An America polar mission in the Arctic Circle pulls out all the scientists from their remote North Pole base under the vague threat of an approaching conflict. Augustine is at the end of a glittering career as an astronomer. Feted and sought after for his opinion and ideas, he always relegated the rest of humanity to the oddity box; to him, people were only a curiosity that occasionally piqued his interest.

Feeling more comfortable alone with the stars and his research, Augustine chooses to stay behind as the plane leaves. On his return to the base, however, he finds he is not as alone as he had wished. A small girl, Iris, appears to have been left behind when the base was evacuated.

Contacting the outside world, Augustine gets no reply from the usual channels, just a lot of static. Stuck with the situation, he has little choice but to help Iris survive. They begin to work together until it is unclear who is really looking after whom.

At the same time, deep-space ship Aether is returning with her crew from the first manned mission to explore the moons of Jupiter. Mission communication specialist Sully is getting prepared for the eventual return to the life she ran away from – an ex-husband and a disconnected daughter – hoping that things may be better now than they were when she left.

As they near the edge of Earth’s communication network, she begins to reach out to the command centre crew at Canaveral, only to get static and dead air. The only voice she can hear from the edge of space is that of an old man who is asking if she has heard from the rest of the world, because he is stuck in the Arctic with a young girl who needs his help.

This beautifully poetic novel draws the reader into the shared plight of two explorers at the farthest edges of where humanity can go. Share their journey and take the ride; it’s worth the effort.

Reviewed by David Johnson