Local Heavens - by K M Fajardo (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

A corporate hacker. An elusive billionaire. A society trying to survive the American Nightmare.

New York City, 2075. Filipino American Nick Carraway has just moved to the heart of the fractured New Americas, where he's struck by the city's contradictions--shining corporate towers casting bleak shadows over the slums of a crumbling middle class.

When Nick meets alluring, new-money Jay Gatsby, he falls for Gatsby's frank charm and confident aura. But in a city where the wealthy flaunt tech-enhanced bodies to cheat death, surfaces aren't all they seem--and as a corporate-sanctioned cyberspace hacker, Nick knows that no secret can stay buried forever. He's the reason they don't. And his latest assignment? Investigate Gatsby himself.

As Nick becomes entangled in the dark affairs of the elite--and the devastating fallout of their actions on the city's most vulnerable--he must reckon with the limits of compassion and accountability across class and status. What takes precedence: Love or truth? Heart or soul?

A brilliant reimagining of Fitzgerald's classic tale of glamour, desire, and desperation, Local Heavens examines the guardrails of morality . . . and the price of desire.

Review Quotes

"Easily one of my favorite books of the year. Fajardo's Local Heavens is not just a cyberpunk reinvention of The Great Gatsby, but a singular revelation in its own right. Creative, incisive, and elegantly crafted, this one will wow you even as it wrecks you--you'll be holding your breath to the end."

--Olivie Blake, New York Times bestselling author of The Atlas Six

"Gorgeous, decadent atmosphere. Local Heavens pierces to the core of an American classic, transforming the original Gatsby's prosperity and prohibition into an era of technological dominance and the consequences therein. An exemplary execution of the cyberpunk genre."

--Chloe Gong, New York Times bestselling author of Immortal Longings

"Luring us in with glitz and glamour, neon and chrome, Fajardo dazzles readers with a stunning retelling of The Great Gatsby, peeling away the layers till all that remains is the painfully human, flawed story of a man caught in the unforgiving space between the harsh reality and the seductive lies of the American dream--and how it destroys everything it touches."

--K. M. Enright, Sunday Times bestselling author of Mistress of Lies

"Beautiful, intelligent, timely, and so much fun, Fajardo's darkly futuristic reimagining of The Great Gatsby is imbued with a powerful appreciation for humanity and all of its flaws, whilst also maintaining an electric sense of building dread. In true sci-fi fashion, moral questions hover around the characters like vultures, and absolutely nothing is as it seems. I could not look away. A phenomenal new talent has entered the science fiction and fantasy space."

--Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Principle of Moment

"Glitzy and brimming with intrigue, Local Heavens is the queer cyberpunk Gatsby remix I didn't know I needed. Fajardo has built a dazzlingly unique world that is still as close to the Roaring Twenties as it is to our own times, and she has breathed new life into this classic tale about ambition and the American dream."

--Victor Manibo, author of The Sleepless and Escape Velocity

"A dazzling, propulsive take on a beloved classic, Local Heavens turns anew the timeless considerations of ambition, dreams, desire, and consequence in an astutely imagined and richly inventive cyberpunk reality. Full of gorgeous prose and narrative depth, this book was an absolute delight to read."

--Christina Li, author of The Manor of Dreams

"Local Heavens is the heady, sultry cyberpunk retelling of The Great Gatsby you didn't know you needed. Fajardo's writing is deliciously decadent and aching, both true to the spirit of the original and offering a fresh, startling spin on the carelessness of immense wealth and the people who get chewed up and spit out along the way. This is a gorgeous book. Keep your eye on this debut!"

--Yume Kitasei, author of The Deep Sky and Saltcrop

"Comprising a tech thriller, a speculative capitalist nightmare, and a cat-and-mouse noir against the backdrop of 2075-era New York City, K. M. Fajardo's cyberpunk remix of Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby is effortlessly greater than the sum of its parts. A pillar of American literature becomes electrified and transmuted in this sensational debut."

--Jinwoo Chong, author of Flux

"Local Heavens is deeply true to Fitzgerald's themes and texture, transmuting the classic into a sultry, haunting exploration of the American dream through the lens of one of the most common and underrepresented Americans--the diaspora Filipino.

"A high-tech, high-stakes melodrama of identity, intrigue, sexuality, power, and legacy. Fajardo draws out, with care and passion, the nigh-Shakespearean romance at the heart of Gatsby in the traditional, tragic sense of the genre. A shrewd, futuristic dismantling of the hypercapitalist empire of our past and present."

--Maya Gittelman, Ignyte-nominated writer and critic

"An ambitious, sizzling modern remake of Fitzgerald's classic that takes us to new heights and emotions. With unique twists and turns that are both fun and somber, Fajardo brings new and necessary questions about the future we are hurtling toward."

--Shubnum Khan, author of The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years

"Local Heavens is a dazzling, cyberpunk twist on The Great Gatsby. K. M. Fajardo's retelling brings a fresh, futuristic perspective to a beloved story, adding depth, dreaming, and dystopia all at once. A wonderful intersection of nostalgia and speculation."

--Christy Anne Jones (@christy-anne-jones), YouTuber and writer