Atmosphere wasn’t a bad read, but it didn’t leave much of an impression either. The writing was solid, as always with Taylor Jenkins Reid, but the story just didn’t grab me the way her other books have. It felt a bit flat, and I don’t think I’ll be thinking about it a month from now. Not terrible, just not particularly memorable.

Joan Goodwin has been obsessed with the stars for as long as she can remember. Joan has been content with her life as a professor of physics and astronomy at Rice University, her favorite thing is being an aunt to her precocious niece, Frances. Then she comes across an advertisement seeking the first women scientists to join NASA’s Space Shuttle program. Suddenly, Joan wants so much more.

Being selected from a pool of thousands of applicants in the summer of 1980, Joan begins training at Houston’s Johnson Space Center, with an amazing group of fellow candidates: Top Guns Hank Redmond and John Griffin, who are kind and easy-going even when the stakes are highest; mission specialist Lydia Danes, who is determined to be the best; warm-hearted Donna Fitzgerald, who is is trying to keep her personal life private; and Vanessa Ford, the magnetic and mysterious aeronautical engineer, who can fix any engine and fly any plane and is begging for a chance to show it.

As the new astronauts become friends and prepare for their first flights, Joan finds a passion and a love she never could have imagined. In this new light, Joan begins to explore this opportunity but also herself.

Then, in December of 1984, on mission STS-LR9, everything changes in an instant.

Thank you so much to Netgalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, and Taylor Jenkins Reid for this digital advanced reader copy. Also a special thanks to the Atmosphere LAUNCH giveaway team! All opinions are my own. #bookstagram #bookdragon #readingchallenge2025 #digitalarc #atmospherelaunchteam #netgalleyreviewer #bookcover #literaryfiction #taylorjenkinsreidbooks #nasa #ascans

This was an absolute masterpiece. One of my favorite things about Taylor Jenkins Reid is that she plays with structure in each of her books, and the flashing back and forward in Atmosphere works to speed the pacing and suspense. You have this air of tragedy coloring all of the rest of the story and it keeps the emotional weight at the front for the entire story. The love story within had so much depth and beauty, but also filled the reader with a sense of sorrow at the time that our two characters were falling in love and how it wasn't safe for them to do so. Overall I am going to be thinking about this one for a long time, and TJR truly did it again.

Hands down my favorite read of 2025! I loved Joan, Vanessa, Frances, Griff, Lydia, Donna...every character was so great! I felt like I connected with each character and was really invested in their lives. I had a close relationship with my niece while she was growing up, so the relationship between Joan and Frances really hit home for me and I loved that it was an integral part of the whole story. I enjoyed learning about each character and how they all got to know one another throughout their training. I liked the dual timeline and was definitely on the edge of my seat at the ending!! I could hardly put this book down! I also really enjoyed learning a lot of great details about astronomy, space, the universe, NASA and women at NASA. Another home run from Taylor Jenkins Reid! Thank you to the publisher for the ARC (I may have screamed with joy when I got the email)!

I'm not sure what to say about this title. It went a direction I did not anticipate from the blurb or any of the reviews. However, I persisted and I'm glad I did. It was a beautiful story of what the women before us dealt with, and in many ways, what we are still dealing with. There are certainly many points of discussion and I look forward to hearing the opinions of my readers.

I love Taylor Jenkins Reid. I liked the story, but initially the characters were hard to keep up with as she switched from first name to last name and just the amount that were initially introduced. I had to keep a note for the first half of the book of names, roles, connections. Maybe this was a personal problem. I general, I have such high expectations for TJR, and this one missed the mark a bit for me. Enjoyed the space parts - had me on the edge of my seat.

Ballantine/Random House Publishing provided an early galley for review.

Having read something before by this author, I thought it was time to give her new one a shot. I definitely have some thoughts on this one.

Clearly Reid has done her homework. This book is chock-full of details relating to NASA, the astronaut program, and everything you would expect for a period piece with this backdrop. The story opens with the fateful December 1984 mission, complete with very accurate technical dialogue that is not explained (why would it be as these characters know their jobs and understand the lingo?). This makes it very authentic. And, unfortunately for me, very boring. I almost decided to stop right from the start as I was not getting any connection to any of the characters; it was names and jargon.

