Being in the midst of a "the pandemic", it's tempting to focus on what this predicted accurately and inaccurately, but the predictions aren't really the heart of the story. This is about enduring unendurable times, about love and duty, about the way being thrust together under impossible conditions shows us our truest souls. In the latter especially, this reminds me a little of The Left Hand of Darkness, which is about the highest praise I can give a work of science fiction.