Publishers Weekly
12/02/2019
In this whimsical but underwhelming interdimensional adventure through an endless furniture store, two retail workers face myriad otherworldly obstacles as well as the specter of their own recently ended relationship. Cipri (Homesick: Stories), a Publishers Weekly reviewer, employs this delightfully unusual setting to explore the soul-crushing nature of retail work and the pain of recent breakups. When Ava is unexpectedly called in for a shift at the big-box furniture store Litenvärld, she and her former partner Jules are tasked with delving into an endless series of wormholes into display rooms in alternate versions of the store to find a customer who was sucked through a wormhole. Each alternate dimension contains its own unpredictable monsters and amazements, in an episodic structure that will leave some readers longing for more connective tissue. While confronting the mysteries each world offers, Jules and Ava negotiate their relationship dynamic, rehashing their breakup and lingering feelings. Their emotional arcs resonate but are frequently overpowered by the introduction of new, seemingly random sets of problems to face. Cipri delivers on a fun premise, but readers will wish for greater depths of feeling. Agent: DongWon Song, Howard Morhaim Agency. (Feb.)
From the Publisher
Finna is a magical anti-capitalist adventure that crosses dimensions, abolishes gender binaries, and liberates retail workers. Reading it is a goddamn delight.” —Annalee Newitz
“Funny as hell, scary as f*ck, and so full of heart I didn't want it to end. A magnificent must-read.” —Sam J Miller
“Finna is the most grounded tale of multi-dimensional heartache I could imagine; it is completely and entirely lovely.” —Sarah Gailey
“Finna is a book of fantastical impossibilities and biting commentary on the perils of capitalism. But it’s also a heartfelt exploration of two people moving apart, only to be forced together in the most nightmarish of circumstances.” —Mark Oshiro
“Cipri hits all the right notes in this fantasy novella packed with action and emotion. Part horror, part humor, and all heart, the story uniquely showcases two queer protagonists dealing with their own emotional separation while also being forced to work together.” —Library Journal starred review
“The mixture of corporate drudgery and dimension-hopping adventure will hold the reader’s attention as well as Ava and Jules’ post-break-up foibles do. Recommended for those interested in sf that features queer relationships, minimum-wage labor, and many worlds theory.” —Booklist
“A weird novella examining capitalism, class and consumerism, all wrapped up in a scary, funny, and queer AF fantasy that you’ll swallow whole. It’s super yummy with a potent aftertaste that will (gratefully) stay with you for long after you’ve put it down.” —Ms. Magazine
“A fun, unexpected romp that, in between digs at big box stores and capitalism more generally, delves into questions of family, anxiety, and post-breakup friendship.” —Malka Older
“A rip-roaring high-concept adventure story with a steely spine of righteous fury and a heart overflowing with love.” —Lara Elena Donnelly
“If you’ve ever felt lost in the guts of a labyrinthine Swedish furniture store and only prayed to emerge intact, Finna is a must-read. Nino Cipri’s cracking debut mixes swashbuckling ship captains, carnivorous alien plants and relationship angst with the soul-deadening reality of a retail job in the hellscape of late capitalism.” —JY Yang
“Cipri has written the blue-collar fantasy I've wanted to read for decades, minimum wage and maximum weird.” —Meg Elison
“Snappy, hilarious, poignant and fun, Finna is a phenomenally queer adventure into minimum wage retail hell, multiple realities, and interpersonal relationships. Cipri has crafted a beautiful story with humor, weirdness, and empathy.” —Merc Finn Wolfmoor
Library Journal
★ 01/01/2020
All Ava wanted was to stay home and recover from her breakup with Jules. Instead, she's called back to work at LitenVärld, the giant box furniture store where she and Jules both work—and, of course, Jules is there, too. Jules is not happy to face Ava either. The two are called in to handle a customer disappearance through an unknown portal to another dimension connected to the LitenVärld multiverse. Sent through the portal to look for their wayward customer, Ava and Jules contend with furniture that eats you up (literally), a hive mind of retail workers, and their own lingering postbreakup feelings. VERDICT Cipri (Homesick) hits all the right notes in this fantasy novella packed with action and emotion. Part horror, part humor, and all heart, the story uniquely showcases two queer protagonists dealing with their own emotional separation while also being forced to work together. Highly recommended.—Kristi Chadwick, Massachusetts Lib. Syst., Northampton
