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And Side by Side They Wander
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Expected 19 May 26Win a free print copy of this book!
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50 copies available
U.S. only
An intergalactic art heist by a ragtag group of underqualified misfits. What could go wrong?
For three hundred years, humanity’s greatest works of art have been on loan at the Museum of the Seed-Born. It was finally time for them to come home...but the alien curators were disinclined to return them.
Force was out of the question. Earth’s government was they were not going to press the issue. So, all we had was guile and hubris to fuel our little intergalactic art heist.
My old friend Tarquin was our leader, but not the captain. That was Tchik-tchik, though whether Tchik-tchik was our insectoid pilot’s name or species is still unclear to me. Misora, with her extremely illegal biotech mods, was our muscle.
Jack was there to hack the security systems of the biggest museum in the galaxy. He was a sensynth, a sentient synthetic being, and the most powerful machine intelligence on Earth uncorrupted by alien technology.
My name is Fennel Tycho. I’d like to tell you I was there because of my expertise in Art History. Truth is, I was there because without me, Jack would not have agreed to go. He was notorious for being difficult to work with—but it was a mistake to think I could make things any easier.
A meditation on the nature of love, life, and the "culture of the copy," And Side by Side They Wander asks the In a future where there are clones, androids, and a sentient mycelium that creates fungal simulacra, who is real and what is fake?
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
For three hundred years, humanity’s greatest works of art have been on loan at the Museum of the Seed-Born. It was finally time for them to come home...but the alien curators were disinclined to return them.
Force was out of the question. Earth’s government was they were not going to press the issue. So, all we had was guile and hubris to fuel our little intergalactic art heist.
My old friend Tarquin was our leader, but not the captain. That was Tchik-tchik, though whether Tchik-tchik was our insectoid pilot’s name or species is still unclear to me. Misora, with her extremely illegal biotech mods, was our muscle.
Jack was there to hack the security systems of the biggest museum in the galaxy. He was a sensynth, a sentient synthetic being, and the most powerful machine intelligence on Earth uncorrupted by alien technology.
My name is Fennel Tycho. I’d like to tell you I was there because of my expertise in Art History. Truth is, I was there because without me, Jack would not have agreed to go. He was notorious for being difficult to work with—but it was a mistake to think I could make things any easier.
A meditation on the nature of love, life, and the "culture of the copy," And Side by Side They Wander asks the In a future where there are clones, androids, and a sentient mycelium that creates fungal simulacra, who is real and what is fake?
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
112 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication May 19, 2026
7 people are currently reading
3267 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
November 25, 2025
While it isn't reclaiming artifacts from the British museum, which someone should do since it seems lax security, going to reclaim humanity's stuff from aliens is pretty good too. "And Side by Side They Wander" by Molly Tanzer examines what is real in a world of easy reproductions, clones, and synthetic copies. Jumping way ahead, but out 19 May 2026 from Tor Publishing Group.
Humanity was boned. Climate disasters, war, you name it. Least until some benevolent aliens rolled up and could solve all of our problems, they just wanted to hold onto large portions of our art, just in case. But totally will give it back when we fix our issues. But wouldn't you know it, they aren't done looking at it yet. Enjoy the replicas and technology. Except humanity is still a bit...punchy. Enter a crew who really has no business doing this job.
Reasons to read:
-Went places I was not expecting
-I'm sorry, please elaborate on that sentence right now
-Sudden escalation
-More proof that we should all get quarterly strikes we can give supervisors
-Sentient Mycelium, not sure if sapient would apply
Cons:
-That sentence gets no further investigation, the curse of novellas.
Humanity was boned. Climate disasters, war, you name it. Least until some benevolent aliens rolled up and could solve all of our problems, they just wanted to hold onto large portions of our art, just in case. But totally will give it back when we fix our issues. But wouldn't you know it, they aren't done looking at it yet. Enjoy the replicas and technology. Except humanity is still a bit...punchy. Enter a crew who really has no business doing this job.
