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Fairhaven: A novel of climate optimism
What will it take to fix the climate crisis?
"Green Stories" prize winner Fairhaven – A Novel of Climate Optimism follows the path of Grace Chan, born in Penang, Malaysia. She has experienced the dire consequences of climate change personally and is taking action borne both of hope and desperation.
Her story explores the implications, both at the global scale and and on a deeply personal level, of our common dilemma and the possibilities that are open to us.
Unlike most ‘cli fi’ novels, which present apocalyptic scenarios for the future, Fairhaven envisions in an engrossing, readily-accessible story for general readers how a range of practical climate adaptation and mitigation solutions could work when fully implemented.
Fairhaven opens in 2036 as Grace is days away from assuming office as the President of the newly-formed Ocean Independent State. Driving along the edge of a Penang dyke to clear her mind, her truck crashes and she comes close to death as the tide rises. As she reviews her life, the reader comes to understand what has brought her (and the world) to this point, how she will move forward, and the surprising role that ordinary individuals can play.
- GenresClimate ChangeFiction
358 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 7, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
July 28, 2024
I have read a couple of climate sci-fi (or cli-fi) books now. I am not a sci-fi fan at all normally, but I am enjoying this fairly new category of books.
One problem is that many of them are distopian. This is understandable as we are still heading the wrong direction, and emissions are not even coming down yet.
But that is where this book is different. It does not ignore the negative impacts of climate change that are by now more or less inevitable. But it does offer a refreshing optimistic story of how people start confronting the challenges and start turning things around.
Now, I have to admit that many of the issues discussed in the book are issues I have worked on in my professional life: building up ice pads in the Arctic, artificial reefs on subsea structures, reclaiming new land from the sea. Fortunately, the more detailed descriptions of these activities was done well, so it made the book more enjoyable for me.
Definitely recommend it to anyone interested in climate science-fiction, and who is ready for a more optimistic novel.
One problem is that many of them are distopian. This is understandable as we are still heading the wrong direction, and emissions are not even coming down yet.
But that is where this book is different. It does not ignore the negative impacts of climate change that are by now more or less inevitable. But it does offer a refreshing optimistic story of how people start confronting the challenges and start turning things around.
Now, I have to admit that many of the issues discussed in the book are issues I have worked on in my professional life: building up ice pads in the Arctic, artificial reefs on subsea structures, reclaiming new land from the sea. Fortunately, the more detailed descriptions of these activities was done well, so it made the book more enjoyable for me.
Definitely recommend it to anyone interested in climate science-fiction, and who is ready for a more optimistic novel.
April 13, 2025
One of the worst books I’ve ever read. I couldn’t have finished it if I’d chosen it, but it was for my book club and had been highly recommended. It read like a teaching resource on climate change. contrived narratives designed to teach the issues. To expect readers that to believe that the alternative history narratives (included as short stories written by the main protagonist), designed to show what could have happened at key points in history but didn’t would have become huge successes in the current world leading to a massive online following for the main character in the story beggars belief. They were truly awful. And the writing as a whole was long-winded, contrived and just bad. Why 2*? The book was saved a few times by a critical incident that kept me reading just as I was about to throw in the towel. But they were few and far between. Apart from the potentially interesting storyline that didn’t deliver on its promise, the characters were one-dimensional and not at all believable. The saving grace of the book was the clever twist at the end - saved by AI! The description of place not at all evocative. I wondered if AI actually wrote it. So glad it’s over!
June 10, 2024
This book came to me through various channels - a recommendation from The Economist and the FT, one of the authors reaching out on Linked-In, and a general view that the time has come for some climate optimistic fiction. I quite liked the premise because it closely aligns with how I view climate change. As far as I can see, there are some fairly bad things coming down the track that I have very little agency over. There is little I can do to stop them. However, I can change how I react to them, how I respond to difficulties as they arise. For me, climate action is about mitigation more than anything else.
I had three responses to the book - the celebratory (this is a world I want to build), the fantastic (the assumptions in the book were too far fetched), and the horrific (this is a world will actively work to avoid). What I really liked about the book is that the good parts were based upon local initiatives to improve the lives of those affected in a local sphere. In many ways, I have actually seen a good part of this vision in action on the West Coast of Ireland, which is dominated by small communities that have been largely overlooked by the metropolitan communities. The development of the ocean environment around the oil platforms in the book really does resonate with the experience of life in contemporary Ireland. I can see that vision and I know that it would work. Not only is it feasible, it is also desirable and sustainable as well. That aspect of the book is to be celebrated.
