The Spare Man

My mother has a service dog, and I’ve inherited a disability or two. The heroine in The Spare Man didn’t let her dog or her physical limitations stop her. She even used them to her advantage when she could.

I also loved how the book was an old-school Nick and Nora style murder mystery told in the far future on a space cruise ship. The author mixed those genres like she was mixing a tasty cocktail.

It was glorious fun from first page to last. And like all the stories on my list, it showed how much a hero can… show more.

Science fiction and mystery are in many ways kindred forms and when they are successfully combined, the results are marvelous.

The Spare Man is Nick and Nora Charles in space. A “closed spaceship” murder mystery with a great cast of characters and a plot Hammet would be proud of.

Tesla Crane, heiress and CEO of a major manufacturing company, is on her honeymoon with Shal, a retired security specialist, when a murder occurs practically in front of them. Of course they have to get involved.

But they’re on a ship heading for Mars and the staff and crew are only… show more.

Full disclosure: I’m a personal friend of the author. However, her latest book, which is basically “The Thin Man in Space” is really very good.

Ms. Tesla Crane, billionaire inventor, is definitely not ordinary. But she’s stuck on a passenger liner traveling from Earth to Mars, and so much of her resources are at the wrong end of an ever-lengthening speed-of-light delay.

Besides the beauty of being stuck on a passenger ship and forced to improvise, Mary Robinette plays it straight. It is possible for the reader to determine who the killer is, provided that you don’t sample all the… show more.

Technological augmentation as a disability accommodation is central to the main character in this book, but the real hook for me was “new spouses solve a murder on a cruise liner to Mars.” I love reading established and healthy romantic relationships, I love a future that does not assume a gender binary by default, and I really love a locked room (er… locked spaceship?) mystery with colourful suspects galore. The cocktail recipes at the start of each chapter are pretty great, too. Though I admit that my favourite part is the galaxy’s bestest service dog. Good dog, Gimlet!