This is a delightful series and the next offering is no exception! I have really enjoyed Elma ("the Lady Astronaut's") s story so far and will be up for whatever Mary Robinette Kowal has in store for her next.

An alternative history novel where Earth develops their space industry much quicker, the 1970's already have us setting up Mars for colonists. This series kind of reminds me of For All Mankind (or more accurately, while watching that TV show, I wondered if people involved had read this book series). The Martian Contingency continues with some darker themes in detail, and I couldn't help but wonder if our current situation wasn't at the forefront of the author's mind while writing.

Loved this book and can't wait for what's next. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I do love this series, but this entry wasn't especially strong. A lot of the book lacked any real central plot, being more concerned with a series of mostly-disconnected problems that naturally might arise during the early settlement of another planet which must be solved or dealt with, and are duly solved or dealt with. It ends up being a bit procedural, rather than exciting, although I am space-freak enough to still enjoy a series of set-them-up-and-knock-them-down Space Problems. Ultimately, if you can get your "live on Mars" experience to be boring, that's <i>good</i> - for the people there - if not for the people eating popcorn back home.

One note - the people who I've read having problems with the previous books addressing Social Issues will have a particular problem with this one, for instance a prolonged micro-plot about whether to call it a "Mars <b>colony</b>" which felt particularly 2025-coded rather than fitting in the time. For one thing, in our 1970 the process of decolonization of Africa was a very live thing, and it would have been extremely natural for the characters to shy away from the "colony" terminology in that light. But there's no mention of that, in favor of some very modern-feeling discussion from a Western-hemisphere anti-colonialist perspective. I tend to find complaints about the "social agenda" of this series pretty facile but that did feel like a nit I had to pick.

It's not clear to me whether there will be a book 5 after this; I felt some very conscious thread-connecting between the end of this book and the original "Lady Astronaut of Mars" short story, which could plausibly tie a bow on the series. But as long as MRK keeps wanting to write stories in this universe (even somewhat blandly logistical ones) I'll keep reading them.

In the fourth book, it’s 1970 and Elma York, The Lady Astronaut, finally lands on Mars with her husband Nathaniel with the second wave of settlers. Earth hasn’t had a clear sky since the asteroid hit it and the mere chance of seeing stars at night is lifting their spirits.

But from the start, Elma feels something’s off. Accidents have clearly taken place during the first wave of settlers that no one has reported back to earth and hateful messages have been painted on the wall. No one is willing to tell her anything when she tries to ask about it, even though she’s the second in command.

Small accidents keep happening too. They’re fairly harmless at first—until they aren’t. It’s clear that they’re deliberate sabotage. But is it someone on the planet with them behind it, or is the mastermind back on earth?

Despite the intriguing premise, this was surprisingly boring book. Focus was on technical details and religious rituals, and even the who dunnit was solved elsewhere behind the scenes. Most of the cast was new, the familiar characters like Stetson Parker only appeared through radio transmissions, and even Elma and Nathaniel spent large part of the book apart. The new characters were none of them interesting, nor were they given any backstories that would’ve made them more than talking heads, useful for each scene only.

Character relations were antagonist. Instead of building the inclusivity through open conversation, nothing happened until after a confrontation, however small. It made the whole process feel angry and negative instead of a hopeful chance to build a better world mentioned in the book’s description. It made for a heavy read and I didn’t enjoy this as much as I hoped I would.

In the end, everything was solved as well as it could be. Elma and Nathaniel settled down to their forever home, and they seemed content with where they are now. If this was the last book, it leaves them in a good place. But there’s a lot to explore in space left.

Book 4 in the Lady Astronaut series, and I just loved it! This series is so unique and thought-provoking that I truly treasure every installment. I’d recommend this book (and this entire series) to those who enjoy speculative fiction, sci-fi fans, or any reader who (like me) can’t seem to step outside at night without immediately looking up at the sky to find Mars (or Jupiter or Venus or Orion’s Belt…). Thank you to Tor for the gifted ebook. It’s out now!

Set in an alternate history, this speculative fiction series follows a timeline identical to ours—until 1952, when a catastrophic meteor strike in the Mid-Atlantic region throws Earth’s climate into chaos. With long-term survival at risk, the space program is rapidly accelerated, leading to colonies on the Moon and Mars with WOMEN at the helm.

In The Martian Contingency, Elma and her husband, Nathan, are part of a new Mars colony. There’s plenty of the expected outer space drama (because Mars is not a forgiving place) but what really stood out to me were the social and ethical questions raised about life on a new planet. Who makes the laws? How do families plan for the future? How do issues like racism and privilege carry over into an entirely new world? Even the terms colony and colonists are questioned — as they should be.

