Sally Strange reviewed The Best of All Possible Worlds by Karen Lord
Scifi that makes use of telepathy tropes should concern itself with social technologies
5 stars
I've never cared much for stories that incorporate telepathy. Usually it adds little except perhaps a novel way to depict the violation of a beautiful woman's consent (looking at you, Star Trek The Next Generation). But Karen Lord uses telepathy to explore intimacy and consent in a positive way, albeit set against the backdrop of a genocidal catastrophe. Our heroine, Grace, is a middle-aged civil servant who gets assigned to be a liaison between her government and a group of refugees who have come to make a new home on her planet after theirs was destroyed. Not only that, but because of the stricter gender roles in the refugees' society, the survivors skew male at a rate of about 80%. So they and Grace set off on a cross-planet adventure to visit various communities whose values and genetics are compatible with the survivors' in order to help them find wives …
I've never cared much for stories that incorporate telepathy. Usually it adds little except perhaps a novel way to depict the violation of a beautiful woman's consent (looking at you, Star Trek The Next Generation). But Karen Lord uses telepathy to explore intimacy and consent in a positive way, albeit set against the backdrop of a genocidal catastrophe. Our heroine, Grace, is a middle-aged civil servant who gets assigned to be a liaison between her government and a group of refugees who have come to make a new home on her planet after theirs was destroyed. Not only that, but because of the stricter gender roles in the refugees' society, the survivors skew male at a rate of about 80%. So they and Grace set off on a cross-planet adventure to visit various communities whose values and genetics are compatible with the survivors' in order to help them find wives in a way that does not disrupt the existing society's mores. This may sound far-fetched, but in the notes, the author says that this was based on real events, specifically the aftermath of the south Asian tsunami on Dec. 26, 2004. A great many fisherman survived due to being out at sea when the tsunami came, while their wives and children, at home on a Sunday in their homes along the shore, mostly perished. Along the way... well, that's the whole story, isn't it. Ultimately the tale brings us all around the planet (which Lord says she envisioned as an intergalactic version of the Caribbean), hints at some time traveling as well, and then concludes on a hopeful, wholesome, and almost romantic comedy-esque note. I really enjoyed it and it's inspiring me to go back and try "The Galaxy Game" again.