However, I stuck with it. And then the story shifts to the backstory sections. Those are told in chronological order, with returns three more times to the "present day" of December 1984. This format is done, I surmise, to keep the reader on the hook for the present day drama while also filling in with the building of the relationships. There were a couple points in the backstory where I felt the author was info-dumping NASA and the space shuttle history (under the guise of classroom learning). I recognize that this information needed to be there and that Reid did all that research, but it still felt too info-dumpy to me.

The problem with the jumping back and forth narrative structure is that the December 1984 part (which is very exciting and tense) gets defused by spending too much time away. On the flip side, events from that part also tend to undermine/undercut the flashbacks in some cases because we have already learned the fates of certain characters (making me as a reader care less about them in the past).

While the book's description does hint at it, the story spends a lot of time on both a romantic subplot as well as a complicated family subplot. At points, these two take over the narrative and push the space themes to the side. So, those who might be picking up this book for a heavy space action story need to know this.

I did finish the book, and I found the story to be okay and serviceable.

Thanks to Random House and Ballantine Books for this ARC.

I'll start off by saying how much I've loved Taylor Jenkins Reid's novels and how excited I was to be given an early copy. I have found her stories to be complex and beautiful; truly just amazing character driving narrative (especially Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones). I went in blind not knowing anything about ATMOSPHERE other than 1980s and NASA. A child of the 80s and 90s who watched Space Camp one million times? Hell. Yes.

However, i'm sad to say that the first 40% of this book was a total miss for me and a bit of a slog after the first chapter. The 2nd half of the novel delivered, but not in the same way Reid's previous novels have. Are we expecting too much as an audience? I don't think so. Pacing and structure felt off to me.

SPOILERS:

The opening finds our protagonist Joan working mission control. We have no idea about her, or her relationships with those she's speaking to on comms. We're being thrown names rather rapidly and we haven't really invested any time in any of these characters to understand the complexity of these relationships or who they are as people. When I think of something like the TV series FOR ALL MANKIND (Apple TV, revisionist history, space), it's a slow burn introduction but then you're IN IT - and that was my expectation here too. Give me more NASA drama. Why is Barb so much of this plot?!

With ATMOSPHERE, we're immediately thrown into disaster, but then we time jump backwards and finally get proper introductions to everyone we know that has just been KILLED BECAUSE THERE HAS BEEN AN ACCIDENT. If this were a film, maybe it works? However, in a novel like this? No. I would have preferred to be attached to these people, get to know them, and then mourn them and wonder if Vanessa was going to make it back to Earth for a pulse-pounding final act. After the first chapter, I'm acutely aware most of the characters are gone as i'm reading it. What a bummer. Oh, and I even know WHY and HOW it happened.

Worth a read? Yes. And who knows? you may feel differently than me. 3.5 stars rounded down to 5.

Also, Barb - I hope your cowboy hat wearing husband divorces your ass.

Wow. I love Taylor Jenkins Reid and Daisy Jones and the Six is my favorite book of hers but this one comes so close. I was instantly drawn by the setting of NASA and feminism but then the relationship with her niece wow that was emotional and then on top of all that emotion was the storyline of her identity and secret relationship with a woman. I cried multiple times but I wouldn’t want it any other way. I can’t wait until the world gets to read this book so I can share more of my thoughts.

Wow. I think I forgot how Taylor Jenkins Reid's books make me feel so very much. I was immersed in the story from the very first page because of the writing style, how it captivates and pulls me right into the motion of the story as if I've been there all along. I finished the book in one evening, only breaking to eat dinner (and even then, having a hard time taking my mind off the story). And the ending - without giving anything away - lived up to a Taylor Jenkins Reid ending. I was happy, sad, overwhelmed, on the edge of my seat, and somehow relaxed all at the same time. Wow. What a well-written, moving, engaging story. I know this book isn't even released yet but I'm already waiting for yet another masterpiece by my favorite author, Taylor Jenkins Reid.

If there’s one thing Taylor Jenkins Reid knows how to do, it’s tug on those heart strings! Atmosphere follows Joan Goodwin, a reserved professor of physics and astronomy as she sets out on the journey of a lifetime - joining NASA’s shuttle program.
I really enjoyed this book. As a (die hard) fan of the authors other work, I worried the reading experience would be different due to NASA and science being big parts of the story. But in true Taylor Jenkins Reid fashion, the characters are what shine through the most.
Joan is, in my opinion, the perfect protagonist. She’s an ambitious woman who has lived her life by the book, never wanting to step on anyone’s toes. Both in her personal and professional life. Through the novel we get to witness Joan discover who she really is and the lengths she will go to protect the ones she loves.
Atmosphere is raw, emotional, and thrilling. It’s a must read for anyone that enjoys historical fiction, outer space, and kickass women.
Thank you to Taylor Jenkins Reid, Random House, and NetGalley for the eARC :)♡

This was such a good book. Being of a certain age, I grew up with space shuttles. I felt like I was there with the characters.