Reasons to read:
-Went places I was not expecting
-I'm sorry, please elaborate on that sentence right now
-Sudden escalation
-More proof that we should all get quarterly strikes we can give supervisors
-Sentient Mycelium, not sure if sapient would apply
Cons:
-That sentence gets no further investigation, the curse of novellas.
February 2, 2026
And Side by Side They Wander by Molly Tanzer is a beautifully written novella that left me thoroughly impressed and wishing for more. Despite its short length, the story delivers an impressive amount of character development and world-building. It's one of those rare reads where you feel instantly dropped into a fully formed universe, rich with texture and nuance, yet you’re only getting a tantalizing glimpse of what could be explored in greater depth.
Tanzer has a gift for creating emotionally resonant characters in a very short span of time. The relationships and internal struggles feel fully realized, and there’s a surprising emotional weight to the narrative that builds naturally from the first page. I found myself invested almost immediately, and the emotional payoff by the end hit harder than I expected for a novella of this size.
The world Tanzer hints at is so fascinating: strange, atmospheric, and filled with potential. I couldn’t help but imagine how incredible it would be to see this setting and these characters fleshed out over the course of a full-length novel. There's a lot of promise in the mythology and the underlying themes that could easily sustain a much longer story without losing momentum.
Even though the book left me wanting more, that’s a testament to how well it’s crafted. It’s a short, impactful read that lingers in your mind long after you finish. Tanzer strikes a great balance between style and substance, and I’ll definitely be seeking out more of her work after this.
Tanzer has a gift for creating emotionally resonant characters in a very short span of time. The relationships and internal struggles feel fully realized, and there’s a surprising emotional weight to the narrative that builds naturally from the first page. I found myself invested almost immediately, and the emotional payoff by the end hit harder than I expected for a novella of this size.
The world Tanzer hints at is so fascinating: strange, atmospheric, and filled with potential. I couldn’t help but imagine how incredible it would be to see this setting and these characters fleshed out over the course of a full-length novel. There's a lot of promise in the mythology and the underlying themes that could easily sustain a much longer story without losing momentum.
Even though the book left me wanting more, that’s a testament to how well it’s crafted. It’s a short, impactful read that lingers in your mind long after you finish. Tanzer strikes a great balance between style and substance, and I’ll definitely be seeking out more of her work after this.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I have to say that I'm very impressed by this story's depth, especially considering its length. There are multiple fleshed out characters, all with clear desires, flaws, and backstories of note. In the foreground is an intergalactic art heist by a ragtag group consisting of a human, an augmented human, a clone, a synthetic android, and an alien. In the background is Earth's first contact with alien life forms, the subsequent integration with their advanced technology, and its cost to human culture. In between is more than a bit of philosophical musing on the nature of what is real and what is meaningful — in terms of both tangible items and intangible concepts.
The ending was poignant and thought provoking, and explained the narrative structure of the story. I'm also mad I didn't see it coming after an earlier bit of foreshadowing .
As I am often railing about how inaccurate and generally terrible book blurbs are — and again, I know these aren't written by the author, so I don't fault them for this — I want to take a moment to highlight two bits from this book's blurb, as the blurb is both accurate and does a great job at setting expectations.
The ending was poignant and thought provoking, and explained the narrative structure of the story. I'm also mad I didn't see it coming after an earlier bit of foreshadowing .
As I am often railing about how inaccurate and generally terrible book blurbs are — and again, I know these aren't written by the author, so I don't fault them for this — I want to take a moment to highlight two bits from this book's blurb, as the blurb is both accurate and does a great job at setting expectations.
An intergalactic art heist by a ragtag group of underqualified misfits. What could go wrong?
A meditation on the nature of love, life, and the "culture of the copy," And Side by Side They Wander asks the In a future where there are clones, androids, and a sentient mycelium that creates fungal simulacra, who is real and what is fake?Full disclosure: I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a review.
