The Genesis of Misery

"Neon Yang's The Genesis of Misery gives a space opera twist to Joan of Arc's story, full of high-tech space battles and political machinations, starring a queer and diverse array of pilots, princesses, and prophetic heirs. It's an old, familiar story: a young person hears the voice of an angel saying they have been chosen as a warrior to lead their people to victory in a holy war. But Misery Nomaki knows they are a fraud. Raised on a remote moon colony, they don't believe in any kind of god. Their angel is a delusion, brought on by hereditary space exposure. Yet their survival banks on mastering the holy mech they are supposedly destined for, and convincing the Emperor of the Faithful that they are the real deal. The deeper they get into their charade, however, the more they start to doubt their convictions. A retelling of Joan of Arc's story given a space opera, giant robot twist, The Genesis of Misery is a story about the nature of truth, the power of belief, and the interplay of both in the stories we tell ourselves"--