Published by St. Martin's Press on February 15, 2022

Mickey7 is the kind of book that science fiction readers don’t often see — an intelligent story of alien contact that suggests diplomacy is preferable to war. Edward Ashton assembles several familiar science fiction components (colonization of new worlds, storing consciousness and transferring it to an artificially created body, aliens that have a distributed intelligence) and assembles them into an entertaining story that seems fresh despite its familiarity.

The future Diaspora is a recurring theme in science fiction — the idea that humanity will develop the technology to colonize other planets and that (as history shows) plenty of people will be willing to risk danger for the chance to make a new life in a new place. In this version of the future, humans have little choice but to flee from Earth after nearly destroying the planet. Mickey7 takes a deeper-than-average dive into likely reality of colonization. It’s possible to identify planets in the Goldilocks zone that show evidence of having an oxygen-nitrogen atmosphere, but it’s impossible to know whether those planets will support human life, even after a hundred years of terraforming, until humans try to establish a colony. Occasionally colonies thrive. Usually colonists manage to get by or everyone dies.

The plot is fairly simple, with only a few significant characters and a straightforward storyline. In this case, simplicity is a virtue. Mickey got into some trouble and needed to get off a planet. He joined a colony ship in the only available position — as an expendable. His memories are downloaded and his DNA is recorded. When he dies — and that’s part of the job, because some jobs require human exposure to radiation or other deadly environments — a new body will be printed, his last-recorded memories will be uploaded to his new brain, and he’ll be good to go. Except for the dying part, which is usually quite unpleasant.

During one of his trips outside the dome, Mickey’s seventh incarnation falls down a hole and into a labyrinth of tunnels. His friend assumes that Mickey will soon be eaten by indigenous creatures called creepers. By the time Mickey makes his way out of the tunnels, Mickey8 has been printed. Having two versions in existence at the same time creates all sorts of problems with food rations, so at least one of them will have to go. When neither volunteers, they try to keep their dual existence a secret. That’s an entertaining premise for a story that explores the complications of two identical guys canoodling with two different women while each tries to make do on half the usual rations.

The story eventually leads to a confrontation between the Mickeys and their boss, as well as between the Mickeys and the indigenous life forms. The resolution suggests that creative people can solve problems without killing everyone in sight. I might recommend Mickey7 for that alone, but I also recommend it because the story as a whole is fun and the characters are likeable.

RECOMMENDED

Mickey7....

Space, colonization, misunderstood aliens, reoccurring nightmare reincarnation


Good ol' Mickey from Midgard is a everything average dude that gets himself into trouble betting against his college old friend's sports game. Landing him in a massive debt he has to abandon his planet by any means possible to get away. Leading to him being the first person to be a Expendable in history to date. Expendable being a rough word for immortal. But the planet, being VERY misread as very habitual for human life has been raining on their parade since day one. It gets to the point that they are attached by exoskeletal ant things when they go past their dome and their crops are failing and are on rations. Then Mickey ends up with a double Mickey in the middle of a food shortage with a hardass commander trying to keep splitting a uner 2k between 2 clone diet for one. The aliens are not what they seem! That's all i'm going to say. Thank you Macmillion Publishing for letting me read this ARC.

Though the space talk was a bit much for filler fyi

"The way they sell you on becoming an Expendable is that they don’t call it becoming an Expendable. They call it becoming an Immortal. That’s got a much nicer ring to it, doesn’t it?"

Quite a clever, futuristic spin on a dystopian future where humans have to colonize distant worlds to survive. Mickey volunteers to be an "Expendable" as they call it, basically a crash test dummy for the trek and cohort he is with. After one mission, he is assumed dead, with the next iteration of himself being produced. But this was a mistake, suddenly there are two versions of Mickey now…

I truly enjoyed the author's perspective and storytelling approach. In one of the author's interviews about the book, he says he wants it to read like Mickey is telling his story in a bar after the fact, and I believe this is portrays the flow well. The plot is really a science fiction thriller, but with lots of humor throughout that I wasn't expecting but enjoyed.

