The Spare Man

The Spare Man is a science fiction mystery by Mary Robinette Kowal set aboard a luxury passenger liner traveling between Earth and Mars. Tesla Crane is a wealthy and famous woman on her honeymoon, traveling with her new husband and her service dog under an assumed identity to escape public attention. When a man is found murdered on board, her husband becomes the prime suspect and is taken into custody. Determined to prove his innocence, Tesla begins investigating on her own, even though uncovering the truth means revealing who she really is and facing parts of her past she would rather keep hidden. The novel pairs a classic whodunit with witty banter and a richly imagined future. It was a 2023 Hugo Award finalist for Best Novel.