Name: Charlotte Dann's review of A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers
Item: A Closed and Common Orbit
Rating: 3
Author: Charlotte Dann

Becky Chambers

SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2017 HUGO AWARD AND THE ARTHUR C CLARKE AWARD. WINNER OF THE 2017 PRIX JULIA-VERLANGER. 'Chambers is simply an exceptional talent' Tor.com The stand-alone sequel to the award-winning The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet. Lovelace was once merely a ship's artificial intelligence. When she wakes up in an new body, following a total system shut-down and reboot, she has to start over in a synthetic body, in a world where her kind are illegal. She's never felt so alone. But she's not alone, not really. Pepper, one of the engineers who risked life and limb to reinstall Lovelace, is determined to help her adjust to her new world. Because Pepper knows a thing or two about starting over. Together, Pepper and Lovey will discover that, huge as the galaxy may be, it's anything but empty. PRAISE FOR THE WAYFARERS 'Never less than deeply involving' DAILY MAIL 'Explores the quieter side of sci-fi while still wowing us with daring leaps of imagination' iBOOKS 'So much fun to read' HEAT 'Warm, engaging, properly science-fictional, A Closed and Common Orbit is a very likable novel indeed' GUARDIAN 'The most fun that I've had with a novel in a long, long time' iO9

Wayfarers 2

A Closed and Common Orbit

Annabelle Gauthier

 Sidra remembered her drink and took a sip. /A bird, back as night, beating its powerful wings through the dawn/. Tak worked over the scales: yellow, silver, white, yellow, silver, white. She exhaled smoke. It cast shadows. Sidra took another sip: /A bird, black as night, beating its powerful wings through the dawn/. Tak continued: yellow, silver, white. As for the Aandrisk, she said nothing at all.

A Publishers Weekly "Best Books of 2017" pick! Nominated for the 2017 Hugo Award for Best Novel! Shortlisted for the 2017 Arthur C. Clarke Award! Winner of the Prix Julia-Verlanger! Embark on an exciting, adventurous, and dangerous journey through the galaxy with the motley crew of the spaceship Wayfarer in this fun and heart-warming space opera—the sequel to the acclaimed The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet. Lovelace was once merely a ship’s artificial intelligence. When she wakes up in a new body, following a total system shut-down and reboot, she has no memory of what came before. As Lovelace learns to negotiate the universe and discover who she is, she makes friends with Pepper, an excitable engineer, who’s determined to help her learn and grow. Together, Pepper and Lovey will discover that no matter how vast space is, two people can fill it together. The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet introduced readers to the incredible world of Rosemary Harper, a young woman with a restless soul and secrets to keep. When she joined the crew of the Wayfarer, an intergalactic ship, she got more than she bargained for—and learned to live with, and love, her rag-tag collection of crewmates. A Closed and Common Orbit is the stand-alone sequel to that beloved debut novel, and is perfect for fans of Firefly, Joss Whedon, Mass Effect, and Star Wars.

(Bre)anne✨

‘Jane 23,’ Owl said. She nodded, real slow. ‘Well, since you’re the only Jane I see here, is it okay if I leave the numbers off?’

Jane 23 looked up from her bandages. ‘Just … Jane?’

Jane couldn’t say why, but that felt kind of good.

Charlotte Dann

another fun, quick, sweet read from becky chambers - there’s more to say about this book but i don’t know if i can,,, i just really enjoyed it! chambers does a really brilliant job of weaving different perspectives together and it makes the whole story incredibly impactful. 

Clara Gauthier

While the first book serves more to set up the universe, this one has a much narrower focus. The result is a beautiful story, at times anxiety inducing as it delves into the psychology of the main characters.

Simon Crocker

i was unsure when i started but now i’m so so so sad it’s over 🥲🥲🥲 i haven’t thought about a book all day & been eager to get home and read it for a long long time (this time was different)

mira lee

Monicap

When I read A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet a couple of months ago, I'll be honest, I didn't get it. I thought Small Angry Planet was fun. It was fine. It was nice to have a Star Trek-esque story with queer rep, but that was it. And I didn't get the hype about Becky Chambers and, I'll be honest again, almost didn't read this. If I didn't own it as an ebook I probably would've unhauled it and called it on Chambers.

But, um. I get it now. I get the Becky Chambers hype.

Now I'll say that I'm sure part of the reason I enjoyed this more than the first book is that it's just more my speed. The loose plot vignette structure of the first novel definitely didn't pull me in, while the dual-timeline narrative of this one did. I was also more invested in Sidra's and Pepper's stories—again, I think the narrative structure did that but also the narrative perspective of a child experiencing care for the first time ever was reminiscent of one of my favorite stories which I'd reread maybe two weeks before picking this up.