When the narrative goes from the local to the global, it starts to become too fantastical. There are a number of plot devices that didn't work for me. For example, it is held that all of the territory in international waters, outside of the various EEZs, will become the Ocean Independent State. That in itself is an interesting idea, but who is going to enforce it? Without being told about the process, we asked to believe that both China and the US will make their navies available to the OIS, to enforce OIS rulings against their own interests. This beggars belief.
Equally, and important storyline is the refreezing of the Arctic. Why would Russia, with so much to gain from an unfrozen High North, agree to this? Conveniently, Russia is at war with itself and the civil war prevents Moscow from interfering with the refreezing activities. We are asked to accept this at face value. I was left thinking about the consequences of a nuclear armed, militaristic society at war with itself. In the book, there are no adverse consequences. I found that hard to believe.
If the book had a really weak spot, it is the geopolitics of scaling up the local to the global. It eventually gave us an answer that, to my mind, is wholly undesirable. The books ends with the establishment of the OIS and with Grace Chan as the President of the newly formed state. What happens next? The newly formed state is then stuffed full of Grace's family and friends, placed into key roles and offices of the newly formed state. This is the degree of cronyism and nepotism which we associate with the worst aspects of the Global South, and this book perpetuates it. It's just one step away from a President for life, cash for favours, military dictatorship. I can't see that not happening in the newly formed OIS. This is the part of the book that I would be happy to resist. To me, it provides further confirmation of my conjecture that a democracy can't achieve Net Zero - a practical working of the Arrovian Impossibility Theorem.
On the whole, this is a good book to read. The way in which large issues are addressed locally is worth noting. The scaling up of these local initiatives to c global level is a work in progress. The blueprint here is best avoided and resisted. However, as a first start, it does have some merit.
I had three responses to the book - the celebratory (this is a world I want to build), the fantastic (the assumptions in the book were too far fetched), and the horrific (this is a world will actively work to avoid). What I really liked about the book is that the good parts were based upon local initiatives to improve the lives of those affected in a local sphere. In many ways, I have actually seen a good part of this vision in action on the West Coast of Ireland, which is dominated by small communities that have been largely overlooked by the metropolitan communities. The development of the ocean environment around the oil platforms in the book really does resonate with the experience of life in contemporary Ireland. I can see that vision and I know that it would work. Not only is it feasible, it is also desirable and sustainable as well. That aspect of the book is to be celebrated.
When the narrative goes from the local to the global, it starts to become too fantastical. There are a number of plot devices that didn't work for me. For example, it is held that all of the territory in international waters, outside of the various EEZs, will become the Ocean Independent State. That in itself is an interesting idea, but who is going to enforce it? Without being told about the process, we asked to believe that both China and the US will make their navies available to the OIS, to enforce OIS rulings against their own interests. This beggars belief.
Equally, and important storyline is the refreezing of the Arctic. Why would Russia, with so much to gain from an unfrozen High North, agree to this? Conveniently, Russia is at war with itself and the civil war prevents Moscow from interfering with the refreezing activities. We are asked to accept this at face value. I was left thinking about the consequences of a nuclear armed, militaristic society at war with itself. In the book, there are no adverse consequences. I found that hard to believe.
If the book had a really weak spot, it is the geopolitics of scaling up the local to the global. It eventually gave us an answer that, to my mind, is wholly undesirable. The books ends with the establishment of the OIS and with Grace Chan as the President of the newly formed state. What happens next? The newly formed state is then stuffed full of Grace's family and friends, placed into key roles and offices of the newly formed state. This is the degree of cronyism and nepotism which we associate with the worst aspects of the Global South, and this book perpetuates it. It's just one step away from a President for life, cash for favours, military dictatorship. I can't see that not happening in the newly formed OIS. This is the part of the book that I would be happy to resist. To me, it provides further confirmation of my conjecture that a democracy can't achieve Net Zero - a practical working of the Arrovian Impossibility Theorem.
On the whole, this is a good book to read. The way in which large issues are addressed locally is worth noting. The scaling up of these local initiatives to c global level is a work in progress. The blueprint here is best avoided and resisted. However, as a first start, it does have some merit.
September 3, 2024
Fairhaven is a satisfying Cli-Fi story that follows the attempts of a group of engineers to implement tech solutions to address global warming over a period of some 40 years. The book presents an optimistic view of the future - the solutions work, and global warming is slowed. (Yay!) The characters are interesting, as are the solutions that they pursue, making it a thought-provoking read.
