Jennifer Marie Brissett » Novel

Jennifer Marie Brissett » Novel » Elysium

Elysium Or, The World After
Aqueduct Press, 2014
ISBN: 9781619760530

Winner of the Philip K. Dick Special Citation

Finalist for the James Tiptree Jr. Award

Finalist for the Locus Award for Best First Novel

Finalist for the 2018 Italia Award for Best SF Novel

One of Lithub's 50 Greatest Apocalypse Novels, part of Nisi Shawl's Expanded Course in the History of Black Science Fiction and on USA Today's "Afrofuturism Beginner's Reading List". This is a novel about a computer program etched into the atmosphere that has a story to tell, a story of two people, of a city lost to chaos, and of survival and love. But the program’s data has been corrupted. As characters struggle to survive apocalypse, they are sustained and challenged by the demands of love in a shattered world.
Read an excerpt
Translated into Italian by Zona 42

To purchase the book
Paperback — Aqueduct Press • Bookshop • IndieBound • Powell's • Amazon | UK | JP | CA • Barnes & Noble • BAM! • Alibris
Ask your local bookseller!

Ebook — Aqueduct Press • Weightless Books • Barnes & Noble • Amazon | UK | JP | CA

To purchase the audiobook
Downloads — Audible • Downpour • Kobo • Apple Books • Libro.fm
Audio CD — Blackstone Audio • Amazon | UK | JP | CA • IndieBound • Books-A-Million
Listen to a Sample

Or, listen to the sample on
The audiobook was produced by Skyboat Media.

“It’s really quite difficult for me to believe it’s a first novel, it’s so good: incredibly ambitious, beautifully written, moving, and with an extremely poignant ending, not to mention that remarkable, intricate balancing act with all your various hall-of-mirrors characters.”
— Elizabeth Hand
Author of Illyria, Saffron & Brimstone, and Errantry

“ ...an audacious first novel that pushes against the limits of the form. With a spiral narrative and a dance of identity and incident, she limns an array of characters and their worlds in deft strokes. Be warned that you will puzzle about the story behind the stories as you read this novel, only to discover a profound and moving answer at its conclusion. With its bold interrogation of gender, Elysium is a book like no other.”
— James Patrick Kelly
Winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Awards

“Wow! Jenn Brissett’s new novel Elysium from Aqueduct Press is a knockout. The writing and structure of the book are so accomplished, I’m amazed this is a first novel. The style flows and draws you into the fiction and keeps you there—poetic in it’s imagery but simultaneously economical. It's a science fiction, post-apocalyptic tale, a love story, but not your dumb old man’s love story. A love story for a new age. The structure of the novel was the most startling thing to me—a complex construction that never comes across as complicated. The effect is like a magic trick. Great characters that make the adventure worth the journey.”
— Jeffrey Ford
Author of Crackpot Palace, The Drowned Life, and The Empire of Ice Cream

* * *

“Brissett’s punch of a debut is bewildering at first, but never so confusing as to frustrate the reader, and repeating elements and symbols help tie everything together—not neatly, for so much of the world is broken, but enough. Brissett deftly handles the challenge of a multitude of characters all being the same people in a multitude of places that are the same place, while exploring complicated questions about identity.”
— Publishers Weekly

“The novel's unsettling and unusual structure works because Brissett skillfully seeds symbols and repeats elements to carry the reader through each version of the world ... this is a weird, however, original play on reality.”
— Library Journal

“Jennifer Marie Brissett’s debut novel really delivers. Surrender to the weird structure and it’s a unique, surprising and clever book that turns the post-apocalyptic genre on its head.”
— The Register

“... rich exploration of identity and memory.”
— Nancy Hightower, The Washington Post

“The book is not bound firmly to the earth; it moves in an 'in-between space, neither here nor there.' It is also filled with characters who are both themselves and not themselves, fluctuating from one identity to another. Elysium is a powerfully ambitious book. In a certain sense, it is a love story. But it is also a book about identity politics, about history and collective memory, about technology and culture, and ultimately about extermination and genocide.”
— Steven Shaviro, LA Review of Books

“Elysium is a challenging read that keeps you second-guessing yourself, and trying to figure out what brings all these divergent love stories together is a baffling, obsessive challenge. The good news is, the book's ending is both powerful and makes sense of the rough outlines of what's gone before — and the final pages will actually make you stop and think about the strangeness and power of the splintered tales you've been reading.”
— Charlie Jane Anders, io9

“Brissett handles this not uncommon SF trope as if it were freshly minted. Her subtle morphings of identity and circumstance among her deeply felt characters serve to make us ponder ... what make up the core constituents of self and personality, and what is superficial. Her crabwise plotting is a bold and successful counterpoint to more linear narratives. And while her treatment of the theme is clear-eyed and personal, she also harks to many ancestors.”
— Paul Di Filippo, Locus Magazine