The author does a great job of hitting key themes like humanity, what it means to have a soul, romance in the future, with many references to how we as humans are destroying our world.

I truly enjoyed this book. I'm excited to see how the movie turns out. My main criticism is I wanted more. I felt that the book had quite a bit of build up, discussing this new future with character development that could have been expanded upon more. I think the story could have been taken to the next level. I hope the author plans to have a sequel to this story!

I do recommend. I greatly enjoyed this read. I have downgraded to "four stars'' based on my comments above, I just feel the author could have given us more. I look forward to seeing what other books this author puts out, though!

The comments above are mine without influence.

This book was so much fun! Mickey Barnes is an "expendable" - someone sent on space expeditions to be the one used in dangerous, usually life threatening situations - radiation exposure, vicious space creatures, hostile environments, dangerous ship repairs. After one version of Mickey dies, another clone is regenerated on the ship complete with the latest downloaded memories. However, when Mickey survives unexpectedly he must contend with the fact that a clone has already been regenerated to take his place. What transpires is reminiscent of a comedy of errors as both Mickeys try to navigate thru the space colony without giving away their secret. This is a quick and easy enjoyable read!

An excellent alternative view on the gritty reality a singularity could deliver and the ethical questions it could creates through fun disposable life lens.

Mickey7 is the 7th iteration of Mickey Barnes, who signed up to be the Expendible on an expedition to colonize another planet. Just from the title, we can see the job is dangerous. The story begins when Mickey7 gets into a situation where he is presumed dead, and yet he doesn't die. When he returns to base, he has a lot to deal with including the fact that Mickey8 is now up and living, and there needs to only be one of them. There is also a huge group of creepers already living on the planet - they seem powerful, and seem to want to kill the humans. Plus, the world is unexpectedly covered with ice. And, of course, there are people who dislike clones. With all these issues, the story could be quite grim, but instead it's a good mix of humor and dark.

I'm always interested in colonization stories, so a big bonus for me in this book was the Mickey is also fascinated by these, and so we get a lot of brief summaries of successful and failed attempts. I greatly enjoyed these. And I enjoyed the rest of the book as well - big thanks to netgalley and the author and publisher for the review copy!

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free copy in exchange for my honest review!!

There was a lot I really loved about this book, and a good bit that I didn't. I loved Mickey as a main character. He was intelligent and levelheaded but very irreverent towards his current situation. His inner thoughts made me laugh often and I loved his zero f-cks given attitude. I also really enjoyed the overall plot and world building. Ashton managed to make a massive universe feel fleshed out and real without having to dedicate a lot of time to explaining irrelevant places or concepts. The sentient creatures were super cool and I was very interested in learning about them.

Outside of Mickey, I found the characters insufferable. Everyone seemed so overly snotty and I did not understand why Mickey was friendly with them. They felt flat and many of their decisions did not make sense to me.

Overall I enjoyed the book and would recommend it to anyone looking for a light scifi read!

What is it that makes you you?

It’s a question that often arises in the speculative fiction realm, whether we’re talking about cloning or duplication or digitization of consciousness. What is it that fundamentally marks us as the person we are? And if your consciousness – your thoughts, your memories, your hopes and your fears and whatever else – is meticulously recreated and placed in a body that is genetically identical to your own … is it still you?

Edward Ashton’s new novel “Mickey7” revolves around that specific question, raising all manner of ethical and logistical concerns about what it even means to be a person. And at what point does a person stop being a person and become something other? If you can’t tell the difference, is there a difference?

Now, while this is definitely some high concept sci-fi, it’s also a taut, fast-paced narrative. You’ve got some action, some mystery, some comedic hijinks, all wrapped together to create a sharply written and smart story.

