Ironically- or not- I finished reading this thought provoking novel as Maui burned and the earth experienced the hottest temperatures ever recorded. Kristina and Larch met fighting fires, married, moved to the relative safety of Nuuk, and had Emi, their beloved daughter. But now, Larch, against Kristina's wishes, takes Emi to the annual celebration of the day the world hit zero emissions- and everything they've built is upended. While this is very much a cautionary tale about climate change it's even more the story of the family. Larch and Emi both offer their POVs, with Larch moving back and forth in time, while Kristina's life is exposed through an interview with Emi and in Larch's thoughts. Kristina is determined- and she's kept secrets from Larch and Emi. Larch is no less focused but he's all about Emi. And Emi has mental health issues but she's one heck of a strong teen. There's good world building (all the more worrisome lately) and a sadly plausible scenario. The characters are terrific and kudos for the storytelling. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. Terrific read.

Thanks to Atria and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this title prior to publication. This is an immersive climate fiction/dystopian story following a family in two timelines - the present, where Emi's mom goes missing, and The Great Transition, when her parents met fighting climate devastation. Emi and her dad tell the story in their POV, with occasional school projects where Emi has interviewed her mom about the past. Readers will enjoy the nods to many genres of music from "the oldies", as Emi has a vast music history knowledge and sinks into music during stressful times. This propulsive novel would be a great book club book, as there is much to think about and discuss about our world today and what is coming. My main problem was the portions of Emi's school project - on the kindle I could not adjust the font, and the print was tiny and hard to read. I hope the publisher has solved this for the future digital version..

The Great Transition is a book about life after a global disaster. We follow a family of three living in the new settlement known as Nuuk, and we are about 15 years out from the major disaster that altered the world. Each of the parents in the story have a different perspective on what happened and how to address it in the present, which causes a lot of tension in their relationship. Our main character, Emi, their 15-yr old daughter, is in the middle, trying to determine how she feels about things by asking her parents a lot of questions about their past experience, while also navigating the day to day angst of being a teenager and finding her own place in the world. I was really hoping to love this book, but unfortunately, the writing style did not work for me. I enjoy dystopian novels, but the frequent use of terminology that was not explained or made clear in context continued to take me out of the story. The writing prevented me from feeling any sort of attachment to any of the characters, and unfortunately, I did DNF this book at the 52% mark.

I found this to be an imaginative exploration of life after the full effects of climate change. The tough messages about the environment, politics, wealth and justice are balanced with the compassion we have for the central characters. Googins uses a clever device of using a school assignment as a method to explain the previous world history. For those in doubt if climate fiction is for them, this is worth it, I cared about the characters not just the ramifications about global warming. Stunning cover with the wrap around text!

This debut novel blew me away. I am not a huge fan of climate fiction but this one is brilliant and thought provoking. I enjoyed the story told in multiple POVs. The author did a fantastic job of describing the setting and I kept looking at the cover trying to picture the world he was describing. It also had plenty of action scenes and a mystery element that kept me engaged. I look forward to reading future books by this author.

This is a fantastic addition to the cli-fi genre. It was interesting and propulsive, and I particularly loved the use of the school assignments as a way to provide background about the Great Transition.

In the aftermath of a massive climate crisis, humanity bands together to save the earth from destruction and rebuild society. Told in alternating timelines, THE GREAT TRANSITION follows a father and daughter in search of a missing mother in the midst of political unrest.

Debut author Nick Fuller Googins has crafted a compelling genre-mash up that will spark fascinating discussion among readers. This frighteningly plausible story has a well-developed world, memorable characters, and raises timely questions. I’ll be thinking about this one for a while!

READ THIS IF:
You enjoy climate-fiction with thriller pacing
References to “oldies” like Adele and Beyonce sound fun
A unique family drama sounds perfect for your mood

Many thanks to Atria and NetGalley for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review

Climate change covered by all angles! The story unfolds in the future and is told through 2 narratives, a father and his 15 year old daughter. It cleverly reveals parts of the past through a school project. The dad also shares parts of the past to show what has happened to our world. This would be a for a book group discussion. The author includes so many few points, sides, to the issues we face today. He does a fantastic job detailing what our world might look like in the future. It also includes an intriguing mystery along with music references for all ages.