“This book has a poem’s grace. That is to say, though made of words, it dances. Spare yet gorgeous, Elysium’s turns of phrase require no decorative enameling, no armature or exoskeleton to hold them up or flatteringly frame their substance.”
— Nisi Shawl, Tor.com

“Some of the praise heaped on this book includes the words ''audacious,'' ''ambitious,'' and ''hard to believe this is a first novel.'' These are all entirely apt. ... it's great to see a book with such unconventional structure, that takes the genre playbook, tears all the pages out and shuffles them back together, and still manages to tell both one and many moving and satisfying stories.”
— Karen Burnham, Locus Magazine

“It’s really only now, as I stand back and admire the thing complete, that I appreciate the full distance travelled from the first Adrianne’s city walk, forgiving the few blemishes for the sake of an awe-inspiring totality. Page by page Elysium merely dazzles; and then it absorbs; and then, at the end, as it must, it burns. It tells a story, and a history, that matter. You should open the book.”
— Niall Harrison, Strange Horizons

“... Elysium one of the best debut novels that I've read in a year full of strong first novels and collections.”
— Larry Nolan, The Of Blog

“Elysium is the sort of novel you read once, and then read again to make sure what you think happened was, in fact, what happened. This is a complex, dense book, and reminds me of the best parts of Kate Atkinson’s Life After Life and David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas. Brissett’s novel, her first, is as ambitious and experimental as those works, and I hope it receives similar attention.”
— The Future Fire Reviews

“...this astutely-crafted novel is entirely Brissett's creation. Her unique voice, elegant narrative structure and pared-down prose result in something fresh and innovative. This is a post-apocalyptic love story in which neither apocalypse nor love are what you expect.”
— Alvaro Zinos-Amaro, IGMS

* * *

Interviews —

A Conversation with Jonah Sutton-Morse about Elysium [Audio]

— Interview by Cabbages & Kings

Victory Lap: An Interview with Jennifer Marie Brissett

— Interview by Sofia Samatar, Strange Horizons

Narrative Permutations, Changing Futures, and Code

— Interview by Tobias Carroll, Vol. 1 Brooklyn

‘Where Are All the Black People?’ A Conversation with Jennifer Marie Brissett [Audio]

— Interview by Rob Wolf, New Books in Science Fiction

"Hour of the Wolf" on WBAI 99.5 FM [Audio]

— Interview by Jim Freund

Interview with Adventures in Science Fiction Publishing [Audio]

