Emma Newman Planetfall: I looked at this series for the 2020 Hugo (Best Series) awards but didn't enjoy it. It is not an example of good honest SF and the Corey, Thompson, McDonal and Arden SF series were all much better. As it was for the awards it was not appropriate to provide a review.

Emma Newman uses the Planetary Romance trope to investigate the effects a foundational myth on a group of colonists as they learn their new world. How are their faith and beliefs, modified and manipulated after a tragedy which befalls the first to make Planetfall?
The crew of the Atlas is lead by Lee Suh-Mi's singular manifest destiny. She is the Pathfinder, and has followed the voice of God to an unknown alien world, and indeed finds what she promised. And then perhaps fails at the final hurdle. Renata Ghali, Suh-Mi's erstwhile lover and disciple, now 3D printer engineer for the colony holds the unspeakable truth deeply within herself despite the personal cost.The secret is kept, and the colony perhaps prospers until a stranger arrives, too young to have been an original colonist. Amidst the unraveling comes discovery.

The story rolls along at a page-turning pace, told from Renata's POV. Backstory and secrets revealed at opportune moments. The motivations of all the characters are plausible, and the final tragic climax is as unexpected as it is well written. There are 3 sequels to 'Planetfall', and I will be seeking them out

Thank you for providing this book as part of the 2020 Hugo Awards Voter’s Packet (finalist for Best Series).

I was taken aback by this book. Some of the reviews I had read compared it to films like Prometheus, and I definitely see the similarities... Tiptree's 'A Momentary Taste of Being' comes to mind as well. Such stories ask questions like 'What if humans were spread across the galaxy by something or someone we don't fully understand? Would we be filled with a desire or a compulsion to seek that something or someone out? What if we didn't like what we found? What if, instead of making us feel special and unique, the revelation that we weren't alone in the galaxy made us feel small and insignificant? Would that crush us?"

I like stories that ask those kinds of questions and explore those ideas, so I was prepared to overlook plot similarities between this and other stories I've read. I was happily surprised to find it had even more to offer, though. The main character Ren really drew me in. She has all the kinds of character flaws and internal conflicts that make a protagonist compelling. I wanted to understand her. Why did she sign up to travel so far? What was keeping her going? What was her goal at the end of it all?

I gather from reviews that some readers disliked the ending. It definitely didn't go the way I expected it to, and I have no idea what later books in the series have in store, but I kind of like that! To me the ending made sense for the character and I was satisfied with it.

All in all, I read this book in two to three sittings as I was utterly engrossed. I would have read it in a single sitting if I could have gotten away with it! I definitely recommend it and will be reading more in this series.

Copy of book received as part of this year's Hugo packet, therefore will not be reviewing at this time.

I received this as part of the 2020 Hugo voters packet, but didn't have a chance to read it until now.

It's wild, I'd never even heard of this series before I saw it on the Hugo ballot. And I had a great time with this first book! It felt like nothing was happening for so long (and by nothing, I mean mostly character development with vague asides about mysterious past events) and then everything happened all at once at the end—and I didn't hate that! I love a good space opera and I would consider this that, even though it's quieter than some of the other offerings in the genre. Ren is such a flawed, sad, relatable narrator. Knowing someone who is also a "collector," I appreciated the nuanced and compassionate look at the mental illness behind the reason why people can't just let go of things. And unfortunately, I found the response from her fellow colonists to be all too real, not only with hoarding but with mental illness in general. None of the other characters were that compelling for me, though I did like Kay well enough, and the mystery of Suh (and momentary flashbacks that we get to Ren and Suh's relationship on Earth) were lovely. I'm looking forward to getting more character development in the second book.

The plotting was slow but not in a halting way; in fact, if anything, it was propulsive because the drips and drops of the secrets that were being kept were enough to keep me fully engaged throughout. The worldbuilding was not as robust as I would normally like, but it worked for the tone of the book, and I also imagine that there will be more to come in the remainder of the series, and just giving it all away at once admittedly would've bored and annoyed me. While the macro worldbuilding wasn't as robust, the micro worldbuilding of this small community was strong, and again, that worked for the tone of the book. The descriptions of the forays into God's city were a bit confusing to me, I just couldn't really picture it in my head, but I chalk that up more to general pandemic brain fog than any deficit of the writing.

Overall, I didn't really know what to think about this book for about 75% of it, and then the last 25% completely hooked me to continue with the series.

Obtained this novel for Hugo 2020 purposes. Well-written story concerning the protagonist's serious mental health issue and how it came about. Excellent character development. No world-building exposition just hints, which is excellent. I can't wait to the next novels in this series.

