Started strong but lost the high tension as the book continued. I thought the ending was weak. There were moments of tension. But between was passive action. I felt like I had to finish but the going was slow.

Captain Lyn Randall has been in charge of a space tour ship for ten years. Her crew doesn’t know it yet, but this is her last mission. She’s going to retire and return to flying planes in Montana. That is until a mysterious, violent event hurtles her ship to another solar system with a thousand-year journey back to Earth.

When they discover a couple of nearby ships also made the mysterious journey, Randall and her crew must keep everyone alive, and try to find a inhabitable planet or a way home. What caused the event? Can it be recreated? And what does the intriguing woman on the research vessel know about wormholes?

This book was such an adventure. Technically, it’s a sapphic romance, but the burn is super slow and there’s no steamy scenes. The romance is way secondary to the survival story of the characters and how they build friendships and rely on rach other for survival. It reminded me a bit of BSG without the Cylons. Definitely here for it and recommend if you enjoy standalone space tales that aren’t necessarily epic space operas. It’s available now wherever you get your books.

Have you ever wondered what space tourism could look like? What sort of catastrophes could follow in the intellectual descendants of RMS Titanic? Elaine Burnes’ Endurance is the answer, a harrowing tale of a space cruise ship stranded thousands of years from home.

Endurance is an unsung underdog of sapphic science fiction, a close relative to the kind of science fiction evoked by the utterance of the genre name. Set in the confines of a tourist space ship stranded in the middle of nowhere, Endurance feels like the intellectual successor of the classic “Cold Equation” on a grander scale with much more at stake. The community upon the titular ship must band together if they have a chance at survival and, for a short while, it seems as though they do that. Trust breaks down, however, and the longer the ship is stranded, the greater the threat to peace and their chances of getting home. I was hooked from the very beginning by concept alone; space tourism is something which I’ve wanted to see explored in the genre for while, and Endurance fulfilled that desire and more. It’s a story about survival, humanity, and community in the face of outstandingly devastating circumstances. Let’s take a closer look.

Before I get into the selling point of this book–that is, the characters–I’d like to take a step back to take a moment with the setting and world of Endurance. The world as we know it is fairly tiny, save for a few narrative beats where it expands only to be devastatingly crushed once more. All of our time as the audience is spent in the solid confines of a spaceship, and it lends a claustrophobic feel to the story, even without the direct acknowledgement of the text. For me, that claustrophobic feel was the driving force of tension, and it was very effective in keeping me entangled in the struggle of the characters.

And what a struggle it is! Our cast of characters is multi-faceted and more than a little flawed, growing more desperate as the narrative continues. Starting with the intrepid captain, Lyn is the viewpoint character and, as such, is the focal point of the audience’s view; through her, we are given access to Endurance and her crew and guests. She’s driven, but at the end of her career, ready to retire to Montanna for the rest of her life, and events of her past put her on edge for most of the book. While she’s friends with many on her crew, her relationship to them isn’t close until the accident, when they’re forced to spend more time together and work in closer proximity to keep the peace aboard the ship. She’s supported by Diana, tentative love interest and mysterious scientist that she rescues near the beginning of the story, and Max, her second in command along with several of her crew.

I found the pacing to be the place where this book faltered at times. Overall, it’s rather medium paced, moving at a good clip through action but taking the time to linger in emotionality and impact, specifically after the accident and Endurance’s return to the survivors of Aphrodite. However, in the middle especially can drag, especially when the back and forth debates about what the Endurance is to do next grow numerous. The issue with pacing isn’t helped by the at times clunky prose, creating a lack of clarity that meant I had to reread whole paragraphs to parse what was occurring on a literal level.

Conclusion

Books like Endurance are part of the reason I started working through this genre in the first place. While Endurance wasn’t a life changing text for me, it had the feel of pulpy science fiction, the sort of stuff you could pick up at an airport for a bit of fun reading, but rather than feature a macho man at the center, there was instead a woman, uncertain about her place in the universe and unaware of how to interact with others quite often. There was something comforting about the ease of the narrative.

I’d recommend Endurance to anyone looking for a fun sci-fi read or anyone interested in the exploration of space tourism (tourism! In space!).

Imagine Star Trek Voyager, but done right.

