Do You Dream of Terra-Two? Kindle Edition

Something about this book really clicked for me while the characters were on land, waiting and waiting and waiting to be sent into space. The book spends plenty of time there, exploring what it means for a bunch of teenagers to be on the cusp of being sent on a 20+ year mission they have no hope of returning from, all in order to land on and colonize a far-off planet called Terra Two. Our main cast of characters really wallow in what it means to leave earth, what it means to leave behind family, even leave behind food you'll never eat again.But then one of them commits suicide, thrusting a back up team member onto the ship only hours before they're set to launch, sending the whole team into a tailspin right when they're meant to form a cohesive, well-trained machine. Instead...they're teens. Seriously, you guys, TEENS. In space. It falls apart quickly, and even the four adults on hand to help guide them along the way aren't really much help in figuring out the dynamics.The book is mostly a slow, character-driven, flashback-filled meander through the first 80% of the story, so when the chaotic action starts it's a little like whiplash. On the whole I think the book was well written, if maybe 50-100 pages too long.

I almost didn’t get this book based on the reviews, but I’m glad I did.If you’re a fan of the TV The Americans, you’ll understand the appeal of this book. You see, The Americans was a series billed as a spy thriller. While it was very much that, fans also quickly realized that as much as it was a story about spying, it was much more a deep story about family, love, survival, and relationships.Terra-Two is exactly that.This book is billed as sci-fi, and while it is absolutely that, it’s also a story about people, relationships, and family.I am an avid sci-fi reader, so I loved that aspect of it. I also love reading stories where the characters are compelling and have depth. I finished this book in less than 24 hours, literally read it straight through on a Saturday, finishing at 2am. I found myself absolutely hating one character only to find myself actually liking and maybe empathizing with him later. I liked and related to another character only to realize that maybe she wasn’t the best in this situation.What I’m saying is that these characters have great depth.I am not a writer (I teach high school mathematics), so when I read books like this, I always wish I could put into words what I’m feeling. This is the first time I’ve ever left a review for a book; I’m wishing I could use words to craft a good review that explains how much I enjoyed this book.In the end, I swiped to the next page in the book only to be presented with the author’s acknowledgments. It was over. It was time for me to say goodbye to these characters, and I was not ready to do that.(Also, go watch The Americans, if you haven’t already. Fantastic storytelling.)If you’re interested in more sci-fi-y sci-fi, I highly recommend reading more from the genre by non-white/non-male authors. Octavia Butler’s books will always remain my favorite, as will Alex White’s (they/them) A Big Ship At the Edge of the Universe.

I struggle to find well-written sci-fi and fantasy books; the literary aspects of writing are so often neglected for world-building and the result is often stiff dialogue, poor character development, and a full plot. Temi Oh managed to have the opposite issue with her work; the writing is strong and often gorgeous but the characters, plot, and world were lacking: I was intrigued for the first 150 pages or so, but the whole thing began to drag in the middle and didn’t stop. There is no character development and seemingly no point for any of the story to have occurred in space. Mostly, as this book is primarily about people and relationships, it fails entirely to make sense of any of them. Ms. Oh seems to not know her characters at all and writes random situations between them for the most effect and pot-stirring rather than for any real meaning or development. I could go on. It’s a good enough book and an easy read but don’t go in expecting a lot of sci fi or rewarding characters, as this book seems to be written by someone who only knows a little bit about both.

The worst thing is the last page when I had to say goodbye to these wonderful characters. The premise is: take six young people fit to bursting with vim, vigor, and high ideals. Put them in a spaceship on a 23 year journey and then watch carefully as the child becomes the father to the man and woman. Absolutely fascinating!! TO has amazing empathy and insight into the human experience. Read it as quickly as you can get to it. Not space opera, this is the real deal, all about humans.

This is really a relationship story and not really sci-fi. The never arrived at terra two much to my disappointment. The story line was well written but I felt like it was a bait and switch. Will they ever arrive, is there a book 2 ?

For me, this is not an easy book to explain why I liked it and parts I didn't like. However after finishing it, I enjoy thinking about the whole story and it is a well worth read.

Terra-Two is so intriguing. Relieved of gravity and some societal and structural contraints of life on Earth, new insights about surge forward. I look forward to knowing how the author garnered all the technical information to write this book. Very human. Highly recommended, for young adults and adults. Bravo!!

Read Coyote Rising. This is no where near that book. I’m really disappointed in the whole story line. She didn’t even get you out of the solar system.

I bought it on the strength of an email from Amazon, because the blurb made it sound quite good. But I struggled to get out of the 5th chapter. Nothing happens, but it happens in excruciatingly boring detail, and it's full of typos and grammatical errors. Gave up

This ebook had been appearing in adverts on my Facebook feed for some weeks. I downloaded it thinking it was a decent sci-fi book. It wasn't. It was effectively a teenage angst story set in outer space written by someone with a very dubious grasp on orbital mechanics. Whilst it is rather simplistic to give a book a score, a score is what Amazon want. I'd be hard pressed to give it more than two out of five.

From the sentence, Oh’s prose whisked me off to Terra Two to dance across its sandy beaches. But I don’t mean to infer that this is an adventure science-fiction read. More than anything else, Oh’s book is a coming of age story set in the vacuum of space. And it is here that Oh’s ability truly shines, exploring how her band of teenagers grow and change along their journey.Oh isn’t afraid to tackle huge topics in a subtle, at times understated way; utopias, religion, depression, love, who are we? And, of course, who should we be? These questions are made more complex by the voices she chooses to explore these topics with; all of her teenage prodigies come from diverse backgrounds not often grouped in this way in literature. More impressive still are the variety of characters Oh portrays compellingly, her depictions of depression, in particular, are a realistic blend of horrific and mundane; she manages to not give a window into the world of someone depressed, but also show how incomprehensible depression can be to all those around.I began this book due to the huge numbers of personal recommendations, but on posting this review I was surprised to find that the online reaction seemed a little mixed. Having read Oh’s book, I can only think that this is down to the advertising – it is nothing like either 'The 100' or 'A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet’, though I can see why the allusions were drawn, so if that is the read you want, try something else. To me ‘Do you Dream of Terra Two’ reminded me more of Ishiguro’s style if that helps.I was completely blown away by Oh’s first book, and I can't wait for more from this author!

I really enjoyed this story, but a major part of the story is flawed in that the ship on which they are travelling is damaged, knocking out the life support system of which there is only one. No aircraft, let alone space craft, has only one system where failure endangers life. There is always double or triple redundancy and on a flight lasting decades it would be reasonable to expect at least 1 catastrophic failure (Apollo 13 occurred after only 12 manned flights lasting only days).Having made the point I really enjoyed the book and wood really like to read the sequel where they arrive at Terra 2 to see if it is anything like what they expect.

I'm not quite sure why this is filed under science fiction, it appears to be more teenage anxiety. I tried to keep going but gave up at about 30%.Its an alternate reality story where the launch to Earth 2, a trip of 23 years, takes place just outside London in 2012. The teenagers who make up part of the crew appear to be able to run around London the day before launch, (quarantine doesn't appear to matter), then a quick drive up the motorway to the launch site a couple of hours before launch. It appears that in this 2012 its just like catching a plane is in the real world today, though I always leave longer than that myself. That's about where I lost interest though did continue reading for a while till I realised I didn't really care what happened anymore.