The story follows the life of Grace Chan, a Malaysian chemical engineer by training, who moves into a client liaison role on a geo-engineering project. From there, her career takes several unusual turns that see her becoming a social media sensation and culminating with her election as president of the newly formed Ocean Independent State. Along the way we learn about intriguing climate projects, including refreezing the polar ice caps and creating natural fish farms around old oil wells.
The story opens in 2036 and ends in 2039, with a prologue set in 2102. It also contains a feast of backstory starting as early as 2008, when Grace is in primary school in South Africa. The time-frame is ambitious, but perhaps necessary to show how actions to address climate change will have incremental improvements over a long time. It makes for a lengthy book, served in 41 chapters.
Refreshingly, the book does not follow a traditional story structure. Grace Chan is not on a quest, but is responding to circumstances as they arise, something I find a lot easier to relate to. For me, this rings true for how people experience life: learning, adapting, changing in the face of circumstances. So much better than a hero’s (or heroine’s) journey!
Another treat is the four short stories by Grace Chan that are slipped in between the chapters like palate cleansers in a long, rich meal. They take historical disasters and re-write them with happy endings, courtesy of science, engineering and people who care enough to take responsibility.
I am interested in global governance, so the tastiest idea for me was that of creating the Ocean Independent State. Prompted by the disappearance of an island territory below the waves, this state claims all the oceans that are not already recognised as national territory, becoming a defender of the ocean. I’m not a fan of nation states (quite the opposite), but there is something deliciously subversive in using them to create a radical solution to exploitation of the oceans. The idea has been criticised by some as “never going to happen” but for me it’s the bold ideas that change the ‘possibility space’ of what we can do. The point of speculative fiction is to think the unthinkable.
Some aspects of the book disappointed me. I thought that writing a constitution for a new country, especially one so unusual, would need a thorough consultative process. I was also disappointed that the book assumed the current configuration of global institutions like the United Nations would persist. If we are to address big world issues like climate change and inequality, these institutions need an overhaul, but I guess this was not the focus of the authors.
An interesting read. I look forward to the next in the series.
The story follows the life of Grace Chan, a Malaysian chemical engineer by training, who moves into a client liaison role on a geo-engineering project. From there, her career takes several unusual turns that see her becoming a social media sensation and culminating with her election as president of the newly formed Ocean Independent State. Along the way we learn about intriguing climate projects, including refreezing the polar ice caps and creating natural fish farms around old oil wells.
The story opens in 2036 and ends in 2039, with a prologue set in 2102. It also contains a feast of backstory starting as early as 2008, when Grace is in primary school in South Africa. The time-frame is ambitious, but perhaps necessary to show how actions to address climate change will have incremental improvements over a long time. It makes for a lengthy book, served in 41 chapters.
Refreshingly, the book does not follow a traditional story structure. Grace Chan is not on a quest, but is responding to circumstances as they arise, something I find a lot easier to relate to. For me, this rings true for how people experience life: learning, adapting, changing in the face of circumstances. So much better than a hero’s (or heroine’s) journey!
Another treat is the four short stories by Grace Chan that are slipped in between the chapters like palate cleansers in a long, rich meal. They take historical disasters and re-write them with happy endings, courtesy of science, engineering and people who care enough to take responsibility.
I am interested in global governance, so the tastiest idea for me was that of creating the Ocean Independent State. Prompted by the disappearance of an island territory below the waves, this state claims all the oceans that are not already recognised as national territory, becoming a defender of the ocean. I’m not a fan of nation states (quite the opposite), but there is something deliciously subversive in using them to create a radical solution to exploitation of the oceans. The idea has been criticised by some as “never going to happen” but for me it’s the bold ideas that change the ‘possibility space’ of what we can do. The point of speculative fiction is to think the unthinkable.
Some aspects of the book disappointed me. I thought that writing a constitution for a new country, especially one so unusual, would need a thorough consultative process. I was also disappointed that the book assumed the current configuration of global institutions like the United Nations would persist. If we are to address big world issues like climate change and inequality, these institutions need an overhaul, but I guess this was not the focus of the authors.
An interesting read. I look forward to the next in the series.
August 5, 2024
As someone who works in this area at the international level, and has also been involved in communications for many years, I really enjoyed reading this book.
Like lots of other good sci fi it starts with very real, current situations and projections, as well as technologies and international bodies that exist, but it imagines a world where these ideas and bodies meet their potential, while the collective, communities, play a pivotal role and remain intact.
Is it "realistic"? It could be, and is most definitely a better and more helpful / hopeful narrative than many of our current, predominantly doomsday, dystopian, individual YOLO reactions to the climate crisis.
Drawing inspiration from one of my favorite quotes from Margaret Mead, which is also quoted in this book: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
Thanks for finding me on LinkedIn, Steve, and I look forward to talking to you more!
