January Stirling is a ballet dancer in a future England, forced to flee Earth as a climate refugee when his city – and seemingly much of Britain – becomes submerged in a massive flood. Climate refugees who manage to get off-planet are sent to Tharsis, the only city on a terraformed Mars, where their strength – unaffected by the weaker gravity and thinner atmosphere of Mars – causes them to be a major threat to the naturalized Martians. Earthstrongers, as they are called, are required to wear “cages” at all times – metal exoskeletons that weigh them down and slow them down, reducing the physical threat they pose to others. They are given the option to naturalize – undergo a procedure to bring their strength and weight in line with the native Martians – but it is a painful process that dramatically reduces quality and length of life. The problem of climate refugees and their status on Mars is a hot political issue, and one that is going to decide the upcoming election for prime minister.
One nationalist politician, Aubrey Gale, comes to the factory where January works and tries to bait him into a debate on camera. The result is January getting charged with verbal threats, going to jail, and losing his factory job. But Gale also faces backlash from the incident, and so to rehabilitate their image – and keep January from starving to death – Gale proposes a political marriage. January agrees, and soon finds himself at the center of political intrigue, Earth-Mars tensions, a climate disaster, and a mystery. Because, what did happen to Gale’s last spouse? They, along with Gale’s sibling, disappeared a few years back, and no one has heard from them since. What, exactly, has January gotten himself into? Is Gale the cold-hearted nationalist, or someone desperate to protect their home but with no idea how to do it?
Natasha Pulley has created a fascinating culture with Tharsis and Mars, and has some fun (if not fully believable) scientific explanations for why things are the way they are. The Mars House is compelling, but also occasionally sad and quite often funny. And when the mystery really kicks in, you won’t be able to put the book down until you figure out what’s going on.