Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This is an intelligent, well written sci fi novel that has philosophied the concept of a multi universe. We look thorough the lenses of our heroine who despite the odds of surviving in other words she has beat those odds. While her thoughts are bleak and her life that of a traveler whose worth is based on how well she can travel from Earth to earth, her determination to rise above expectation is admirable. The author did a terrific job creating a realistic picture of what a multi universe would be like and setting the rules of traveling.
While the plot did lag in parts it's a story worth reading.

I loved the concept for this novel--"Multiverse travel is finally possible, but there’s just one catch: No one can visit a world where their counterpart is still alive"--and was thrilled when it became about much more than the logistics of inter-universe traversing. The title, "The Space Between Worlds" is about much more than a multitude of Earths--Cara finds herself between the worlds of Ashtown and Wiley, between the worlds of "Rurals" and "Runners" and between the worlds of love and indifference. Twists abound throughout, creating complex scenarios beyond the complications of mutiverse travel.

*** I”ve received this ARC in exchange for an honest review *** 

TLDR: a solid sci fi must read for 2020!

I’ve been really enjoying this read. This feels like a sci-fi that focuses on dimensional travel, but simplifies it in such a way where you don’t have to know physics or science to understand the technology or how it works. The author perfectly meshes spirituality with science in such a way that brings meaning to the saying that sufficiently advanced science looks like magic, and it totally does here. 

The clear class and racial differences also add another layer onto the story that ties tit well together. Without the social structure, I feel that it would not have worked well to tie the story together.

I wasn’t always a fan of the relationships portrayed, but who does?, however they seemed realistic. It’s hard to escape some things. It was just so interesting to see how the various characters played out in different worlds, and what did or did not happen in her’s. 

I’ve enjoyed my time in their worlds, and would give a hardy recommend to other readers who enjoy sci-fi but don’t want to dive into a reference book every time they read. This is pure reading enjoyment.

Good stuff. Imaginative, good amount of action, and fun time travel. It has well written characters, good pacing, and the right amount of suspense. I may have to read it again -- fun. Recommended.

Thank you very much for the ARC for review!!

This book is about a woman who travels to many alternate worlds. I enjoyed the difference and the similarities of alternate worlds. Not just with her but the other ones in the story. How small changes in people's choices makes a difference. It's not so science detailed that it's impossible to read but does get slightly detailed on the experience of the travel. I wasn't happy with the way it ended but that is more of a personal preference. I liked this book and would recommend it. I would read more books by this author.

I thought was crazy cool and really well written and I loved the concept (young people traveling to alternative versions of Earth and bringing back data that can help save our own planet from disease, natural disasters, etc.) and the book explores some really interesting and relevant themes (specifically race, poverty and sexuality). There are at least 5-6 awesome twists that I did not see coming, and it's definitely one of the better sci-fi books i've read recently!

The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson is a story about the multiverse and what would happen if we could travel between these worlds. Cara is a traveler. She walks the space between parallel worlds and gathers information to bring home. She can do this because on most worlds she is dead. That is the one thing she is good at doing, dying. Her doppelgängers are only living on eight versions of Earth that can be traveled to. This makes her something special as most people can't travel to as many worlds as she can.

I really enjoyed the idea of alternate versions of the world, but for me it was the relationship of the characters that really made the story for me. Dell is Cara's handler at Eldridge and from the opening we see that she cares, and that Cara thrives in those moments. In person Dell seems aloof though and Cara can't help flirting with her.Then there is Nik Nik the Emperor of the Ashtown, who Cara thinks she knows on every world. Ester Cara's sister who is wise while still being innocent. These characters are mix of rough and polished and it works well to see the contrast of the city and Ashtown and the people from both. 

The author opens with a very reflective almost philosophical writing style. It isn't maintained through out the story though and most of the story is told in an easily accessible style. This isn't a young adult book but it reads like one. The story doesn't go into the details of the science fiction invention that allows for the travel between Earths, but you know it is there. Overall this was a light read. I think it will be best enjoyed by readers of young adult fantasy/science fiction. 

I enjoyed escaping to different Earths with Cara.

This book was great. The characters were unique and interesting and so diverse. The plot was fun and intense and kept me guessing all the way through to the end. I really enjoyed it.

Unfortunately, I'm marking this as DNF/did not finish. While the beginning was intriguing, I found the excessive usage of exposition made it difficult to fully get into the flow of the story, particularly due to the dry prose. While it was intriguing when we learned that Caramenta was from another world rather than the one she lives in, it wasn't enough to invest me in reading. I also found the world-building inconsistent at points and confusing at others. If Caramenta gets brutally injured to the point of death when she arrives in another Earth where Nelline still lives, why can she continue to exist there after healing? If two people can't exist in the same world together, it should hold true for the rest of their stay there, even if they've healed. It was interesting that Nelline and Caramenta couldn't look at each other because their brains rioted, believing they were hallucinating from poison, but that didn't remain consistent either, as later on in the book Nelline and Caramenta seemed to look at each other quite often due to their understanding of each other's expressions. I needed logic behind that, and perhaps we get information later on, but I'm not invested enough in the plot or the characters to continue reading.

"It is only one world in infinite universes where this impossible happiness exists, but that is what makes it so valuable." 

This was, in short, a very good book. I'll preface my review by saying that the multiverse is one of my FAVORITE topics in science fiction, and The Space Between Worlds was a fascinating and unique application of the idea. Johnson weaves together believable science, a Mad-Max esque dystopian society on the fringes of  an equally dystopian utopia, and poignant commentary on class  and race to create a unique and thoroughly breathtaking tale. While the world-building was also great, one of the best parts was that this, like most of my favorite science fiction, was firmly grounded in humanity. This novel explored notions of the multiverse but also meditated on topics of psychology and philosophy. It asked questions such as: what causes people to act as they do? Is there such thing as an "ideal" version of ourselves? Are we as people capable of change, or are we so firmly grounded in our ways as to be intractable? And all this without being too-heavy handed. 