In a future solar system, subject to the same greedy competition that has always plagued newly explored territories, the equivalent of a luxury cruise is a sightseeing trip around the planets. One company involved in private space travel, Omara Tours, has arranged a special itinerary to take advantage of a rare alignment of Earth, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. Its cruise ship Endurance, captained by veteran explorer Lyn Randall, is approaching the moon Enceladus when a mysterious space anomaly instantly transports it and a handful of nearby ships 4 light-years away, to the Rigil Kentaurus system. There's no hint as to what caused the jump, there's no one nearby who can help, and it would take thousands of years to try to return to Earth. What comes next is trying to survive in the middle of nowhere.

Elaine Burnes's novel Endurance wears its Star Trek influences on its sleeve, most notably in the social interactions within the spaceship, but the setting of the story is all its own. Earth is still recovering from a catastrophic war plus environmental collapse that led to a new start from scratch in the form of a feminist revolution. Spaceships have artificial gravity, matter recycling, and talking computers, but there aren't teleporters or warp drives or alien civilizations. So the novel sort of feels like it lives in Star Trek, but only as far as the worldbuilding needs to draw from it. While openly inspired by Star Trek, it's far from derivative.

There isn't a conventional antagonist here. The core conflict isn't between the protagonist and an enemy, but between the protagonist and the harshness of the universe. To be sure, Captain Randall has numerous inner demons, but instead of defining her, they organically inform the way she makes hard decisions for the safety of the people under her responsibility. Much of the plot resembles those classic pulp stories where smart engineers had to solve a technical challenge to save the day. Unlike most pulp adventures, Endurance keeps a finger on the pulse of human desires and fears. The point of figuring out the mystery isn't just the intellectual satisfaction; the point is always the characters' reaction to being stranded and helpless in the void. Without losing sight of the nerdy intricacies of interstellar jumping, Endurance gives primacy to its character's inner lives and relationships.

Although enough loose ends are left for an implied sequel, Endurance satisfies on its own. From among the hundreds of already existing novels about travelers lost in space, this one achieves the right mix of physics and humanism to build a well-rounded story. The various everyday complications of space survival are enhanced by the context of personal histories, unresolved regrets, and lingering suspicions that prevent this seemingly simple premise from ever getting boring. As Burnes's first foray into science fiction, Endurance proves unmissable.



Nerd Coefficient: 9/10.

What would you do if you got stranded on a space ship light years away from any help especially if the ship you were on was considered a "cruise ship"? This book is about perseverance and making the hard decisions in order to survive. This novel is why I enjoy reading scifi stories. There was a romance in the book but it was not the primary focus.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance reader copy.

What I know about space travel comes mainly from TV shows like Star Trek. So, this book about a spaceship carrying tourists being stranded light years away from our solar system grabbed my attention. It's written very well. In the not-too-distant future, space travel is common, but only within our solar system. So when Captain Lyn, on her last trip with Omara Tours, finds her ship thrown across the universe light years away, she and her crew and passengers have to find a way to survive. They have to make a decision on whether to find a way home (which would take thousands of years) or find a new place to live. Lynn, as the captain, has to make difficult decisions, especially as regards to the other 2 ships in the same situation as hers.
Also, I must admit that I never thought of the myriad details involved in possibly adapting to a new planet. Romance is not the main focus here though. It's in there, but not the main theme of the book. For someone who has an interest in inter-stellar travel and exploration, this is a very interesting, wonderful read.

**Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for ARC given for honest review!**

Endurance was an enou science fiction story, comepkte with imaginative design and a strong character anchor. Gladly recommended for readers who enjoy this genre.

On her last tour of the solar system before retiring, Captain Lyn Randall and her ship are hurled 4 lightyears away, defying the known laws of physics and space travel and stranding her crew and passengers an impossible distance from home. Lyn and the crew face one crisis after another as they struggle to survive, desperate to find a planet to inhabit or a way back to Earth, and battling both the harshness of space and the heated interpersonal struggles that arise within the ship walls.

Endurance is a post-apocalyptic space opera adventure with no shortage of action. There were a lot of pleasant surprises in this book, such as the inclusion of more hard science and technology than I expected, a diverse cast, and some lovable nonhuman characters (I'm a big puddle for the “AI develops emotions and self awareness” trope). If you’re a fan of non-stop space action with a sprinkling of physics and also lesbians, this may be for you! I was hooked by this premise, and it started off strong for me.

However, the further I read, I found that there were aspects I struggled with as well. The sentence structure was a bit choppy for me, with too many really short sentences and instances where it just didn’t flow. I was hoping I would just adjust to the rhythm of the writing style but couldn’t; however this style may work better for others and is a personal preference for me!

