Scan barcode
woolsson's review against another edition
3.0
This book has really interesting (if not depressing) world building and great character development. I was a bit whatever for the first 60% of the book but the ending really goes for it. The time skips work really well and the first chapter nags at your mind all the time while you're reading the book, waiting to find out what happened. Overall I quite enjoyed this book and would recommend it.
bababookmatt's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
It started so strong but lost its direction and felt like a totally different book in the final 5 chapters. The resolution felt anti-climactic and then dragged on.
marsius's review against another edition
4.0
Goldilocks, much like it’s namesake, is a book of balance. A slow burn that’s somehow a page-turner difficult to put down. Scientifically literate but not science heavy. Unabashedly and stridently feminist but neither preachy nor zealous. Completely novel and yet feeling familiar.
I don’t think the tagline “Handmaid’s Tale meets The Martian” is accurate. Lam doesn’t give us enough of what happened on Earth to bring about the Handmaid-esque regime or of the struggles of women surviving under it to really warrant comparisons to Atwood. Likewise, though note this is arguably a bit of a spoiler, it’s not really a tale of survival against odds such that it warrants a comparison to The Martian. I don’t think those are necessarily flaws as much as they are problems with the marketing. I do wish Lam would have more fully fleshed out the Atwood-esque elements, but she provides more than enough to understand the situation on the ground and why these five women choose to escape. I also wish the final chapter/epilogue were a bit clearer and more fleshed out. I get what Lam was going for, but after a novel of clear prose, we finish with muddle and murk so as to get an “aha” moment that we haven’t really earned and which feels out of place with the rest of the novel.
I don’t think the tagline “Handmaid’s Tale meets The Martian” is accurate. Lam doesn’t give us enough of what happened on Earth to bring about the Handmaid-esque regime or of the struggles of women surviving under it to really warrant comparisons to Atwood. Likewise, though note this is arguably a bit of a spoiler, it’s not really a tale of survival against odds such that it warrants a comparison to The Martian. I don’t think those are necessarily flaws as much as they are problems with the marketing. I do wish Lam would have more fully fleshed out the Atwood-esque elements, but she provides more than enough to understand the situation on the ground and why these five women choose to escape. I also wish the final chapter/epilogue were a bit clearer and more fleshed out. I get what Lam was going for, but after a novel of clear prose, we finish with muddle and murk so as to get an “aha” moment that we haven’t really earned and which feels out of place with the rest of the novel.
sophie_liest's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
vacantbones's review against another edition
5.0
This was very nearly a DNF for me. I came very close to failing astronomy in my first year of college thanks to an inept professor, so it quickly became overwhelming with how much space talk there is in the beginning of the book. Like, I truly do not understand anything about space travel or solar systems. Frankly, I'm a big believer in not knowing what goes on in outer space or the ocean - not my business!
Thankfully, there is more to Goldilocks than the specific scientific details of space travel. This story of five women hijacking a spaceship with the hopes of establishing a new home planet to replace the rapidly decaying Earth delivers nonstop gut punches that really resonated with me. We're forced to ponder climate change and the state of US politics while watching Naomi navigate a new life beyond the planet we call home.
I really didn't see much of the plot coming, which was refreshing. If you're looking for an action packed space thriller, this isn't it - it's an examination of power, the intoxication of wealth, and how far we would follow the people we love into the dark. I miss the characters already.
Thankfully, there is more to Goldilocks than the specific scientific details of space travel. This story of five women hijacking a spaceship with the hopes of establishing a new home planet to replace the rapidly decaying Earth delivers nonstop gut punches that really resonated with me. We're forced to ponder climate change and the state of US politics while watching Naomi navigate a new life beyond the planet we call home.
I really didn't see much of the plot coming, which was refreshing. If you're looking for an action packed space thriller, this isn't it - it's an examination of power, the intoxication of wealth, and how far we would follow the people we love into the dark. I miss the characters already.
kayweigh_xo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
megsbookishtwins's review against another edition
3.0
Disclaimer: I received this free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
The Earth is dying. The future of humanity is in the hands of five women aboard a ship headed for a planet in the Goldilocks zone, where conditions are just right for human habitation. The only problem is, they aren’t the authorized crew, they stole the ship from NASA after the mission was stolen from them. When things start to go wrong, Naomi begins to suspect that not everything is as it seems and someone is concealing a secret, and that Earth may be running out of time faster than they realised.
content warnings: miscarriage, abortion, climate crisis, death from virus.
I absolutely adore science fiction, especially space science fiction. So I was sure Goldilocks would be an absolute hit for me – The Martian meets The Handmaid’s Tale? Unfortunately it fell a little flat for me. I went in expecting a thrilling space science fiction, and I got quite a character focused story about family, secrets, and love that was set quite heavily on Earth. Not a fault on the books part, obviously, but a problem with my own expectations.
What I did really love about Goldilocks was the moral questions it asked. Who should make certain decisions? What gives people the right to make these world changing decisions? Does the end justify the means? What would you do to someone who went to far for the right reasons? All very interesting questions, especially considering the backdrop and context these questions were being asked in. Brilliant social commentary.