Planetfall is one of those novels that is so well visualised that it sucked me in from the very opening scenes and refused to let go. It has beautifully drawn characters and I loved the way the author used the backlash of previous trauma in how she built up one of the leads. The depiction of Ren's personality and how it has been shaped by mental illness is powerful and heart-felt and there were moments in the book that I actively had to put it down as it really wrenched at my gut.

At it's heart Planetfall is a story of secrets and the power that those secrets can hold over a community and the individuals within it, for good and ill. It's a story full of sharp edges and broken pieces. Of how a lie can be built so deep into the foundations of a community that to breach it may shatter everything that they hold dear, but also of the damage that can do to the individuals who have tasked themselves with keeping the lie alive.

When a stranger arrives at the gates of the colony, Ren and Mack go out to meet him only to find that he bears a striking resemblence to the woman who instigated the travels through the stars to find this new planet. But with this new arrival comes a hidden danger, for only Ren and Mack know the truth about the founder of the colony and the newcomer comes from a small group thought to be long dead.

This is slowly paced and very much driven by the characters; there are very few active action scenes, instead you are brought into the heart of the colony through the day to day actions and interactions that occur. The writing is beautiful and actively lyrical. The author doesn't shy away from dark topics, but faces them head on with a candor that left me speechless at one particular point in the novel.

Perhaps my only complaint would be the ending. Knowing that the second novel doesn't follow straight on from events here, I had expected the ending to be a little more complete. Instead it felt rushed and somewhat unfinished, with threads and characters left dangling as Ren makes a strange and unexplained choice. I'd have liked to see a more rounded finale, with less loose threads left hanging.

But even with the ending, this is a superb book that took my breath away. Beautifully written with wonderful characters, it certainly won't be the last of Newman's novels that I read.

I am having a hard time putting my reaction to this book into words because it would basically boil down to inarticulate flailing. This book was surprisingly complex and layered. There was a slow reveal about the big mystery of the colony, and the ending took a hard left turn and I was speechless. I thought it was brilliantly done. Everything tied back together and I am honestly in awe a bit.

Thank you for the chance to review the full series in advance of the Hugos! It's a stellar series and one of my favorites to date.

This is a book I am accessing via Netgalley for the Hugo nomination packet. Due to this, I will not be reviewing this book via Netgalley at this time.

The first time I heard of this series was when I started looking at the Hugo award nominees for this year. And I was immediately intrigued by the premise of this series. While Planetfall was a bit slow for my tastes, I did enjoy the world that Emma Newman has created. I felt like the mystery of the dreadful event that happened was dragged out a bit too long though, particularly since so much of the plot revolved around it. I also struggled to connect with the characters since Ren was so deeply mired in her own world and guilt. Overall, I liked Planetfall but didn’t love it. However, I’ll be continuing with the series as soon as the library reopens again!

*Disclaimer: I received a digital copy of this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The setting and ideas being explored in this book were interesting. However the protagonist is in a constant spiral of anxiety and self-hatred, and it only gets worse throughout the book. She is relentlessly miserable, and thus it feels like a drag to read about her constantly circling misery. It's not like there are other characters around whom one might like, they're all just as bad. I was glad it was over.

I was prepared to give this two stars but the story finally picked up (or I started to get it) in the final third. Absolutely enjoyed the technology, the organic BDO aspect (also getting some Vandermeerian feel here) and most of all, the way the MC was written. I was not expecting to read about depression, anxiety, PTSD, and a bunch of mental health issues I was not able to identify. That part was engaging. Plus, I always have a soft spot for an older/mature woman as MC.

My problem with the book was mostly the disorienting flashbacks that caught me unprepared. The ending was an interesting one. Haven't I seen it somewhere? Did it pay off the whole mystery thing? No definitive answer for me..

I read this book as part of the Hugo Award voting process. I enjoyed the premise of a heroic effort to travel to and colonize another planet. The descriptions of technology also delighted me. Extensive use of 3d printers and bio technology are great. The characters were real and believable and kept me avidly reading to the end in a desire to learn what happened during the founding of the colony.

Planetfall is a 2015 SciFi/Fantasy novel by author Emma Newman, and the first in a series of connected novels which was nominated for this year's Hugo Award for Best Series. I'd missed the novel when it first came out, despite it getting a decent amount of acclaim (probably because I'd just started my increase in SF/F reading around that time), but the entire series is included in the Hugo Packet, so better now than never.

And Planetfall is pretty interesting, even if I'm not sure I really liked it? It's a SciFi story focused upon a main character - a woman who is one of two members of a colony on a foreign planet who knows the terrible secret and lie behind their colony, and has spent the last two decades suffering mentally trying to hold it all in. It's very much about the mental illness of its protagonist, as the secrets she bears exacerbates what might have already been there once as outside influences - a stranger with ties to the past - pick at the scab until its all done. And for that it's well done, but even as I grew to care about this protagonist and found the book engrossing, I'm not really sure the ending really worked for me? It's...interesting.

-------------------------------------------------Plot Summary----------------------------------------------------

It has been 20 years since Planetfall, when the colony built at the foot of God's City was established. Renata "Ren" Ghali is one of two people - just her and the colony's leader Mack - who knows the true story behind its founding, and what happened to Ren's love - the "Pathfinder" Lee "Suh" Suh-Mi. As far as the rest of the colony knows, Suh is still out there inside God's City, communing with God, and she will one day return. But the truth is far darker, and it has been tearing up Ren inside for 20 years.

And then a stranger named Lee Sung-Soo arrives - Suh's grandson - from the wastelands surrounding the colony, where no human should be alive on this alien planet. For Sung-Soo, the colony is seemingly a wonder, where they can print whatever they need, and live in peace and enjoyment, as opposed to the bitter harsh life he must have survived outdoors. For Ren, Sung-Soo's arrival only causes her to relive her memories of his grandmother, the woman she loved and still loves - memories that threaten to turn her apart.

Sung-Soo's arrival suggests that things are about to change, and the secret may not be kept hidden for much longer. And for Ren, the only thing that could be worse than suffering in silence for 20 years is what might happen when it's all exposed, and the truth of who Ren is is open for all to see...............

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Planetfall is an interesting book because it's not really about what you might think it is. Yes it's a SciFi novel about a colony on an alien planet with a hidden secret, a secret that might have resulted in the deaths of others in the past, others who may not be as dead as previously thought. But the book isn't interested in really the idea of whether keeping that secret was right or wrong, or whether the actions involved in the secret were justified (non-spoiler: they weren't).

No, Planetfall is the story of Ren, a woman who has suffered from mental illness as a result of what happened - and as a result of keeping that secret all these years. It's really the story of what keeping such a truth will do to such a person, and the story makes it clear that it's not good. Ren is a compelling narrator, and she's the sole reason the story works: she's far more capable than she herself or some others from her past would realize, skilled at using the Printers to create whatever is needed, and is someone who everyone in the colony trusts. At the same time, she's clearly broken, in ways that are slowly revealed to the reader (so I will not spoil too much) as the story develops: she refuses to let anyone else inside her home, she can't help but explore parts of the Alien "City" without tellingi anyone in search of some meaning, and she finds herself absolutely haunted by the past.

And that's the key to this story, of how Ren is unable to deal with the past in any way. She is triggered by memories constantly, when she enters various places in the colony in her normal course of business to when she just carries out her duties. And Sung-Soo, whose face resembles Suh's so much, only makes this worse. The secret that Ren carries inside her tears at her, and while she's hidden it from everyone else because they all respect her privacy, Sung-Soo is an outsider and doesn't have that distance: and so Ren's mental pain becomes brutally clear for all to see.

Needless to say, as you'd expect in any book setup like this, the secret is eventually exposed, and Newman does an excellent job revealing it to the reader in drips. But the secret itself isn't the point of the novel, what it's done to a person - particularly Ren - is the point. And so it all leads up to an ending where the setting is drastically changed, in which nothing will ever be the same....and yet the ending doesn't really care about that (and the book's sequel doesn't look like it will follow up on that). What it cares about instead is Ren's epiphany towards the end, as she finds the path that Suh started down all so long ago and finds some meaning in it all, in an end. It's an ending that's okay I guess and kind of fits but well...it seems almost magical in its thinking more than anything and the ambiguity involved it made me shrug more than anything.

I will read the sequel to this book, since it did keep me engrossed enough to read it in under 24 hours. But I'm not really sure I found it interesting enough to think too much about even shortly after finishing in the end, so it's not inspiring me to think of putting it too high on my Best series ballot.

Planetfall was amazing. I didn’t know what to expect going into this book, but I stayed up every night of my summer vacation last year to finish it. Fully realized characters, a fascinating world, and an excellent mystery. I felt the hoarder’s point of view was so reasonable, it took me by surprise when I realized the extent of her problem. I can’t wait to read more by this author.

Thank you so much for providing this book as part of the Hugo voting packet. When I have read this book my review will be posted to my blog, Goodreads and retail websites.

Planetfall was on my Hugo Best Novel ballot in 2016, and the series was on my Best Series ballot in 2020. It's a mystery which gradually evolves into an understanding of what's really going on. I especially thought the description from the main character’s point-of-view did a fantastic job of showing how mental illness and/or PTSD can look from the inside, and how it distorts the perceptions of the person suffering from it. The ending seems a bit abrupt and rushed, but I really enjoyed this novel and the way it explored the evolution of a colony and of the main character.