Joan Goodwin, physics/astronomy professor and aunt to her beloved niece Frances, has always loved space: the science, the mythology of the stars. In the summer of 1980, she gets the chance of a lifetime: selected from an enormous pool of applicants, she begins training at the Johnson Space Center so that she can travel to space. As she and the other recruits grow closer and closer, Joan finds a love that she had never imagined that she could feel with one of her fellow astronauts. As soon as it feels like her world has fallen into place, in December of 1984 on mission STS-LR9, everything changes in the blink of an eye.

When reading about a subject as vast, overwhelming, and inspiring as stars and space, it’s hard not to feel an emotional stirring deep in your bones. And when that is paired with a strong woman’s journey to self-discovery and acceptance, it’s an easy winner.

Joan’s strength of spirit and generous heart made me fall in love with her immediately, and I have never rooted for a love story the way that I did for her and Vanessa. I wonder how anyone in the world can look at how deeply and genuinely two women feel for each other and still believe that it’s an abomination. A love like that is one for the ages, no matter what it looks like.

And romantic love is not the only love that is celebrated. Joan’s devotion to her young niece Frances is beautiful to see, and though my heart ached for Frances’s loneliness through much of the story, I’m so happy that she had Joan to help her.

I am wildly impressed by the research that went into writing this book. I know basically nothing about NASA or space travel, but that didn’t prevent me from understanding or enjoying this book—I actually learned quite a bit!

This might actually replace Daisy Jones as my favorite TJR book. Action-packed, philosophical, romantic, emotional—everything that you could want in a love story with a backdrop of outer space.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for a galley! Atmosphere publishes on June 3, 2025.

I am jealous of those who still get to read this book for the first time. It is a crave-able book that I read in 2 days. I have read the last chapter over and over again. When I woke up this morning the book was the first thing on my mind. It’s about the first women to join the NASA Shuttle Program in the 80’s. It’s what you expect from Taylor Jenkins Reid, strong characters and plot. It has the universe and stars and love and trust and fear and friendship and family and drama and misogyny and feminism and small mindedness and openness. Everything in life is in the book. Now let me go read that last chapter again.

Joan always wanted to be an astronaut. Many people do when they are young, but she actually has the opportunity to make it happen. When she is accepted into the NASA program in the late 70s, she knows something great is about to happen.

TJR is always a must read for me. This one wasn’t quite on the mark for me. She made me care about tennis with Carrie Soto, but this was a lot about space and I never quite got there. It was a good, solid book, but just not my favorite.

Thanks to Ballantine and NetGalley for this eARC!

This ruled, and not just because I could have taken Joan's intro Astronomy class in college (if I were a few years older, and she were, you know, real). Also, I do want to murder one of the characters, and it probably is who you think. Women DO belong in balloons!

Early 1980s NASA space program with found family and sapphic love. Keep the tissues handy for an ugly cry at the end. Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an advanced copy for an honest review.

TJR takes us to space! Set in the 1980’s, the space program is looking for a few good men AND women to take the new space shuttle up. Joan is a lovable aunt and underestimated professor who follows her dream of reaching the stars.
She travels to Houston and becomes part of a close knit group of friends who become like family. We follow them on their romantic endeavors, trainings for space and to space. We become attached to these well developed characters. Not all things in life go as planned for Joan personally or professionally. It’s a great ride, especially those last pages.
My biggest complaint….TJR does some foreshadowing that really made me want to skip ahead (which I didn’t) and it also made the a lot of the book seem to drag. I just wanted to see what happened! She makes it worth it and I did get to see great character development.

This kinda wasn’t what I expected at all but of course I was involved ! The last 20 pages had me so teary eyed. I’ve never been into the NASA / space story but this one I enjoyed reading

I haven't read a TJR book since MALIBU RISING but ATMOSPHERE reminded me why I love her work. TJR is an incredible storyteller. I was pulled firmly into this story and it didn't let me go until the very end.