Goldilocks

The first third of the book started so strongly, the writing was engaging, the setup was fun, the promise of scifi wonders had me eager to see what would happen. The middle bits didn't get me very interested at all, and by 75% of the way through the book when it's all laid bare, I was only continuing on to see if there was anything else to be told in the story (there is not). I would have been so much happier stopping after the first third and then using my imagination for the rest of the book. I know it's not very fair to criticize a book for being a very different story than I was hoping to read, but there we are. Given the writing at the opening of the book, I'm really curious to read other things by this author, but I wouldn't recommend this one to friends.

4.5 stars

In a world where women are 'discouraged' from professional careers, where climate change is rapidly making the Earth uninhabitable, five women conspire to steal a spaceship.

This book is not without its flaws, sure. For one thing: character motivation. Valerie has a clear and believable motivation for her actions. The other four? I don't know. What were they hoping to achieve? Why go to all that trouble just to be the first to set foot on the newly discovered Cavendish if you know you're going to be caught and arrested and probably executed for your crime? How would it benefit you or humanity?

For another, Valerie's transformation from hero (not the hero, but a hero none the less)… to cold-blooded killer was a bit too sharp of a turn to be entirely believable.

And yet… For all that, this is a hell of a book. The world Lam has created is both entirely believable and utterly terrifying. The characters are (for the most part) deeply human – flawed yet brilliant, fascinating yet realistic. And the story itself is a gripping, compelling read.