The Incrementalists

A unique treatment of an old SF plot theme

I loved this book. It's a fantastic concept, ripe with possibilities: a secret society of immortal humans use their long lives and preternatural communal knowledge to positively affect the future.

The catch? Big, sweeping changes seem to cause even bigger disasters. So they are limited to making tiny, incremental changes which provide small beneficial improvements for humanity -- changes which, if properly orchestrated, can add up to much larger forces for good. (The mp3 player? Yeah, that was me.)

The execution of the story was beautifully-done. There is plenty of conflict, but this novel is still such a wonderful change from the deluge of grimdark dystopian SFF coming out right now. And the worldbuilding is so well thought-out that it provides ample room for a variety of diverse storylines in a book series. I can't wait for more stories set in this universe.

You can read an associated Tor.com Original free short story, Fireworks in the Rain.