Hot on the heels of a collection of short works, science fiction author and rockstar Sarah Pinsker dives headfirst into the dystopian future where human connection is at an all-time premium. In the Before, Luce Cannon has just started out on her band’s tour when terrorist attacks necessitate total societal lock-down and a migration to StageHolo, an VR experience with a distinctly Amazon-esque flavor, covering everything from school to menial jobs to delivery to huge entertainment events. Rosemary Laws, having grown up in the After, as the book so simply states it, emerges from her family home, where fear and isolationism reign supreme, into the genuinely chaotic and connected world of the East Coast rock scene, traveling at the behest of her StageHolo benefactors in search of new talent. What follows is a meditation on change and art, corporate structures versus artistic aspirations, and human connection in both digital and “IRL” forms.

Part Ready Player One, part Hunger Games, foremost in Pinsker’s narrative is the communal connection of music makers and their audiences. Much of the relationship between Rosemary and Luce centers around the concept of musical community – Luce has retreated to speakeasy basement clubs in Baltimore in an effort to “feel the crowd,” whereas Rosemary’s first visceral experiences of live music come from StageHolo programs. Rosemary, on her own coming of age journey, quickly finds there are many options of individual expression, including that of her gender and sexuality, and that, according to Pinsker, a face-to-face connection is perhaps the only place to discover and explore those options. However, and thankfully, this is not your run-of-the-mill coming out/coming of age story. What romance exists serves to elucidate the stagnated or misunderstood aspects of relationships and expression in this totally digitized age. In poignant contrast, Luce believes whole-heartedly in an analog experience of music and life in general, containing herself to small group interactions until she goes viral somewhat accidentally with her musical message. Luce ultimately confronts her mistrust of corporate powers, opting to “sell out” to reach a huge audience with her activist message in the After. Likewise, Rosemary has come around on her total reliance on corporate systems, choosing to manipulate the machine to be more inclusive and far-reaching as well as more liberal in its message and artistic expression. Their teamwork, devoid of our usual trope of relationship drama, leads to an unveiling of humanity and expression, even under the yoke of a totalitarian system.

The structure of the book is based on perspective chapters, and it was here that Pinsker fell somewhat short. Other than their chapter headings, it was impossible to tell which perspective was being presented, either from tone or accent or internal dialogue. This made the narrative feel somewhat homogenous and immature, even as the story propelled itself quite effectively. Likewise, the dystopian world felt slightly derivative, though part of this might have been the choice to keep the source of the terrorist attacks and the activity of government and corporate structures (one and the same to Pinsker’s readers) shrouded in mystery. The result is a sort of tin foil hat tendency towards conspiracy, which underlines the need for artistic freedoms, but gives the story a slightly flat aspect when compared to the more politically complex plots of this genre.

It is clear that Pinsker’s love of music and musical community is well-founded and explored. As a musician myself, I related most closely to those descriptions of live performance, or the interactions between artistic vision and capitalism consumption. I found these to be the most vividly drawn, and these scenes take up larger swathes of the book than any chase scene or relationship dialogue. It was a completely engrossing read, despite what felt like a bit of a surface treatment of a very intriguing and disturbingly believable world.

I love the way the author wrote the story ideas and concepts of the future, where technology takes over and music became Virtual Reality where we can watch and experience at home. I liked how the relationship between Luce and April. I also like the way that they never gave up on the band and music even after the bomb attacks. Very unique and inspiring.

This book just might be my favorite of the year (so far). It combines relevant issues with the power of music. And not just the power of music, our inherent need for music and the connection it can bring.

Sarah Pinsker has created a thoughtful commentary on a potential future without dwelling on the horrific events that led to that future. If you've lived through the events of September 11, 2001 or any other mass tragedy (and even if you haven't), you can relate to this book. You can't help but wonder about politics, liberties, and freedoms or lack thereof that led to the anti-gathering policies in A Song For A New Day. And while that drives the plot of this story, it's still about the people and the power of music. The specific events and persons who created this future are a footnote. One you figure out through minor bits and pieces throughout the tale. Because it is not the focus. The focus is on the music. And the power of shared experiences with that music.

