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A Slice of Mars
Mars is a strange place these days. Corporate overlords, capitalism, and even aging are things of the past on a planet increasingly brimming with biodiversity - yet pizzerias are in short supply!
Siblings Hett and San set out to change that. But a roboticist and a bureaucrat can't run a restaurant alone, so they bring on some help - a bioengineer, a communications scientist, and an unlikely grad student from Earth. Together, this gang of geeks will brave the fires of small business.
But work is just a small part of life. People are complicated. Different brains, different wounds, different values, and one questionably tame wildcat will all collide as they try to grow and succeed together. What comes out of the oven, in the end, is anyone's guess.
Siblings Hett and San set out to change that. But a roboticist and a bureaucrat can't run a restaurant alone, so they bring on some help - a bioengineer, a communications scientist, and an unlikely grad student from Earth. Together, this gang of geeks will brave the fires of small business.
But work is just a small part of life. People are complicated. Different brains, different wounds, different values, and one questionably tame wildcat will all collide as they try to grow and succeed together. What comes out of the oven, in the end, is anyone's guess.
570 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 11, 2023
5 people are currently reading
245 people want to read
About the author
Guerric Haché
8 books37 followersGuerric would really rather not be on an Amazon-owned platform. They would highly recommend you check out alternatives like BookWyrm, Storygraph, or Open Library.
For-profit, publicly-traded corporations should not be in charge of mediating trade or communication between creators and audiences, or between producers and consumers. When they do, the result is pure parasitism.
For-profit, publicly-traded corporations should not be in charge of mediating trade or communication between creators and audiences, or between producers and consumers. When they do, the result is pure parasitism.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
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January 11, 2023I wrote this!
After finishing the Digitesque hexalogy in 2019, I took stock of my work so far and thought about what I wanted to improve on as a writer, and how to plan my next project to target those improvements. I decided I wanted to write something focused squarely on the interpersonal dynamics of a group of several people, without even an overarching plot. Something purely about people living a life in a community, getting along and getting on each other's nerves.
And I also wanted to write about the future in a way that, while not utopian, was cautiously optimistic. I wanted to see what it might be like to live in a society where society was making a collective effort to build a better world; and a society far enough removed in time from ours that its norms, concerns, models, and worldview don't mesh very well with ours.
And as I was planning this book out, the Covid pandemic hit, and I started cooking a whole lot. So of course it became about food, too.
After finishing the first draft in late 2020, I took a detour into some different writing projects in 2021, then returned in 2022 to re-write this and edit it up, and here we are now. I'm quite happy with where this landed, overall. It's felt like a great way of challenging myself to learn new skills as a writer, and it was also just plain fun. I hope you enjoy it too!
After finishing the Digitesque hexalogy in 2019, I took stock of my work so far and thought about what I wanted to improve on as a writer, and how to plan my next project to target those improvements. I decided I wanted to write something focused squarely on the interpersonal dynamics of a group of several people, without even an overarching plot. Something purely about people living a life in a community, getting along and getting on each other's nerves.
And I also wanted to write about the future in a way that, while not utopian, was cautiously optimistic. I wanted to see what it might be like to live in a society where society was making a collective effort to build a better world; and a society far enough removed in time from ours that its norms, concerns, models, and worldview don't mesh very well with ours.
And as I was planning this book out, the Covid pandemic hit, and I started cooking a whole lot. So of course it became about food, too.
After finishing the first draft in late 2020, I took a detour into some different writing projects in 2021, then returned in 2022 to re-write this and edit it up, and here we are now. I'm quite happy with where this landed, overall. It's felt like a great way of challenging myself to learn new skills as a writer, and it was also just plain fun. I hope you enjoy it too!
December 1, 2023
I'd describe this book as Becky Chambers' Wayfarers meets Ursula K. Le Guin's The Dispossessed at a pizzeria on Mars. A slice of life (lol) science fiction story that follows four native Martians and one Earthling as they start up a pizza shop, and through that process revealing a fascinating and detailed Martian society. It will also make you hungry for bio-engineered, mandala flower-topped pizzas. I'll have a pineapple boar, please.
April 28, 2023
A Slice of Mars is a fantastically enjoyable slice-of-life story following a group of people who come together to try to open a pizza shop on Mars.
