Nova (novel)

Lore & Background

The novel's setting year is not given, but humans are divided into Earth-based Draco and the Pleiades Federation. The Von Ray family dominates Pleiades, while the Reds own Red-shift Limited, a company making interstellar drives. Starship travel depends on Illyrion, a rare power source. The story begins on Triton, where a blind man named Dan tells a young drifter called the Mouse about his voyage on Lorq Von Ray's starship, the Roc. Lorq recruits the Mouse, Katin, the brothers Lynceos and Idas, Sebastian and his companion Tyÿ for a journey to fly through a nova to acquire seven tons of Illyrion.

Reader's Guide

Nova was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1969. In 1984, David Pringle listed it as one of the 100 best science-fiction novels written since 1949. After completing Nova at age 25, Delany's published output stopped for several years, though his writing continued; his next published novel was the pornographic Equinox in 1973. The novel's significance lies in its blending of space opera with mythological themes and its exploration of politics, culture, and universal cyborg technology.

Did You Know?

• The novel was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1969.
• David Pringle listed it as one of the 100 best science-fiction novels written since 1949.
• After completing Nova at age 25, Delany's next published novel was Equinox in 1973.
• The last sentence of the novel is incomplete, echoing Katin's observation that Grail quest stories are never finished.