A Song For A New Day is written by someone who loves music. It's evident in the words and the lyrical, articulate way that live music experiences are described. If you've ever been to a show that left you feeling any emotions well after it ended, this book is for you. Throughout the book, I stopped reading to reminisce about my own experiences. And the book felt all the more meaningful because of that.

There are alternating points of view and each one gives you a way into this new world from people who experienced the before and the after in different ways. It allows anyone to connect to the story. You can pause and think about being safe or social and whether or not those characteristics are mutually exclusive. This book can serve as a reminder, a warning, and a message about social media, personal connections, and even constitutional freedoms.

I can't recommend this book enough and I hope everyone reads it. And then goes to a live concert afterwards.

Summary: Due to a rash of bombings and shootings that killed thousands of people, the government passed the congregation laws. Public gatherings of more than two or three people in an area are prohibited. This changed the way restaurants and hotels function. Large office buildings are sometimes completely abandoned. There are no more movie theaters or concert venues. Traditional stores can no longer operate and have been subsumed into a huge, automated center called Superwally, that provides drone delivery service for everything anyone could need.

Rosemary, a young woman, still lives with her parents on their family farm. She works for Superwally from her bedroom via “hoodie space”, a virtual reality conduit. She is a tech troubleshooter. She’s never seen anything beyond the farm, is very isolated and is too young to remember “before”.

One day, Rosemary does some troubleshooting for a representative of StageHolo. He offers her a chance to see a StageHolo concert and sends her an upgraded hoodie. Rosemary is suddenly introduced to the larger virtual reality world, where people meet in cyberspace to hear music, dance, drink and share experiences.

The flashy concert brings some excitement into Rosemary’s dull life. She decides to apply for a job with StageHolo and leaves home for the first time. She is now a recruiting agent, looking for bands in hiding, playing in private homes and illegal clubs around the country.

She soon realizes she’s made a deal with the devil and determines to help the musicians she finds in a very different way.

Comments: A Song for a New Day is an amazing book. It projects from the current situation in the US to a not too distant future, where people live in fear and isolation. The book also addresses the loneliness and falsehoods in social media. People project avatars in hoodie space that homogenize them. This is a place where mega-corporations rule and the government dictates behavior. In our current world, laws that separate us are being passed now. Not to this extreme, but the seeds are being planted. We are living in fear of shooters at malls, concerts and schools.

I related to this book on multiple levels. I grew up in a suburb of Baltimore, where some of this book takes place. I used to play guitar and sing in small venues and coffee houses in the area. I saw those struggle to stay in business.

But most of all, I have been a resident in virtual reality for thirteen years. I know how it feels to attend cyberspace concerts and clubs, to have coffee with friends that I never meet in person. I have experienced deep isolation with most of my friends being just contacts on social media.

Sarah Pinsker hits the mark on so many points. I’ve become an instant fan of her writing and hope she writes more novels!

A dystopian novel with a unique focus, almost entirely devoted to musical performance in a world where the government actively discourages large gatherings of any sort. Two events conspire to create that world: a series of seemingly random bombings at large events (e.g. sporting events and concerts), and a mysterious disease that is transmitted by physical contact.

The narrative follows two protagonists: Luce Cannon, a singer/songwriter whose career was just taking off before the big events (now referred to as the Before); and Rosemary Laws, a resident of the After, whose job revolves around virtual contact rather than physical contact. Luce finds ways to continue performing, all of them technically illegal. Rosemary finds herself working for the big holographic concert service that has replaced live concerts.

She's a talent scout, which brings her into contact with Luce. After a disastrous first scouting job which results in Luce's illegal performance space being raided by the police and shut down, both she and Luce have to find new ways to follow their passions. As they find a way, Rosemary engineers a performance for Luce that redeems her and offers a way out of the social deadlock they live in.