The Martian society shown here contains many interesting and creative ideas for how society might look if it was allowed to grow beyond our expectations of “how things work”. From the mycelium walls and ecological projects, to the domes, the Martian lifecycle, governmental representation, and the cultural snippets, Mars as we see it here feels full of life and history and optimism and it’s honestly delightful. This is a society that is imperfect, but always doing its best to keep improving for all its people.
I found the cast of characters easy to love and root for, and their interpersonal relationships and challenges added the right amount of tension to an otherwise very cosy, low-stakes story. Their willingness and efforts to find solutions and communicate and treat one another with kindness and understanding brought to mind Becky Chambers’ characters.
Recommended to fans of slice-of-life sci-fi, science nerds who like imaginative worldbuilding, and readers who are drawn to characters just doing their best.
The Martian society shown here contains many interesting and creative ideas for how society might look if it was allowed to grow beyond our expectations of “how things work”. From the mycelium walls and ecological projects, to the domes, the Martian lifecycle, governmental representation, and the cultural snippets, Mars as we see it here feels full of life and history and optimism and it’s honestly delightful. This is a society that is imperfect, but always doing its best to keep improving for all its people.
I found the cast of characters easy to love and root for, and their interpersonal relationships and challenges added the right amount of tension to an otherwise very cosy, low-stakes story. Their willingness and efforts to find solutions and communicate and treat one another with kindness and understanding brought to mind Becky Chambers’ characters.
Recommended to fans of slice-of-life sci-fi, science nerds who like imaginative worldbuilding, and readers who are drawn to characters just doing their best.
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May 7, 2023No rating, because this was written by a dear friend and I’m far from objective - but read this for a delightful story that will make you crave all the pizza ♥️
May 16, 2024
4.75
Absolutely fantastic. I recommend to anyone who loves slice-of-life stories focusing on real, honest communication between people. Plus, it would be so so lovely to live on the Mars of this book.
Absolutely fantastic. I recommend to anyone who loves slice-of-life stories focusing on real, honest communication between people. Plus, it would be so so lovely to live on the Mars of this book.
February 1, 2023
Longer review likely to come - I really enjoyed this slice of life sci-fi novel. A group of strongly realised characters in a fascinating speculative society that gets explored in depth.
June 27, 2024
I read this in eBook form with some assistance from an AI generated audio track made as an experiment by someone I met online. As a result it took me longer than it might have if I was just listening to the book, but it was worth the read.
This slice of life (and pizza) book is interesting on multiple levels. The characters are fun, the setting is queer-norm and genderfluid, and the things that they deal with are relatable, even those that have a basis in an alien way of doing things. Bonus points for an animal companion.
As a centenary of Mars independence looms, and the dome of a major city is finally being removed, as the atmosphere is finally liveable, a couple of siblings have this idea to open a pizza parlour. They get some new employees, and find their new neighbour is an Anthropologist from Earth who has come to write a paper about the real interpersonal interactions and feelings of the folks during the Festival.
All the characters have their own "Dispositions" which is a novel descriptor for the ways that people interact and thrive.. a different way of looking at Neurodiversity.
Hett is clearly ADHD - he's full of ideas, loves engineering and is so frenetic he occasionally forgets things or acts without thinking.
Dhapree is a biologist and geneticist. She likes her alone time, and has a pet caracal who she gets on with better than humans.
Qirao is an extrovert who is continually grounding herself by being with the people she loves, and who loves meeting new people and being in a crowd.
San is suffering from generational trauma, and they are onto their 5th life cycle, but each time they undergo the process designed to free them from old relationships, memories, values, and associations, their mind clings to the pain of being a survivor of a genocidal war and watching atrocities unfold in front of them.
Diego is just a confused Earthling (and he acts as the Alice through which we get a lot of our lessons about this new land).
This is all a pretty good playground to tackle some of the ideas of Lockdown, racial violence, the internet, adult lave relationships with too much age gap, development of AI, genetic engineering, narrative rhetoric and the formation of political viewpoints, and the evils of Capitalism.
The author's note includes such inspirations as Becky Chambers, Ursula K. Le Guin, and Malka Older. It's definitely got some cosy slice-of-life energy, with some hard bits in it (such as a violent confrontation with extremists).
This slice of life (and pizza) book is interesting on multiple levels. The characters are fun, the setting is queer-norm and genderfluid, and the things that they deal with are relatable, even those that have a basis in an alien way of doing things. Bonus points for an animal companion.