One of the most interesting dilemmas The Martian Contingency explores is how to translate religious holidays to Mars. A Martian day (or Sol) is about 39 minutes longer than an Earth day, and a Martian “month” in this book is 55 Sols—the planet’s full orbit around the Sun is divided by 12. With settlers of various faiths, the settlers grapple with how to observe traditions built around Earthly notions of days and months and even moon cycles. It’s something I’d never considered before, but it’s just one of the many logistical challenges future Martians will have to face.

I received a copy of the book from NetGalley in exchange for a review, my opinion is my own and also, I've preordered a paper copy anyway, because I have the whole series on my shelf.

I have to hand it to Kowal this time. Some of the elements that have previously bugged me (Elma's biases; the fact that Earth Firsters are evil but also correct, Earth should be saved first, if only because anything else is planet-cidal, and eco-cidal, and just unbearably tragic and evil) get addressed at least somewhat. In fact, so much of this book is about how well-meaning ignorance is still harmful, and how we need to make conscious effort to learn what we don't know we don't know, in order to be able to establish trust and collaboration. Elma is still not my favourite character, and I wouldn't mind being in another POV instead at times, but the lovingly crafted world yields dividends, the plot is beyond gripping (the processes! The worldbuilding detail! and the way I kept getting anxious to find out what the solution would turn out to be to each new arising problem!) and I stayed up past my curfew to read just one more chapter (and then it was a hundred pages later).

Really enjoyed book 4 in the Lady Astronaut series. A base on Mars has been established and the first "Martians" have moved in. Among the usual problems of working in an uninhabitable environment the members of the first Mars mission, to establish the base, are keeping a secret.

Another strong entry in this series. Gender, race, but also culture and religion, as well as body autonomy play just as much a role as who has jurisdiction on Mars and should it be named a colony.

I seriously hope this wasn't the last book in the series.

4 stars!

Every entry into this series is an absolute delight! I'm a little late to the party but now I'm properly along for the ride.

After much time and many trials after a meteor struck the Earth and massively accelerated global warming, Elma York is finally a part of the first permanent settlement on Mars. Given her reputation as the Lady Astronaut, she is thrust into a leadership role, but it quickly becomes clear that the crew...and her husband are not telling her everything. These books are loaded with tense moments and dark reflections on human nature but they bring such pure joy to me as a reader. I love the characters, I love the premise, and I'm an absolute sucker for a sci-fi book that deeply considers how politics would play out in an alternate reality. It was lovely getting Nicole's perspective in the last book but I am happy to be back with Elma, now reunited with Nathaniel who truly remains the punching bag of this series. Someone get this man a cup of tea and a less stressful life, good lord. Race has played a big role in previous books as it does in this one, and I thought the additional discussion of abortion was done with grace as usual. Also, Kam's storyline was really special to me. Ever since it was mentioned in a historical note that he was trans I was hoping to see more of him. I'm glad Mars will hopefully be a place where these lovely people can be themselves.

I don't know how many books will be in this series but you know damn well I'll be here for every one of them.

Thank you to Mary Robinette Kowal and Solaris for this ARC in exchange for my full, honest review!

Happy reading!

This is the 4th book in the Lady Astronaut series - an alternate history science-fiction series, where Earth is struck by a meteor in the 1950s, which kicks off the space race as humanity, not wanting to go the way of the dinosaurs, tries to find someplace else to live other than their slowly dying planet. This 4th book is set in 1970, 18 years after the meteor struck, and follows a group of astronauts and scientists trying to establish a habitat for humanity on Mars.

I really enjoy this series. It addresses some ever-relevant societal topics in interesting ways, it has great, believable characters and great world-building. This latest books again had some great character moments that I really enjoyed, and after The Relentless Moon took us in a different direction, I was happy to be back with Elma as the main character for this one.

I especially enjoy how this series doesn't fall into the trap of being completely US-centric when dealing with a global catastrophe scenario. Here we have a truly international organization at the helm, and a diverse group of characters from various cultures and religions, all trying to pave the way for settling humanity on Mars.

The one area where I felt this book fell a little flat was the plot. It was meandering along from one problem to the next, but it never built to any sort of true climax. To me, it read more like a slice-of-life type story, even with the Martian setting - more "LIFE (...on Mars)" than "life ON MARS!"

It's been a while since I read the previous books in the series, and I didn't remember that many details, but I was able to follow along here just fine. So I think this one could be enjoyed as a standalone as well. Still, I also highly recommend the other books in the series, starting with The Calculating Stars.

Thank you to the author and the publisher, Rebellion/Solaris Books, for providing a review copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.