Sisters of the Vast Black

Plot

A civil war between Earth Central Governance and its colonies, fought decades before the events of the novella, ended Earth’s dominance and killed millions through combat and biological attacks. The Order of St. Rita is a Roman Catholic convent that operates from a living, slug-shaped spaceship called the Our Lady of Impossible Constellations. The nuns travel to remote colony worlds to perform charitable acts, such as blessing marriages and baptisms on the moon Phoyongosa III.

The Mother Superior begins showing early dementia, causing internal turmoil, while Earth Central Governance dispatches a priest to reclaim authority over the sisters. Sister Gemma chooses to leave the order after falling in love with an engineer named Vauca. A distress call from Phoyongosa III reveals the colonists are dying from ringeye, a lethal plague. The nuns and Vauca’s crew discover Earth Central Governance deliberately released the plague to provoke a new war.

The Mother Superior, who once worked for Earth Central Governance and whose husband created ringeye as a bioweapon, sacrifices the Our Lady in a suicide attack on Earth’s ships. This allows the other nuns to escape aboard Vauca’s vessel, land safely, and rescue some colonists. The surviving sisters then break from the Catholic Church and pledge to continue their work of service and charity.

Themes

The novella examines the ethics of space colonization and how religious proselytism can serve as a tool of political control. It presents dichotomies such as science versus religion, as when the nuns debate whether their ship may mate, and Sister Gemma's choice between her vows and her love for another woman. The conflict between the female nuns and the young male priest from Rome echoes modern tensions between activist nuns and Vatican positions.

Reception

The novella received positive reviews, with one reviewer praising its strong worldbuilding, characterization, and satisfying conclusion. Others called it accomplished and thoughtful, comparing it favorably to works by Lois McMaster Bujold and Martha Wells. A Locus reviewer described it as elegant, eloquent, warm, and forgiving with an explosive conclusion. Paste praised its pacing and success in exploring big themes despite a small page count. Publishers Weekly gave a moderately positive review, praising the author's expert control over characters and world but noting the abrupt ending as the only significant flaw.