As a centenary of Mars independence looms, and the dome of a major city is finally being removed, as the atmosphere is finally liveable, a couple of siblings have this idea to open a pizza parlour. They get some new employees, and find their new neighbour is an Anthropologist from Earth who has come to write a paper about the real interpersonal interactions and feelings of the folks during the Festival.
All the characters have their own "Dispositions" which is a novel descriptor for the ways that people interact and thrive.. a different way of looking at Neurodiversity.
Hett is clearly ADHD - he's full of ideas, loves engineering and is so frenetic he occasionally forgets things or acts without thinking.
Dhapree is a biologist and geneticist. She likes her alone time, and has a pet caracal who she gets on with better than humans.
Qirao is an extrovert who is continually grounding herself by being with the people she loves, and who loves meeting new people and being in a crowd.
San is suffering from generational trauma, and they are onto their 5th life cycle, but each time they undergo the process designed to free them from old relationships, memories, values, and associations, their mind clings to the pain of being a survivor of a genocidal war and watching atrocities unfold in front of them.
Diego is just a confused Earthling (and he acts as the Alice through which we get a lot of our lessons about this new land).
This is all a pretty good playground to tackle some of the ideas of Lockdown, racial violence, the internet, adult lave relationships with too much age gap, development of AI, genetic engineering, narrative rhetoric and the formation of political viewpoints, and the evils of Capitalism.
The author's note includes such inspirations as Becky Chambers, Ursula K. Le Guin, and Malka Older. It's definitely got some cosy slice-of-life energy, with some hard bits in it (such as a violent confrontation with extremists).
December 20, 2024
I enjoyed this book, but sometimes I enjoyed the concepts more than the execution. I found the worldbuilding absolutely fascinating, especially the way the Martians didn't really die, instead at the end of their lifecycle they sort-of transformed into a new version of themselves with only vague memories of past lives. The tech they have in this society is also a lot of fun to learn about, and it was interesting seeing how different characters with different personalities all worked in this society.
But I did find that there were times things got repeated too frequently; sometimes we got the same information from multiple different characters, or sometimes a long story (that had no bearing on the book's story) was told in detail and could have easily been summarized, and at those times the book felt like it was dragging. For a long book (569 pages) it felt like more of the repetition needed to be cut down to make the book tighter.
Don't get me wrong; I liked the book. I thought it was good. But I also thought that it needed a little more trimming to make it great.
But I did find that there were times things got repeated too frequently; sometimes we got the same information from multiple different characters, or sometimes a long story (that had no bearing on the book's story) was told in detail and could have easily been summarized, and at those times the book felt like it was dragging. For a long book (569 pages) it felt like more of the repetition needed to be cut down to make the book tighter.
Don't get me wrong; I liked the book. I thought it was good. But I also thought that it needed a little more trimming to make it great.
January 21, 2024
3.5 stars (or 7 out of 10 for SPSFC3 purposes)
Overall I enjoyed this though there were times where I personally thought some parts were annoyingly overlong. Information that seemed to be irrelevant to the plot - I would of liked to have less "telling" as it were. The Martian worldbuilding was excellent and top marks for that - Haché's "slice" of life in starting up a Martian pizza shop was great.
Some of the character's were not compelling and this is where my investment in the book slipped.
The "mandalas" though - chef's 😘😘
Overall I enjoyed this though there were times where I personally thought some parts were annoyingly overlong. Information that seemed to be irrelevant to the plot - I would of liked to have less "telling" as it were. The Martian worldbuilding was excellent and top marks for that - Haché's "slice" of life in starting up a Martian pizza shop was great.
Some of the character's were not compelling and this is where my investment in the book slipped.
The "mandalas" though - chef's 😘😘
April 1, 2025
2.75*
This book had some really great ideas, and I wanted to love it so much, but I had some significant issues with it.
1) This was so over written and really needed editing down. There are so many things that are discussed in excruciating detail that don't end up having to do with the story or even giving us much information about the characters.
2) The author's prose can be painfully formal - at times I felt like I was reading doctor's notes or a textbook.
3) I don't know if part of my problem here was reading it on kindle vs physically, but there were so many errors. Basic typos were one thing, but a few instances of glaring formatting problems, or cases where (as far as I can tell) the wrong character was named, etc. This improved as the book went on, but the beginning was painful at points and I almost DNFed.
4) For a story about a pizza parlor and the relationships that are made because of the business being started, the pizza business is missing for a good portion of this boo, which was just kind of frustrating, especially as this was quite long.
