The Cleaner, the Cat and the Space Station - (The Shantivira) by Fay Abernethy (Paperback)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

A heart-warming eco-sci-fi adventure for fans of Becky Chambers, Ursula Le Guin, Douglas Adams and Doctor Who.

Since leaving Ethiopia, nineteen-year-old orphan Hanna Abebe has survived in London by working illegally as a cleaner. But her life unravels after a sexual assault; living rough, she loses the resulting pregnancy and very nearly her life. She is saved by Kitty, a mysterious shape-shifter, and welcomed into an unusual new family: a school training spacecraft fighter pilots for the Shantivira, the alien space station which secretly protects the Earth.

Hanna discovers she has a talent for flying and joins the programme. But then she learns Lucy Cooper, her main rival and unlikely new friend, is a spy for an organisation claiming the Shantivira's motives are sinister.

When Lucy and their favourite teacher are kidnapped, Hanna and her friends rush to the Swiss Alps on a rescue mission. Simultaneously, a frigate of terrifying space pirates arrives in the solar system, intent on plundering the planet for its abundant riches.

With dark forces circling, can the cleaner, the cat and the space station keep the Earth and its inhabitants safe?

Buy this fun solarpunk adventure now to find out!

Review Quotes

"Great fun! Humor, pathos, and a rather different kind of storyline." - Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

"Fantastic sci-fi adventure . . . a wonderful romp through a believable universe." - Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

"Amazing . . . one of those you can't put down, I guarantee it will also change the way you look at the world, highly recommend this is a must-read." - Goodreads reviewer

"A gem of a book . . . transported me back to my childhood, when I'd stay awake all night so I could finish a book . . . rare and unique . . . a thrilling and surprising storyline." - Amazon FR reviewer, 5 stars

"Truly unlike anything I've read before. Not only are there fantastic ideas around living sustainably but also socially . . . This is a book that is truly diverse and I don't mean in the box-tick fashion that a lot of books have now. This is normalised diversity - harmony - demonstrated." - Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

"The characters are so well-written, they draw you in right from the start and the fast-paced storyline keeps you hooked. Although the book is ostensibly about aliens and spaceships, its true message is about forming bridges not barriers between cultures and about embracing differences rather than living in fear." - Amazon UK reviewer, 5 stars

"Fun, refreshing, sci-fi adventure with a cast of culturally, linguistically and ethnically diverse, plus a-long-way-from-perfect and therefore relatable characters. A cautionary tale about the state of our planet, with an optimistic twist." - Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars

"A rollicking, fun read full of different nationalities and aliens, aliens, aliens. A tale that makes you think deeply and laugh out loud. A truly new way of considering Earth's place in our galaxy." - Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars