Tricia Sullivan
All material copyright Tricia Sullivan 2010
Lightborn
Lightborn, better known as 'shine', is a mind-altering technology that has revolutionised the modern world. It is the ultimate in education, self-improvement and entertainment - beamed directly into the brain of anyone who can meet the asking price.
But in the city of Los Sombres, renegade shine has attacked the adult population, resulting in social chaos and widespread insanity in everyone past the age of puberty. The only solution has been to turn off the Field and isolate the city.
Trapped within the quarantine perimeter, fourteen-year-old Xavier just wants to find the drug that can keep his own physical maturity at bay until the army shuts down the shine. That's how he meets Roksana, mysteriously impervious to shine and devoted to helping the stricken.
As the military invades street by street, Xavier and Roksana discover that there could be hope for Los Sombres - but only if Xavier will allow a lightborn cure to enter his mind.
What he doesn't know is that the shine in question has a mind of its own ...
Click on the image to buy from Amazon.co.uk
Lightborn, better known as 'shine', is a mind-altering technology that has revolutionised the modern world. It is the ultimate in education, self-improvement and entertainment - beamed directly into the brain of anyone who can meet the asking price.
But in the city of Los Sombres, renegade shine has attacked the adult population, resulting in social chaos and widespread insanity in everyone past the age of puberty. The only solution has been to turn off the Field and isolate the city.
Trapped within the quarantine perimeter, fourteen-year-old Xavier just wants to find the drug that can keep his own physical maturity at bay until the army shuts down the shine. That's how he meets Roksana, mysteriously impervious to shine and devoted to helping the stricken.
As the military invades street by street, Xavier and Roksana discover that there could be hope for Los Sombres - but only if Xavier will allow a lightborn cure to enter his mind.
What he doesn't know is that the shine in question has a mind of its own ...
Click on the image to buy from Amazon.co.uk
'This is gripping, thought-provoking speculation, populated with gritty, believable characters and a storyline that moves in surprising directions'
The Times
The Times
'Compelling, imaginative and often discomfiting'
SFX
SFX
'Sullivan is brilliant at presenting convincing near-future scenarios peopled by heart-breakingly real characters... and leaves the explication of the technology in the background while concentrating on the human consequences of its malfunction. Recommended.'
Guardian
Guardian
'Lightborn is a clever premise...The adventures of Xavier and Roksana are engrossing and surprising in equal measure, and the end result is a well-paced and engaging slice of science fiction.'
Bookgeeks
Bookgeeks
'Tricia Sullivan is not just the heir but the latest incarnation of the American SF tradition: she is the real thing; one of the most important writers in the genre today without question'
Nick Hubble, in a discussion of Lightborn at Torque Control
Nick Hubble, in a discussion of Lightborn at Torque Control
Shortlisted for the BSFA Award
Best Novel 2010
and the Arthur C. Clarke Award
Best Novel 2010
and the Arthur C. Clarke Award
'Lightborn is no more ‘just another zombie novel’ than Proust is another book about baking...an assured, absorbing and often moving novel'
Adam Roberts, Locus Online 10 Best SF Novels 2010
Adam Roberts, Locus Online 10 Best SF Novels 2010
'Exquisitely composed, fiercely intelligent, dazzlingly complex and quietly affecting, Lightborn is one of the very best works of science fiction published in 2010.'
Jonathan McCalmot, Vector 266
Jonathan McCalmot, Vector 266
'This is a powerful and effective novel, squarely situated within the heartland of the catastrophe novel but still seeming to offer something fresh and engaging' Paul Kincaid, Interzone