Planetfall, by Emma Newman
Second paragraph of third chapter:We're silent as we trudge through the grasses, Sung-Soo exhausted and malnourished, Mack and I trapped in our own little spirals of guilt and dread. He's taking us on a route that makes it far less likely we'll be spotted, but there's still a chance. He's probably trying to work out what to tell everyone else and buying time to figure that out at his own pace.
First of the Planetfall series, which was up for the Best Series Hugo this year. I have previously bounced off the third and fourth of the books, ranking them last on my BSFA ballots for 2018 and 2019. I actually liked the first one a bit more, and will complete the set by reading the second in due course. As with one of the other books, I felt that the denouement became clear to the reader much quicker than it does to the protagonist, but the path there is interesting, with a closed isolated society finding its core founding myths challenged by the arrival of an outsider who is the long-dead founder's grandson, and a narrator whose OCD hoarding is sympathetically portrayed but also a serious obstacle to her seeing what is really going on. You can get it here.
I'm not convinced that the Best Series Hugo category has really proved itself. The four winners so far have definitely been worthy, but I am not sure that you could say the same for all of the finalists.
This was my top unread book by a woman. Next on that list is Midnight Blue-Light Special by Seanan McGuire.
First of the Planetfall series, which was up for the Best Series Hugo this year. I have previously bounced off the third and fourth of the books, ranking them last on my BSFA ballots for 2018 and 2019. I actually liked the first one a bit more, and will complete the set by reading the second in due course. As with one of the other books, I felt that the denouement became clear to the reader much quicker than it does to the protagonist, but the path there is interesting, with a closed isolated society finding its core founding myths challenged by the arrival of an outsider who is the long-dead founder's grandson, and a narrator whose OCD hoarding is sympathetically portrayed but also a serious obstacle to her seeing what is really going on. You can get it here.
I'm not convinced that the Best Series Hugo category has really proved itself. The four winners so far have definitely been worthy, but I am not sure that you could say the same for all of the finalists.
This was my top unread book by a woman. Next on that list is Midnight Blue-Light Special by Seanan McGuire.