What I struggled with most with Goldilocks was the characters. None were as fleshed out as they could have been but the protagnoist, Naomi, was probably the least interesting character. I enjoyed the moral ambiguity of Valerie. Hixon and Hart were more interesting, but I would have loved more development of their characters and their relationship (f/f).
Overall, I enjoyed the questions Goldilocks posed about the future of Earth, about humanity, and about morality. Unfortuantely, it was a tad anticlimatic and the characters were not as engaging as they could have been.
The Earth is dying. The future of humanity is in the hands of five women aboard a ship headed for a planet in the Goldilocks zone, where conditions are just right for human habitation. The only problem is, they aren’t the authorized crew, they stole the ship from NASA after the mission was stolen from them. When things start to go wrong, Naomi begins to suspect that not everything is as it seems and someone is concealing a secret, and that Earth may be running out of time faster than they realised.
content warnings: miscarriage, abortion, climate crisis, death from virus.
I absolutely adore science fiction, especially space science fiction. So I was sure Goldilocks would be an absolute hit for me – The Martian meets The Handmaid’s Tale? Unfortunately it fell a little flat for me. I went in expecting a thrilling space science fiction, and I got quite a character focused story about family, secrets, and love that was set quite heavily on Earth. Not a fault on the books part, obviously, but a problem with my own expectations.
What I did really love about Goldilocks was the moral questions it asked. Who should make certain decisions? What gives people the right to make these world changing decisions? Does the end justify the means? What would you do to someone who went to far for the right reasons? All very interesting questions, especially considering the backdrop and context these questions were being asked in. Brilliant social commentary.
What I struggled with most with Goldilocks was the characters. None were as fleshed out as they could have been but the protagnoist, Naomi, was probably the least interesting character. I enjoyed the moral ambiguity of Valerie. Hixon and Hart were more interesting, but I would have loved more development of their characters and their relationship (f/f).
Overall, I enjoyed the questions Goldilocks posed about the future of Earth, about humanity, and about morality. Unfortuantely, it was a tad anticlimatic and the characters were not as engaging as they could have been.
angelbabe_cj's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
meowdermix's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
lakediver's review against another edition
5.0
In short: I loved this book.
The author billed this book as "The Martian meets The Handmaid's Tale." It was that, and then some. In this imagined near-ish future, the effects of climate change are in full swing. Seas are rising. Wildfires are ripping through the country. The air is not breathable without a filter mask. Population growth is strictly limited. Basically, the Earth is dying. On top of all that, women are slowly being edged out of the workplace and losing their rights.
So let's start with the world building. It is fantastic. Fan-freaking-tastic. You are slowly, organically introduced to the many differences between our world and this. I never once felt confused or lost, but instead, felt like I had a full vision of this world. It was bleak, but fascinating. I especially loved the way she handled the marginalization of women - the slowness of it, rather than all at once, as in The Handmaid's Tale (nice reference, btw!). Personally, I found this to be a more realistic vision of how this could happen.
I also really loved the character development. The major characters felt like real people to me, each with their own distinct personalities. And not even just our main characters, Naomi, Valerie, and Evan. The crew members didn't really start to be individual people until the latter half of the book, but then they really shined.
There was also this sort of quiet tension that I loved. It didn't make my heart race in the standard thriller way, yet I found myself unable to put this book down. Seriously, I read about 80% of it in one day. I also thought the science element was well done. I wouldn't quite classify it as hard sci-fi, but I think it comes close. Science is definitely at the forefront of this story, but without bogging me down in minutiae I don't understand. That which needed to be explained was explained sufficiently for me to understand and for the plot to keep moving.
Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit Books for an advanced copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review. All views and opinions are my own.
The author billed this book as "The Martian meets The Handmaid's Tale." It was that, and then some. In this imagined near-ish future, the effects of climate change are in full swing. Seas are rising. Wildfires are ripping through the country. The air is not breathable without a filter mask. Population growth is strictly limited. Basically, the Earth is dying. On top of all that, women are slowly being edged out of the workplace and losing their rights.
So let's start with the world building. It is fantastic. Fan-freaking-tastic. You are slowly, organically introduced to the many differences between our world and this. I never once felt confused or lost, but instead, felt like I had a full vision of this world. It was bleak, but fascinating. I especially loved the way she handled the marginalization of women - the slowness of it, rather than all at once, as in The Handmaid's Tale (nice reference, btw!). Personally, I found this to be a more realistic vision of how this could happen.
I also really loved the character development. The major characters felt like real people to me, each with their own distinct personalities. And not even just our main characters, Naomi, Valerie, and Evan. The crew members didn't really start to be individual people until the latter half of the book, but then they really shined.
There was also this sort of quiet tension that I loved. It didn't make my heart race in the standard thriller way, yet I found myself unable to put this book down. Seriously, I read about 80% of it in one day. I also thought the science element was well done. I wouldn't quite classify it as hard sci-fi, but I think it comes close. Science is definitely at the forefront of this story, but without bogging me down in minutiae I don't understand. That which needed to be explained was explained sufficiently for me to understand and for the plot to keep moving.
Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit Books for an advanced copy of this book, in exchange for an honest review. All views and opinions are my own.