Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis

(Hodderscape, 2024)

Reviewed by Steven French

If you liked Becky Chambers’ The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, or ‘cosy’, character-focussed SF in general, then you’ll most likely enjoy this too. In a galaxy-spanning empire that enforces a rigid social hierarchy and chews up planets for their resources, together with their inhabitants, The Grand Abeona Hotel offers a measure of respite as it sails majestically from one star system to the next. (Appropriately enough, ‘Abeona’ was the Roman goddess of departures.) The staff are led by Carl, himself a former refugee, taken under the wing of the original owner and manager, Nina, before rising through the ranks. Remaining unflappable throughout, it is Carl who ensures that everything runs as it should, while the hotel itself slowly and gracefully runs to seed. His duty of care embraces both guests and staff and even the tough and battle-scarred, like Dunk, the sous-chef, or the sharp and sarky, like Rogan, the life-guard, turn out to have hearts, if not of gold, then at least of something noble-metal adjacent. Indeed, one of the pleasures of the book are the glimpses into their past lives, as each chapter presents their distinct points-of-view.

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Review from BSFA Review 24 - Download your copy here.