Salt, bitter and good

Adam Roberts’s confident debut as a science-fiction writer is a pleasure to
read. The plot—planetary settlement in the far future, tech solutions to
problems—unwinds with only a light dusting of clues to the bloody future
just over the horizon. It’s a future shaped by chloride chemistry (the title
Salt fits like a glove), framed by politics. Published by Gollancz,
£16.99, ISBN 0575068965.