Review & Reflection: The Space Between Worlds
The Story
The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson is a thought-provoking science fiction novel that explores the possibilities and limitations of multiverse travel. In the world Johnson has built, multiverse travel is possible—but it comes with a fascinating twist: a person can only visit parallel worlds where their counterpart is already dead. This rule creates both a limitation and an opportunity, and our protagonist, Cara, is uniquely suited to traverse worlds because in most of them, she is no longer alive.
Cara is from the wastelands of Ashtown, where life is harsh and has little value. Her status as a marginalized individual makes her expendable—and therefore, ironically, ideal for multiverse travel. As she journeys between worlds, harvesting data for the wealthy citizens of Wiley City, she encounters alternate versions of herself, each shaped by different circumstances. Her journeys help her uncover secrets not just about the multiverse but about the nature of power, identity, and personal transformation. As the lines between worlds blur, Cara finds herself at the center of a politically charged conspiracy that challenges everything she thought she knew.
About the Author: Micaiah Johnson
Micaiah Johnson is a writer to watch. With The Space Between Worlds as her debut novel, she made an impactful entrance into the science fiction literary scene. Johnson earned her MFA in creative writing from the University of California, Riverside, and she also studied under the Clarion Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers’ Workshop, a well-known incubator for genre writers. Drawing from her own background growing up in California’s Inland Empire, Johnson brings a searing emotional intensity and sharp social commentary to her work.
Her storytelling is deeply influenced by themes of marginalization, identity, and systemic inequality—threads that run intricately through the fabric of The Space Between Worlds. With startling clarity, Johnson examines how our environments and experiences shape the people we become, and she challenges the standard frameworks of speculative fiction through a fresh, intersectional lens.
Reflection & Commentary
The Space Between Worlds stands out not just because of its inventive premise but because of the themes it dares to tackle—racism, classism, and the meaning of selfhood. This novel isn’t just about parallel lives; it’s about survival and identity in a fractured world. Cara’s journey between multiple realities mirrors the very real trajectory of navigating multiple social landscapes, where one’s worth is often embedded in frameworks beyond their control.
What resonated with me the most was the human dimension Johnson brings to the sci-fi genre. While the science behind multiverse travel is fascinating, it always remains in service to larger questions: Who are you if you’ve lived in pieces across different worlds? Who do you become when given the power to rewrite your own narrative? Johnson offers no easy answers, but she does provide a space to wrestle with these questions through the lens of a compelling, deeply flawed protagonist we come to care deeply about.
This novel is a game-changer in modern science fiction, combining cerebral world-building with an emotional core. If you’re looking for a book that stretches the limits of where genre fiction can go—emotionally, politically, and thematically—The Space Between Worlds deserves a spot on your shelf.
Happy reading, and I will see you in the next post!