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jenmangler's review against another edition
2.0
While I enjoyed the writing, the story left me wanting. The twist at the end was something I feared would end up happening, and it took away some of the power of the story.
raccacoonie's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
thejadedhippy's review
5.0
I’ve read this book twice now and I think it has to be one of my all time favorites. It just hits all the right notes for me - looking back over your life, and the bittersweet pain/hope of existence.
megalin's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
taylorswope's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
sad
fast-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
smitha_r's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The premise was a lot more tense than I anticipated, I was insanely worried and fretting that Augie would die saving Iris or that Sully and her crew would die in space. Once they spoke to each other I was much more at ease. Had a feeling Augie had been imagining his daughter. But the fact that it is NEVER explained why every human vanished pissed me off haha. And that ending, boooooo I want to knowwwww.
bhnmt61's review against another edition
5.0
First reading, May 2019, four stars: I thought I was so done with dystopian, post-apocalyptic fiction but something about this one sounded interesting when it was recommended on a podcast. I’m glad I read it, it’s beautifully done. There’s Sully, returning from a multi-year mission to Jupiter when suddenly all communication from earth cuts off. And there’s elderly Augustine, who decides to stay behind at an arctic observatory when it is evacuated. It’s pretty existential- Sully floating in the vast expanse of space with no one but her five crew mates, Augustine with no one but a mysterious orphan child in all the vast expanse of arctic tundra- but it manages not to be despairing. (Minor spoiler ahead) my only gripe is, if I’m reading this right, there’s a fairly unbelievable coincidence going on, and also I was more than moderately curious about what happened to the entire population of earth, and you never find out. But otherwise, an excellent read, kept me glued to it.
Second reading, April 2023, five stars (slight spoilers again, no specifics): I’ve been meaning to re-read this ever since I put it down the first time. I love it, maybe even more than I did four years ago since I knew not to expect an explanation. The characters are well-drawn, the dilemmas they face are believable, the experience of loneliness is exquisitely universal. Other readers have complained about the quasi-spirituality at the end, but I think it fits the story, and besides, there is much about the experience of death that we don’t understand. On the other hand, I still think the coincidence at the end is too much, and other than explaining one small thing, it is completely unnecessary. But I’m giving it five stars. Loved it.
Second reading, April 2023, five stars (slight spoilers again, no specifics): I’ve been meaning to re-read this ever since I put it down the first time. I love it, maybe even more than I did four years ago since I knew not to expect an explanation. The characters are well-drawn, the dilemmas they face are believable, the experience of loneliness is exquisitely universal. Other readers have complained about the quasi-spirituality at the end, but I think it fits the story, and besides, there is much about the experience of death that we don’t understand. On the other hand, I still think the coincidence at the end is too much, and other than explaining one small thing, it is completely unnecessary. But I’m giving it five stars. Loved it.
hikikomorka's review against another edition
2.0
I really wanted to love this book . In theory it is everything I like; snow, arctic cold, postapo, sifi, solitude, a bit of magic realism. Unfortunately, the story is executed poorly.
bookph1le's review against another edition
4.0
Really beautifully written, but I was a bit let down by the ending. More complete review to follow.
Full review:
In some ways, I'm on the fence about this book. It had a lot of stellar qualities to recommend it, yet there was also something unsatisfying about it, maybe because I felt like what I expected this book to be and what it turned out to be were kind of two different things. Spoilers to follow.
The description of this book reads like science fiction, and one of the promo blurbs I read about it called it a cross between The Martian and another book whose name escapes me. The part about The Martian caught my eye because that was a book I read with an all-consuming fury because I loved it so much. This book isn't the same thing, but that isn't necessarily bad. The problem is, I think comparing it to The Martian is misleading, because while this book does have science fiction elements in that some of the characters are on a mission to Jupiter, this is not a science fiction book. It's a character study that's far more concerned with its characters' inner workings than with the more fantastical elements of its plot.
That is to the book's credit. It's a very introspective book, but though it lacks in pulse-pounding action, I found it extremely compelling. I was incredibly moved by Sully's and Augie's thoughts about their pasts and their struggles to cope with the new reality before them. They were fully-fleshed, fully realized characters with whom I sympathized and about whom I wanted to know more. The book's prose is also so lovely that it was a pleasure to read, and I felt immersed in the characters' worlds and heads.
The unsatisfying part is twofold: I saw the plot twist coming, and I found the ending disappointing.