The biggest challenge was this book felt to me like it was trying to do too much – so many things are mentioned, but not given enough time or attention. It seemed like the author had so many great ideas and wanted to fit them all into one book, but they were at times a distraction from the main storyline and didn’t add depth. To start, there are several major overarching conspiracies that never get truly resolved or integrated into the story, and there are references to an apocalypse and a Women’s Revolution on Earth (during which women took over running everything, I think?) that we never hear more about. Throughout the story there is one crisis after another, with origins often not making a lot of sense, that are quickly resolved and not important to the overall plot. I do think a lot of these ideas were fun, and if fleshed out could have made separate stories/prequels/etc! The author is clearly creative and passionate about sci-fi and tech; it was just too much crammed into one novel.

I also found that our protagonist Lyn became increasingly less likable as a character as the story wore on. She repeatedly makes the same types of mistakes and miscalculations, telling us she believes in one thing (such as trust and honesty with her crew) and acting in a completely different way. It felt a bit like watching an 80s horror movie where you want to shout at the characters not to do the really obviously dumb thing... except this character was meant to be incredibly intelligent and in possession of strong leadership skills, so it just felt like it didn’t make sense that she continued to do the dumb thing and act oblivious. I really wanted to see her grow as a leader or a person. I certainly don’t think you always need to like the main character, but in this case it led to a frustrating reading experience for me.

I really enjoyed the diversity of the characters, and the inclusion of small things like words from various languages or cultural traditions included naturally into the writing. I also believe the author was trying to be inclusive of genders by writing a character who uses ne/nir/nem pronouns and attempting to address some racial stereotypes, but I think it falls a bit short here. I do like when nonbinary characters are included in a natural way without a lot of over-explanation, but in this case it felt a bit like a token character; every other character uses traditional gender pronouns, including the ship’s AI and the android doctor, and I was left curious about how this future society includes and treats nonbinary genders. I would have liked to see this fleshed out more. There were also a few times when characters made awkward racist comments or actions, such as side-eyeing an Asian crewmate when a military competition with China is mentioned, and wondering if a crew member from Catalan knows about the mountains in Portugal; in both of these cases, there’s a weird moment where one character gives another a look or says something internally, but it’s never overtly addressed. I struggled to understand what the purpose of including these moments were if not to actually call out and address them in a responsible way.

I did enjoy some of the characters a lot more than I did Lyn. For example, Zoya is a delight! She’s 132 years old, which is old but “normal old” in this future, and she’s on the space tour celebrating her 100th wedding anniversary with her husband and her extended family. She adds wisdom and wit and spunk to the pages, and I’d probably read a whole novella on her. Petra, the ship’s AI, is also a really fun character arc; we get to see her start to develop emotions, and her early attempt at jokes had me chuckling. <spoiler>I was actually quite upset when the decision was made, quite callously, to erase her memories and return her to a pre-aware version of herself.</spoiler>

If you’re a space opera junkie like me, I’d say give this a try and share your thoughts! I’d also totally read some backstory on the Women’s Revolution at some point (hint hint) :)

Lyn Randall is the captain of a space tourist cruise and has found herself flung to another galaxy after a jarring night. She finds two other ships in a similar predicament, one with a lone researcher surviving. Diana Squires may hold the key to the cruise ship Endurance returning home but there are many hurdles to overcome and potential for a new home to be found in the galaxy they have found themselves unexpectedly touring.
This was a book that definitely surpassed my expectations. I really enjoyed the space travel and the mishaps the crew find themselves in as they all adjust to their new reality. Each characters nuances play so well into the story and I really enjoyed reading this book. There is a lot of action here and the romance is exceedingly light so this isn’t the book for you if you’re in the mood for a romance. There are some times that Lyn seems a bit detached and I’d have liked to see a bit more of her emotions or maybe even had some chapters told from Diana’s POV to make it a bit less procedural. I did really like the plot though and I had a really hard time putting this one down after starting. This was a wonderful book and I’ll definitely be on the lookout for more from Burnes in the future.

This was a very well-written sci-fi survival story! With excellent, descriptive writing, imaginative world-building, and more action than you can shake a stick at, you won't be disappointed if that's the sort of story you're in for.