January 31, 2026
Ahhh, the ironies of imperial museum practices being applied to Earth as a planet by an alien species. Delicious, heist causing ironies. We have a short tale of an attempt to retrieve Earth's artistic treasures via heist, and the fun and unexpected ways it goes wrong. The crew is great, the aliens are smarmy pretentious bastards, and the ending is delightfully absurd. Also fun side tangents about museum ethics and who gets to be considered people and what the markers are, which always leads down some fascinating roads with alien species. This comes out in May; highly recommended pre order when it does.
November 20, 2025
Fun short read, this novella is about a heist. Humans are going to recover from a far, faraway corner in a galaxy, the art we humans lend to an alien species of conservatives who refuse to return them. At the same time, we are left with bleak and pondering thoughts about what humankind will become in the future, influenced by the effects of the Mycenaean era on our civilization.
A good theme to discuss in book club or with other readers: Is there any difference in looking upon copies vs originals?
Also has an uplifting subplot that gives the novella a tone of hope.
The end feels abrupt but I didn't mind. The acknowledgments have some interesting info.
Great cover.
A good theme to discuss in book club or with other readers: Is there any difference in looking upon copies vs originals?
Also has an uplifting subplot that gives the novella a tone of hope.
The end feels abrupt but I didn't mind. The acknowledgments have some interesting info.
Great cover.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
TL;DR: A great premise, but lacking overall for me.
Source: NetGalley, thank you so much to the publisher!
Plot: A crew of humans attempting to take back protected artwork from curating aliens (and a lot of meandering through memories).
Characters: The worst part of this? The main character had so little to them, and the others weren’t great.
Setting: I wish we had more details about the setting and aliens but sadly no. A lot of potential.
Science Fiction: Again like the setting, a lot of this was lost in the meandering.
Thoughts:
I’m super bummed on this one, I can’t lie. I’ve adored Molly Tanzer in the past, their work was fun and unique. But this one lacked so much that I was frustrated more than I was invested, and I was left wondering what the point was. We have a crew of humans off to fetch artwork from a museum planet that protects and houses it. The aliens took it after helping humanity save themselves, and then wouldn’t give it back. Sound familiar?
This one is directly inspired by the back and forth around the Elgin Marbles (I recommend looking it up). The long and short is that the marbles are being held outside their native land by the British who do not want to return them. In the same mode our characters are seeking our human artwork. There is a lot that could be unpacked from this. Unfortunately we spend the bulk of this story meandering through the memories and relationship (or lack thereof) that our PoV character has with a cloned individual.
We get lost in this frankly, and it ruins the overall scope of the story. Our main character is hung up this man, who seems to care little for them. So the narrative is following them chasing him around and getting caught up in this seemingly meaningless fetch quest. The world is sketched out and there is a lot of potential but it fell so very flat for me. A bummer.
Source: NetGalley, thank you so much to the publisher!
Plot: A crew of humans attempting to take back protected artwork from curating aliens (and a lot of meandering through memories).
Characters: The worst part of this? The main character had so little to them, and the others weren’t great.
Setting: I wish we had more details about the setting and aliens but sadly no. A lot of potential.
Science Fiction: Again like the setting, a lot of this was lost in the meandering.
Thoughts:
I’m super bummed on this one, I can’t lie. I’ve adored Molly Tanzer in the past, their work was fun and unique. But this one lacked so much that I was frustrated more than I was invested, and I was left wondering what the point was. We have a crew of humans off to fetch artwork from a museum planet that protects and houses it. The aliens took it after helping humanity save themselves, and then wouldn’t give it back. Sound familiar?
This one is directly inspired by the back and forth around the Elgin Marbles (I recommend looking it up). The long and short is that the marbles are being held outside their native land by the British who do not want to return them. In the same mode our characters are seeking our human artwork. There is a lot that could be unpacked from this. Unfortunately we spend the bulk of this story meandering through the memories and relationship (or lack thereof) that our PoV character has with a cloned individual.
We get lost in this frankly, and it ruins the overall scope of the story. Our main character is hung up this man, who seems to care little for them. So the narrative is following them chasing him around and getting caught up in this seemingly meaningless fetch quest. The world is sketched out and there is a lot of potential but it fell so very flat for me. A bummer.
