THE CALLISTA ALIGNMENT

In Gay’s SF series debut, a woman stolen from Earth to serve as an alien pet discovers a world-changing destiny.

On the eight-mooned planet Antaris, headquarters of the interstellar Commonwealth, humans are regarded by its eight-foot-tall denizens as mere animals, serving as menial workers and pets. An economic downturn means times are hard; clans of feral humans—“the Unowned”—roam the capital city’s Derelict Zone. Antarian “anthrozoologist” Henik Varkesen, who has observed a feral clan—led not, as would be expected of animals, by its strongest male, but by Alka, its most communicative female—believes humans are a fully cognitive, advanced species, but his view is highly controversial. Yan Feyrsten, a lonely professor, buys the Earth woman as a pet, naming her Kali. When the recommended harsh training methods don’t work with her, he asks his old friend Henrik for help. Kali soon proves she is highly intelligent, quickly learning the basics of their language, including writing, although much of it isn’t audible to humans. Her curious, independent, and determined personality captivates the two, but as the first Earth-born “natural” human on Antaris in several centuries, and a threat to the status quo, she may be in grave danger. The political situation is unstable, with a hotly contested election just days away. When you add in a disgraced police chief turned bounty hunter, manipulative journalists, a rare lunar eclipse coinciding with a major cultural holiday, and Kali’s uncanny resemblance to a figure in a mural whom the ferals view as their goddess, the stakes could hardly be higher. Gay skillfully builds an alien society whose politics may be a bit too similar to ours—but that conceit serves well as a platform for exploring the fundamental question of what makes a person, the ways in which viewing others as lesser beings distorts perceptions, and the forces that spur or oppose sweeping cultural change. The storyline is intricate but never confusing; the prose and dialogue sparkle (“Sela stared back, his eyes blank, as if his imagination was a muscle he rarely flexed”). The characters are well-drawn, distinct individuals, especially Kali, who, though seen mainly through the aliens’ eyes, emerges as thoughtful, perceptive, resilient, and brave.

An outstanding SF series debut that explores what it means to be human.