All that, yeah. But also I get it now.

'Fruit is for eating. Fire is for warmth. Water is for drinking. And then you made tools, which were for certain kinds of fruit, for making fire, cleaning water. Everything was for something, so obviously, you had to be for something too, right?... I know that if I am a person, I have no purpose by base, but I’m starving for one. I know from watching all of you that the only way to fill in that file is to write it myself. Just like you did. You make art, much like Blue does. You two do it for different reasons, but that’s the purpose you chose. Pepper fixes things. Someone else gave her that purpose, but she chose it for herself, after the fact. She made it her own. I haven’t found a purpose like that yet – nothing so overarching and big. But I don’t think purposes have to be immutable. I don’t have to have the same one always. For now, my purpose file reads “to help Owl”. That’s why I’m here. That’s what I’m for. I can do the thing Pepper couldn’t, and I’m happy with that, because she’s done so much for me. If that is my only purpose, if I don’t write in another after this, I’m okay. I’m okay with that. I think it’s a good purpose to have.’

Yeah. I get it now.

SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2017 HUGO AWARD AND THE ARTHUR C CLARKE AWARD 'Chambers is simply an exceptional talent' Tor.com **Winner of the 2017 Prix Julia-Verlanger** The stand-alone sequel to the award-winning The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet Lovelace was once merely a ship's artificial intelligence. When she wakes up in an new body, following a total system shut-down and reboot, she has to start over in a synthetic body, in a world where her kind are illegal. She's never felt so alone. But she's not alone, not really. Pepper, one of the engineers who risked life and limb to reinstall Lovelace, is determined to help her adjust to her new world. Because Pepper knows a thing or two about starting over. Together, Pepper and Lovey will discover that, huge as the galaxy may be, it's anything but empty. PRAISE FOR THE WAYFARERS 'Never less than deeply involving' DAILY MAIL 'Explores the quieter side of sci-fi while still wowing us with daring leaps of imagination' iBOOKS 'So much fun to read' HEAT 'Warm, engaging, properly science-fictional, A Closed and Common Orbit is a very likable novel indeed'GUARDIAN 'The most fun that I've had with a novel in a long, long time' iO9

Wayfarers #2

Closed and Common Orbit

Vicky  Nuñez 

Another light-hearted book set in the Wayfarers' universe. 
I also enjoyed this one, my only issue was its reliance in Lovelace as the main character, for some reason I just couldn't relate to her and her story was not as fun. I would have liked to see more about the place were Pepper grew up and just more about her in general. Her story-line was so tragic and how she overcame it and became such a great engineer despite it, that made her extremely likeable. I would have read a thousand pages more about her and her childhood, but not many more about Lovey.

Pedro Figueiredo

I was expecting more of The long way to a small angry planet, which I enjoyed, but this is something else. More ambitious, darker (way darker), better written (imo), and a lot more human. Can't wait for the next book!

After Loving the First book in this series I knew that I needed to continue with the adventure and after my Dystopian series prior to this one I needed to escape to a Sci-Fi world!! This felt like the perfect reset for my Brain and just the perfect book to start February off with!

This Book Picks off Pepper and Lovey leave the Wayfarer together. Lovey is in an AI body and is not happy because that's a lot to get used to when your used to being an AI of a ship and not in a teeny tiny person body!

Told across POV and Time settings, we look at when Pepper was a little Girl and telling the story with the present Pepper, Lovey, Blue and Talk. It’s always difficult to talk about a second book in a series and not want to spoil this for anyone who is yet to pick this series up.

An engaging and beautifully written slice of life dive in Becky Chambers’ world of complex characters and newly imagined relationships between space faring species!

"The planet was beautiful. The planet was horrible. The planet was full of people, and they were beautiful and horrible too."

Ian Brakspear

After Loving the First book in this series I knew that I needed to continue with the adventure and after my Dystopian series prior to this one I needed to escape to a Sci-Fi world!! This felt like the perfect reset for my Brain and just the perfect book to start February off with!

 

This Book Picks off Pepper and Lovey leave the Wayfarer together. Lovey is in an AI body and is not happy because that's a lot to get used to when your used to being an AI of a ship and not in a teeny tiny person body!

 

Told across POV and Time settings, we look at when Pepper was a little Girl and telling the story with the present Pepper, Lovey, Blue and Talk. It’s always difficult to talk about a second book in a series and not want to spoil this for anyone who is yet to pick this series up.

