Five lives are entangled across time by one story of survival and hope, uploaded to a floppy disk in the 1980s and destined to ripple across the centuries...
‘A joy—at once a gripping mystery that confidently spans centuries, and a hauntingly beautiful exploration of what makes us human...It kept me up all night!’ —Madeline Miller, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Circe and Song of Achilles
It’s 1983 and Becks can’t wait to get the hell out of Cincinnati. She’s nineteen, blasting her Walkman, and hiding from the fact that her beloved uncle, the only person who understood her, is dead. But she has work to do: he left her a half-finished game to complete—one last collaboration to find her way out of loneliness.
Little does she know, what Becks is making will echo far into the future and shape the lives of a scientist, a sentient automaton, and a flinty sea captain in ways she cannot imagine. All are bound together by their search for connection—and by a futuristic traveler on a mysterious mission through space.
A novel about our deep interconnectedness, Homebound is a clear-eyed, hopeful adventure into humanity’s future and capacity for love.
Genre: Literary Fiction
‘A joy—at once a gripping mystery that confidently spans centuries, and a hauntingly beautiful exploration of what makes us human...It kept me up all night!’ —Madeline Miller, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Circe and Song of Achilles
It’s 1983 and Becks can’t wait to get the hell out of Cincinnati. She’s nineteen, blasting her Walkman, and hiding from the fact that her beloved uncle, the only person who understood her, is dead. But she has work to do: he left her a half-finished game to complete—one last collaboration to find her way out of loneliness.
Little does she know, what Becks is making will echo far into the future and shape the lives of a scientist, a sentient automaton, and a flinty sea captain in ways she cannot imagine. All are bound together by their search for connection—and by a futuristic traveler on a mysterious mission through space.
A novel about our deep interconnectedness, Homebound is a clear-eyed, hopeful adventure into humanity’s future and capacity for love.
Genre: Literary Fiction
Praise for this book
"A sparkling novel, a work of joyous and serious invention that moves fluidly between forms - text-based computer game, coming-of-age story, sea adventure - that is also profoundly attentive to the concept of home as something portable, created by family (born and chosen), storytelling and solidarity." - Kaliane Bradley
"Homebound's multiple narratives gloriously span centuries into the future to chart the voyages people take to find connection and community. Portia Elan's ingenious novel is a puzzle-story, a nostalgic ode to 80s video games and punk rock, and a speculative look into the ways technology has reshaped longing. You need to read it!" - Kevin Chong
"A fascinatingly plausible and atmospheric story of a future shaped by tech and love intertwined." - Emma Donoghue
"What a pleasure it was to read this book. Homebound's radiant heart and the sure-footed clarity of Elan's prose seduced me from the first page. It's the kind of scope and pleasure that, forgive me for using the shorthand of comparison,reminds me of the novels of Emily St. John Mandel and Daniel Mason." - Kelly Link
"Homebound is a joy - at once a gripping mystery that confidently spans centuries, and a hauntingly beautiful exploration of what makes us human. Inventive and gritty, powerful and clear-eyed, it kept me up all night!" - Madeline Miller
"Homebound is the most original and arresting novel I've read in a very long time. Elan has created a century-spanning epic that's also an utterly intimate story of love, loss, and found family. What a joy; what a marvel." - Anna North
"Homebound is a big, bold, ecstatic world - full of heart and wonder - where stories weave through time to connect us, and our faith in each other makes us human." - Ruth Ozeki
"Inventive and full of feeling. New insight into queerness and computer games unlocked." - Maggie Thrash
"A novel to get lost in, Homebound is deeply felt, deftly crafted and beautifully written. A story of friendship and family, of hope and invention and love. An inspiring debut." - Charles Yu
"Homebound's multiple narratives gloriously span centuries into the future to chart the voyages people take to find connection and community. Portia Elan's ingenious novel is a puzzle-story, a nostalgic ode to 80s video games and punk rock, and a speculative look into the ways technology has reshaped longing. You need to read it!" - Kevin Chong
"A fascinatingly plausible and atmospheric story of a future shaped by tech and love intertwined." - Emma Donoghue
"What a pleasure it was to read this book. Homebound's radiant heart and the sure-footed clarity of Elan's prose seduced me from the first page. It's the kind of scope and pleasure that, forgive me for using the shorthand of comparison,reminds me of the novels of Emily St. John Mandel and Daniel Mason." - Kelly Link
"Homebound is a joy - at once a gripping mystery that confidently spans centuries, and a hauntingly beautiful exploration of what makes us human. Inventive and gritty, powerful and clear-eyed, it kept me up all night!" - Madeline Miller
"Homebound is the most original and arresting novel I've read in a very long time. Elan has created a century-spanning epic that's also an utterly intimate story of love, loss, and found family. What a joy; what a marvel." - Anna North
"Homebound is a big, bold, ecstatic world - full of heart and wonder - where stories weave through time to connect us, and our faith in each other makes us human." - Ruth Ozeki
"Inventive and full of feeling. New insight into queerness and computer games unlocked." - Maggie Thrash
"A novel to get lost in, Homebound is deeply felt, deftly crafted and beautifully written. A story of friendship and family, of hope and invention and love. An inspiring debut." - Charles Yu
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