A grounded and utterly resonant novel, Sky Curse: The Chosen Five by Janet Kravetz follows Cecilia Miller, a coder of artificial dreams in her relentless quest to be the hope of humanity in an apocalyptic age. The repercussions of climate change and overpopulation are felt heavily in the year 2045. The population is at twenty-five billion and the Earth is fast wearing out. While the Universalists consider migration to a new planet, the localists, those with little or no influence of AI struggle to survive. Humanity’s hope might be in technology and Cecilia is determined to be the one to save the planet. She has once lost her voice, but can she find it in the rise of the grim realities of her time?

Janet Kravetz fuses the tragedy of a decaying world with stellar storytelling to force readers to contemplate a future that could be theirs if they fail to take care of our world. She writes themes that are resonant and crafts a tale that will have contemporary readers thinking about how their actions affect the environment. The characters are relatable and real, and the author’s ability to vividly explore the psyche of the characters shines through the narrative. In turn troubling and exciting, The Chosen Five is more than a dystopian narrative. It is the tale of humanity, bold in its exploration of existential conflicts and deft in its execution of relatable themes and believable characters. Fans of science fiction and fantasy will gulp this down quickly and then think about the warnings embedded in the tale. Sky Curse: The Chosen Five is a fascinating opening for a series that should not just be read but discussed.