Everfair

I really wanted to love this book. It has an awesome premise. It's an alternate history of Belgian Congo colonization where a group of people acquire part of the territory from Leopold II and try to turn it into a haven and utopia for the native peoples, the slaves of Belgium, the slaves of the US, Chinese forced laborers, and white people from Europe and the US. Their economy is based on steam and dirigibles. And they all fight against the oppression of the colonizers. Unfortunately, the book suffered from too many characters, POVs, and jumps in the timeline. While I liked many characters, I found it hard to love and empathize with them. Still, the book is impressive for the topics it tackles, the grand sweep of alternate history, and the detail of the characters' personalities. This book was nominated for a 2016 Nebula Award, among others.

Come visit my blog for the full review...