I love space operas, and for a first novel, this is an excellent book by Temi Oh. I loved the premise. In an alternate reality taking place in the past in the year 2012, Great Britain has become a forerunner for space travel. It was refreshing to read about a non-American setting and to imagine that Great Britain surpassed the USA in space travel and scientific advancements. The concept of six people being chosen from an astronaut academy to serve as the crew members on the 2-decade flight to a newly discovered planet was believable, and each of the characters had their own personal journey of growth throughout the book. I’ve always loved space, and the descriptions and details in this book made me feel like I was flying with the crew. There is an element of magical realism to the book that I found compelling. However, I feel like some of the relationships maybe weren’t fleshed out enough to have much impact, and since the crew is supposed to be flying for 23 years to reach their destination, I think I would’ve liked to see the book be a progression of time through those decades, rather than the single year it explores. I can understand why certain events happened though, and why only a short period of time was covered. But I loved the way it was written and I’ll be looking forward to more from this author.