Published by Quercus Books in July 2019
I’m a bit late to the party on this one; much to my shame, as it is right up my street. Like many folks, the pandemic put the kybosh on my enjoyment of both reading and writing, and my 150+ book ‘to be read’ pile seemed too daunting. I’m now working through the TBR with a vengeance – while simultaneously adding to it, of course!
Red and Blue are agents, on opposite sides of a war between two empires which spins time and multiple universes; they travel backwards and forwards on behalf of their masters, seeking to destroy each other and leaving taunting messages.
As their letters reveal more of themselves to each other, however, these messages soon become flirtatious, and then outright romantic, developing into love. Of course, their respective employers wouldn’t be happy with such a compromising dalliance, and so begins a cat-and-mouse game to each other and away from their fellow agents, trying to avoid detection while fulfilling their desires.
The epistolary format in a book can sometimes be a bit weak, the extra layer of separation leaving the reader connected to none of the letter senders. This is not the case here. El-Mohtar (Blue) and Gladstone (Red) apparently came up with a general outline for the story but the letters sent were written entirely by each author, so the emotional reactions and responses we see in the book are genuine, and almost improvisational; the immediacy this brings makes for an at first entertaining, and then moving, story of burgeoning feelings which defy the odds.
The letters are poetically written and linguistic delights – the two agents are trying to intimidate and impress each other, after all – and you will find yourself savouring particular lines and phrasing, just as Red and Blue do.
El-Mohtar and Gladstone have also done the groundwork for the multiverse and time travel aspects, avoiding the traps of overcomplication or outright confusion which some universe-hopping, chrono-voyaging stories fall into, and ensuring that we are always on board and up to speed. This is no complicated puzzle to wrap your head around, or feel like you’ve worked hard to solve an enigma.
It is listed as an LGBT work, primarily because both protagonists are female – though neither fits the heteronormative mould – but the more the reader is immersed in the tale and gets to know these protagonists, whatever guise they are in in that universe / timeline, the less any labels seem to matter. Love is love, after all, and this example is beautifully and gut-wrenchingly handled.
Given the nature of the plot, it does of course touch a lot on conflict – whether war itself, emotionally, or being self-conflicted – and raises some important points; that soldiers often have more in common than they think (and certainly more than they do with the ‘top-brass’, who are safely ensconced away from the action), about knowing what is right in your own heart, that war can be a hubristic, conceited hiding-to-nothing spanning centuries, and so on.
It’s a stunning piece of writing and a real feat by Gladstone and El-Mohtar; I was completely unsurprised to learn that it was nominated for and won a slew of awards, and has been optioned for a TV series.
A must-read for any fan of SF – keep your eyes peeled for more from these writers, and the TV show.