November 21, 2025
And Side by Side they Wander is a phenomenal novella, with two novels' worth of ideas. Post-scarcity has been achieved thanks to the intervention of friendly aliens...and all they want in exchange is humanity's artistic heritage for a long-term loan. But worry not, the Acropolis and everything else has been replaced with identical copies. But that's not all--there's androids and clone children of a billionaire, a swath of the the US taken over by a fungus that has created weird mushroom doppelgängers of both places and people, a second species of alien, and a misfit crew including an art historian and a karate expert who can unfold herself into several people looking to do a smash-and-grab on the alien museum. A museum which has been facing budget cuts?
By turns philosophical, humorous, and profound, and limned with explorations of Walter Benjamin's theories of art in the age of mechanical reproduction and the notion of the "aura" of original art that cannot be copied with any kind of reproduction, ASbStW is the SF novella you have to read in 2026.
I was very pleased to read a pre-production copy (aura?) earlier this year, but I have pre-ordered a hardcover anyway because it is a must-have for my real, physical (not virtual!) shelf.
By turns philosophical, humorous, and profound, and limned with explorations of Walter Benjamin's theories of art in the age of mechanical reproduction and the notion of the "aura" of original art that cannot be copied with any kind of reproduction, ASbStW is the SF novella you have to read in 2026.
I was very pleased to read a pre-production copy (aura?) earlier this year, but I have pre-ordered a hardcover anyway because it is a must-have for my real, physical (not virtual!) shelf.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
🌟THOUGHTS (without giving anything away): This novella centers around an art heist in space, which I found very interesting. Despite being sci-fi, it felt very current and realistic. I loved the philosophical questioning about whether or not a piece of art is as good if it is a copy of the original. As an artist, you can guess my thoughts…and the main character did not disappoint me.
🏆PERFECT FOR: Sci-fi fans, art & philosophy majors, people who enjoy half-baked heists, and readers of short fiction.
🏆PERFECT FOR: Sci-fi fans, art & philosophy majors, people who enjoy half-baked heists, and readers of short fiction.
December 9, 2025
This new book from Molly Tanzer had all the elements that I love. However, "And Side by Side They Wander" was just too short for me. There were a couple storylines going on at the same time, and all of them felt incomplete. I really like the concept, but just wanted the book to have each part of the story be more fleshed out.
Still a fun read if you are looking for a sci-fromance, but just a quick one!
Thank you Tordotcom and Edelweiss+ for an advanced copy to review!
Still a fun read if you are looking for a sci-fromance, but just a quick one!
Thank you Tordotcom and Edelweiss+ for an advanced copy to review!
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
Thank you to Edelweiss for the ARC!
The premise of this really hooked me, and at first I enjoyed the more conversational tone that the book had, but it felt like two opposing writing styles, one very lyrical and philosophical, while the other was more simple and down to earth. It made it hard to sink into the prose, and to really feel invested in the characters.
The premise of this really hooked me, and at first I enjoyed the more conversational tone that the book had, but it felt like two opposing writing styles, one very lyrical and philosophical, while the other was more simple and down to earth. It made it hard to sink into the prose, and to really feel invested in the characters.
February 4, 2026
The first two sentences in the synopsis really got me interested…
An intergalactic art heist by a ragtag group of underqualified misfits. What could go wrong?
Fun premise. Didn’t know where it was going. And probably could have used just like a paragraph more lol but was enjoyable and I liked the writing.
Thanks to netgalley and Tor for an eARC.
An intergalactic art heist by a ragtag group of underqualified misfits. What could go wrong?
Fun premise. Didn’t know where it was going. And probably could have used just like a paragraph more lol but was enjoyable and I liked the writing.
Thanks to netgalley and Tor for an eARC.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
i fear this was written with me in mind, i loved it
Read
February 10, 2026DNF @ 46% because it was basically all exposition and backstory and just wasn't living up to the premise. I think this story was meant to be much longer and start much earlier.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews