Facing Space

De: Nicolai Ordahl

Narrado por: Josh Hurley

More than 700 years into its journey, a massive generation starship carries thousands of passengers to a new home that only their descendants - hundreds more years into the future - will live to see.

Life aboard the ship is a daily struggle. One young welder copes by writing a series of letters to an Earth he never knew. The experiences he describes are not as exciting as the ancient works of science fiction made it out to be - but that is about to change. An eccentric old man has offered to train him for an unprotected spacewalk - a dangerous ritual known as “facing space”.

As the day of the spacewalk nears, a quantum radar system warns of an inexplicable threat on the horizon. As the starship races toward calamity, its inhabitants are locked in a struggle between truth and illusion. It falls to the young welder to unravel the secrets of the people around him - and a deeper mystery within the structure of the ship itself - with nothing less than the fate of the human race lying in the balance.

©2020 Nicolai Ordahl (P)2020 Audible Originals, LLC.

A masterful weaving of the human struggle with the vivid image of cosmic travel

By the end I was fully invested in the characters, the incredible social dilemma, and the technicalities of interstellar space travel - all depicted with a relatable prose. The book’s second to last and completely epic chapter was worth the build up and had me on the edge of my seat, late into the night. Wonderful book. Would love to read a sequel.

Why is a review required instead of just star ratings?

Not sure what I did to require a 15+ word review since I usually just do the star ratings.

Awesome but....where is the text version?

If you're into the "slow boat to the stars" type genre, where the journey to another planet takes generations, this is a totally unique entry. I can't find a text version of the book so I guess there's only the audio? Narration is fine but this is the type of writing I would really rather read on the page. Recommend for fans of "literary sci-fi".

this contains SPOILERS

the story is surprisingly well written and very imaginative take on the coming of age type novel about a boy on the periphery of larger things he doesn't understand. so why did I give a well written and imaginative story a 3? because while I appreciate good writing and imagination and even liked all the philosophy, the story triggered my depression.

the start is fairly standard and even fluffy at times but it's not long before the bleakness starts seeping in. it's not Game of Thrones bleak (at least the main character lives) but it's certainly not a happy novel. I did find the various themes the author explored to be interesting and think I was supposed to be left with a sense of hope at the end, but all I felt was the endless futility of it all.

also, don't bother getting attached to any side characters because other than the best friend and the gardener, they will more than likely be dead by the end of the story. it was the last death that really tipped it for me and I finished the story feeling depressed as hell for days.

Excellent story!

Loved it. Original story and great performance by the narrator. Only wished it was longer!