ORION'S WEB

A child’s latent superpowers put her family on the run in this post-apocalyptic SF novel.

Anna Drake and her 4-year-old daughter, Freya, travel the New Desert. In this region of climate-ravaged Australia, most people reside under the Dome, where the weather is controlled and technology enables life to flourish. Anna, raised by her mother as a desert Outdweller, now seeks aid from Dome specialists because Freya has a “condition.” Traveling with the pair is Gardner, the child’s father and a man who only exists at night—by day, he takes the form of a dingo. But time is precious because the family is hunted by experienced killer Faulk Parker. He’s been hired by Thalas Goldengass of the Dome, who claims: “They are a threat, to our security, to all we hold dear, to all we’ve accomplished.” When Anna and her family reach a Border Market near the Dome, they are ambushed by another hunter. Freya and Gardner are gone. Anna is captured by Faulk, who is angry that Goldengass didn’t trust him to fulfill the assignment. Faulk becomes truly conflicted when he finds himself drawn to Anna. Complicating events is Anna’s father, Charles Drake, CEO of Drake Industries and the man responsible for the Dome’s photosynthetic technology. If Faulk heeds his inner yearnings, will Freya’s powerful, aborning talents be utilized? Manfield’s SF thriller churns with poetic examinations of humanity’s relationship with the natural world. When Gardner is in human form, he keeps his face cleanshaven to “accentuate the difference between the man and the dog.” The narrative rotates through the first-person perspectives of the protagonists, and when Faulk notices Anna’s “sparse arch of freckles across her nose, and lips that curve like small smiles at the edges,” his loneliness is palpable. His tragic past and connection to Orion the Hunter of Greek myth bring the story satisfying depth. The author also juxtaposes ideas from religion and fantasy, like the concept of a “Spiritwalker,” against various notions from speculative science, such as giving people photosynthetic abilities. The larger theme of environmental despoliation in the wake of human advancement looms yet never steals the spotlight from the excellent characters.

A subtle, smartly crafted thriller that balances melancholy and hope.