The Collapsing Empire

The Collapsing Empire, John Scalzi

A fast, fun read set in a vast trading empire reliant on a cosmological force known as the Flow. As the Flow shifts and cuts off whole solar systems, the empire, and its squabbling guilds, belatedly face down the barrel of calamity. It can easily be read as a fable about climate change, but the author - a new one to me - is mostly having fun with an amiable cast in an imperial setting. I'll definitely be following him up.