In the future, humans have begun attempting to colonize other worlds. It is a massive undertaking, one that is incredibly difficult and expensive – and with no guarantee of success. These colony ships are launched toward distant planets whose makeup is only vaguely understood – all they know when they get underway is that their destination is habitable by humans. Probably.

These missions require all manner of specialized personnel to have any chance. Scientists and soldiers and other highly-skilled people, all devoted to a singular goal. But there’s one slot that no one wants to occupy, a position that often requires conscription to fill.

That of Expendable.

Mickey7 is one such Expendable. An Expendable is the person on a mission who takes on any necessary task that is too dangerous and potentially deadly for anyone of value to attempt. Instead, they send the Expendable. If they die, their consciousness – previously uploaded and regularly updated – is transferred into a newly-grown cloned body. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Mickey7 is the Expendable for the colony on the ice world Niflheim. He’s got few friends – not many people trust Expendables; there’s even a popular religion that condemns them – but he gets by. When an accident leaves Mickey7 lying broken at the bottom of an icy ravine, he is presumed dead and the process is begun for Mickey8.

Only Mickey7 didn’t die. And when he makes his way back to base, he discovers his replacement has already arrived. And in a world where every gram of protein is accounted for, another mouth to feed – particularly one that shouldn’t exist in the first place – isn’t what anyone wants. If they get caught, they likely both get recycled. One of them has got to go.

But which one?

The two try to keep their secret under wraps, but it isn’t long before those closest to Mickey start to have some questions. Oh, and the atmosphere is unsuitable, the food supply is running low and terraforming isn’t really working. Plus, the planet’s native species are starting to develop some real curiosity about the newcomers – and it’s unclear just what their intentions might be. Keeping the whole thing from going boom is one hell of a dangerous job.

Good thing they’ve got Mickey.

“Mickey7” is a great example of good sci-fi, striking the balance between thoughtful exploration of ideas and rip-roaring storytelling. While it doesn’t shy away from the deeper ramifications of its central conceit, it also doesn’t allow itself to get bogged down by them. By folding its ideas into a well-told tale involving interesting characters and circumstances, the reader gets the best of both worlds.

As far as speculative protagonists go, you could do a hell of a lot worse than Mickey. The juxtaposition of his rich inner life and his external disposability makes for a compelling character. The fact that he’s written with a wry sense of humor – more fatalistic than quippy, which makes sense considering his situation – only deepens him.

Ashton’s done a good job of world-building here as well. And he’s done so largely contextually, which is always welcome. Rather than offering up an expository info dump, he weaves the details into the story itself. Our understanding of Mickey’s world is doled out in pieces; we receive it as we need it in a manner that feels organic rather than forced. It might seem a small thing, but there are a LOT of speculative writers who can’t quite get the hang of it. Ashton has no such problems.

It's no surprise that the book has already been optioned to get the movie treatment – there’s a cinematic quality inherent to both the interpersonal relationships and macro action throughout. There are some major names potentially involved, though I’d advise to try and keep your slate clean until after reading – it’s so much better to initially craft your own aesthetic in your mind’s eye rather than experience the story through someone else’s.

“Mickey7” is an earnest effort, a sharp speculative work that is both intellectually-oriented and action-packed. It is smart and funny and well-crafted across the board. If you’re a fan of science fiction, you won’t regret meeting Mickey. He's so fine.

This story held my attention and I finished it fairly quickly. I enjoyed Mickey's story and the ending was satisfying. However, I agree with a previous reviewer about the endless flashbacks and info dumps. They didn't add much to the story, and Mickey's life was far more interesting (to say the least), so the info dumps just slowed the story down. There's also a fade-to-black threesome scene that should've been left out of the story, and if I ever have to hear about "cycler paste" again, it will be too soon.

