I've just finished my last prompt read of the year. This may be the one reading plan/goal I have actually managed to complete with any degree of success this year. I've been doing a little behind the scenes clean-up and prepping of the final posts of the year. And I've been thinking of what I want to do in this space in 2019. I have a different idea of how I might write about books, but more about that later.
This month's prompt took me out of my comfort zone, quite literally outside of this world. I don't read much science fiction, but I enjoyed this foray into a genre I tend to neglect. I admit I have slightly mixed feelings about Emma Newman's Before Mars. The novel is well written and engaging. It drew me in far more than I expected, but my hesitation over this read comes less from the writing and plotting, which I found spot on rather than with the story. Reading a darkish story in the cold, dark days of winter makes me shy away from the story somewhat. Maybe this is why I tend to avoid science fiction? Unhappy things tend to occur.
Before Mars is one of a series of books from the Planetfall series. It sounds as though the stories can be read independently of each other but they take place more or less in the same universe. This novel refers very loosely to events that occur in other stories, but the story doesn't suffer in any way for not having read the other books.
Anna Kubrin is a geologist who has a great skill, too, as a painter. It is as much for her painting as her scientific background that has garnered her a coveted spot on Mars. She will be one of a small group of scientists living and working in the Principia base owned by the multi-million dollar Gabor Corporation. It has exclusive rights to the planet and the owner wants Anna to be the first artist to work and paint on the planet. When she arrives on the red planet strange things happen which put her on guard and make her feel a sense of paranoia. She discovers a slip of paper with a painting done in her hand that has a warning--not to trust one of the scientists working on staff. Not only is the woman not to be trusted, she is the staff psychiatrist meant to be looking after the welfare of the scientists.
Imagine leaving your family and friends behind on earth. You are newly arrived on Mars and find that you cannot trust those who have come before you, and worse, some of them are outwardly hostile. It's obvious Anna has conflicted feelings at being away from her family, which includes a very young daughter. She is unsure of her place in Principia, and now she wonders who she can trust. What is real and what is imagined. She has access to immersian memories, but spending too much time in them puts into question her ability to function on the planet. And then Principia, or the prince, as it is known--AI--sees all. Is Anna paranoid, or is she there for another reason that she doesn't understand.
There is a lot that goes on in this novel. It reads almost like a mystery/thriller. It's not just Mars, but Earth is a place of the future, ruled by massive corporations. Nothing is meant to go wrong. But if it does, it will be to devastating results. There are two other Planetfall novels that came out before this one. I am curious enough to know how the stories interrelate that I have requested the first from the library. There is a sort of resolution to this story, but it ends with a cliffhanger, and it does not come without horrible world events. What will happen to Anna and the rest of the Principia crew?
*****
As for the rest of this year's prompts?
January: The Spy Who Loved Me - Exposure, Helen Dunmore
February: Long Ago and Far Away - Bodies of Light, Sarah Moss
March: From Book to Film - Sweet Bean Paste, Durian Sukegawa
April: Don't Bother Me I'm Reading - Howards End is on the Landing, Susan Hill
May: House and Garden - Merry Hall, Beverley Nichols
June: Planes, Trains and Automobiles - I See You, Clare Mackintosh
July: Sailing the Seven Seas - Cat's Table, Michael Ondaatje
August: A Month in the Country - Wildling Sisters, Eve Chase
September: Dear Diary, Dear Friend - Attachments, Rainbow Rowell
October: Exit Stage Left - A Shilling for Candles, Josephine Tey
November: Couldn't Wait to Read - Sweet Caress, William Boyd
December: Beam Me Up Scotty - Before Mars, Emma Newman
And I think I have my monthly prompts all ready for 2019! I am even thinking about my January selection and reading possibilities.