Victor Manibo is a Filipino novelist living in New York. A 2022 Lambda Literary Emerging Voices Fellow, he is the author of the science fiction novels THE SLEEPLESS and ESCAPE VELOCITY, both from Erewhon Books. Find him online at victormanibo.com and on most social media platforms @victormanibo.

A decades-old murder looms over the glamorous clientele of a high-end space hotel . . . while an unforeseen threat percolates in the service corridors. The guests of Space Habitat Altaire are about to experience the hospitality they deserve.

ESCAPE VELOCITY, out 05/21/2024 from Erewhon Books.

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• Gizmodo/io9 featured the book announcement here, along with an excerpt.

• Stone Soup had the exclusive cover reveal, along with an interview with the author.

Praise for ESCAPE VELOCITY

Manibo works hard to make the reader sympathize with his wealthy characters as much as the underlings — though it’s immediately clear where his own sympathies lie. . . . The class warfare in space stays at a low simmer until the end of Escape Velocity, but when it begins to boil, it’s immensely satisfying.

— Washington Post, full review here

Manibo ingeniously melds genres in this suspenseful sci-fi mystery set in 2089. . . . The whodunit plot is enhanced by careful and plausible worldbuilding that digs into the intricacies of an era when the UN’s Mars Settlement Agency is mere months away from accepting applications for civilian settlers. As in the best mysteries, Manibo never allows his plot twists to come at the expense of character development.

— Publishers Weekly, full starred review here

Manibo pens a novel full of twists and turns, with broad appeal. Sci-fi, dystopian, and mystery fans will all find something to enjoy, while the posh setting and elite players give an unexpected air of palace intrigue that could rival Game of Thrones.

— Library Journal, full review here

Escape Velocity reads like an amalgam of Donna Tartt’s The Secret History with Edward Abbey’s The Monkey Wrench Gang and Nathaniel West’s The Day of the Locust. If you season the mix with a soupçon of Heinlein’s The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, filtered through a Che Guevara lens, you’ll have the winning recipe.

— Locus Magazine, full review here

Partially a thriller, partially a reflection on the consequences of climate catastrophe, Escape Velocity is an ambitious sophomore outing.

— Booklist, full review here

Manibo is a master at showing Earth just around corner, especially if we keep on our current trajectory...Get your science fiction Knives Out fix with this one.

— Book Riot, 8 Excellent Genre-Bending Sci-Fi Tales To Take You to the Next Frontier

A high-stakes sci-fi mystery—Foundation if it were written by Agatha Christie—Escape Velocity is an energetic and unforgettable page-turner, deftly honoring the genres it blends together while feeling vibrant and strikingly relevant. Perfect for fans of noir and thoughtful speculative fiction.

— Alex Segura, bestselling author of Secret Identity

A murder mystery by way of Karl Marx, Escape Velocity is a spicy thriller about what we all secretly wish would happen to billionaires in space. Victor Manibo has given us a delightful, disturbing gift. I really loved this novel and its exquisitely-drawn cast of villains. 

— Annalee Newitz, Lambda Award-winning author of Autonomous

Manibo is that rare writer who can put a reader out among the stars but keep the focus on human trauma and scandal. Escape Velocity is a scintillating reminder that in space, everyone knows who your sidepiece is.

— Meg Elison, winner of the Hugo, Locus, and Philip K. Dick Awards

Dancing effortlessly between present and past mysteries, Escape Velocity serves up opulent privilege with deadly secrets. A must-read.

— Mur Lafferty, Hugo Award winner and author of Station Eternity

Searing social commentary, expert worldbuilding, and unforgettable characters . . . Victor Manibo remains one of the most exciting new voices working in fiction today.

— Rob Hart, author of Assassins Anonymous and The Warehouse

Victor Manibo excels at the kind of extrapolation that makes near-future science fiction so interesting. What happens when being a ‘have’ instead of a ‘have not’ entitles you to not just the Earth's resources, but also those of space? What can money and clout buy, and what can’t be bought? With intrigue, murder, and machinations aplenty, Manibo never lets his characters or his readers off the hook.

