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4.31 AVERAGE
4.31 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
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
adventurous
emotional
informative
medium-paced
really excellent sequel—the racial and ethnic portrayals in the sci-fi/alternate history setting are really well done, though not necessarily resolved—closure isn’t always possible, but i think more was probably merited here. really looking forward to the next book
Follows Elma and her crewmates on their journey to Mars and lots of things go wrong. Continues to explore racism and sexism. As annoying as Elma is sometimes, the story was entertaining and enjoyable.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
medium-paced
Read this book after #3 and the short story currently at the end of the timeline (plug: please write more in this universe). #3 runs parallel although starts a bit later than #2 and knowing what happens in #3 doesn’t detract from #2. Crazy to think about a manned Mars mission in the early 60’s, but as the author points out, the Russians tried a unmanned Mars mission in the early 60’s. Even though the IAC went right from one unmanned Mars landing straight to a manned Mars landing, space flight is hard. Witness the recent failure of the lates unmanned lunar landing mission. Still waiting news in the Indian unmanned lunar landing mission. I found the Earth First and anti space flight sentiment in the book eerily similar to a significantly held opinion that human induce climate change is a real thing and the impacts of global warming are inconsequential. The impacts of Jim Crow America and apartheid South Africa’s participation in the IAC as well as the mid century American misogyny add a great dimension to the story. (And it’s very apparent that there’s still a vast undercurrent of the same racism, misogyny and anti intellectualism is still in play in our timeline. As with Nicole’s anorexia in Book #3, Alma’s anxiety issues are well written and add to the stories. The alternate history is delicious and this book as well as the others in the series are a joy to read.
Got distracted from cleaning my room and skimmed entire book, oops. Very easy to get sucked in. Not sure I have any strong feelings about it. I liked that our main character kept screwing up but wish that had been rewarded with a scene at the end where she shows that she’s learned more obviously? Oh, I don’t know. it was fun and I love an alternate history.
What a book. After I read the first book in the series, I immediately started lobbying my wife to start reading the series as well. While this book has a sci-fi background, at its core it explores concepts of humanity and relationship.
Characters: 5*
The strengths and humanity from book one are still present, but the biggest criticism that I had from book one (that some of the characters [mainly the ones with negative connotations] lack depth) is largely addressed. The characters develop a sense of nuance and you begin to understand some of their motivations. Do I still think that some of them are a bit one-dimensional? Yeah, but so are people in real life so it isn't exactly non-realistic and this book is designed to hold a magnifying glass up to human society so I can't blame the author for that.
Universe: 5*
The universe that the this book is set in continues to add depth and to impact the world. I mean, book one does start with a meteor slamming into the earth so if that wasn't addressed in an ongoing manner, this would be a one star book, but still many of my favorite books are ones in which the universe in which a story is written is not just a part of the background of the story. I *LOVE* books where the decision to place a story in a universe shows that decision having an ongoing impact to that story.
Plot: 5*
There is drama; there are twists; I had trouble stopping reading when I needed to take a break.
Characters: 5*
The strengths and humanity from book one are still present, but the biggest criticism that I had from book one (that some of the characters [mainly the ones with negative connotations] lack depth) is largely addressed. The characters develop a sense of nuance and you begin to understand some of their motivations. Do I still think that some of them are a bit one-dimensional? Yeah, but so are people in real life so it isn't exactly non-realistic and this book is designed to hold a magnifying glass up to human society so I can't blame the author for that.
Universe: 5*
The universe that the this book is set in continues to add depth and to impact the world. I mean, book one does start with a meteor slamming into the earth so if that wasn't addressed in an ongoing manner, this would be a one star book, but still many of my favorite books are ones in which the universe in which a story is written is not just a part of the background of the story. I *LOVE* books where the decision to place a story in a universe shows that decision having an ongoing impact to that story.
Plot: 5*
There is drama; there are twists; I had trouble stopping reading when I needed to take a break.
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
inspiring
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