Sisters of the Vast Black

This is a slim novella that is jam-packed with characters and drama. A group of nuns whose convent is a space-faring sea slug (which brought to mind Moya of Farscape, though less sentient and no empathic Pilot) travel among far-flung colony planets, rendering aid and performing sacraments as needed, after a great war that defeated Earth Central Governance (the opposite outcome of the war against the Alliance in Firefly). The religious dilemmas of the nuns brought to mind Canticle for Liebowitz a bit too, though in 155 pages, it has nowhere the scope and breadth of that novel. Though it uses some familiar space opera and other science fictional pieces, they’re recombined in a way that’s fresh and thoughtful, and the characters are show more interesting individuals, which is a lot to accomplish in such a short book. I’m definitely planning to read the second book in this series. show less

Another favorite book of the year, and a new favorite author! The concept for this book hooked me immediately: set in the future, we follow an order of nuns traveling through space on their (living!) alien ship. The worldbuilding in Sisters of the Vast Black is excellent and like nothing I've ever encountered before. The characters are fantastic, and the writing itself is beautiful! The fact that Lina Rather accomplishes all of this within the boundaries of a scant 160 pages totally floored me. Apparently there is a sequel, which I'm really looking forward to, because my constant thought while reading was, "I need this book to be at least 3 times as long as it is."

Lina Rather is an American speculative fiction writer based out of Washington, DC. I think she's a talent to watch. Her short stories have featured in Lightspeed, Daily Science Fiction, and Shimmer.





I particularly liked her story 'Extinctions'' in Shimmer, which is online and is also included in Shimmer's 2017 anthology, which I recommend.

'Sisters of the Vast Black' is her debut novella. I found it exciting and moving and filled with real people trying to do the right thing.

The writing is accomplished, confident and accessible. It avoids being either didactic or polemical while still exploring the nature of personal responsibility, service, duty and different ways in which we come to love those we serve with. It positions hierarchy as show more an instrument for centralising power and reducing individual freedom, making people abdicate their personal judgement and do things they would normally be ashamed of.

'Sisters Of The Vast Black' follows a small group the Sisters of the Order of Saint Rita as they travel the outer reaches of mankind's colonies in the stars, tending to the sick and carrying out marriages and baptisms. They travel aboard their convent, Our Lady of Impossible Constellations which a vast, genetically engineered mollusc called a Liveship.

Lina Rather does a great job of making the Liveship feel real rather than a magical whimsey without resorting to infodumps or slipping into technolust.

Her main focus is on the Sisters themselves. Who they are as individuals. How they behave as a group. What called them to serve and the different ways in which they feel that calling.

As the story progresses, we learn that humanity has been through an interstellar war between Earth and its colonies. A war that killed billions of people, destroyed habitats and unleashed deadly diseases. Most of the story is about how the aftermath of that war and the re-awakening ambition of Earth reaches out even to the remote regions that Our Lady Of Impossible Constellations travels through and confronts the Sisters with difficult choices.

The novella builds to a tense, action-packed, emotionally powerful conclusion that left me both satisfied and hungry for more.

I'll be watching for Lina Rather's next novella or her first novel. show less

A really well done space opera novella, Sisters of the Vast Black focuses on a small community of nuns whose charism is the tending of far flung colonies of humans in the aftermath of a devastating war. Lina Rather takes on issues of faith, gender, colonialism, and that plus the presence of nuns!—lesbians!—lesbian nuns!—wimples in space!—means this ticks a lot of boxes for me. Rather does a great job of world building in a way that feels rich without relying on expository dumps or to the detriment of the plot. I will say that there are no surprises in how the plot unfolds, but everything is done very neatly and with scrupulous adherence to the rule of Chekhov's gun. Recommended.

How’s this for a high-concept premise? A convent of nuns dressed in traditional black is housed in the belly of a large, spacefaring slug. One of the nuns has taken a vow of silence as a penance. Another is having a vocational crisis over her attraction to a female crewmember on another ship. The ship provokes a theological debate among the nuns when it wants to mate with another ship. A new, much-to-conservative pope has assigned a new priest to supervise the convent. It is all more fun than it sounds, once you stir in a plague, a battle in space, and a pregnant spaceship. 4 stars.