— Sarah Pinsker, Hugo and Nebula Award-winning author of A Song For A New Day and Lost Places

A murder mystery that’s truly out of this world, set in an environment that will kill anyone who isn’t paying attention, Escape Velocity has a fascinating setting, a devious mystery, and a stunning solution.

— Simon R. Green, New York Times bestselling author

In a near-future New York City where a minority of the population has lost the need for sleep, a journalist fights to uncover the truth behind his boss’s murder on the eve of a sinister corporate takeover—while his own Sleeplessness spirals out of control.

THE SLEEPLESS, out now from Erewhon Books.

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• Gizmodo/io9 hosted the exclusive cover reveal and has an excerpt from the first chapter, which you can read here.

• Tor.com featured the book deal announcement here, along with some words from the author and the editor.

Praise For THE SLEEPLESS

Manibo neatly dissects the drawbacks of capitalist demands on society in this taut near-future procedural. It’s smart, high-tech noir.

- Publishers Weekly

[A] gripping, nightmarish descent into obsession, addiction, and the horrible journalistic pursuit of truth at the expense of literally everything else.... [A] deep, introspective reflection on the ways in which productivity has taken over our lives, and the novel crafts a compassionate treatise on what makes people’s lives worth living.

- io9's "Best Science Fiction and Fantasy Books of 2022"

As a thriller, there is plenty of misdirection next to plenty of well-placed hints to make the mystery satisfying. Ultimately, this is a tale of the insidious, corporate-capitalist implications of a plague of people who can’t sleep, the environmental impact of people who never take a break, and the human consequences of a life without dreams.

- Booklist

A bracing page-turner . . . Manibo multitasks regarding theme and genre, blending sf and mystery/thriller tropes with social justice concerns to discuss discrimination, ambition, betrayal, family, memory as defining who we are, and capitalism’s devastating will to power.

- Library Journal

A great book. . . . Not so much a whodunit as a treatise on capitalism’s disastrous grip on the American soul. It pushes back against the pervasive idea that the future is unchangeable, that we are trapped on a path to chaos and exploitation.

- Tor.com

A thoroughly captivating journey. . . . Manibo’s sure-footed speculative mystery is ambitious and engrossing, bringing readers into an unsettling but familiar future.

- Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine

The Sleepless is a thrilling debut with a fresh, edgy voice.

- Harlan Coben, #1 New York Times Bestselling author

The Sleepless is the best kind of science fiction; it holds a mirror up to society and digs deep into what makes us human. A knockout of a debut that makes me excited for whatever Manibo does next.

- Rob Hart, author of The Warehouse and The Paradox Hotel

Fittingly titled, as the compulsive plot will keep you up past your bedtime turning pages. The Sleepless does what only the best science fiction can do: create a world so boldly changed—but so hauntingly true—that it teaches us loads about our own.

- Sam J. Miller, Nebula award–winning author of Blackfish City and The Blade Between

Move over Minority Report, because The Sleepless has everything I want in a near-future science fiction whodunit: an irresistible ‘what if’ premise, a twisty and desperate murder investigation, and a razor-sharp examination of the inevitable and chillingly recognizable dark side behind a seemingly shiny and bright futuristic society. The Sleepless delivers; I could not close my eyes.

- Fonda Lee, author of the Green Bone Saga

Manibo has crafted a sharp, immersive dose of speculative fiction, a potent blend of science fiction and noir. The Sleepless will prove its name: you won’t be able to put it down, even as bedtime beckons.

- Alex Segura, bestselling author of Secret Identity

A meditative near-future thriller that explores grief, meaning, and time in a world that’s terrifyingly plausible.

- Lincoln Michel, author of The Body Scout

The Sleepless is an expertly crafted tale of exploitation and deceit set within the eldritch horror of a neverending capitalist grind.

- K. M. Szpara, author of First, Become Ashes

The Sleepless is just the beginning; Victor Manibo is an author to keep your eye on.

- Lara Elena Donnelly, author of The Amberlough Dossier and Base Notes

A fascinating murder mystery set in a world plagued by an epidemic of insomnia, The Sleepless is the corporate thriller our dystopias deserve. Manibo asks not merely how such a pandemic would change our society, but how the corrupt systems would exploit and perpetuate it.

- John Wiswell, Nebula-winning author of Open House on Haunted Hill

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