I'm not going to give the plot twist away, so I won't say much about it other than that while I liked the idea of the twist, figuring it out before the book got there lessened its impact because it had no shock value for me. I think that the twist may have been too drawn out because from pretty early on I had my suspicions about where the book was going with it.
As for the ending, throughout the book, the question of what happened on Earth is left unanswered. This makes sense because Augie is in the midst of polar isolation and Sully and her crewmates are out in space, but I could not get past the nagging question of where everyone one Earth had gone. The book hints that a war happened, but I could not stop wondering about the nature of that war and how it could possibly have wiped all humanity from the face of the planet. I wanted an explanation for this because I was having trouble understanding how the Earth could be so devoid of survivors. Then, just as the book made me hope I might get some answers, it ended. I'm okay with open endings, but it didn't work for me in this case because the questions I wanted answers to had a tendency to take me out of the narrative, as engrossing as I found that narrative.
Really, what it boils down to is that what happens on Earth isn't all that relevant because this is a book about the characters' inner worlds, and those inner worlds are fascinating. I think the ultimate theme of this book is being afraid to live, something both Sully and Augie feel, though neither of them is all that aware of this fear at the beginning of the book. It's a book about detachment, about choosing to look outside of oneself in order to avoid thinking too much about what's going on in one's head, and I found that fascinating. Watching Augie and Sully undergo their gradual transformations and come to better understandings of themselves kept me turning pages.
Ultimately, I'm still giving this book four stars because the writing was so lovely and affecting. Some parts moved me to tears, and the more I read of it the more I wanted to read. I think this author has a great deal of potential, and I would definitely read more by her.
Full review:
In some ways, I'm on the fence about this book. It had a lot of stellar qualities to recommend it, yet there was also something unsatisfying about it, maybe because I felt like what I expected this book to be and what it turned out to be were kind of two different things. Spoilers to follow.
The description of this book reads like science fiction, and one of the promo blurbs I read about it called it a cross between The Martian and another book whose name escapes me. The part about The Martian caught my eye because that was a book I read with an all-consuming fury because I loved it so much. This book isn't the same thing, but that isn't necessarily bad. The problem is, I think comparing it to The Martian is misleading, because while this book does have science fiction elements in that some of the characters are on a mission to Jupiter, this is not a science fiction book. It's a character study that's far more concerned with its characters' inner workings than with the more fantastical elements of its plot.
That is to the book's credit. It's a very introspective book, but though it lacks in pulse-pounding action, I found it extremely compelling. I was incredibly moved by Sully's and Augie's thoughts about their pasts and their struggles to cope with the new reality before them. They were fully-fleshed, fully realized characters with whom I sympathized and about whom I wanted to know more. The book's prose is also so lovely that it was a pleasure to read, and I felt immersed in the characters' worlds and heads.
The unsatisfying part is twofold: I saw the plot twist coming, and I found the ending disappointing.
I'm not going to give the plot twist away, so I won't say much about it other than that while I liked the idea of the twist, figuring it out before the book got there lessened its impact because it had no shock value for me. I think that the twist may have been too drawn out because from pretty early on I had my suspicions about where the book was going with it.
As for the ending, throughout the book, the question of what happened on Earth is left unanswered. This makes sense because Augie is in the midst of polar isolation and Sully and her crewmates are out in space, but I could not get past the nagging question of where everyone one Earth had gone. The book hints that a war happened, but I could not stop wondering about the nature of that war and how it could possibly have wiped all humanity from the face of the planet. I wanted an explanation for this because I was having trouble understanding how the Earth could be so devoid of survivors. Then, just as the book made me hope I might get some answers, it ended. I'm okay with open endings, but it didn't work for me in this case because the questions I wanted answers to had a tendency to take me out of the narrative, as engrossing as I found that narrative.
Really, what it boils down to is that what happens on Earth isn't all that relevant because this is a book about the characters' inner worlds, and those inner worlds are fascinating. I think the ultimate theme of this book is being afraid to live, something both Sully and Augie feel, though neither of them is all that aware of this fear at the beginning of the book. It's a book about detachment, about choosing to look outside of oneself in order to avoid thinking too much about what's going on in one's head, and I found that fascinating. Watching Augie and Sully undergo their gradual transformations and come to better understandings of themselves kept me turning pages.
Ultimately, I'm still giving this book four stars because the writing was so lovely and affecting. Some parts moved me to tears, and the more I read of it the more I wanted to read. I think this author has a great deal of potential, and I would definitely read more by her.