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lonecayt's review against another edition
4.0
This was surprisingly interesting to me for being so mundane. I want to read more, but this story doesn't need more. I suppose I just want to learn more about the characters.
__apf__'s review against another edition
3.0
A sweet story about someone looking for who they are, and finding it. I found the ending unsatisfying, since it leaves many mysteries unanswered; I wish it were a full book.
imaginaryturtle's review against another edition
4.0
The paternal twist wasn't really a twist; you could see that coming a mile off. Still, I liked this because I'm a sucker for anything space-related as long as it's not written by an illiterate baboon.
bookaneer's review against another edition
2.0
A girl trying to find her dad. Like Mamma Mia but set in a hotel where astronauts preparing for their Mars trip. Well it is fiction and has two characters with scientific background and but is this SF? Not sure but the Hugo committee seems to think so.
bri_'s review
4.0
A quiet story about family, set 100 years or so in the future. It's a bit haunting in the way the foreign and familiar are mixed.
pezski's review
4.0
Emily is chief housekeeper at a hotel at Heathrow Airport at which two astronauts about to embark on a trip to Mars will be staying and giving their press conference. She was affected by the disaster of the previous, failed attempt - her mother was a materials scientist who both worked on the mission and investigated the failure - along with pollution of a further failed launch.
Whilst dealing with the ramping up of the hotel in readiness of the upcoming visit, Emily is also looking after her mother, who is now housebound and suffering from a disease that may have been caused by exposure to the rocket catastrophe; she suffers from lung problems as well as dementia, which exacerbates what we learn is her rather impish, even capricious, sense of humour. During a moment of apparent lucidity Moolie, as Emily calls her mother, drops a hint about the identity of Emily's father, which she has never revealed.
All these threads, along with talk of the almost certain death of the astronauts - even if they do reach Mars, it is likely a one-way trip - gives the tale a melancholy tone, however it is beautifully written and rich. Nina Allen fits a massive amount into the 40 pages, so much character and history and background. Another writer new to me who I shall be watching.
Whilst dealing with the ramping up of the hotel in readiness of the upcoming visit, Emily is also looking after her mother, who is now housebound and suffering from a disease that may have been caused by exposure to the rocket catastrophe; she suffers from lung problems as well as dementia, which exacerbates what we learn is her rather impish, even capricious, sense of humour. During a moment of apparent lucidity Moolie, as Emily calls her mother, drops a hint about the identity of Emily's father, which she has never revealed.
All these threads, along with talk of the almost certain death of the astronauts - even if they do reach Mars, it is likely a one-way trip - gives the tale a melancholy tone, however it is beautifully written and rich. Nina Allen fits a massive amount into the 40 pages, so much character and history and background. Another writer new to me who I shall be watching.
arturourbanos's review
4.0
Me encanta el estilo de narración de esta autora y me ha gustado bastante esta historia corta. Estoy deseando leer La carrera para ver como se las arregla en un formato más largo de historia <3
pixieauthoress's review
5.0
The ending was a bit abrupt, but otherwise I loved this short story. I guessed the truth about the heroine's father long before she did, but given what we knew about her character, it felt realistic that she would be entirely blind to the reality of her situation until it was staring her in the face. Excellent first-person narrative. I would definitely be interested in reading more from this author.
arkron's review
3.0
What did I expect from the story – a juicy space opera? I guess so. What did I get? A mother-daughter relationship story.
Full review at my blog
Full review at my blog
thiefofcamorr's review
3.0
Nice enough writing to read, but it feels like not much happens - I love character driven pieces but I didn't connect with any of them, and though this was about relationships it was a little too airy-faerie to really get into. A bit fanciable, a bit boring. I also don't feel it does anything genre-wise to make it worthwhile of a genre award.