T.C Boyle's 1995 'The Tortilla Curtain' is one of my favourite books ever, and since I read that, I always like to check in with him every few books he releases.
As 'The Terranauts' is set in the 90s, I thought it would be a good bet, but unfortunately this was middle of the road for me. There was a pretty heavy sci-fi element to this story, which I did not really care for - sci-fi often goes over my head, which is on me, not on the book. Combined with themes of religion (or dare I say, a cult?) this seemed like too much, especially spread over 3 narrators.
The writing was really engaging as ever though.
A case of not my cup of tea, but probably a solid read for a lot of people.

<p>So I can't tell whether I found this book tedious and overly lengthy and boring because it was tedious and overly lengthy and boring or because the structure of being tedious and lengthy and boring is supposed to mimic the tedium, length, and boredom the characters themselves feel, being trapped inside a closed-bubble ecosystem off in the Arizona desert for two years. It felt like it took me two years to read the book (really, it took a week), but was that the point? I don't know. We're given three annoying POV characters and two dull years of their lives and it just draaaaaaaaaggggs on. Then we get to the end and everyone is exactly the same as at the beginning so what was the point of this week I spent reading this book? I kept at it because I thought something, anything, meaningful would happen. </p>

<p>Nope.</p>

<p>Nothing.</p>

<p>Terranauts are boring. I guess that's what I took away from this.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.librarything.com/work/17758835/book/158579237">The Terranauts</a> by T.C. Boyle went on sale October 20, 2016.</p>

<p><small>I received a copy free from <a href="https://www.netgalley.com/">Netgalley</a> in exchange for an honest review.</small></p>

There are three sides to every story - your side, my side, and the truth. Well, this time around those three sides belong to the eponymous Terranauts; and the truth is twisted up somewhere inside the three sided knot that is this book.

We hear from Dawn, Ramsay and Linda - three of the trainees for a mission based on the ecosphere experiments of the early nineties. T.C. Boyle really excels when he's writing in their voices - it's a work of art the way their personal prejudices and selfishness colour and warp (subtly sometimes but always there) their chapters. Their intertwining stories often overlap and allow you to make up your own mind about where in the gap between their versions the truth lies - but it's never spoonfed.

And they're all so flawed. Linda and Ramsay, enemies from the start as they pick out and detest the matching parts of each other that they don't have the self knowledge to see existing so strongly in themselves. Selfish, over everything, they both display a remarkable ability to view a situation so blindly that it ends up sadly comedic. (Linda in the gay bar was a shining and tragically hilarious example). Dawn on the other hand is inoffensive to a fault, until you realise that she genuinely lacks the capacity to truly grasp the impact she's having on the world around her - that she has been privileged through her life and so has never had to face the fact that what's best for her may actually not be the right thing to do.

This book is a true character study and does it well. A standout and one that will remain with me for a very long time.

I gave up after about a third, I’m afraid, something I rarely do when I’ve been sent a book for review. But I completely lost interest fairly early on. I’ve read other T C Boyle books and they’ve all been very good indeed. I can hardly believe this is by the same author. Did he just lose interest? Was he not interested in the first place? The premise is a potentially fruitful one, even if not particularly original. A group of people are chosen to live in a sealed biosphere for two years for a scientific experiment. The story is narrated from the point of view of 3 characters, two on the inside and one who was rejected and is consequently eaten up with envy. So far so good. Lots of opportunity for human drama, things going wrong etc etc. But unfortunately none of these people are at all interesting, likeable or convincing. Stereotypes, wooden dialogue, predictable outcomes. No, not for me, couldn’t be bothered to waste my time on it.