Pinsker is a musician (as am I), which makes the narrative especially well-tuned to the details of composing and performing music. This is rare, and was a delight to read. I quickly relaxed while reading it, secure in the feeling that there would be no shortfalls in the background research. If there is a weakness, it is the fait accompli nature of the societal collapse. It's never explained in any detail: we see the results, but not the causes.

A fun but oddly non-compelling book. Described as science fiction, it's set in a future where public gatherings are illegal, killing off live music and sports. A principled singer, Lucie, runs an underground club, where she meets naive Rosemary, who has left her family home for the first time in order to seek new talent for the StageHolo company. The writing about music is great, but it's easy to forget this is an SF novel, partly because the technology is not well-described (what exactly are the "hoodies" and who operates them?). A Song For A New Day displays an admirable commitment to diversity and is effective at portraying connections between people; I'll be recommending it on that basis rather than as an SF/dystopian novel.

Firstly, I really enjoyed the way this story was written. The novel is split into three parts. In each part we have chapters which focus on one of two characters - not exactly alternating back and forth, but for the most part. In part one, we have two different timelines going on as well. Luce's story starts out in the Before, while Rosemary's starts out in the After. I really loved this structure for a couple of reasons -- 1) the contrast of timelines  presents an interesting puzzle for readers and 2) I loved that we got to see a glimpse of the Before. This is a near future dystopia where mega corporations have capitalized on people's fear of large gatherings and the governments laws preventing such gatherings--working from home is encouraged and virtual meet ups are more popular than ever.

This book examines the relationship between people, corporations, and the government. In an age when our digital information is already being sold to the highest bidders for ad space, where corporations already buy politicians and government officials to keep laws in their favor, where small businesses and larger companies alike are being subsumed by corporate giants, it's not too hard to imagine the world Pinsker has painted for us here--it's a natural progression of things that are already in motion. Honestly, that's pretty terrifying. But what's great about this novel is that it also offers us hope, in the form of our two main protagonists.

Luce is a musician through and through. She's lived that road life, playing gigs from town to town in all sorts of unsavory venues for smaller crowds. But it's fine--she lives for the music, it's an essential part of her being. I love Luce's character. She's a little bit grumpy, but that's understandable when you're a creative type and you're stuck dealing with the business end of things when all you want to do it make art. And after everything she goes through, with the world turning to crap, it's no wonder she becomes pretty cynical about things. But, the thing is, that cynicism is a thin veneer. Luce wants to believe in people, that the world can break free of its corporate overlords.

Enter Rosemary Laws. Rosemary was just a kid when the world changed, and she doesn't remember much about Before. She enjoys coding for her job as a virtual customer assistant for one of the mega corps, helping people solve their problems, usually in record time. She's never thought much about doing anything else. She's grown up in a world where people mostly keep to themselves, gathering in virtual worlds only. Because she doesn't have great equipment, she doesn't have the opportunity to do many fun things in the virtual world. When she's offered such an opportunity, she jumps on it. She doesn't realize this will have life-changing consequences. Rosemary is an interesting character. In some ways, she's the polar opposite of Luce--instead of being cynical she's incredibly naive--to everyone's detriment. She means well, though. Rosemary, unlike Luce, is only just discovering the world for the first time. It's like she's been asleep all this time and is only now waking up. The one thing Luce and Rosemary have in common is their love of music, and that's what brings their two stories together.

Most of the time when you read a dystopian style book, they're either depressing or they make you extremely angry. This wasn't the case here. Well, the anger, maybe a little bit, but I think for me there was more a sense of resignation at the inevitable future Pinsker has created. But the thing that made this one different from every other dystopia I've read is that there's a sense of people being able to take things back--not through war but through something positive, their love of music. It's love of art and love of expression that brings people together here, forming those connections, and this is a love that can change the world.

