A review by karl53
The Fated Sky by Mary Robinette Kowal

5.0

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.