The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

Rating: ★★★★

I read extremely slowly, especially since 2017. It’s just been difficult for me to consume things. However, I loved going back to The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet. I kept feeling excited for what was going to happen next. Things started off so well. I viewed it as Rosemary’s story, and that she was going to become a part of this interesting crew.

However, after a certain point, and I don’t want to give any spoilers so bear with me, it seemed like the author didn’t know where to go. Events were no longer planned. Everything was a surprise. Characters, from Rosemary to Corbin, acted so out of character. Or at least, they weren’t developed enough. Perhaps it was a bit past the half-way mark that things started to degrade.

I still kept returning to the book, but the frequency of picking it up became less and less. Yes, I read slowly, but it took me two months to read the book. Usually, at least lately, I can get through a book in a month or less.

There was a lot of potential in this book. It is so creative and fantastical. I love the world, the universe, that’s created. It’s huge and wonderful and I loved exploring it in the pages of The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet. But in the end, things were just so underdeveloped.

I skimmed the acknowledgements after I finished reading the story, and I think Chambers said she turned to finishing the novel after her freelance work dried up. Well, if there was a dedicated part of book-writing and then a “I have no money and am terrified” part of book-writing, I can clearly see it.

I’m just disappointed.