The Unfixed Stars

‘I absolutely loved this novel . . . Think of the great open spaces of a John Steinbeck novel. Think of the gin-and-jazz era of Scott Fitzgerald sent through the prism of a fine modern imagination’

Readers Digest

It’s 1928. Alan Barber is in love with his best friend’s girl. Clyde Tombaugh is stuck at home farming crops – about as far from his dream of becoming an astronomer as is possible. But by 1930, Alan will be enthralled in his life’s greatest romance, and Clyde will have made one of the most significant astronomical discoveries of the twentieth century. Based on a true story, this is an incredible tale of love, ambition and the fullest sweep of human emotion. Filled with a wondrous cast of fascinating characters and set in the last, vibrant days of the flapper era, it’s a novel that will leave you as awestruck as the clear night sky.

‘The Unfixed Stars is ambitious in its scope, but to read it is to entrust yourself to a writer in seemingly complete control’

Times Literary Supplement

‘It is a rich mix of characters, and Byers handles them assuredly. He has the rare ability to make a multistranded story seem utterly coherent and seamless. Their tales are suffused with a lovely sense of the period . . . If a passing alien were to be curious about the hopes, dreams and fears of the species who launched the probe, The Unfixed Stars would be a good place to start’ The Times