A River Called Time
by Courttia Newland
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Pub Date 7 Jan 2021 | Archive Date 7 Jan 2021
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Description
The Ark was built to save the lives of the many, but rapidly became a refuge for the elite, the entrance closed without warning.
Years after the Ark was cut off from the world, a chance of survival within its confines is granted to a select few who can prove their worth. Among their number is Markriss Denny, whose path to future excellence is marred only by a closely guarded secret: without warning, his spirit leaves his body, allowing him to see and experience a world far beyond his physical limitations.
Once inside the Ark, Denny learns of another with the same power, whose existence could spell catastrophe for humanity. He is forced into a desperate race to understand his abilities, and in doing so uncovers the truth about the Ark, himself and the people he thought he once knew.
Advance Praise
'A River Called Time is a real gem of a book . . . There are so many brilliant parallels drawn between the world we live in as well as gentle prods towards the reality we could create. Written in Courttia’s evocative style, I was constantly thrown by the clever twists and turns. I had my hands on my face throughout the end of the book as shock after shock was delivered . . . an excellent, beautiful read that will make you think while taking your breath away'
DOROTHY KOOMSON
'A masterful reimagining of the African diaspora's influence on England and on the world. It's a grand tale and still an intimate portrait of loss and love. What glory and influence would Africa enjoy if colonialism had never occurred? Courttia Newland reshapes our vision of the past, present and future by taking this one question seriously. The result is something truly special. No other way to put it, this book is true Black magic'
VICTOR LaVALLE
'Gloriously enthralling. An immersive, ambitious reimagining of the city from a formidable British voice. Newland’s magnum opus'
IRENOSEN OKOJIE
'A master storyteller returns with this piece of astonishing speculative fiction, interrogating social inequality, the complexities of truth and the very essence of what it is to be human, all in Newland's precise and powerful prose'
NIKESH SHUKLA
'Courttia Newland’s alternative, decolonised vision of London is a staggering feat of imagination. There’s so much to love here: an everyman hero who discovers he has abilities that are anything but ordinary, parallel cities across a multiverse, African cosmology belief systems, a keep-them-guessing ending . . . An amazing achievement'
NOEL CLARKE
'A River Called Time is an incredible read. Perfectly plotted and layered with complex ideas, a heartbreaking love triangle and an astonishing ending. It’s not just a book of speculative fiction, but a starting point to learning about a kemetic spiritual system masterfully woven into the narrative. If you’re a fan of Philip K. Dick and Ballard, you’ll love stepping into the world Courttia has created'
IRFAN MASTER
Praise for Courttia Newland:
'A writer with a gift for expressing the ordinary in an original way. Excellent'
The Times
'Masterful . . . Warm and witty . . . an impressive achievement'
Guardian
'With realism and without sanctimony, Mr Newland successfully engages some of the most difficult questions we will ever face'
New York Journal of Books
'A novel that's rich with both grief and great love. Courttia Newland is a fierce talent'
VICTOR LAVALLE
'One of the most imaginative, freethinking writers working today. I love his work'
SARAH HALL
'Newland writes . . . with sensitivity and complexity'
BERNARDINE EVARISTO, Guardian
Available Editions
| EDITION | Hardcover |
| ISBN | 9781786897060 |
| PRICE | £14.99 (GBP) |
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Siobhan D, Reviewer
A River Called Time is an epic literary speculative fiction novel about an alternative world where colonialism never happened and Africa's influence upon London is vast. Markriss Denny grew up in the 'Outer' city, part of Dinium cut off from the Ark, a specially built inner city where only the elite may now live. He becomes, however, one of the few who are granted a job and home in the Ark, but he has a secret: his spirit can leave his body and travel beyond it. And then it turns out that time isn't quite what he thought, and he's going to have to go up against it to stop another with the same kind of power.
The concept and scope of the book are amazing, plunging you into a world full of African cosmology and a reimagined London but yet still with a lot of power injustice and media coverups. The philosophical side of it, with complex time and multiverse theory and astral projection and more, was fascinating, if probably went over my head somewhat at times. As someone who doesn't read much sci-fi or speculative fiction, I found it a lot more interesting than expected thanks to the ideas involved and the approachable writing style. From reading Newland's afterword, it's a clear a lot of research went into the ideas and narrative, and there's a lot to draw out of it.
The novel is split into four parts (explaining how is too much of spoiler) and I did find it difficult to get into and understand the second part, taking a while to work out what was going on. By the third section, however, I was prepared, and it is a clever way of bringing out some of the resonances in a more familiar place, and then the fourth part is more of a conclusion. I wasn't always entirely sure what was going on (I tend to find this with novels using multiverse ideas), but I could always get back into it.
A book that asks big questions and doesn't always give straightforward answers, A River Called Time is a complex piece of speculative fiction with a sharp look at social inequality and how the present could be different if the past hadn't involved colonialism.
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