A review by lesserjoke
The Wanderers by Meg Howrey

2.0

This novel has a plot -- three astronauts train in a seventeen-month simulated flight to Mars and back while their families adjust to life without them and the concept of having to go through the same thing again if the crew is tapped for the eventual real journey -- but it doesn't ever bolster that with any particular stakes or urgency. There's instead a lot of personal introspection on everyone's part, some suggestions at character arcs that don't quite lead anywhere, and a scientifically-grounded yet ultimately uneventful look at how this sort of space travel might actually play out. A late worry from one of the voyagers that perhaps the simulation is fake and they've truly blasted off adds a hint of intrigue, but this too is dropped before reaching a resolution (in addition to being rather ludicrous on its face). Although each individual chapter of this book feels competently told, they're a bit boring overall, as is the larger story around them.

[Content warning for statutory rape, suicide attempt, sexism, and homophobia including slurs]

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