Will I love The Road to Roswell?

Connie Willis returns to some of her old themes: the young woman arriving at an unfamiliar airport to be a friend's bridesmaid ('Just like the ones we used to know') with events not working out quite as planned; problems and misunderstandings communicating with aliens ('Spice Pogrom'); films (Remake), especially films about aliens invading Earth ('Newsletter'); Roswell and the empty plains of New Mexico ('Nonstop to Portales') ... and throws in some old Western movies for good measure, with her usual astonishing quantities of vivid imagination, complex plot and laugh-out-loud humour. More light-hearted than some of her earlier work, but nevertheless… show more.

Francie arrives in Roswell to be her friend’s maid of honor during a UFO festival. Are almond-eyed aliens kidnapping earthlings? The idea is ludicrous, until a tumbleweed-shaped creature hogties Francie with lightning-quick tentacles and forces her to drive into the arid landscape. The alien, nicknamed Indy, also snares others, including a hitchhiker and an Old West enthusiast with an RV. Francie and the hitchhiker bond while trying to figure out what Indy wants, and discover feelings for each other. I love audacious fiction, especially with a satirical edge: Indy learns to communicate by watching classic westerns, and other aliens are… show more.