Hachette India

Girlfriend on Mars

Deborah Willis

'Every detail is sharply placed ... a scorching sense of humor and a soft spot for humanity down here on Earth' The New York Times

'Fleishman Is In Trouble, but in space' Bobby Palmer

A NEW YORK TIMES READERS' FAVOURITE OF 2023

LONGLISTED FOR THE 2023 SCOTIABANK GILLER PRIZE

Kevin is a thirtysomething homebody, happily committed to his hydroponics-expert girlfriend, Amber, as they grow weed in their basement in Vancouver.

Out of the blue, Amber announces that she has been selected for a reality show where she will compete for one of two seats on the first human-led mission to Mars. If selected, she must stay on Mars for good, because the technology to come home doesn't exist yet. Is this a suicide mission or a bold new frontier?

Girlfriend on Mars is the story of love unravelling in a world where truth is dictated by Facebook ads and 'reality TV' is as scripted as any politician's speech. With rapt viewers voting for Amber to stay on the show and crates of Mars-mission branded protein shakes arriving at his door, is it any wonder Kevin wants to stay in the basement forever?

Deborah Willis

Deborah Willis is a Canadian writer based in Calgary, Alberta. Her first story collection, Vanishing and Other Stories, was shortlisted for Canada's Governor General's Award for Fiction. Her second collection, The Dark and Other Love Stories, was longlisted for the 2017 Giller Prize and won the Georges Bugnet Award for best work of fiction published in Alberta. Her fiction and nonfiction has appeared in The Walrus, The Virginia Quarterly Review, The Iowa Review, Lucky Peach, and Zoetrope. Girlfriend on Mars is her first novel.