Local author Paul Briggs will be discussing his novel Altered Seasons: Monsoonrise on Earth Day, April 20, 2019 at 3 p.m. at the White Swan Tavern in Chestertown. Copies of the novel will also be on sale. Admission is $10.
Altered Seasons: Monsoonrise is a 2018 Foreword Indies Finalist in science fiction. Set partly in the Chesapeake Bay area, Altered Seasons: Monsoonrise is the first of a planned two-part series loosely based on a novella written by the author, in which a chain reaction in the Arctic Ocean leads to a devastating new weather pattern in the Northern Hemisphere.
Altered Seasons: Monsoonrise is an example of cli-fi, a new subgenre of science fiction focusing on future climate change and human responses to it. In this it joins novels by such diverse authors as Paolo Bacigalupi, Barbara Kingsolver and Kim Stanley Robinson.
A review in Booklist, a publication of the American Library Association, describes Altered Seasons: Monsoonrise as “a solid addition to cli fi collections.” Kirkus Reviews says “This epic tale of global pandemonium wisely centers on accessible characters.”
D. Donovan, senior editor at the Midwest Book Review, writes, “Altered Seasons: Monsoonrise is a top recommendation for cli-fi readers seeking more depth than the usual approach to life-threatening environmental changes.” Gareth D. Jones of SF Crowsnest writes, “The plot moves along breezily, cataloguing the on-going effects of global warming and socio-political consequences for mankind in general along with the personal consequences for the characters.”