Where it fell a bit short for me was just an emotional disconnect. I never really connected with the MC, Lyn, and overall I just didn't FEEL as much as I would've liked to about the characters and consequences. Very much a me thing, but the best books are the ones that run me through all the emotions - good and bad - and this one just didn't take me there.

Still a great read for the right kind of reader!

(3.5 stars rounded up)

To endure at impossible odds
I love scifi and having travelled in the wake of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s epic rescue mission to South Georgia how could I resist the beacon of the very clever title „Endurance“. I was not disappointed. The title and the tale told are indeed a nod to Sir Ernest‘s achievements: I loved the scifi setting, the desperate plight of the crew and the insightful account into human nature and leadership under extreme duress.
The scifi drama unfolds when the fictional Endurance is thrown across 4 light years and cut-off civilization. The struggle what to do begins. I loved the subtle build up of backgrounds, tensions, options, technical aspects and of course all the ways human behave in such an extreme situation. The world-building is well-done with more and more information added over time. I loved the post-apocalyptic vibe and the insights into the backstories of those who survived and now are challenged again to survive another impossible situation. The overall theme is the fate of the Endurance and its crew, but there is another strand of the story which becomes more and more important - it is not fully developed yet and there is hopefully an open door for a sequel to explore the machinations behind what happened to the Endurance.

Thanks to netgalley and Bedazzled Ink for the ARC. The review is left voluntarily.

5 stars.

I’m so happy I found this story. It’s incredibly well-written. I was eager to continue reading and never wanted to put it down. I wasn’t even done reading, but I already wanted to tell everyone about the book. I felt like a child wanting to show off a new toy. So yeah, I recommend it. I’d give it fifty stars if I could.

The book has amazing descriptions, details, just enough science, a lot of things happen, some major long term issues, some threats that needed to be dealt with right away. The book is set in the future with all the advanced technology, but humans are still just that, humans. The hard choices, the regrets, the weight of responsibility. Amazing set of characters. The story is well paced. I never felt like it was dragging or things were happening too fast. It was just right.

The writing is more descriptive and factual. The author tells an amazing story and isn’t emotionally involved on the page. It reads like, here’s what happened, you decide how you feel about it. I didn’t feel pressured or coaxed towards any particular emotion. Even when tragedy was described, I didn’t sense the writer’s goal was to make the reader feel empathy or horror of the terrible events. So the writing style won’t suit everyone’s emotional needs, but it suited mine just fine.

I loved it. That’s what great sci-fi is for me. I enjoyed it from start to finish, and I feel lucky to have found it. The storytelling skills of the author are amazing.

This was a very good Sci-Fi in the truest sense. A lost ship, stranded, survival, technology etc. However it had a few bumps and issues.

Overall I did enjoy the story. It's very detailed and focused mostly on the situation the ship finds itself in, having been hurled lightyears away from their home galaxy, trying to figure out what happened, and how to get back, if at all - and how to survive in the interim.

My biggest problem I think was the emotional impact was never truly felt, for me. It was all very analytical and presented as such, in a very factual manner. Even when the characters experienced hardship, (which wasn't as much as I thought given the situations) I never really felt it from them.
Also, What little romance was there, was quite tepid.

We got a lot of history and background for our MC Captain Lyn Randall. Grouped with a few conspiracies from her past. But again there seemed to be a disconnect that existed, which I get is part of her personality, and things she had been through - but it also made it difficult to care for this character.

My other issue is plenty of things happen, but they just, yknow, do. Like it's often inconsequential, and when you think a super important plot-point has come up, it either got resolved very quickly, or just dismissed without resolution. Which was terribly frustrating for me.

There were several larger over-arching conspiracies that were brought up in the story, but were all dropped by the end, and never truly investigated or brought to light. Which ultimately led me to feel, well, 'what was the point?' I don't understand bringing up such potential for the plot and story, only to just -NOT- utilize them?

So this is where it was frustrating for me. It's like we never really got anywhere, and there was very little real danger, or even real discourse for the characters. So it felt like for nought in the end? The book takes place over a few years, so you'd think there would be so much more to discover, but there just wasn't.

So I can't say I'd fully recommend this one. It's well written, but that emotional impact and some story decisions were just not enough, for me.

Lots of action almost from start to finish. Don’t know how accurate the science and computing stuff was but then it is set in the future so the author doesn’t have to be too constrained by current facts. As for travelling vast distances in space, well that is just down to what the imagination can conjure up. I liked this story very much and although the ending is satisfactory the author has left it with some questions unanswered. A sequel would be good.