Nick Fuller Googins' debut novel, The Great Transition, is a climate crisis book with a thriller-type twist. Neither of these are genres I typically read, but I found myself engrossed in the story and wanting to keep reading to find out what happened at the end. The book, written from the perspectives of Larch and his daughter Emi, describes the world after people unite to stop a climate disaster while also flashbacking to the time Larch and his wife (Emi's mother) worked on making this Great Transition happen. The story's pace picks up when Emi's mom goes missing after a coordinated assassination of several climate criminals, and Emi and Larch set out to find her. As a mom of teenagers, I enjoyed hearing parts of this story from Emi's perspective. I can appreciate the reasons for Emi's significant anxiety. Still, I felt it was unfortunate that in the story, her parents didn't address it more, such as helping her with the eating disorder she was struggling with. Googins clearly spent a lot of time developing his future world, and I enjoyed seeing all the details he imagined. I also appreciated that this was not just a book of climate gloom and doom but presented a more hopeful future. I think it would be interesting if he continued this future world in a follow-up novel, but either way, I'm looking forward to reading his next book.
Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and Thoughts From a Page Podcast for the advanced copy!

I admit that I personally love climate fiction and so this book fell in my fairly newly discovered love of that genre. Although I would say it is not only a climate fiction story but also falls somewhere in the thriller category as we try to figure out what is happening in the book.

The story starts in the future with the public assassination of a dozen climate criminals and the disappearance of Emi’s mother, Kristina. We then follow Emi and her father Larch in the present timeline as they search for Kristina. We also get flashbacks through memories from Larch and Kristina, as well as a report Emi is doing where she interviews her parents about what it was like to survive the “great transition” where life as the reader currently knows it ended and a new existence for planet earth began.

I liked that the novel begins after humans have survived “the big event” and we get a glimpse into one possible feature post-climate change. While this is a novel about climate change, it is also a novel about families and how surviving a traumatic event can affect each individual within that family. It was interesting to read how Larch and Kristania responded differently to their past and how it affected the way they lived their lives and parented their child.

Overall this was an interesting read about a possible future that I found interesting to think about.

This is a very believable speculative climate fiction with a unique perspective. The focus of the novel is on the recovery and aftereffects of climate collapse. The story follows one family, Emi a teenager who is learning about the pre-climate change world and her parents, both of whom were volunteer heroes who helped during the Great Transition to bring the world to zero net emissions. There is family drama, family secrets, a mystery, and alternating POVs which keep the story interesting. At times the political message felt heavy handed but that did not bother me. Overall I loved it and I hope more people will read it and come together to find ways to combat climate change.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my unbiased review.

Reading The Great Transition during a blazing hot Texas summer was anxiety inducing! Combine that with several other major climate related events occurring around the globe, such as wildfires in Canada and Greece, and one can only conclude that Nick Fuller Googins selected a very timely setting for his dystopian novel. The climate catastrophes, past and present, in the story are the vehicles through which the reader meets and explores Larch, Kristina and their teenage daughter, Emi. The future Earth is badly bruised and trying to heal. Just as bruised are the familial and emotional relationships and bonds between Larch, Kristina and Emi, and these are really the crux of the story. While I definitely gobbled up the story, I often disagreed with the parenting decisions made. I enjoyed reading Emi's draft paper on the Crisis, as well as her teacher's comments. It was a good vehicle for providing different character perspectives on climate change.

Teenager Emi Vargas was born into a world that survived a climatic event, and that world is a virtual paradise compared to the recent past. Her parents suffered and tried to help with the Transition event, but now her mother has disappeared, and political upheaval has occurred. Can Emi find out what happened and save her mother?

The story alternates between past and present and is full of suspense and drama. I loved it.

4+ stars

“We don’t get to choose which battles we’re born into, she says. The only choice we get to make is what we’ll do. Will we join the fight or will we turn our backs?”

