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Slow Gods
- Author
- Claire North
- Narrator
- Peter Kenny
- Publisher
- Little, Brown Book Group
- Publish Date
- 2 December 2025
- Run Time
- 12 hours 8 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
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What to expect
From the million-copy-bestselling Claire North - one of the most original and dazzling voices in speculative fiction - comes an intergalactic tale of conspiracy, war and the fall of empires.
***Shortlisted for the Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction***
***Shortlisted for the Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel***
My name is Mawukana na-Vdnaze, and I am a very poor copy of myself.
In telling my story, there are certain things I should perhaps lie about. I should make myself a hero. Pretend I was not used by strangers and gods, did not leave people behind.
Here is one truth: out there in deep-space, in the pilot's chair, I died. And then, I was reborn. I became something not quite human, something that could speak to the infinite dark. And I vowed to become the scourge of the world that wronged me.
This is the story of the supernova event that burned planets and felled civilizations. This is also the story of the many lives I've lived since I died for the first time.
Are you listening?
Discover this thrilling and breathtakingly imaginative space opera from the multi-award-winning Claire North, perfect for fans of Ann Leckie, Adrian Tchaikovsky, Iain M. Banks and Arkady Martine.
Praise for Slow Gods:
'An extraordinary novel that will surely be shortlisted for multiple awards' SFX
'The best kind of science fiction: mind-blowing and wildly thought-provoking' Kirkus
'North's worldbuilding is dizzying and dazzling, full of fascinating and convincing characters (human, AI, and other), and thought-provoking meditations on destiny, duty, and power. Add in a doomed romance and stirring action, and this immersive, inventive space opera proves a sheer delight' Publishers Weekly
'Deeply imaginative and achingly human, Slow Gods lures you gently into the dark between the stars' Megan E. O'Keefe, author of Velocity Weapon
'A riveting and complex story . . . One of the best science fiction books of 2025' Locus
Critics Review
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North's talent shines out
SUNDAY TIMES
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North goes from strength to strength
GUARDIAN
-
An original and even dazzling writer
KIRKUS
-
The best kind of science fiction: mind-blowing and wildly thought-provoking
KIRKUS
See more reviews See fewer reviews
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An extraordinary novel that will surely be shortlisted for multiple awards
SFX
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An astonishing, thought-provoking and above all touching story of found meaning and lost humanity
Adrian Tchaikovsky, author of CHILDREN OF TIME
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A riveting and complex story . . . One of the best science fiction books of 2025
LOCUS
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Deeply imaginative and achingly human, Slow Gods lures you gently into the dark between the stars
Megan E. O'Keefe, author of the Philip K. Dick award-nominated VELOCITY WEAPON
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Epic and enthralling . . . North's worldbuilding is dizzying and dazzling, full of fascinating and convincing characters (human, AI, and other), and thought-provoking meditations on destiny, duty, and power. Add in a doomed romance and stirring action, and this immersive, inventive space opera proves a sheer delight
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
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This is a gloriously inventive story with a protagonist as unique and compelling as Martha Wells' Murderbot or Anne Leckie's Justice of Torrens, in a first-person narrative that spans centuries and covers star systems scattered by hundreds of light years . . . In Slow Gods, North gives us a wide-ranging enthralling, resonant and cathartic fable of our own world's predicament but anchors it with individual characters, both participants and witnesses to events, that we can connect with
FANTASY HIVE
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North's talent shines out
SUNDAY TIMES
-
Claire North goes from strength to strength
GUARDIAN
-
North is an original and even dazzling writer
KIRKUS
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Claire North's writing is terrific, smart and entertaining
Patrick Ness
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Claire North is a true original, a master of ingenious plotting and feats of imagination
Alex Marwood, author of THE WICKED GIRLS
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One of the most intriguing and genre-bending novelists
BOOKLIST
User Reviews
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Details
- Author
- Claire North
- Narrator
- Peter Kenny
- Duration
- 12 hours 8 minutes
- Release Date
- 2 December 2025
- ISBN
- 9781405563932
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Little, Brown Book Group
- Genre
- Science fiction: space opera
Synopsis
'ASTONISHING AND THOUGHT-PROVOKING' Adrian Tchaikovsky, author of Children of TimeFrom the million-copy-bestselling Claire North - one of the most original and dazzling voices in speculative fiction - comes an intergalactic tale of conspiracy, war and the fall of empires.***Shortlisted for the Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction*** ***Shortlisted for the Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel***My name is Mawukana na-Vdnaze, and I am a very poor copy of myself. In telling my story, there are certain things I should perhaps lie about. I should make myself a hero. Pretend I was not used by strangers and gods, did not leave people behind. Here is one truth: out there in deep-space, in the pilot's chair, I died. And then, I was reborn. I became something not quite human, something that could speak to the infinite dark. And I vowed to become the scourge of the world that wronged me. This is the story of the supernova event that burned planets and felled civilizations. This is also the story of the many lives I've lived since I died for the first time. Are you listening?Discover this thrilling and breathtakingly imaginative space opera from the multi-award-winning Claire North, perfect for fans of Ann Leckie, Adrian Tchaikovsky, Iain M. Banks and Arkady Martine.Praise for Slow Gods:'An extraordinary novel that will surely be shortlisted for multiple awards' SFX 'The best kind of science fiction: mind-blowing and wildly thought-provoking' Kirkus'North's worldbuilding is dizzying and dazzling, full of fascinating and convincing characters (human, AI, and other), and thought-provoking meditations on destiny, duty, and power. Add in a doomed romance and stirring action, and this immersive, inventive space opera proves a sheer delight' Publishers Weekly'Deeply imaginative and achingly human, Slow Gods lures you gently into the dark between the stars' Megan E. O'Keefe, author of Velocity Weapon'A riveting and complex story . . . One of the best science fiction books of 2025' Locus
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