 

An engaging and beautifully written slice of life dive in Becky Chambers’ world of complex characters and newly imagined relationships between space faring species!

 

"The planet was beautiful. The planet was horrible. The planet was full of people, and they were beautiful and horrible too."

Yaffa

This feels like a warm hug for my pretty overwhelming week

I love Becky Chambers. I feel like much of the praise I have for this book has been already said, but I will note that Becky perfectly hits the “how to be a sentient being” genre, in a similar way to how Piranesi by Susanna Clarke did. Amazing, amazing, amazing.

TW to be added later

I love Becky Chambers. I feel like much of the praise I have for this book has been already said, but I will note that Becky perfectly hits the “how to be a sentient being” genre, in a similar way to how Piranesi by Susanna Clarke did. Amazing, amazing, amazing.

Denaiir

4.5 stars
I loved this new look into the world of Wayfarers, I loved seeing more of the species that we discovered in book 1, and more world-building.
I was happy to follow new characters and to be on a planet this time. Both storylines, Jane's and Sidra's, were equally interesting, and I loved both characters so much!
I enjoyed The Long Way but enjoyed this one even more because it felt more focused and therefore I grew more attached to the characters.
Loved it, looking forward to reading other books by Becky Chambers, hopefully still set in the same world, because I want to get to know it better!

I was initially a little sad not to be continuing the journey with the crew of the Wayfarer, but not for long. Getting to know Sidra and Pepper was a delight and their stories really made me think about cultures, societies, humanity and technology.

Emma Cragg

Joy Bush

This is my favorite series. It can do no wrong. 

We get Peppers childhood backstory along with getting an AI put into an artificial kit human body, where she feels uncomfortable and is learning new things. 
These 2 stories running along side each other fit so perfectly well!! Like the themes lock together. 
I'm going to jump into book 3!!

Jamieson

“She felt as though she could reach out to that little girl and pull her through the years. Look, she’d say. Look who you’re gonna be. Look where you’re gonna go." 


I read The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet late last year and absolutely loved everything about it. It's truly one of the most joyous and beautiful books I've ever read, and I loved the cast so much. 

A Closed and Common Orbit is a companion novel, and I was a little war about it because it features different characters and a different setting. I wasn't sure if I would enjoy the AI elements of it and the main character. Turns out I had nothing to worry about. I loved A Closed and Common Orbit so much as well


  

(by ssuccubitch on tumblr)

A Closed and Common Orbit follows Lovelace 2.0 (who renames herself Sidra) and Pepper as they navigate Sidra's new body kit and role in the world. It flips between Sidra's perspective in current time, and Peppers as a child. I worry about alternate chapters because I always tend to like one of the perspectives more then the other. With A Closed and Common Orbit it was actually pretty close! I think I did like Peppers chapters just a tiny shade more, but I really enjoyed both Pepper and Sidra's chapters and was invested in both the current and past time periods. 

My favourite thing about these books is definitely the world. The galaxy that these people live in is the kind of one I want to live in too. I love the different kinds of aliens that populate this series, and the diversity of people racially and sexually. This world is my happy place, it's impossible not to read about these characters filled up with so many hopes and dreams, with stars in their eyes and purpose in their heart and not feel some kind of intense moving joy.

the characters are incredibly real and complex. They feel like tangible people, and even though I haven't struggled with what some of them have done personally, the human concerns and worries that underpin their problems make their characters realistic. The characters, and these books in general, very much explore the human condition and how characters exist in their spaces and I personally really enjoy those themes. Thematically this book held up for me much more then the first. While I adored what the first book did, I liked the issues and discussion around personhood that A Closed and Common Orbit Explored. 

The only reason I rate this lower then The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet is because I personally didn't like the characters as much and I missed some of the aspects of the first book that I loved - like the space travel and varying species. But, I do think this book is more exciting and fast paced then the first, and there is a greater emotional depth to the characters relationships so that counteracted what I missed from the first book. This is definitely a very strong sequel that stands up on it's own


  “Life is terrifying. None of us have a rule book. None of us know what we're doing here. So, the easiest way to stare reality in the face and not utterly lose your shit is to believe that you have control over it. "


A Closed and Common Orbit picks up right where The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet left off and carries on the threads that were already established in the first book. This is true joyous sci-fi, with relatable characters who struggle everyday, but also try so hard to do their best and develop and grow in positive ways. Reading these is such a calming experience, and makes me feel happy and hopeful which I absolutely love. 

Another 4.5 stars to Becky Chambers, she's a true genius and I love her so much for these books. Cannot wait for Record of a Spaceborn Few in 2018!

