I had phases of feelings about this story. The middle dragged on, in bouts of teenage angst (amplified by the complete insanity of brainwashing children for most of their lives and then sending them into space) that, frankly, I didn’t care about at all. It took me a long while to get from launch to peak action. And by the time I hit the action, I felt like it went by way too quickly. So much information came out in the last 15% of the book that I would’ve enjoyed exploring more, instead of the middle, say, 30% or so of the story starting after launch.

But Oh does an incredible job of putting the reader into the soaring highs and deep and hollow lows that I imagine can only come from such a singularly focused, long-awaited, tragically hopeful and dangerous mission as this one. Her ability to evoke both intense beauty and intense pain is remarkable.

The pacing and disconnectedness of character development are not enough to deter me from recommending this book. The premise is interesting, the writing style is impactful, and the characters have a diversity that’s rare to see in sci-fi. I look forward to seeing what such a promising new author will offer us next.