There's something incredibly campy sounding about nuns in space. But this is less meme and more character study in the most unique space faring vehicle yet (even surpassing Tchaikovsky's webship). In fact, I can wholeheartedly recommend it, with a caveat. Something like a cross between [b:The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet|22733729|The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers, #1)|Becky Chambers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1405532474l/22733729._SY75_.jpg|42270825] and [b:A Memory Called Empire|37794149|A Memory Called Empire (Teixcalaan, #1)|Arkady Martine|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1526486698l/37794149._SY75_.jpg|59457173], this should appeal to show more those who can let go some of the demands of physics and biochemistry, and follow Rather's focus on the personal and ethical choices of the various crew members.

First, and most oddly, it's a living ship--not an AI or brain in a shell, mind you, but a type of slug with a hardened exoskeleton. I think. I might have got a bit lost in those details, although it goes into a bit about how the ships grow and develop. The sisters also have an ongoing debate about whether or not their ship has a soul.

The sisters are a varied bunch. I was worried that they wouldn't stand out, but we aren't inundated with a nunnery, only a handful of people. They do achieve some individuality in their characterization. The Reverend Mother is starting to mentally deteriorate. She's able to cover her infirmity because she long ago took a vow of silence, only speaking through signing. Sister Lucia often serves as the Mother's interpreter for finer points of meaning. Sister Gemma joined out of expedience and has a talent for caring for the ship. Sister Mary Catherine is an Earther and everyone knows she won't be staying long. Sister Faustina is not in the least a gentle soul, but she comes through under pressure. Then there's their late arrival:

"Many of the adjustments to spaceborn life he found primitive, upsetting, and uncomfortable. They had not shut off the gravity since he arrived, not even on holy days, because it upset his stomach. He was very well-meaning, and like most people who were well-meaning and ignorant, he bulldozed through everything in his way with not even a thought."

The world-building is intriguing. Being of anti-religious persuasion, I did not find the backdrop of religion overwhelming or boring. If there's any downside at all to the world-building, it's that the idea that the Catholic Church manages to remain relatively unchanged so far into the future. But what do I know? It's tried to remain structurally and theologically similar to a thousand years ago, so it might manage. As the story continues, more details and history get added through the story of the sisters.

If I had any complaint, it is that the pace seems uneven, and the more thoughtful build of the beginning isn't matched by the ratcheted up events in the final third. Nonetheless, it remained interesting, with further implications into the world. Hopefully it is enough to get Rather another book deal, as I'd unhesitatingly read more in this world. show less

"Let us do what we know to be right," sister Lucia said. " If we die, we will know we died doing good works, and that is all any of us have asked of this life."

Sisters of the Vast Black, by Lina Rather, follows nuns traveling aboard a living spaceship that can mate and produce baby spaceships. Yes, you heard that right. And these nuns also happen to be in the business of fighting evil, even when it means going against the word of the Catholic Church itself.

Note to reader: No, this novella is not the least bit campy.

As mentioned, Lina Rather’s debut novella follows a crew of sisters from the Order of Saint Rita as they journey through space, responding to calls for help from newly established colonies (and I idea I absolutely love). show more The cast of characters includes the enigmatic Reverend Mother, whose vow of silence keeps her mysterious past shrouded, the pragmatic Sister Faustina, the pious Sister Lucia, and Sister Gemma, who pines for a life outside the Order. Each character is fascinating in her own right but Sister Gemma to me is the glue of this story. Her role has led her to specialize in the living ship and its functions, and who has been researching whether the ship’s immunity to diseases can be used to help humans, but who is currently wrestling with the contradiction between her faith, her commitment to the order, and her growing affection for a woman outside the community of faithful (the Catholicism of the future has, it seems, finally gotten over the idea that queer relationships are inherently sinful).

This is an intensely personal and focused novella that is focused on the individual sisters. The story’s heart lies in the sisters’ community formed within the flesh walls of their spaceship and in their struggles in remaining faithful to themselves, each other, and the Church as they learn that bodies and souls in their care- and those of the galactic diaspora -are in danger. And its not some aliens from beyond but from Earth's own Central Governance and the Church itself.

This is a warm and forgiving, and intimate novel with an explosive, nail-biting and all too relevant conclusion for 2020. Sisters of The Vast Black explores the relationships between faith, imperialism, and love and gives us a glimpse of what our spacefaring future could look like (maybe minus the giant space ship slugs!).

This was a book I needed to read right now, when our planet seems so filled with existential angst and panic. I need to read about a group of flawed nuns trying to do some good in the universe, trying to love others, trying to helps others in their time of illness. I needed to read about human kindness.

This book could not be more highly recommended. I want to purchase a copy and reread it over and over again.

I hope there are more stories set within this universe. show less