“Chloe Benjamin is an astonishing writer who conjures an entire parallel universe to illuminate one family’s loss. Under Story is the most ingenious novel I’ve read in a long time, and yet its scenes depicting the ordinary joys and sorrows of parenthood, marriage, and friendship are perhaps most magical of all. If this speculative masterpiece has a flaw, it’s that at 500 pages it feels too short."–Anthony Marra, New York Times bestselling author of A Constellation of Vital Phenomena
"A rapturously beautiful novel. I was in awe of Chloe Benjamin’s universe-straddling imagination, her profound writing on love and grief, and her telescopic vision that lets her zoom into the smallest chambers of the human heart and far out again into the laws of theoretical physics. I loved Under Story."—Kaliane Bradley, New York Times bestselling author of The Ministry of Time
"A head-spinning novel, daringly imaginative. Even as she plays with physics and fantasy, Chloe Benjamin has much to say about the nature of friendship, family, mortality and love."–Geraldine Brooks, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of March
"An absolute feat of storytelling, and a once in a lifetime novel. Under Story will stay with you long after you read the final, dazzling page." –Rebecca Serle, New York Time bestselling author of In Five Years
“Under Story is phenomenal, and one of the best books I've read in years. Wondrous, wildly ambitious, an epic love story that I’m so grateful exists in the world.” –Ann Napolitano, New York Times bestselling author of Hello Beautiful
“A fiendishly clever, utterly original novel that gets to the heart of what it means to be alive. Under Story is dazzling: it will change you.” –Emilia Hart, New York Times bestselling author of Weyward
“Under Story is a spectacular novel. It is utterly transporting, with an imaginative scope that feels both breathtaking and profound. I was blown away by it." –Clare Leslie Hall, New York Times bestselling author of Broken Country
“A mind-bending, head-popping sci-fi love story full of intrigue and tenderness.” –Claire Fuller, author of Swimming Lessons
“At once intimate and sweeping, Chloe Benjamin’s new novel looks at the magic of science and the power of love, examines life’s spark from the smallest atoms to the furthest cosmos, and braids together two worlds with astonishing imagination. Beautifully crafted and tenderly felt, Under Story is a feat—for readers in search of a gripping exploration of the strange mystery of life, loss, and time.” –Aja Gabel, author of The Lightbreakers
“Part science epic and part sweeping love story, Chloe Benjamin’s latest novel is an ode to the natural world and humanity’s place within it… Under Story grapples with the unknown, ultimately delivering a powerful message on the precarious and precious nature of the universe and human life itself.” –Harper's Bazaar
“Count on Benjamin to ask the big questions—what makes a life worth living? What is the nature of time? Where do we belong?—and entertain us fully all the while. Cannot wait to read.” –Lit Hub, "Most Anticipated Books of 2026"
“Benjamin’s imaginative rendering of the antiuniverse offers truly unique ways of thinking about time, nature, progress, duty, and aging….Blending literary fiction, science fiction, fantasy, and scientific research, Benjamin has created a genre-bending novel that is deeply concerned with the tenuous, mysterious, and enduring symbiotic relationship between humans and nature. Ambitious, poignant, and deeply human.” –Kirkus
“Benjamin (The Immortalists) blends speculative fiction and romance in this sui generis story of an erstwhile couple who discover a parallel universe. Benjamin holds the reader’s attention with well-conceived depictions of the Duoverse, where people age in reverse from death to birth, but the heart of the story is in Laurel and Eli’s desperate attempt to mend their lives and recover their love. This captivates.” –Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
“Benjamin’s immersive and atmospheric novel is a heartfelt and intellectually gripping missive to the planet, to loss, and to connection. Fans of Benjamin’s The Immortalists will be thrilled as she again delivers on all levels. Equally appropriate for fans of mycelium, odes to the magic of the Earth, and speculation on the myriad possibilities for humanity.” –Library Journal (Starred Review)
“In Chloe Benjamin’s exquisitely imagined and emotionally rich Under Story (Putnam, $32, 9780593545218), a woman moves to Antarctica in search of a fresh start and finds far more than she expected…What’s most remarkable about Under Story is how Benjamin (The Immortalists) balances speculative physics with a deeply relatable story of love and grief. For a book involving multiple dimensions and timelines, Under Story is incredibly grounded. Anyone who’s ever endured profound loss or felt stuck will recognize Laurel’s state of mind. Benjamin draws the depth of what Laurel and Eli are going through with aching precision, in prose that often reads like poetry, making this expansive literary sci-fi tale powerfully resonant.” –BookPage (Starred Review)
“Lives converge, and so do timelines, at a remote Antarctic base in this sweeping novel about family, loss, love and time from the author of The Immortalists." –Today.com
"Ultimately this capacious, suspenseful, and deeply moving novel of scientific and emotional quests offers provocative perspectives on obsession, parenting, time, forgiveness, and love." –Booklist
“Chloe Benjamin returns with Under Story — a sweeping literary novel that blends love, science, and mystery.” –BookBub
"Not only is this a thrilling sci-fi love story, but it'll leave you thinking about all of life's 'what-ifs'" –Country Living, "The Most Anticipated New Books of Fall"