I think this is an incredible book that has a lot to say. There are so many things that are touched on briefly, everything from the current state of healthcare and people's fear of medical bills to rampant commercialism to the government's control of the populace through fear. There's a lot of food for thought in this one. But above it all is the music. Pinsker's love for music really shines through in this book, and that was the highlight for me. This book, more than anything, reads like a love letter to music, the way that Mark Helprin's Winter's Tale reads like a love letter to New York City.

If I had to offer criticisms, well, as much as I enjoyed the characters, I felt as if they were a bit distant, but I was okay with that here. I also thought parts of the story meandered, which isn't so much a criticism as an observation, as not everyone will be down for something that is a slower pace. If you're looking for a thriller, or something with a lot of action, this is not the book for you. However, if you're looking for a thoughtful story touching on a few issues in the world while reminding us of the importance of the human connection through art, this is probably one you're going to want to pick up. 4/5 stars.

Great choice for science fiction and music fans alike. Delves into what happens to society to in closes inward to lonliness and the natural tendency to need connection.

It's the end of the world but there's still music only you have to see it live by hologram since large gatherings are forbidden. In the "before" Luce Cannon was on the edge of music stardom but a series of terrorist attacks and a world wide plague put an end to that Now in the "after" Rosemary wants to revitalize Luce's career without selling out to the corporation or her ideals. A fun, interesting, plausible,
dystopian story about music with two lesbian protagonists, what could be better.

I received an advance copy of this book via NetGalley.

I'm a big fan of Sarah Pinsker's work. I adored her collection <i>Sooner or Later Everything Falls Into the Sea</i> and have been genuinely excited that her first novel would be inspired by her fantastic novelette "Our Lady of the Open Road." The book absolutely lived up to my high expectations.

Pinsker's science fiction is eerily plausible: a near-future world where a series of terrorist attacks and illness with high mortality have led to laws against congregations of people. Society fully embraces the digital and insular, relying on drone delivery for most all goods and on virtual experiences for dating, sports events, and--most notably for this book--concerts, with StageHoloLive being the major purveyor of much entertainment.

Enter the two protagonists: Luce, a gifted musician on the cusp of going big when the world fell apart, and Rosemary, a young woman rendered agoraphobic by her parents and culture, but who perkily heads out to find undercover musical acts as part of her new job for StageHoloLive. All of the characters in the book are nuanced and realistic, and Pinsker's own background in bands completely grounds the world. This develops into a book with some shades of Charles de Lint's works, yet with an original, fresh approach to a timeless theme: a celebration of music, of EXPERIENCING music, of how much more is involved than merely listening.

This book is beautiful, and its depths with linger with me for a long while.

A Song for a New Day follows two women tyring to discover (or rediscover) who they are and how they can make a difference in a worryingly plausible future where it's illegal to gather in groups of more than three or four people at a time. Luce Cannon, a singer who was briefly famous before the anti-congregration laws were put in place (In the "Before"), wants to push people out of their isolation and back into publich. Rosemary Laws, who doesn't remember much of the Before, is stuck in a dead-end job and wants to make something of herself. When Rosemary takes on a job as a recruiter for a performing arts company that isn't quite what it seems, the two are put on a collision course.

I don't know a lot about music beyond enjoying it, but this book was amazing, and a real pleasure to read. Both characters are sympathetic, with plausible flaws and very personal dreams that make them both feel like real people. The tension is a nice mix of internal (Rosemary's naivete clashing with the cynicism required by her new job; Luce's desire to change the world one fan at a time clashing with her fear of getting too close to others) and external, as both characters struggle against the restrictions put upon them by the non-congregration laws and the social structures that have grown up around it.

I also appreciated that the dystopian future is not all dystopian. Some people genuinely like some of the changes, and one character, Joni, points out that in some ways the anti-congregration laws have levelled the playing field. It's always nice to see some nuance in near-future dystopias, instead of backwards-looking fantasies about The Good Old Days.

