Vessel by Lisa Nichols

Reviewed by Laura

            This book is described as a tense psychological thriller perfect for fans of The Martian. It isn’t. I’m a sucker for space novels. Not the technical jargon of a NASA manual, but the nitty gritty of life in space. Vessel disappointed in this crucial area. It is the story of Catherine Wells, an astronaut who mysteriously returns to earth six years after a catastrophic event decimates the crew of her ship and all are believed dead. Joy ensues, someone has returned from the outer reaches of the cosmos to tell their story! Except she can’t, or won’t—she remembers nothing and what she does remember, she isn’t prepared to share.

            The majority of the story focuses on the aftermath of returning to a job and family where everyone has already accepted your death and moved on. Catherine’s husband is about to become engaged to one of her best friends and her daughter is ready to graduate from high school. Her time in space is told periodically through flashbacks interspersed throughout the drama of her return to earth. In my humble opinion, this book would have been much improved had the majority of the story been set in space where the main drama unfolds. Perhaps a prologue of her return to earth followed by her time on the ship as the bulk of the story. If I’m reading about space exploration, I want space exploration!

            Sadly, this book focused more on the drama of the unexpected family reunion than on the suspenseful happenings in outer space. I stayed with it and finished the book, though the last third became extremely unbelievable (I know, we’re talking about space travel, but still…). The ending was, for me, unsatisfying and something of a let down. If you want a true space thriller, I suggest leaving this book on the shelf and reaching for The Wanderers by Meg Howrey instead. On the other hand, if you would enjoy a family drama with a little bit of space thrown in, this is definitely the book for you!

The Astronaut from Bear Creek by Nick Allen Brown

Reviewed by Brenda G.

             Jim Mayfield is a recluse and a retired astronaut. He lives alone in the inn his parents ran, a once thriving business, in the small town of Bear Creek, Pennsylvania. He is an enigma to the town, and few have seen him.

            The book begins with jarring detail of a drugged, drunken, well-fed couple, and a fiery accident that claims both their lives. They leave behind, left alone at home, a nine-year old niece, abandoned by her mother, who lost a leg due to infection. Accustomed to fending for herself, Abbey has found breakfast and maneuvered herself to the school bus.

            Jim’s sister Mallory is a social worker. Once the accident victims are identified, Mallory is charged with finding a home for Abbey. Trouble is, the local orphanage is closing, and all approved foster homes are at capacity. Wilkes-Barre is fifteen miles away and has an orphanage, but Mallory wants to keep Abbey local. She has lost enough.

            Another complication. NASA needs Jim. He has not been idle during his period of withdrawal from society. While spending much of his time handcrafting rocking chairs, he has also written textbooks and continued his scientific research. He has unique knowledge of seals on the International Space Station, knowledge that is needed.

            In a seemingly unrelated story thread, Kelly Ann White, the pregnant wife of a Staff Sergeant recently killed in action, comes to Bear Creek for her husband’s funeral.  She collapses at the funeral and awakes to find herself hospitalized, having miscarried.

            In this complex tale, these forces converge at the now-closed Inn, against Jim’s will, surely, but there they are. Orphans and foster children can legally be housed in licensed inns; Jim’s still is. Kelly Ann is weak and must have a place to stay; there is nothing else. NASA and its representatives are at Jim’s door, requesting an audience to hear their proposal.

            The tale takes some curious twists. The ending is not exactly what one might expect. Despite a few typos and the fact that I occasionally became impatient with either story line or lack of progress, I enjoyed the book and cried buckets.

            The author lives in Kentucky, thus can be called regional. This is his second book. It has not gained widespread attention but should. I look forward to reading his first effort, Field of Dead Horses.

Shine Shine Shine by Lydia Netzer

Reviewed by Kristin

Shine Shine Shine is a first novel by a promising young author.  The story centers around Sunny and Maxon, a married couple who have known each other since childhood.   Sunny was born during a complete solar eclipse to missionary parents in Burma.  Returning to rural Pennsylvania, Sunny and her mother meet neglected Maxon and he quickly becomes part of their lives.  Flash forward twenty years and Maxon is a genius astronaut working in space on a project to put a robot colony on the moon while Sunny is back on earth about to give birth to their second child while being with their autistic son, Bubber, and her dying mother.

Sunny has been trying to keep up the appearance of a typical family in Norfolk, Virginia, but the pretenses start to fall away as she has a minor car accident.  As the other vehicle hits Sunny’s van, her blonde wig flies off and out the window, landing in a puddle.  Suddenly, Sunny decides she doesn’t want to hide behind the wig anymore.

Maxon has always been socially awkward.  In fact, he and Sunny have made up formulas for him to understand how to communicate with other people.  Maxon is brilliant, but not comfortable in social situations.  He seems to understand his robots better than people.  When an accident damages the spacecraft, Maxon and the team must work to save the mission and save their lives.

All of this sounds fantastic and strange, but Lydia Netzer weaves the characters together and shows what it means to be a family.  At its heart, this book is about people feeling different from the world around them, but being accepted by others and understanding that those differences are a normal part of life.

Lydia Netzer has a very unique voice and I look forward to reading more of her work.  You can read more about the author at http://lydianetzer.blogspot.com/ .