Like lots of other good sci fi it starts with very real, current situations and projections, as well as technologies and international bodies that exist, but it imagines a world where these ideas and bodies meet their potential, while the collective, communities, play a pivotal role and remain intact.
Is it "realistic"? It could be, and is most definitely a better and more helpful / hopeful narrative than many of our current, predominantly doomsday, dystopian, individual YOLO reactions to the climate crisis.
Drawing inspiration from one of my favorite quotes from Margaret Mead, which is also quoted in this book: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
Thanks for finding me on LinkedIn, Steve, and I look forward to talking to you more!
July 17, 2024
🇬🇧Fairhaven - a novel of climate optimism by Steve Willis and Jan Lee
I will keep it short: this book is a must read for everyone, especially for those who seek ideas about how to make a change, how to stop climate change. I wish people in higher positions, like government would read this and make engineers and scientists research the described projects and make it happen. Of course I know it’s science fiction but there’s also truth to everything described. Maybe it should become a book children read at school.
This book wasn’t a pageturner for me, I struggled with many words I didn’t know (my mother language is German). It’s also not action packed or exciting, though it had a few pages of tension. Still I highly recommend reading this book!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
(Sich a den Asphalt zu kleben, um Autos am Fahren zu hindern bringt nur Ärger, ändert aber nichts am Klimawandel. Innovative Ideen hingegen könnten das.
I will keep it short: this book is a must read for everyone, especially for those who seek ideas about how to make a change, how to stop climate change. I wish people in higher positions, like government would read this and make engineers and scientists research the described projects and make it happen. Of course I know it’s science fiction but there’s also truth to everything described. Maybe it should become a book children read at school.
This book wasn’t a pageturner for me, I struggled with many words I didn’t know (my mother language is German). It’s also not action packed or exciting, though it had a few pages of tension. Still I highly recommend reading this book!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
(Sich a den Asphalt zu kleben, um Autos am Fahren zu hindern bringt nur Ärger, ändert aber nichts am Klimawandel. Innovative Ideen hingegen könnten das.
September 2, 2024
I’m a big fan of the books of Kim Stanley Robinson, and especially his latest books on climate change like The Ministry formthe Future and 2140. I was therefore delighted too stumble upon this book by pure chance from a post on a social media platform. I’ve been long convinced that we need urgent action addressing all the consequences from human induced climate change, and this book convincingly shows it can be done. Not by politicians or banks, but by practically minded engineers and entrepreneurs. The books describes the efforts of Grace Chan who starts working for a land claim project in Malaysia, and her journey from a media start to finally being the president of the Ocean Independent State, making deals with other nations on the responsible use of minerals and a sustainable,fishing industry.
Highly recommended reading!
Highly recommended reading!
May 31, 2024
Steve Willis and Jan Lee have given us what they promise and also play wonderful narrative games in doing so. The metafiction of Grace Chan's stories of terrible disasters given hopeful endings would almost be enough, and if this novel takes off, which I hope it does, spin off's would be both irresistible and welcome on any platform, including Streamberry.
On top of that Willis' scientific research into climate change solutions are both awe inspiring and sound plausible. If only... could we? Read and share this novel. It is offering much more than a good story. A light satire of fame, influence and a mirror and then a refraction of what could be...
On top of that Willis' scientific research into climate change solutions are both awe inspiring and sound plausible. If only... could we? Read and share this novel. It is offering much more than a good story. A light satire of fame, influence and a mirror and then a refraction of what could be...
July 5, 2024
My first cli-fi read and very enjoyable story about climate optimism set in the near future. Well worth diving into, learn about a range of climate topics with an optimistic outlook. A welcome change to the much longer list of pessimistic books and news stories of impending doom.
The authors weave the story in and out of international relations, politics, personal dramas, ocean ice making, life below water and the perils of doing nothing.
A fully recommended read even for you climate change sceptics out there!
The authors weave the story in and out of international relations, politics, personal dramas, ocean ice making, life below water and the perils of doing nothing.
A fully recommended read even for you climate change sceptics out there!
January 5, 2025
I really felt I should have liked this more. It is a realistic, engineering focused look at the future grounded a little bit in existing culture. Unfortunately as an actual novel it fell completely flat to me; just a bunch of things that happened. And because there was not really a central plotline - intentionally - it was hard to get engaged. A big twist near the end felt unearned and not very consequential.
October 13, 2024
Creative optimism
I admire the authors’ originality. I’m not a scientist; so, I can’t judge their scientific ideas, but their ideas like creating new versions of past tragedies, such as the sinking of the Titanic, in which human ingenuity saved lives, are great. And, the plot usually held my attention without overdoing the sensationalism too often.
