The Mars House

480 pages

English language

Published March 19, 2024 by Bloomsbury Publishing USA.

ISBN:: 978-1-63973-233-3

From the author of The Watchmaker of Filigree Street, a queer sci-fi novel about an Earth refugee and a Mars politician who fake marry to save their reputations—and their planet.

In the wake of environmental catastrophe, January, once a principal in London’s Royal Ballet, has become a refugee on Tharsis, the terraformed colony on Mars. In Tharsis, January’s life is dictated by his status as an Earthstronger—a person whose body is not adjusted to Mars’s lower gravity and so poses a danger to those born on, or naturalized to, Mars. January’s job choices, housing, and even transportation options are dictated by this second-class status, and now a xenophobic politician named Aubrey Gale is running on a platform that would make it all worse: Gale wants all Earthstrongers to be surgically naturalized, a process that can be anything from disabling to deadly.

When Gale chooses January for an on-the-spot …

From the author of The Watchmaker of Filigree Street, a queer sci-fi novel about an Earth refugee and a Mars politician who fake marry to save their reputations—and their planet.

In the wake of environmental catastrophe, January, once a principal in London’s Royal Ballet, has become a refugee on Tharsis, the terraformed colony on Mars. In Tharsis, January’s life is dictated by his status as an Earthstronger—a person whose body is not adjusted to Mars’s lower gravity and so poses a danger to those born on, or naturalized to, Mars. January’s job choices, housing, and even transportation options are dictated by this second-class status, and now a xenophobic politician named Aubrey Gale is running on a platform that would make it all worse: Gale wants all Earthstrongers to be surgically naturalized, a process that can be anything from disabling to deadly.

When Gale chooses January for an on-the-spot press junket interview that goes horribly awry, January’s life is thrown into chaos, but Gale’s political fortunes are damaged, too. Gale proposes a solution to both their problems: a five-year made-for-the-press marriage that would secure January’s financial future without naturalization and ensure Gale’s political future. But when January accepts the offer, he discovers that Gale is not at all like they appear in the press. And worse, soon, January finds himself entangled in political and personal events well beyond his imagining. Gale has an enemy, someone willing to destroy all of Tharsis to make them pay—and January may be the only person standing in the way.

1 edition

enne📚 reviewed The Mars House by Natasha Pulley

4 stars

This is my first Natasha Pulley book. I'd describe this one as a scifi romance with some wry comedic tones[1].

If there's a scale of hard scifi, this book is more grounded than Malka Older's Pleiti and Mossa books, but overall the science is very handwavy. The emphasis in this story is on the relationships and the politics (both interplanetary and local); it's set in a partially terraformed Mars (breathable but unliveably cold and dusty) whereas Earth is burning and sinking and many refugees are emigrating to Mars.

The big political issue of the day on Mars is the naturalization of Earthstrong people. Due to gravity differences, folks coming from earth are three times stronger than folks born on Mars and are thus extremely dangerous and must wear a titanium "cage" at all times that renders them much weaker. There is a process to "naturalize" to Mars gravity …

This is my first Natasha Pulley book. I'd describe this one as a scifi romance with some wry comedic tones[1].

If there's a scale of hard scifi, this book is more grounded than Malka Older's Pleiti and Mossa books, but overall the science is very handwavy. The emphasis in this story is on the relationships and the politics (both interplanetary and local); it's set in a partially terraformed Mars (breathable but unliveably cold and dusty) whereas Earth is burning and sinking and many refugees are emigrating to Mars.

The big political issue of the day on Mars is the naturalization of Earthstrong people. Due to gravity differences, folks coming from earth are three times stronger than folks born on Mars and are thus extremely dangerous and must wear a titanium "cage" at all times that renders them much weaker. There is a process to "naturalize" to Mars gravity (whatever that means), but it often leaves people with massive health issues and nerve damage.

Romance-wise, this is an arranged marriage between two people who hate each other. (At some point maybe I should stop saying I don't like this trope generally? I swear I'm not seeking it out, but also I do keep finding it.) January used to be the principal at the Royal Ballet in London but shortly moves to Mars and is doing physical labor. Aubrey Gale is a non-binary (my word) politician whose forced Earthstrong naturalization politics directly conflict with January's needs, and whose previous consort has mysteriously disappeared under suspicious circumstances.

(Perhaps one of my biggest complaints about the novel is that January too quickly gloms onto Aubrey. Sure, there's economic reasons for this. Sure, there's some personal reasons for why he would do this. I think the book deals ~ok with January's fear that the previous consort could have been murdered by Aubrey, but not very well with the political difference? This feels very huge to me. Aubrey is described as a fascist early on, even if this isn't quite true! I needed more acknowledgement of how January feels about the politics, because it feels swept under the rug and was a huge part of the initial setup prior to the marriage.)

The book does have a lot of fun little details. Linguistics nerdery! Mammoths?! Class differences! Internet dependency because it's directly in people's brains! Gender abolition (but only sort of, cf Terra Ignota)! Discussions of power differences across force, gender, and money!

Overall, I think it was fluffier, funnier, and grippier than I expected it to be. I'm not sure I was sold on the core relationship and I think that took it down a few notches for me.

[1] I was not prepared for sarcastic footnotes!

Wild Woila reviewed The Mars House by Natasha Pulley

Where refugees from climate-riven Earth are a mortal accidental risk to Martians

4 stars

A sci-fi romance set on Mars, where recent refugees from climate-riven Earth are so strong in the low gravity that they are a mortal accidental risk to Martians. Excellent premise, and the contradictory reactions of the protagonist feel real & difficult. But some of the underlying science is dubious (MW ≠ MWh!!!), the romance had potential but felt a bit weak and the ending used up its momentum too soon. Mammoths!

Subjects

Science Fiction
Romance
LGBTQ