— Interview by Brent Bowen


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	Jennifer Marie Brissett » Novel » Elysium Elysium Or, The World After Aqueduct Press, 2014 ISBN: 9781619760530 Winner of the Philip K. Dick Special Citation Finalist for the James Tiptree Jr. Award Finalist for the Locus Award for Best First Novel Finalist for the 2018 Italia Award for Best SF Novel One of Lithub's 50 Greatest Apocalypse Novels, part of Nisi Shawl's Expanded Course in the History of Black Science Fiction and on USA Today's "Afrofuturism Beginner's Reading List". This is a novel about a computer program etched into the atmosphere that has a story to tell, a story of two people, of a city lost to chaos, and of survival and love. But the program’s data has been corrupted. As characters struggle to survive apocalypse, they are sustained and challenged by the demands of love in a shattered world. Read an excerpt Translated into Italian by Zona 42 To purchase the book Paperback — Aqueduct Press • Bookshop • IndieBound • Powell's • Amazon \| UK \| JP \| CA • Barnes & Noble • BAM! • Alibris Ask your local bookseller! Ebook — Aqueduct Press • Weightless Books • Barnes & Noble • Amazon \| UK \| JP \| CA To purchase the audiobook Downloads — Audible • Downpour • Kobo • Apple Books • Libro.fm Audio CD — Blackstone Audio • Amazon \| UK \| JP \| CA • IndieBound • Books-A-Million Listen to a Sample Or, listen to the sample on The audiobook was produced by Skyboat Media. “It’s really quite difficult for me to believe it’s a first novel, it’s so good: incredibly ambitious, beautifully written, moving, and with an extremely poignant ending, not to mention that remarkable, intricate balancing act with all your various hall-of-mirrors characters.” — Elizabeth Hand Author of Illyria, Saffron & Brimstone, and Errantry “ ...an audacious first novel that pushes against the limits of the form. With a spiral narrative and a dance of identity and incident, she limns an array of characters and their worlds in deft strokes. Be warned that you will puzzle about the story behind the stories as you read this novel, only to discover a profound and moving answer at its conclusion. With its bold interrogation of gender, Elysium is a book like no other.” — James Patrick Kelly Winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Awards “Wow! Jenn Brissett’s new novel Elysium from Aqueduct Press is a knockout. The writing and structure of the book are so accomplished, I’m amazed this is a first novel. The style flows and draws you into the fiction and keeps you there—poetic in it’s imagery but simultaneously economical. It's a science fiction, post-apocalyptic tale, a love story, but not your dumb old man’s love story. A love story for a new age. The structure of the novel was the most startling thing to me—a complex construction that never comes across as complicated. The effect is like a magic trick. Great characters that make the adventure worth the journey.” — Jeffrey Ford Author of Crackpot Palace, The Drowned Life, and The Empire of Ice Cream * * * “Brissett’s punch of a debut is bewildering at first, but never so confusing as to frustrate the reader, and repeating elements and symbols help tie everything together—not neatly, for so much of the world is broken, but enough. Brissett deftly handles the challenge of a multitude of characters all being the same people in a multitude of places that are the same place, while exploring complicated questions about identity.” — Publishers Weekly “The novel's unsettling and unusual structure works because Brissett skillfully seeds symbols and repeats elements to carry the reader through each version of the world ... this is a weird, however, original play on reality.” — Library Journal “Jennifer Marie Brissett’s debut novel really delivers. Surrender to the weird structure and it’s a unique, surprising and clever book that turns the post-apocalyptic genre on its head.” — The Register “... rich exploration of identity and memory.” — Nancy Hightower, The Washington Post “The book is not bound firmly to the earth; it moves in an 'in-between space, neither here nor there.' It is also filled with characters who are both themselves and not themselves, fluctuating from one identity to another. Elysium is a powerfully ambitious book. In a certain sense, it is a love story. But it is also a book about identity politics, about history and collective memory, about technology and culture, and ultimately about extermination and genocide.” — Steven Shaviro, LA Review of Books “Elysium is a challenging read that keeps you second-guessing yourself, and trying to figure out what brings all these divergent love stories together is a baffling, obsessive challenge. The good news is, the book's ending is both powerful and makes sense of the rough outlines of what's gone before — and the final pages will actually make you stop and think about the strangeness and power of the splintered tales you've been reading.” — Charlie Jane Anders, io9 “Brissett handles this not uncommon SF trope as if it were freshly minted. Her subtle morphings of identity and circumstance among her deeply felt characters serve to make us ponder ... what make up the core constituents of self and personality, and what is superficial. Her crabwise plotting is a bold and successful counterpoint to more linear narratives. And while her treatment of the theme is clear-eyed and personal, she also harks to many ancestors.” — Paul Di Filippo, Locus Magazine “This book has a poem’s grace. That is to say, though made of words, it dances. Spare yet gorgeous, Elysium’s turns of phrase require no decorative enameling, no armature or exoskeleton to hold them up or flatteringly frame their substance.” — Nisi Shawl, Tor.com “Some of the praise heaped on this book includes the words ''audacious,'' ''ambitious,'' and ''hard to believe this is a first novel.'' These are all entirely apt. ... it's great to see a book with such unconventional structure, that takes the genre playbook, tears all the pages out and shuffles them back together, and still manages to tell both one and many moving and satisfying stories.” — Karen Burnham, Locus Magazine “It’s really only now, as I stand back and admire the thing complete, that I appreciate the full distance travelled from the first Adrianne’s city walk, forgiving the few blemishes for the sake of an awe-inspiring totality. Page by page Elysium merely dazzles; and then it absorbs; and then, at the end, as it must, it burns. It tells a story, and a history, that matter. You should open the book.” — Niall Harrison, Strange Horizons “... Elysium one of the best debut novels that I've read in a year full of strong first novels and collections.” — Larry Nolan, The Of Blog “Elysium is the sort of novel you read once, and then read again to make sure what you think happened was, in fact, what happened. This is a complex, dense book, and reminds me of the best parts of Kate Atkinson’s Life After Life and David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas. Brissett’s novel, her first, is as ambitious and experimental as those works, and I hope it receives similar attention.” — The Future Fire Reviews “...this astutely-crafted novel is entirely Brissett's creation. Her unique voice, elegant narrative structure and pared-down prose result in something fresh and innovative. This is a post-apocalyptic love story in which neither apocalypse nor love are what you expect.” — Alvaro Zinos-Amaro, IGMS * * * Interviews — A Conversation with Jonah Sutton-Morse about Elysium [Audio] — Interview by Cabbages & Kings Victory Lap: An Interview with Jennifer Marie Brissett — Interview by Sofia Samatar, Strange Horizons Narrative Permutations, Changing Futures, and Code — Interview by Tobias Carroll, Vol. 1 Brooklyn ‘Where Are All the Black People?’ A Conversation with Jennifer Marie Brissett [Audio] — Interview by Rob Wolf, New Books in Science Fiction "Hour of the Wolf" on WBAI 99.5 FM [Audio] — Interview by Jim Freund Interview with Adventures in Science Fiction Publishing [Audio] — Interview by Brent Bowen
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