Enid is obsessed with space. She can tell you all about black holes and their ability to spaghettify you without batting an eye in fear. Her one major phobia? Bald men. But she tries to keep that one under wraps. When she’s not listening to her favorite true crime podcasts on a loop, she’s serially dating a rotation of women from dating apps. At the same time, she’s trying to forge a new relationship with her estranged half-sisters after the death of her absent father. When she unwittingly plunges into her first serious romantic entanglement, Enid starts to believe that someone is following her.

As her paranoia spirals out of control, Enid must contend with her mounting suspicion that something is seriously wrong with her. Because at the end of the day there’s only one person she can’t outrun—herself.

Brimming with quirky humor, charm, and heart, Interesting Facts about Space effortlessly shows us the power of revealing our secret shames, the most beautifully human parts of us all.

I once took an astronomy class in college to fulfill a science requirement and, in the process, learned that “spaghettification” is a legitimate term used by serious people. This immediately convinced me that astronomers are the coolest people in the world, and interstellar knowledge has since been a surefire way to win my interest. Needless to say, I was easily sold on Interesting Facts about Space.

Space facts (while delivered) are only a small part of the wonder that is contained within Emily Austin’s new novel. Our protagonist, Enid, has very specific obsessions (space, true crime podcasts) along with very specific fears (bald men). We follow her hilarious inner monologue through her struggles of serial dating women on apps, bonding with her half-sisters, and the belief that she is being stalked (by a bald man, of course). As she starts to fall into her very first serious relationship and at the same time realizes her stalker might be all too real, Enid has to face the deep, dark inner voice that tells her she might be a bad person.

Interesting Facts about Space captured my heart with its gut-punching relatability, which made me laugh and cry in equal measure. The most poignant moments in the book come from Enid’s wonderfully nuanced relationships with the family and friends in her life as they help her confront her anxieties—and herself. An honest account of humanity’s messiest and most beautiful qualities, you’d be doing yourself a disservice passing this book over.