Slow Gods

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.

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.

Review

North's talent shines out -- SUNDAY TIMES

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

An extraordinary novel that will surely be shortlisted for multiple awards ― SFX

An astonishing, thought-provoking and above all touching story of found meaning and lost humanity ― Adrian Tchaikovsky, author of CHILDREN OF TIME

A riveting and complex story . . . One of the best science fiction books of 2025 ― LOCUS

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

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

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

About the Author

Claire North is a pseudonym for Catherine Webb, who wrote several novels in various genres before publishing their first major work as Claire North, The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August. It was a critically acclaimed success, receiving rave reviews and becoming a word-of-mouth bestseller. They have since published several hugely popular and critically acclaimed novels, won the World Fantasy Award and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award, and been shortlisted for the Sunday Times/PFD Young Writer of the Year Award, the Arthur C. Clarke Award and the Philip K. Dick Award. They live in London.