Scan barcode
bea_reads78's review against another edition
3.5
A fun read, but the pacing felt a little off and didn’t keep up tension. Character interactions were frustrating in places, and a lot of the science was underexplained compared to the first book.
odin45mp's review against another edition
5.0
Powerful. MRK takes us on a slow ride through part of our solar system. We get to know these characters as they prepare for, and then set off on an adventure... to Mars! I was surprised at how eventful the trip was, as Mary keeps the tension slowly growing as we uncover secrets about our shipmates, and see racial and class warfare escalate back home on Earth - where our heroes are powerless to interfere. I also appreciated the hard science, where calculations, adjustments, and spacewalks are all treated with excitement - these are what these professionals do for a career, and/or it is why they are out here in space.
I don't want to spoil the journey, but I will say that the ending had me feeling like an 8-year-old who wanted to be an astronaut again. Beautiful writing.
I don't want to spoil the journey, but I will say that the ending had me feeling like an 8-year-old who wanted to be an astronaut again. Beautiful writing.
tomasthanes's review against another edition
4.0
This book, "The Fated Sky", the second book in the Lady Astronaut series, continues where the first book left off.
The following review discusses the plot in detail and may contain SPOILERS. You've been warned.
The book starts on the Moon where Elma York is a shuttle pilot, moving passengers and cargo from the Moon's surface up to the space station in orbit around the Earth. It is a promotion but still means that she's separated from her husband for three months at a time.
At a certain point, Elma doesn't make the cut for the First Mars Expedition but circumstances require that the "Lady Astronaut" join the expedition. She displaces Helen which causes a substantial amount of tension in the crew being training. While she tries to catch up, they pull her into one PR event after another.
Part of her training is navigation at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago. We also get to "visit" the NBL (Neutral Buoyancy Lab).
This novel continues to describe the misogyny and racism of the 50's and 60's.
The book covers both the first and second Mars Expeditions. The first expedition is sort of a "proof of concept" that IAC astronauts can travel from Earth to Mars, land on the surface, survive, and return (with a tremendous sacrifice of life on earth passing while they're gone - it takes 320 days one way).
This part of the book lets Elma speak both English as well as Hebrew, Aramaic, and Yiddish.
There are lots of things during the voyage that raise the bar: a fire, sickness, an ammonia leak, loss of communications with the IAC on earth, Nathaniel's ulcer. Despite the setbacks, they reach (and land) on Mars.
The second expedition (which is near the very end of the book) is actually taking colonists (couples, even) from Earth to Mars to be permanent residents (similar to the Moon base where there are permanent Lunar residents). Elma is actually the pilot of the first vehicle to land on Mars.
This book would've been five stars but there was a sub-plot involving two characters that were gay/trans. I didn't understand what it contributed to the overall story other than being the obligatory node to diversity. It was a distraction.
The following review discusses the plot in detail and may contain SPOILERS. You've been warned.
The book starts on the Moon where Elma York is a shuttle pilot, moving passengers and cargo from the Moon's surface up to the space station in orbit around the Earth. It is a promotion but still means that she's separated from her husband for three months at a time.
At a certain point, Elma doesn't make the cut for the First Mars Expedition but circumstances require that the "Lady Astronaut" join the expedition. She displaces Helen which causes a substantial amount of tension in the crew being training. While she tries to catch up, they pull her into one PR event after another.
Part of her training is navigation at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago. We also get to "visit" the NBL (Neutral Buoyancy Lab).
This novel continues to describe the misogyny and racism of the 50's and 60's.
The book covers both the first and second Mars Expeditions. The first expedition is sort of a "proof of concept" that IAC astronauts can travel from Earth to Mars, land on the surface, survive, and return (with a tremendous sacrifice of life on earth passing while they're gone - it takes 320 days one way).
This part of the book lets Elma speak both English as well as Hebrew, Aramaic, and Yiddish.
There are lots of things during the voyage that raise the bar: a fire, sickness, an ammonia leak, loss of communications with the IAC on earth, Nathaniel's ulcer. Despite the setbacks, they reach (and land) on Mars.
The second expedition (which is near the very end of the book) is actually taking colonists (couples, even) from Earth to Mars to be permanent residents (similar to the Moon base where there are permanent Lunar residents). Elma is actually the pilot of the first vehicle to land on Mars.
This book would've been five stars but there was a sub-plot involving two characters that were gay/trans. I didn't understand what it contributed to the overall story other than being the obligatory node to diversity. It was a distraction.
kdaedwards's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
johndoe15's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
han_nur's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
timinbc's review against another edition
4.0
I might come back and give the fifth star.
This is such a solidly, professionally crafted book. It is to admire.
A reader my age has read dozens, maybe hundreds of stories about slide-rule and sextant astronautics. This covers the same ground, and better. (But why no slide rules? I see that Elma may not have needed one, but no one else did either.)
Unlike the earlier square-jawed-engineer stories, this one sets itself in an alternate early-60s, then stirs in a 20-teens view of social issues that were real in the early 60s, but maybe more abstract to the privileged white reader. Most are very well handled.
The Parker story arc is excellent. De Beer was a bit of a stretch; even with his country's heavy funding, I never could believe that ANY astronaut program wouldn't have weeded him out, or at least selected someone more moderate. MRK did not suggest that her world's South Africa was more rabidly racist than our world was then; if it was, then maybe they didn't HAVE anyone more moderate.
The mental counting to handle anxiety is believable, but it got intrusive at times. I'll accept that as intentional by MRK, showing us that anxiety doesn't wait till it's convenient.
I suppose this book COULD have left us thinking they wouldn't get to Mars, but really we knew they would, and Elma would survive. MRK did well to just go with that, and let it be the framework for the real story, about the people. Which is where it diverges from the Heinlein etc. that it is clearly nodding at.
Do read #1 first, and know that this one's better.
This is such a solidly, professionally crafted book. It is to admire.
A reader my age has read dozens, maybe hundreds of stories about slide-rule and sextant astronautics. This covers the same ground, and better. (But why no slide rules? I see that Elma may not have needed one, but no one else did either.)
Unlike the earlier square-jawed-engineer stories, this one sets itself in an alternate early-60s, then stirs in a 20-teens view of social issues that were real in the early 60s, but maybe more abstract to the privileged white reader. Most are very well handled.
The Parker story arc is excellent. De Beer was a bit of a stretch; even with his country's heavy funding, I never could believe that ANY astronaut program wouldn't have weeded him out, or at least selected someone more moderate. MRK did not suggest that her world's South Africa was more rabidly racist than our world was then; if it was, then maybe they didn't HAVE anyone more moderate.
The mental counting to handle anxiety is believable, but it got intrusive at times. I'll accept that as intentional by MRK, showing us that anxiety doesn't wait till it's convenient.
I suppose this book COULD have left us thinking they wouldn't get to Mars, but really we knew they would, and Elma would survive. MRK did well to just go with that, and let it be the framework for the real story, about the people. Which is where it diverges from the Heinlein etc. that it is clearly nodding at.
Do read #1 first, and know that this one's better.
ejthomas's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0