The plot, the characters, and the setting all kept me reading along past my bedtime, leading to a few bleary-eyed mornings, which I always know means I've found a book worth reading.

I could go on, but in short, this book is fantastic! Read it!

An interesting premise and well done. After terrorist attacks gatherings are banned. Music is played in secret. Very cool

A Song for a New Day by Sarah Pinsker is a near future dystopian cyberpunk speculative fiction novel (is that a redundant group of labels?) that centers women musicians and technology experts existing within an unjust society. This review will contain some information about the plot and characters, but I will attempt to keep it relatively spoiler free.

The story is told from the perspectives of two queer women: Luce, who is a musician and composer of what seems to be some amalgamation of rock music genres, and Rosemary, who is a computer expert stuck working for mega-corporations- Superwally and SHL- in order to survive. Live music gatherings, among other things, are illegal and Luce is doing everything in her power to keep the real-life music interaction alive. Rosemary becomes entangled in all of this when she begins working for a music corporation- StageHolo Live (SHL)- which organizes virtual concerts which can be experienced via "hoodies"- a sort of virtual reality technology that is worn by the user, allowing them to become integrated into the simulation.

I enjoyed this book and found it captured my attention and interest well. I do have to say that one thing that was difficult to follow while reading was the timeline. It seems to be set in the future. But, then there are mentions of the 30-something characters having seen Neil Young and other older artists in concert. I kept thinking, wait, are we in an alternative reality to today? Or is this a very very near future in which someone my age could have witnessed these bands and also exist in this repressive anti-music regime? It was also not clear to me exactly why music gatherings were illegal. There are some dangerous occurrences such as bomb threats and disease outbreaks at the start of the novel that I assumed would be further explained later, but the story just sort of passes over them on to the story surrounding seeking out live music in a world where it is illegal. When I started the book, knowing this premise from the blurb, I assumed that the illegality of live music was some sort of repression of free expression by an authoritarian government. However, it is explained that music itself is not illegal, only gathering for live music (as well as protests.) So, I now wonder if it is promoted to "protect" from bomb threats or plague outbreaks. This is never really made clear to me aside from the fact that the illegality is real and oppressive.

This is an acceptable way to create a dystopian environment, don't get me wrong. I don't necessarily need everything to be spelled out for me. But, when it is not, I prefer the world building to be a little more immersive than it was in this book. That said, I still felt drawn into the story. The environments that were created around live shows and everything surrounding them as well as Rosemary's lived experiences were very immersive.

Something I really enjoyed about this book was the centering of queer women as main characters. Often a story that dares to put a queer women near the center will be too afraid to center more than one woman and will supplement with less marginalized characters. This author was brave enough to build the story around the lives of two queer women. It is not entirely clear if queerness itself is also illegal along with live music, but the weaving of queer and occasional trans characters into a story with oppressive governments and corrupt megacorportations obviously says something about both backgrounds. There was a bit of the assumption of universal whiteness- characters of color were introduced by their race while other characters are assumed to be white by default. So, the handling of race could have been better. But, overall, I enjoyed the character make up in this book a lot.

In order to make this review as spoiler-free as possible, I won't say too many specifics about the plot. I will say there are some interesting twists and turns fitting in nicely with the classic cyberpunk genre (which I love.) The characters are well written, imperfect, relatable, and believable. The book is interesting with a premise I have not read about before. There are so many books in the world that I cannot say for sure whether the whole music take on the dystopia has been done before. But, it was original as far as my own experience goes.

A Song for a New Day comes out in September of 2019 and is definitely worth a read. It will likely appeal to many audiences, but it is extra special for those of us who are LGBTQ to see ourselves represented in a story in such immersive ways. The story is not about being LGBTQ as much as the characters just happen to be. Thus, it is appropriate for anyone into dystopian stories, stories surrounding musicians, and/or cyberpunk fans.