I’m sold any time I see a sci fi book with a vaguely interesting premise and a great cover. And this one has clones! Mickey is a replaceable human who takes on dangerous tasks as his group tries to populate a new world as part of their mission. When he is thought to be dead, he is replaced and then there end up being two Mickeys running around which… no one wants. I thought this one fun but I wanted a little more depth from it. I alternated listening to the audiobook and reading the ebook and I thought the audiobook was really great — there were a few touches to make it special.

I actually had to DNF this one at around the 38% mark. It was just boring. There were a lot of flashbacks to when Mickey first became an Expendable and there was very little about what was happening in the present.

Book received for free through NetGalley

I took out the book version and didn’t get a chance to start reading before the audiobook version was available. Thus this is for the audio version.

The narrator was good, the story was great, and I needed to know what would happen next. Overall a good read.

If you like science fiction reads then you won't be disappointed by Mickey7. Mickey is an expendable and he's the only one. This means he uploads all of his memories for backup and can die and be remade (it seems a nasty process) and download all of the memories. But Mickey7 is left for dead and they create Mickey8. There aren't supposed to be two Mickeys existing at the same time so this is quite a problem for the future colony living on an isolated planet. I liked the main character and I stayed engaged during the whole book. Well done.

So when I sat down to review this book, I’ll admit I had a hard time putting my thoughts to paper, as it were. Mickey7 isn’t a bad book, per se, it’s just not a book I felt like finishing if that makes sense. Let’s put it this way, I started reading it on the 12th and managed to make it to 60% of the way through before I gave up on the 26th.

The characters were fine, I just didn’t find anything really loveable about them. Mickey is written as a Mark Watney type (you know, from the Martian), a kind of comedic view into the harsh realities of intergalactic travel and planet habitation. To me, he just kind of fell flat. I just wasn’t as engaged with his journey as I would have liked, and given that his is the one we are supposed to relate to, that’s a problem.

The side characters were okay. One of his friends is written to be a jerk, and he absolutely is. I appreciated that. Unfortunately, this wasn’t enough to hold my attention.

The complex problem of finding a planet that meets our requirements for life, isn’t actually hospitable, and inhabiting said planet, was just okay. It didn’t thrill me to learn of, let’s call it, escalating tensions with their new neighbors. I wasn’t really invested in that conflict.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that if I had tried to push myself, I could have finished this book, but life is too short and there are too many books out there for me to keep reading one I don’t like. 1 star.

I genuinely wasn't sure what I was getting into with this one. Not only am I not typically one to take a risk on a sci-fi book I might not like, I'm even less likely to take a risk on one that is too offbeat or campy to keep me from being bored or cringing too much. This one manages to get right into it from the beginning, it's not going to take itself too seriously and it's not going to hold back on the facts of Mickey's life, but why would we want it to? This one is darkly humorous, endearing, and surprising in all the right ways. Mickey is absolutely an antihero and he has quite the tale to tell once he's figured out where his life has taken him. Sometimes this one is a bit like Duncan Jones' Moon, on other occasions it's a bit Woody Allen, and others it goes toward a more humorous take on Annihilation. I think this is a good bet for fans of sci-fi that doesn't take itself too seriously but also takes us to places we might never have imagined on our own with it.

4.5 stars, rounding up because it was such a great reading experience. A little less action than I was expecting, and the half-star is for some shakiness in the beginning-- there is a fair bit of backstory that is less smoothly incorporated and feels like info dumping. The narrator/MC also starts out by addressing the reader more frequently; this would be ok if it were a thing throughout the book, but it kind of drops away and isn't maintained.

A funny and quick read. Hand to readers who liked Project Hail Mary, because of the snarky main character who keeps his sass level high even in the face of death. The slight possible changes in personality between instantiations (as his copies are called) was hinted at but not explored; it did make me think of We Are Legion (We Are Bob) and is also a good suggestions for Dennis E. Taylor readers.

