The Fortunate Fall

By Cameron Reed

Deal Ends: Mon 11th May

A debut novel of remarkable beauty and invention, The Fortunate Fall is back in print for the first time in almost three decades as a Tor Essential, with a new introduction by Jo Walton Tor Essentials presents new editions of science fiction and fantasy titles of proven merit and lasting value, each volume introduced by an appropriate literary figure. On its first publication in 1996, The Fortunate Fall was hailed as an SF novel of a wired future on par with the debuts of William Gibson and Neal Stephenson. Now it returns to print, as one of the great underground classics of the last several decades in SF. Maya Andreyeva is a "camera," a reporter with virtual-reality-broadcasting equipment implanted in her brain. What she sees, millions see; what she feels, millions share.And what Maya is seeing is the cover-up of a massacre. As she probes into the covert political power plays of a radically strange near-future Russia, she comes upon secrets that have been hidden from the world...and memories that AI-controlled thought police have forced her to hide from herself. Because in a world where no thought or desire is safe, the price of survival is betrayal - of your lover, your ideals, and yourself.This new Tor Essentials edition of The Fortunate Fall includes a new introduction by Jo Walton, winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy Awards.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied. Amazon.com Review In 23rd-century Russia, where the "Net" is at once a source of freedom and a means of control, Maya Andreyeva is the perfect reporter. The chips hardwired into her brain allow her to detail not only what she sees but what she hears, tastes, smells, and feels, all in resonant virtual reality. When clues turn up pointing to a massacre and a cover-up, Maya, the ultimate journalist, is compelled find the truth. Along the way she discovers answers not only to the puzzle she has set out to solve, but to secrets about her own life. At the same time, author Raphael Carter provides a compelling and chilling story that also raises serious questions about such issues as homophobia and censorship. Review This highly literate, grim and gripping example of latter-day cyberpunk counts as one of the most promising SF debuts in recent years." About the Author Cameron Reed is a science fiction writer and the winner of the 1998 Otherwise Award (then the James Tiptree, Jr. Award). She is an avid dragonfly-watcher, a moderately skilled insect photographer, and a hopeless birder. After a long and complicated path through gender, she has come to rest as a nonbinary trans woman and uses the pronouns she or they. She lives with her found family in an old duplex full of books and cats.