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Afterlight
When Sashen fled his human space cult to live among the aliens, he had dreams about what a life in space would mean. A decade later, he hasn't even been off-station, instead dancing in a marn den where he's paid to eavesdrop on gossip and provide companionship to paying clients. But when he receives word that the cult that he fled from is looking to bring him back, he's willing to put his life on the line to escape them, even if it means going on galactic television in a win-or-die-trying contest on blood-soaked sands.
Of course, Sashen needs to catch a ride to the distant arena first and as fate would have it, the shy alien who's been watching him dance for the past week – Araxis of Creche Thiel – is headed that way and has space to spare. Sashen is happy to have a ride and a cute distraction on the way to what he expects may be his imminent demise. What he can't anticipate as he heads off to his galactic broadcast debut is the gravitational pull he feels to Araxis. With the deadly tournament looming, Sashen will need to figure a way to escape his past, while also charting a way to the future he desperately wants.
Of course, Sashen needs to catch a ride to the distant arena first and as fate would have it, the shy alien who's been watching him dance for the past week – Araxis of Creche Thiel – is headed that way and has space to spare. Sashen is happy to have a ride and a cute distraction on the way to what he expects may be his imminent demise. What he can't anticipate as he heads off to his galactic broadcast debut is the gravitational pull he feels to Araxis. With the deadly tournament looming, Sashen will need to figure a way to escape his past, while also charting a way to the future he desperately wants.
- GenresScience Fiction
ebook
First published January 1, 2026
32 people want to read
About the author
Tana Welsummer
1 book3 followersTana (she/they) is a queer neurodivergent writer living a semi-feral rural life on the East Coast of Canada. When she's not writing, she can be found reading and organizing her bookshelf by colour.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
January 17, 2026
Fantastic. This book consumed me. I could easily read another 190k words (and I hope I will, when the sequel is out). The MCs are super endearing, the plot is exciting, the world is fascinating, and the writing is engaging. I will absolutely be rereading this.
I love the way this book is structured. The narrative is framed as Sashen's testimony for some sort of judicial hearing (which gradually makes more sense as the story unfolds). Most chapters feel like normal first person narrative, but Sashen occasionally adds a bit of observation in hindsight. I wasn't sure if I'd like that at first, but it turned out to be key to my enjoyment of the book. The narrative clearly hints at major conflict down the line, and I think if I didn't have that warning, the eventual reveal would have been too devastating. Also, the occasional transcripts and interludes from Araxis's perspective are used effectively to flesh out the story. This is a very well-structured narrative, especially impressive given the length.
Even though I knew something bad was coming (and boy was it rough), I was still able to immerse myself in the budding romance. The romantic and sexual tension is exquisite. They really do flirt with tea and sword dancing. The way they slowly open up to each other, and Sashen's developing feelings, feel very natural.
I will say I wanted more from the conversations about Araxis's gender. I sincerely hope this is explored in more depth in the sequel. Gender and sexuality, and societal rejection based on identity, are significant to the story. But Araxis's identity is only touched on a few times, despite how important it seems to be to him. If this was a standalone, I would question why the author bothered to include it at all. But I suspect this will be more relevant in the sequel, based on where the plot is going.
In the same vein, I want more alien cultural details! Don't get me wrong—there's some wonderful world building going on already. A wide variety of alien species and cultures, well-considered social dynamics between and among species, and interesting technology with believable limits. But this book has more breadth than depth. I have every faith that the next book will dive more deeply into Araxis's culture, and I'm super excited. It's clear the author has put a ton of work into building this world.
The writing is wonderful—a great balance of humor, poignancy, and competent storytelling. I snort-laughed more than once. My heart physically hurt a few times. I'm really just blown away by how much I loved this.
But I *need* that sequel ASAP, because this ending was not entirely satisfying. I need more resolution and healing. The MCs clearly have a lot of growing to do together. I wouldn't call this a cliffhanger by any means, but it's not 100% happy yet. I'm not just excited for the sequel—I'm desperate for it.
I love the way this book is structured. The narrative is framed as Sashen's testimony for some sort of judicial hearing (which gradually makes more sense as the story unfolds). Most chapters feel like normal first person narrative, but Sashen occasionally adds a bit of observation in hindsight. I wasn't sure if I'd like that at first, but it turned out to be key to my enjoyment of the book. The narrative clearly hints at major conflict down the line, and I think if I didn't have that warning, the eventual reveal would have been too devastating. Also, the occasional transcripts and interludes from Araxis's perspective are used effectively to flesh out the story. This is a very well-structured narrative, especially impressive given the length.
Even though I knew something bad was coming (and boy was it rough), I was still able to immerse myself in the budding romance. The romantic and sexual tension is exquisite. They really do flirt with tea and sword dancing. The way they slowly open up to each other, and Sashen's developing feelings, feel very natural.
I will say I wanted more from the conversations about Araxis's gender. I sincerely hope this is explored in more depth in the sequel. Gender and sexuality, and societal rejection based on identity, are significant to the story. But Araxis's identity is only touched on a few times, despite how important it seems to be to him. If this was a standalone, I would question why the author bothered to include it at all. But I suspect this will be more relevant in the sequel, based on where the plot is going.
In the same vein, I want more alien cultural details! Don't get me wrong—there's some wonderful world building going on already. A wide variety of alien species and cultures, well-considered social dynamics between and among species, and interesting technology with believable limits. But this book has more breadth than depth. I have every faith that the next book will dive more deeply into Araxis's culture, and I'm super excited. It's clear the author has put a ton of work into building this world.
The writing is wonderful—a great balance of humor, poignancy, and competent storytelling. I snort-laughed more than once. My heart physically hurt a few times. I'm really just blown away by how much I loved this.
But I *need* that sequel ASAP, because this ending was not entirely satisfying. I need more resolution and healing. The MCs clearly have a lot of growing to do together. I wouldn't call this a cliffhanger by any means, but it's not 100% happy yet. I'm not just excited for the sequel—I'm desperate for it.
Displaying 1 of 1 review