Edward Ashton’s Mickey7 is set in a future where ones entire being can be backed up, and reconstituted if something happens to you. This technology is mostly used in space exploration, so that dangerous jobs can be handled, but if something goes wrong, the user can be recreated. Our hapless hero Mickey, who left behind many debts to go on the mission as the expendable, is now in his 7th iteration. His colleagues think he died and so created Mickey8, but when he returns to the base, the two Mickeys have to figure out if they can or should coexist. They also to have decide how to deal with the alien life forms on the planet. It’s a clever exploration of what makes a person a person, with some good romantic comedy and space tensions thrown in.

"Here’s a thought experiment for you: Imagine you found out that when you go to sleep at night, you don’t just go to sleep. You die. You die, and someone else wakes up in your place the next morning. He’s got all your memories. He’s got all your hopes and dreams and fears and wishes. He thinks he’s you, and all your friends and loved ones do too. He’s not you, though, and you’re not the guy who went to sleep the night before. You’ve only existed since this morning, and you will cease to exist when you close your eyes tonight. Ask yourself—would it make any practical difference in your life? Is there any way that you could even tell?"

This is a really solid futuristic sci Fi novel. Reminds me very strongly of edge of tomorrow in terms of the feel and similar story ideas (Live die repeat).

Mickey is an expendable. He needed to get off Midgard and fast, so he chose this job, where his purpose is to do the dangerous jobs and die, a lot. In painful, miserable ways. And then he wakes up, in a new body, and another Mickey is born. But what happens when another Mickey is born and the previous one didn't die?

This is a solid alien story with a lot of complex philosophical discussion (ship of Theseus) and a lot of fun too. I really enjoyed it and will definitely read the sequel.

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin's press for giving me and advanced review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a story about the ship of Theseus personified.

This was a funny, unexpectedly philosophical sci fi adventure. I found myself trying to figure out if I believed Mickey 7 is still Mickey- he has all his memories? He has his face? But he’s the 7th in a line of potentially infinite reiterations of an “expendable” human. The possible uses for a person who could be copied are endless- medical testing? Radiation? Dangerous alien interactions? Anything you wouldn’t do to a person whose death would actually matter, would suddenly be an option… what a fascinating and horrifying idea. Towards the end it was a bit odd (even by sci fi standards) but overall an enjoyable ride.

Thank you so much netgalley macmillan audio & St. Martin’s press for the ALC & eARC. The narration & in story sound effects are great, so I would highly recommend listening in addition to reading.

I'm not sure what drew me to this title, but I haven't read much science fiction lately, and I really enjoyed Mickey7.

Mickey is an "expendable." He's on a long journey to colonize a new planet. He's expendable because if he dies, they have a copy of his DNA, complete with memories, so that he can be regenerated. This is really helpful for dangerous missions, but dying isn't fun.

The seventh version of Mickey is on one of those missions and is left for dead. But he manages to return to the bubble where they are trying to survive on a most inhospitable planet. When he returns to his bunk, there is Mickey8, fresh out of the regenerator.

This is a problem for several reasons. If anyone finds out, they will both be thrown into the regenerator. Everyone is on survival rations, and now the two Mickeys have to share. And, the most obvious problem, in my opinion, is how are they supposed to get around and do their duties on the ship? This was the biggest flaw in the plot. They are both out of their room at the same time. One on duty, one doing something else. They don't know each other's experiences. Seven has a wrist injury, and 8 doesn't even seem to care to fake it. Neither of them is very careful or concerned enough. Of course, they are going to be discovered, but how soon?

The premise of the expendables is interesting. They are loathed by some as an abomination, and therefore much discriminated against. The terraforming on this ice-covered planet is going badly. Food is scarce. The wormlike native creatures are beginning to attack. Will Mickey save the day?

Mickey7 is exciting, if a bit far-fetched, and kept my interest. It has been compared to The Martian, and even if it doesn't live up to the comparison, it is entertaining. And it's going to be a movie starring Robert Pattinson. If you like the terraforming, survival, overcoming the natives type of sci-fi, you'll like Mickey7.