Molly Morgan

I absolutely loved this book, I'm not sure if I loved it more than The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet.. but I loved it in the same way.

We are taken on a journey of an AI, Sidra, gaining their humanity and accepting their differences in a galactic world. Jumping into Pepper's past to better frame what was happening in Sidra's future was so eye opening. I saw someone describe this book as a hug, and 100% that is the feeling you get from this story. I felt the emotions of the characters, cracked up laughing, and shed a tear or two along the way.

If you are wanting to read a sci-fi with action, explosions, and fighting... this isn't it. This story is more about social life, with all it's challenges and celebrations, in a setting of space. Where multiple species, races, and cultures are mingling together and trying to figure out how to work together. I love how the author tackles issues like racism, gender equality, and freedom of choice within the parameters of deep space. 

I can't wait to continue on reading this series, I need more in this setting!! 10/10!!!

Amanda

Really enjoyable story. Very comfortable and unique. I enjoyed all the characters. I don't love the back and forth timeline storytelling style, but in this particular story it made sense to tell it that way.

Izza

4.5 stars | I'm not usually a big sci-fi fan, but these books are everything! I can't wait for the third book to come out.

Janice Hopper

This book worked much better FOR ME than the previous volume The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet did. I confess to being (in the words of another reviewer here) somewhat Grinch-y. Whenever anything is TOO nice and people are amazing at giving other people what they need, I tend to roll my eyes and huff, because that's not how things work in my world.

But this story of two people whose lives came to be intertwined in somewhat unexpected ways really worked for me.

The story bounces back and forth between the book's present and about 20 years before the book's present. It tells the story of Jane 23, a gene-modified clone (essentially) who works in a factory because it's cheaper to use cloned humans for the sorting and repairing of scrap than to build machines that do it. Jane 23 and her fellow workers live strictly regimented lives. Then one day something goes wrong and there's an explosion. And Jane sees that there's something OUTSIDE the walls of the building where she lives. And she wants to know about it.

The other story tells about Sidra, who was formerly the AI Lovey (who started life as Lovelace) on the ship Wayfarer. Because of Reasons explained in the first book, Lovelace ends up leaving Wayfarer in an illegal human-form body (think android). She renames herself Sidra, and tries to get used to living what seems to her a much more restrictive life than before.

I was caught up by both stories. I thought the alternating chapters helped keep my interest. I cared about both characters. And yeah, like in the first book, the aliens were mostly cuddly, everyone was Really Nice and Really Understanding, and the ending was a little rushed,but it still mostly worked for me.

Connor 

This was AMAZING? I mean, I didn't really know what to expect as a follow-up to "The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet," but... Wow? At first, I was hesitant: the main character in this one is so incredibly different than any of the characters Chambers had in the first book, and it took some getting used to. 

But overall, 10/10 would recommend, everybody read the first book AND the sequel, cannot wait for the third book even though I've NO idea who it'll focus on. The dual narrative Chambers uses here resonates very well, and while I found the sudden switch in POVs towards the end a bit stylistically discordant, it worked. It worked well, and I can see why she did it, and like I said--it did work. 

Anyway: excellent characters, excellent character-driven narrative arcs, excellent dialogue, excellent heart. I came, I saw, I laughed, I cried. Found families in space continues to be the best.

(sidebar--once again I'd recommend the audiobook; Rachel Dulude continues to do a fabulous job with Becky Chambers' world and characters.)

‘This mind was hers. This body was hers. She would not be overwritten.’

This book feels like home, I don’t want to leave.

sage

While not the sort of modern classic/literary masterpiece i usually rank 4-5 stars i thoroughly enjoyed this book!! It was such a cute bedtime story type read for me and I loved the characters and general vibe. Better than the first one imo just because of how much more personal it is

Cindy Lieberman

A wonderful novel about an AI struggling to self-actualize. This is the second book in the Wayfarer series, but the two are only loosely connected in that some of the species we encountered in the first book are present in this one as well. 

Lovelace, the AI from the Wayfarer ship, has been downloaded into a “kit” - an illegal synth body - and taken planetside for her own safety. A second, intertwined story, is about Jane23, a young girl being raised, or rather used, by mysterious and faceless “mothers.” 

If you enjoy speculating about AI, this is a thoughtful and beautifully written novel in which both the AI and Jane23 struggle for survival and purpose.

Josefina

it's Becky Chambers world and i'm just living in it

Kate B-L

The first book of Wayfarers was hard to beat, but somehow, Becky Chambers did it. Funny, upbeat, with characters I would be delighted to call my friends.

Charlotte Dann &
A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers

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