Book Description
With no water, no air, and no native life, the planet Gora is unremarkable. The only thing it has going for it is a chance proximity to more popular worlds, making it a decent stopover for ships traveling between the wormholes that keep the Galactic Commons connected. If deep space is a highway, Gora is just your average truck stop.
At the Five-Hop One-Stop, long-haul spacers can stretch their legs (if they have legs, that is), and get fuel, transit permits, and assorted supplies. The Five-Hop is run by an enterprising alien and her sometimes helpful child, who work hard to provide a little piece of home to everyone passing through.
When a freak technological failure halts all traffic to and from Gora, three strangers—all different species with different aims—are thrown together at the Five-Hop. Grounded, with nothing to do but wait, the trio—an exiled artist with an appointment to keep, a cargo runner at a personal crossroads, and a mysterious individual doing her best to help those on the fringes—are compelled to confront where they’ve been, where they might go, and what they are, or could be, to each other.
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An Editor’s Book Review
Character Development
What impressed me most about this book was that there were many points of view, but I rarely was lost or missing one of the characters. It’s woven together in a way that is very satisfying. Each character has a unique temperament that is tied to their physiology and culture. This makes it very easy to distinguish between them and appreciate their differences.
Despite the sci fi setting and wide variety of anatomical traits, the characters share very human emotions and concerns. Not many authors can get readers to sympathize with creatures so different from ourselves, but Becky Chambers made me want to meet each and every one of the characters in this book.
There are many different types of love in this book if you’re a fan of LBGTQI literature.
Pacing
While there are climactic moments in the book, the story is more of an experience than a mission. The characters are all stuck in the same place. Each has their own reason for wanting to leave. This adds a sense of urgency to the book because readers get curious about why each character needs to be somewhere else.
However, there is not a lot of “action” between the opening incident and the ending. Instead, there is a lot of interaction. The characters meet and try to relate to one another. It can be fraught and tense, so I wouldn’t venture to call this book slow paced. But the focus is on interactions and how interesting they can be.
Writing Style
I would say that the writing style in this book is very focused. Descriptions and interactions always lead back to a character’s emotional state or development. Every word seems to have a purpose. There is very little fluff.
That said, the world building is probably a weakness if you’re a lover of new worlds. The character’s individual life stories are described brilliantly, but the scene and their physical traits are harder to visualize. After reading the book, I can still describe the emotional complexities of each character, but I don’t remember what the place looked like.
The book is a microcosm of a bigger world, heavily focused on each character.
If you liked this book, you may also like Light from Uncommon Stars or A Memory Called Empire.