Don't get me wrong - there was a lot to like here! But had I not been reading this for a challenge, I would have given up early on. I am happy I stuck it out, but I really feel like the author tried to do a bit too much with this story and didn't know where to pull things back.
This book had some really great ideas, and I wanted to love it so much, but I had some significant issues with it.
1) This was so over written and really needed editing down. There are so many things that are discussed in excruciating detail that don't end up having to do with the story or even giving us much information about the characters.
2) The author's prose can be painfully formal - at times I felt like I was reading doctor's notes or a textbook.
3) I don't know if part of my problem here was reading it on kindle vs physically, but there were so many errors. Basic typos were one thing, but a few instances of glaring formatting problems, or cases where (as far as I can tell) the wrong character was named, etc. This improved as the book went on, but the beginning was painful at points and I almost DNFed.
4) For a story about a pizza parlor and the relationships that are made because of the business being started, the pizza business is missing for a good portion of this boo, which was just kind of frustrating, especially as this was quite long.
Don't get me wrong - there was a lot to like here! But had I not been reading this for a challenge, I would have given up early on. I am happy I stuck it out, but I really feel like the author tried to do a bit too much with this story and didn't know where to pull things back.
July 12, 2025
i'd say this was a fun little book but it clocked in at over 600 pages so "little" isn't exactly right. fun is.
it's basically "what if becky chambers wrote lower decks meets the expanse fanfic, with a healthy dash of trill society from ds9, but made the main conflict interpersonal stands about running a pizza parlor in a city where dumplings are the main food and flatbread is a novelty?"
it's cozy slice of life sci-fi, where not a ton of stuff HAPPENS, but when it does, boy does it. just delightful.
it's basically "what if becky chambers wrote lower decks meets the expanse fanfic, with a healthy dash of trill society from ds9, but made the main conflict interpersonal stands about running a pizza parlor in a city where dumplings are the main food and flatbread is a novelty?"
it's cozy slice of life sci-fi, where not a ton of stuff HAPPENS, but when it does, boy does it. just delightful.
December 2, 2023
I ... *thoroughly* enjoyed this!
Picked it up on the spur of the moment because it looked quirky and fun and found a meticulously imagined future that was an absolute delight, with characters that have actual personalities. No grand sweeping space opera - just a nicely put together slice of life in a society that almost makes sense.
Now if only DoorDash did bio-engineered dessert pizza :-).
Picked it up on the spur of the moment because it looked quirky and fun and found a meticulously imagined future that was an absolute delight, with characters that have actual personalities. No grand sweeping space opera - just a nicely put together slice of life in a society that almost makes sense.
Now if only DoorDash did bio-engineered dessert pizza :-).
October 23, 2024
Me gusta la construcción del mundo, la originalidad de algunas ideas, la voluntad de los personajes de entenderse entre ellos. Es un poco Bechy Chambers, pero los personajes son más planos que los de Becky y, sobre todo, una parte importante del libro me aburrió un poquito.
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March 28, 2024DNF
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September 19, 2024I am one of the judges of team Space Girls for the SPSFC3 contest. This review is my personal opinion. Officially, it is still in the running for the contest, pending any official team announcements.
Status: Semifinalist!!!
Read: 18%
Apologies to the author for taking so long to issue updates for this book, which has been eluding me for months. This has been a book I have struggled with reading immensely because Diego's behavior seems completely opposite of how an average Latin American would behave in real life. That constantly pulled me out of the story and was driving me nuts.
However! The book is very well written, hands down and I feel my inability to connect to the characters is more of a 'me problem' than because the book was poorly written. I notice I have left this book still on the currently reading list by mistake. Given it has been so long, I'll just leave this review as an unrated DNF because I only reached under 20%.
Status: Semifinalist!!!
Read: 18%
Apologies to the author for taking so long to issue updates for this book, which has been eluding me for months. This has been a book I have struggled with reading immensely because Diego's behavior seems completely opposite of how an average Latin American would behave in real life. That constantly pulled me out of the story and was driving me nuts.
However! The book is very well written, hands down and I feel my inability to connect to the characters is more of a 'me problem' than because the book was poorly written. I notice I have left this book still on the currently reading list by mistake. Given it has been so long, I'll just leave this review as an unrated DNF because I only reached under 20%.
December 4, 2024
A very lovely read. I appreciate these slice of life stories, and the society depicted on Mars is fascinating, as are the glimpses of Earth I read about.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews