The Principle of Moments

Longlisted for the 2024 TikTok Book Awards

Author: Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson

Paperback

Winner of the inaugural Future Worlds Prize for SFF writers of colour, this is science fiction like you've never seen it before...

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PRODUCT INFORMATION

Summary

Winner of the inaugural Future Worlds Prize for SFF writers of colour, this is science fiction like you've never seen it before...

Description

THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER AND FIRST EVER WINNER OF THE FUTURE WORLDS PRIZE

'My favourite kind of grand space opera'

BEN AARONOVITCH

'An audaciously joyous debut full of heart'

NALINI SINGH

'Entertaining as all hell... it gets the vibe of being twelve years old and watching a lightsaber ignite on the big screen'

LOCUS MAGAZINE

'A sprawling space opera fantasy stuffed with familiar tropes'

THE GUARDIAN

'Every page shines with the vigour and passion of youth'

THE FINANCIAL TIMES

6066: In Emperor Thracin's brave new galaxy, humans are not citizens but indentured labourers, working to repay the debt they unwittingly incurred when they settled on Gahraan - a desert planet already owned by the emperor himself. Asha Akindele knows she's just another voiceless cog working the assembly lines that fuel his vast imperial war machine. Her only rebellion: studying stolen aeronautics manuals in the dead of night. But then a cloaked stranger arrives to deliver an impossible message, and her life changes in an instant.

1812: Obi Amadi is done with time-travelling. Never mind the fact he doesn't know how to cure himself of the temporal sickness he caught whilst anchoring his soul to Regency London, the one that unmakes him further with every jump. Or if the prince he loves will ever love him back. Or why his father disappeared. He is done. Until he hears about the ghost of a girl in the British Museum. A girl from another time.

When Obi's path tangles with Asha's and a prophecy awakens in the cold darkness of space, they must voyage through the stars, racing against time, tyranny, and the legacy of three heroes from an ancient religion who may be awakening, reincarnated in ways beyond comprehension.

The Principle of Moments is a centuries-spanning adventure unmissable for fans of the spacefaring found family of Becky Chambers, the magical London of V. E. Schwab, and the epic climate-craft of N. K. Jemisin.

WHAT READERS ARE SAYING:

'This book! OMG this book was everything I could hope for! A queer love story, a space story, a rebel story and so well written'

'An absolute stonker of a debut... Fantastic world-building, well-rounded characters... I was hooked the whole way through'

'I absolutely devoured this book! Everything I could possibly want with Star Wars / Doctor Who vibes mixed in with Pride and Prejudice'

'THIS is how you write a "chosen one" story! Jikiemi-Pearson is going straight on my "instant read" list of authors'

'I have read quite a

Critic Reviews

The Principle of Moments is my favourite kind of grand space opera where anything can happen and usually does at great speed Ben Aaronovitch, Sunday Times-bestselling author of the Rivers of London series
I just love this universe. I was both teased and pleased, and I am already ready for more Jay McGuiness, vocalist of global sensation The Wanted and author of Blood Flowers
An audaciously joyous debut full of heart. I loved stepping into Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson's world of heroes and prophecies, friendships like family, and an epic adventure through the stars Nalini Singh, New York Times-bestselling author of the Psy-Changeling and Guild Hunter series
I blooming loved it! It reminded me of Lois McMasters Bujold x 2000AD (Halo Jones in particular) with a large helping of Doctor Who, utterly absorbing space opera! Louie Stowell, author of the Sunday Times-bestselling Loki: A Bad God’s Guide series
Angry girls. Swoony simps. A galaxy-spanning future space quest with some fun little pit stops to visit a demon in 1812 London. Honestly, what's not to devour? S. A. MacLean, author of The Phoenix Keeper
A beautifully written love letter to the genres it weaves together. Endlessly creative and brimming with insightful commentary on imperialism, The Principle of Moments manages to be both epic and intimate - a true feat Kemi Ashing-Giwa, USA Today-bestselling author of The Splinter in the Sky
Truly original... An epic space adventure that tears down colonialism and builds instead a shimmering, achingly powerful message of agency, loyalty and destiny. I loved every second of this book Lorraine Wilson, British Fantasy Award-winning author of We Are All Ghosts in the Forest
An answer to the question of: what happens if you cross Star Wars with Doctor Who? And then make it queer (queerer in Doctor Who's case), Black, and fundamentally disinterested in making excuses for the violence of empire? It's entertaining as all hell... it gets the vibe of being twelve years old and watching a lightsaber ignite on the big screen Locus Magazine
I've not read anything quite like Jikiemi-Pearson's award-winning debut. At once a meticulous space opera - with hints of N. K. Jemisin's Broken Earth trilogy - and a centuries-spanning love story The Bookseller
Every page shines with the vigour and passion of youth The Financial Times
A sprawling space opera fantasy stuffed with familiar tropes The Guardian
It has enthusiasm to burn, and characters you'll root for SFX
The perfect antidote to any January blues New Scientist

About the Author

Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson is a science-fantasy author and co-founder of the organisation Impact of Omission. Her writing is invariably about Black people dismantling space empires, travelling through time, and saving the world - often simultaneously.