It seems poignant and perhaps heartbreaking that I read this stunning debut as the forecast here in Downeast Maine approaches a 100 degree heat index this week. Speculative Climate Fiction is not a genre I gravitate to but I admit to being intrigued after seeing the author’s touring schedule, leaning heavily into indie Maine bookshops. Not since reading the masterpiece Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel have I been so moved by fine writing in this genre.

The story is set in the near future and is anchored by a family of three who have lived and are living through challenging times. Kristina and Larch are raising their 15 year old daughter Emi with very different ideas of duty, responsibility and accountability when it comes to preventing the planet from backsliding from their hard earned progress. As the world celebrates the anniversary of Day Zero (the official designation for reaching net zero emissions) a political and deadly upheaval is underway, dividing players into heroes, villains, and plenty caught in between. Climate criminals are being assassinated around the globe and the lines become blurred as to who is actually trustworthy. We discover how The Climate Crisis shaped this family through Emi’s interviews of her mother for a school project, and the often difficult answers to questions she presents to her father in the present. References to “oldies” music bring a much needed levity to the dark and important themes of the novel and this reader appreciated every one!

A passage taking me back to the iconic Statue of Liberty scene in Plant of the Apes was just one of the highlights of some of the New York City chapters. This Alice Elliott Dark endorsed debut deserves the accolades it has been receiving pre-publication, and I am already looking forward to more works from this author.

Thanks to the author, Net Galley, Atria Books and the Thoughts From A Page Patreon Group for the early copy in exchange for my honest review.

A near future climate crisis novel which is a riveting read full of characters to get behind and scenarios to make you consider our present situation.
This kind of book could easily go towards doom and gloom but The Great Transition is a satisfying read full of story and drama in the best way.
I will be recommending it to patrons, especially if they like books like ‘The Light Pirate’ by Lily Brooks-Dalton.

Excellent exploration of a possible and plausible future during and after s climate crisis. The effects of policy as experienced in day to day life are illustrated quite well, and the author provides a fully-developed look at the messy middle between the now and the "after."

I have learned a lot reading Climate Fiction and this novel leaves me hungry for more. With a family drama overlay, this is a very timely read during hottest summer on record, Canadian forest fires that will burn for months and a Saharan dust storm headed my way. (This is my real life.) Things are a bit worse in this story, and we watch as a family struggles to understand their roles in the changing world following a total collapse of the environment and the early stages of rebuilding a world with zero emissions. I loved the believability of this story and the book unfolded like a movie in my mind. Dual time lines were clear; thank you, dear author. In the way that Fahrenheit 451 is still relevant today, this book has a very important message about our planet.

I LOVED the crisp writing style of this thoroughly enjoyable novel.

I've had a hard time putting into words my feelings on this book, but not because it isn't good. It wont be for everyone, but a good book isn't. I will absolutely be recommending it in the future.

A new voice in the growing genre of Cli-fi. Post climate crisis we meet Emi a teenager living a relatively normal life near Greenland. The exact year is not revealed but we know as the reader that it is the not too distant future. You will know by Emi's appreciation for "classic" music, such as U2, the cranberries, the police, and Nirvana. The reader gets three perspectives, present time from Emi and the story of The Great Transition, a time of saving the world from the climate crisis from the perspective of her father and her mother, which is told in the form of a school project. It is a very serious subject matter and many of the points made me ponder as I sit in temperature above 100 for the last several weeks. I do feel like the author expertly delivered this with a sensitive hand and although the points came across, I cared so much for Emi I was completely invested in her story. What starts out as a family story builds into a thriller that had me turning pages past my bedtime.

The Great Transition by Nick Fuller Googins

This futuristic, climate fiction novel is different from my typical reading fare, and I thank the publisher, Thoughts From a Page, and Net Galley for the ARC.

Larch, Kristina, and their daughter Emi live on a future planet. The wildfires, storms, droughts, and temperatures they experience parallel what is occurring today, which is fascinating and unsettling.

Although I loved the concept of the story and its important message, I skimmed through most of the novel's second half. I found the flashbacks and backstory choppy and confusing and the political views forced and overbearing.