Furthermore, Cara was a remarkable protagonist with the kind of strong, singular voice I often fail to see in contemporary sci-fi. I also thought her romance with Dell was lovely.  I would strongly recommend this to anyone looking for a refreshing, heartfelt science fiction story that will stay with you long after the final page.

THE SPACE BETWEEN WORLDS has almost everything a good science fiction tale needs:  great quotes from physicists and philosophers to tickle our imaginations as we begin sections, compelling characters that dazzle and charm and a backstory that engages;  but somehow it just doesn’t quite pull everything together.  Author Micaiah Johnson has crafted an impressive novel and one that kept me engaged for the most part.  I just kept wondering why the tale felt repetitive when it didn’t need to;  when there was so much available to wow me further.  Even when there were great twists in the story, they were repeated too often to keep them fresh.  Perhaps this book would do better with a younger audience, there’s nothing here to prevent young adults from adoring this book.  For SF readers, it was a tad repetitive and a bit too long.  But these are minor complaints for a book that is worth reading.  I received my copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

I love science fiction about cross-dimensional travel and this is a great one. I've always been fascinated by the concept of the multi-verse and of meeting your Doppelgänger on another world.  This book explores the idea of traveling to other versions of the world where things have turned out differently.  While it is not easy to survive a trip to a world where you already exist in this book, it does happen. The storyline is full of twists that will keep you guessing.

I absolutely adored this book. I haven’t felt like reading lately and this book hooked me right from the start. I enjoyed the whole thing.

The Space Between Worlds is a mystery, a love story, a world-building science fiction story that succeeds at all three.  The protagonist works at a unique job that allows her to experience virtually unlimited versions of her own world with the resulting interaction between those worlds affecting everyone on her “own” world. The existence of multiple versions of herself and everyone she interacts with provides multiple interlacing stories that are ably kept clear and intriguingly revealed by a masterful story teller.  The relationships created and the world moving events of this story beg a sequel - al least one. There are multiple story lines that are left open and the appetite for their continuation is wetted.

this is a unique, beautifully crafted story. i was immersed almost instantly and grew to love this story so much. i will reccomend this to all my friends, because this is not one to miss

Wow! Micaiah Johnson has written a book with so much depth and constantly changing enigma that  it was hard to put down. 
It made me think of the many facets of a person, each singled out to be a different version of themselves. Ever thought that with just one different choice, or change in circumstances you might be a different person? Or heard the old adage, "But for the grace of God, there go I?" That's what I thought of while reading "The Space Between Worlds".  Cara is sent to do a job and doing that job forces her to come in contact with different versions of people she's either known and loved, or known and feared. The hard part is that on most of the worlds she visits she's already died, otherwise she couldn't visit those worlds, she couldn't go into the space between worlds if there was a version of her still living...or could she? And what would be the consequences if she did?  She has to come to terms with those different versions of people she knew on her own world and choose how to either trust them, or escape from them, learn when to let go and when to hold on. 
This is easily the best book I've read so far this year and it will stick with me for quite some time.

This book immersed me in so many different worlds all at once so beautifully. The story pieced together perfectly. And the romance had ME pining for more. A novel truly out of this world.

Cara is a cross-dimensional traveler who visits worlds where her parallel selves are no more - dead from a life that could have easily taken her. She is a survivor with a big enough heart that when things start to turn south, she fights. She carries around a guilt for surviving when her alternate selves have not, but knows that the world she lives in is cruel and uncaring and it is every person for themselves. The author gives us an emotional four parts in this book, each filled with secrets, adventures, and a heavy plot that leaves you aching until the end.

This novel delves deep in identity, privilege and belonging. It's a world where you take any opportunity thrown your way; and for Cara, she doesn't hesitate to leave her previous life not for a second. If it means keeping secrets from her employers and kind-of-crush, Dell, then it's a risk she's more than willing to take. She finds that she is very good at her job, and it's easy to go with the flow of it. We witness the struggles Cara faces with her survival when her other, alternate selves, have not. But in a cruel world where her people are looked down on, and given little to no opportunity to strive, she carries herself with her head held high and knows that one wrong move could have all if it crumbling down. 

I personally had no idea where this book was going, but it strung me up and took me for one wild ride. Oh boy, I had no idea I was going to feel like this when I finished. It was a stunning debut, and though the premise seems like it would lean heavily into sci-fi, I found that it wasn't and I didn't even mind. I was more interested in the characters and the world-building - which, absolutely stunning. We get a diverse world, with diverse characters, and a build-up that did not disappoint.  

Looking for a book filled with political intrigue, deception, incredible world-building and characters with an engrossing story? This is for you.

CW: abuse, torture, gore

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

The perfect book for fans who enjoy travel to parallel universes. It has the right mix of acceptance, quest for social justice, and excitement. A story of hope

This was a tightly woven plot with consistently held rules. The book is divided into four parts, and I was a little worried at each transition that the story would fall apart. But M. Johnson handled each transition with style and continuity. As new elements were added it just enriched the character and story as a whole.

I read some other reviews that highlighted the race and sexuality themes in this book. But to me these were side issues, the story was so engrossing as the reader got wrapped up in the plurality of existence and just what existence means for any one individual. It is refreshing to have these themes interwoven is such a way that they are an integral part of the story, and not just a tool to use to beat over the heads of old white guys in an effort to drum up guilt. Very refreshing indeed. This book deserves a broad audience for readers of this genre.

A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher for the purpose of review at Netgalley.com .A review was also posted at:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3281301544