OUT NOW: Three Eight One by Aliya Whiteley
18th January 2024
Three Eight One by Aliya Whiteley is out now!
House of Leaves meets Piranesi, with a dollop of Mona Award weirdness, in this enchantingly odd literary sci-fi tale from the Arthur C. Clarke Award-nominated author of Skyward Inn.
You will know your place when you are done.
In January 2314, Rowena Savalas – a curator of the vast archive of the twenty-first century’s primitive internet – stumbles upon a story posted in the summer of 2024. She’s quickly drawn into the mystery of the text: Is it autobiography, fantasy or fraud? What’s the significance of the recurring number 381?
In the story, the protagonist Fairly walks the Horned Road – a quest undertaken by youngsters in her village when they come of age. She is followed by the “breathing man,” a looming presence, dogging her heels every step of the way. Everything she was taught about her world is overturned.
Following Fairly’s quest, Rowena comes to question her own choices, and a predictable life of curation becomes one of exploration, adventure and love. As both women’s stories draw to a close, she realises it doesn’t matter whether the story is true or not: as with the quest itself, it’s the journey that matters.
“A quirky, unsettling work from one of the most original writers of speculative fiction in Britain today.” —The Guardian
“Brilliant in its playful inventiveness.” –The FT
“A wonderfully alienating experience.” –SFX, five star review