before the connections were really made so I don't think I am the only one who had a similar feeling. However, I was never in danger of putting this book down. I read it until about midnight, then started again when I woke up around 5 am. I was clearly hooked a majority of my reading experience.

The second was very much a me thing, I am very hit or miss on the kind of twist reveal where the POV character knows something the audience does not, and it is revealed to us while something very tense is happening (if you are coming from the YA world think Six of Crows or The Gilded Wolves, that style of reveal doesn't always work for me). I like it even less when the point of view doesn't even change from one character. Those just aren't my favorite, and there are a few of these in here. At least I think there are; this book does have a lot of information coming at you fast; it could be possible that on reread I just missed something. Some twists had that issue, some were a little obvious, but most were really fun and interesting. The book is so full of twists you are bound to guess some and be gobsmacked by others.

Weirdly I don't want to highlight the side characters too closely; it feels like revealing who is important to the story is a bit of a spoiler due to how this story unfolds. I found Dell very interesting, I wanted more Dell time, but I am always a sucker for romance. I loved the bi main character; that is certainly something that isn't common enough and is exciting to read! I also really liked the way this book wrote about family. The extra layer of the multiverse is an interesting factor to add to the fairly common (and always my favorite) exploration of who constitutes your family.

I haven't been too explicit about the plot because watching it unfold is certainly a highlight of this book. I wanted to highlight that the way Johnson brings everything together is impressive. So much information that seems throwaway is vital in such an interesting way. I really enjoyed seeing all of these seemingly disparate bits of information become vital as we begin to reach the end of the book. I also just really wanted answers; that need for information really pulled me through this book. The story deals a lot with warlords in a way that I think would appeal to those who like mob stories (and obviously those who are looking for fiction about warlords).

I should also hit on all the social issues this book talks about. I particularly loved the way this book does a deep dive into classism. It also discusses race (and the intersection of race and class) a bit and lightly touches on gender and sexuality. I really liked the way this book showed how the same person was able to have an entirely different life when they had different levels of security in their life. This alone really made me like this book. Johnson is deft and nuanced with the way she discussed class.

She also writes fervently religious people very well (and respectfully), and when you read that she grew up with Jehovah's Witnesses, this makes perfect sense.

Johnson's prose is also so beautiful. I was a little upset that I listened to the audiobook because I wanted to highlight or underline so many lines. She is lyrical at times without ever having the veil of the text obscuring the world she created. I love it when authors write beautifully in a fast-paced book. If you like this about V.E. Schwab, you should try Micaiah Johnson.

I would completely recommend this book to anyone who liked science fiction, to people who want to specifically read more Afrofuturism, to those who love genre books delving into social issues, and to anyone who just wants a fun multiverse romp.