I admire the authors’ originality. I’m not a scientist; so, I can’t judge their scientific ideas, but their ideas like creating new versions of past tragedies, such as the sinking of the Titanic, in which human ingenuity saved lives, are great. And, the plot usually held my attention without overdoing the sensationalism too often.
June 3, 2025
This is the kind of amazing book you get when a climate expert teams with a great writer to imagine what it might take to engage effectively with the climate crisis. Lots of cool ideas and set in Malaysia in the near future.
June 3, 2024
The book is very well written, based on plausible scenarios and thorough research. Very insightful!
July 1, 2025
Reading Fairhaven felt like a gentle reset. It’s rare to come across a climate novel that’s actually uplifting, but this one manages it brilliantly.
What really struck me was how doable everything seemed. The ideas in the book aren’t fantasy—they’re grounded in science, community, and the power of people working together. The characters are relatable, the place is vividly drawn, and the whole thing has a feeling of kindness and care running through it.
Yes, the climate crisis is serious, but Fairhaven shows that there’s still time to act, and that collective, grassroots action matters. It’s not preachy, just inspiring in a quiet, convincing way.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, or just want a story that shows what a better future could look like, I can’t recommend this enough. It gave me hope—and I think we all need more of that.
What really struck me was how doable everything seemed. The ideas in the book aren’t fantasy—they’re grounded in science, community, and the power of people working together. The characters are relatable, the place is vividly drawn, and the whole thing has a feeling of kindness and care running through it.
Yes, the climate crisis is serious, but Fairhaven shows that there’s still time to act, and that collective, grassroots action matters. It’s not preachy, just inspiring in a quiet, convincing way.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, or just want a story that shows what a better future could look like, I can’t recommend this enough. It gave me hope—and I think we all need more of that.
January 24, 2025
I enjoy positive and optimistic climate fiction. That’s why I read climate fiction, appreciate dystopias as a form of warning, but every book in the climate fiction genre should propose a solution, offering hope that we can still save ourselves and the planet. And I found this message in Fairhaven.
However, when the book's content touches on geopolitics, it starts to lose its appeal. Don’t get me wrong, the idea of an Ocean Independent State – independent oceans – is really great (the Spilhaus Projection, showing the world from the perspective of connected oceans, blew my mind! Be sure to check it out!), but the naivety with which the authors write about China and the USA supporting the creation of such an entity is striking. Similarly, the involvement of Russia in the much-needed and fascinating project of Arctic thawing is overly naive.
In terms of plot, it's rather a flat book. I didn’t engage with the characters or the drama of the situations; I was reading mainly about these projects and hoping they would succeed.
In summary, it’s a good book with interesting ideas for combating climate change, general optimism, and solid literature.
However, when the book's content touches on geopolitics, it starts to lose its appeal. Don’t get me wrong, the idea of an Ocean Independent State – independent oceans – is really great (the Spilhaus Projection, showing the world from the perspective of connected oceans, blew my mind! Be sure to check it out!), but the naivety with which the authors write about China and the USA supporting the creation of such an entity is striking. Similarly, the involvement of Russia in the much-needed and fascinating project of Arctic thawing is overly naive.
In terms of plot, it's rather a flat book. I didn’t engage with the characters or the drama of the situations; I was reading mainly about these projects and hoping they would succeed.
In summary, it’s a good book with interesting ideas for combating climate change, general optimism, and solid literature.
January 4, 2026
Fairhaven zeigt eine gute zukünftige Entwicklung Entwicklung des Umgangs von Menschen mit d n Weltmeeren im rhamen der Klimakrise auf. Es enthält viele spannende Details und ein Set von Personen die interessant sind.
Trotzdem brauchte ich jedesmal wenn ich es in die Hand genommen habe eine Weile, um wieder reinzukommen. (ähnlich ging es mir auch bei William Gibsons Neuromancer Trilogie, und die begeistert mich dennoch bis heute) Dadurch fühlt es ist irgendwie sperrig an. Ich empfehle deshalb, es möglichst in einem Rutsch zu lesen.
Trotzdem brauchte ich jedesmal wenn ich es in die Hand genommen habe eine Weile, um wieder reinzukommen. (ähnlich ging es mir auch bei William Gibsons Neuromancer Trilogie, und die begeistert mich dennoch bis heute) Dadurch fühlt es ist irgendwie sperrig an. Ich empfehle deshalb, es möglichst in einem Rutsch zu lesen.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews