The Blurb:
When a freak technological failure halts traffic to and from the planet Gora, three strangers are thrown together unexpectedly, with seemingly nothing to do but wait.
Pei is a cargo runner at a personal crossroads, torn between her duty to her people, and her duty to herself.
Roveg is an exiled artist, with a deeply urgent, and longed for, family appointment to keep.
Speaker has never been far from her twin but now must endure the unendurable: separation.
Under the care of Ouloo, an enterprising alien, and Tupo, her occasionally helpful child, the trio are compelled to confront where they’ve been, where they might go, and what they might be to one another.
Together they will discover that even in the vastness of space, they’re not alone.
The Review:
Can I just say how thrilled I was to be able to read the latest Wayfarer novel? And how sad I am that this is the last Wayfarer novel? This series has been such a treat. Such a pick-me-up in the moments when I’ve really needed one. I’ll hold these books close to my heart forever.
The Galaxy and the Ground Within has a similar sort of structure to some of the previous Wayfarers novels. Like Small Angry Planet, Galaxy has an almost bottle-episode-like feel. Our cast of characters have all touched down on the small planet of Gora — which basically acts as a service station or stop-over between wormholes — and are forced to spend a period of time there after an unfortunate disaster.
What happens next is the usual Becky Chambers fare. We’re given a sense of who each of these characters are, what their personalities are like… and then they all get to know each other. It’s not always pretty, and they don’t always get along, but they try. As always with Wayfarers, it’s about hurting, healing, handling it, and living the rest of your life.
We have a mostly-new character cast this time around. There’s Ouloo, who is the owner of the service station, a determinedly hospitable host, and the mother of Tupo — her very curious and clumsy child. There is also Pei, whom readers of A Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet might remember, and Rodveg, who has mysteriously been exiled from his home planet for a number of years. Finally, there is Speaker, who was without question my favourite character of the bunch.
Speaker is an Akarak, a species that most of the galactic commons doesn’t know much about (though that doesn’t stop them harbouring prejudices). She has lived her entire life with her twin sister, and when seperated from her after the disaster, does everything she can to re-establish communication with their ship to ensure that she is okay.
As is so often the case with Wayfarers, this is the direct antithesis of a plot-heavy book. The characters and their interactions take center stage here. It’s all about the conversations between them. Their pasts, their desires, their attachments. More than anything else, this is a snapshot of their lives.
But admittedly… I didn’t feel that attachment that I usually do to Becky Chambers’ characters. With the exception of Speaker, I thought most of them felt like a collection of traits rather than people. And, frustratingly, I really can’t put my finger on why I felt that way. I feel like with the past three books, I was able to relate on a deeper level with the characters. While this time around that sense of intimacy just didn’t materialise. Which is odd, as on the face of it this is a very intimate book.
It felt like the characters were a bit too tied to the worldbuilding for my tastes. One character would act a certain way because they were of a certain species, another would act a different way because they were rebelling against the accepted behaviour of their own species. I didn’t get that sense of individuality that I’d come to expect. Although, in fairness, this does tie into the themes of the book somewhat. The idea of becoming someone who you want to be, rather than who/what you’re expected to be.
Part of what took me out of this book was a plotline that involved disagreement on the need for and motivation behind a war. The Galaxy and the Ground Within explores people being on opposite sides of a violent political divide. It shows characters putting differences aside and working together when they need to, and interacting socially with people who have different beliefs than their own. It acknowledges that there’s no easy reconciliation with these things, but I just… It felt like something that I didn’t want to be reading. It reminded me too much of those kind of political arguments that manifest over christmas dinner with loathed extended family members.
I’m focusing a lot on critical feelings here, but I want to make clear that there was some stuff that I really appreciated, too. Speaker’s arc, again, was a highlight. The parental relationship between Ouloo and Tupo kept me smiling. The nods back to a relationship between Pei and a certain pilot were really satisfying as a fan of the series.
I feel like I’m being unfair to this book. I can’t ignore the fact that I read this during the height of a global pandemic, with the world slowly falling apart. There’s a lot here that certain readers will love, and it has all the stuff that you’d expect from a Wayfarers novel. I’m sad that the series has ended with my least favourite of the four, but just because I personally didn’t fall in love with this one doesn’t mean that you won’t.
I hope you do.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review. Thank you to Hodder and Stoughton for the review copy!
