<p><b>A debut that Neil Gaiman calls “Glorious. . . . So sharp, so focused and so human.”<i>The Girl in the Road</i> describes a future that is culturally lush and emotionally wrenching.<br></b><br>Monica Byrne bursts on to the literary scene with an extraordinary vision of the future. In a world where global power has shifted east and revolution is brewing, two women embark on vastly different journeys—each harrowing and urgent and wholly unexpected.<br><br>When Meena finds snakebites on her chest, her worst fears are realized: someone is after her and she must flee India. As she plots her exit, she learns of the Trail, an energy-harvesting bridge spanning the Arabian Sea that has become a refuge for itinerant vagabonds and loners on the run. This is her salvation. Slipping out in the cover of night, with a knapsack full of supplies including a pozit GPS, a scroll reader, and a sealable waterproof pod, she sets off for Ethiopia, the place of her birth.<br><br>Meanwhile, Mariama, a young girl in Africa, is forced to flee her home. She joins up with a caravan of misfits heading across the Sahara. She is taken in by Yemaya, a beautiful and enigmatic woman who becomes her protector and confidante. They are trying to reach Addis Abba, Ethiopia, a metropolis swirling with radical politics and rich culture. But Mariama will find a city far different than she ever expected—romantic, turbulent, and dangerous.<br><br>As one heads east and the other west, Meena and Mariama’s fates are linked in ways that are mysterious and shocking to the core.<br><br>Written with stunning clarity, deep emotion, and a futuristic flair, <i>The Girl in the Road</i> is an artistic feat of the first order: vividly imagined, artfully told, and profoundly moving.<br></p><br><br><br><i>From the Hardcover edition.</i>