One Way
Ratings8
Average rating3.4
15
Ratings8
Average rating3.4
A murder mystery set on the frozen red wastes of Mars. Eight astronauts. One killer. No way home. It's the dawn of a new era - and we're ready to colonise Mars. Xenosystems Operations (XO) has won the contract to construct a new Mars base with its audacious promises of highly advanced equipment. Unfortunately the equipment they've promised doesn't exist yet, there's no way they can create it in time, and XO is desperate enough to cut a lot of corners. The first thing to go is the automation . . . the next thing they'll have to deal with is the eight astronauts they'll send to Mars, when there aren't supposed to be any at all . . . Frank - father, architect, murderer - is recruited for the mission from XO's private prison with the promise of a better life, along with seven of his most notorious fellow inmates. But as his crew sets to work on the red wasteland of Mars, the accidents mount up, and Frank begins to suspect they might not be accidents at all . . . As the list of suspects grows shorter, it's up to Frank to uncover the terrible truth before it's too late. Dr S. J. Morden is a bona fide rocket scientist and author of razor-sharp, award-winning science fiction. Perfect for fans of Andy Weir's THE MARTIAN and Richard Morgan, ONE WAY takes off like a rocket, pulling us along on a terrifying, epic ride with only one way out.
Reviews with the most likes.
Pros: interesting characters, fast paced, tense
Cons: a little obvious
In an attempt to save money, XO recruits convicts to man its mission to Mars and build its NASA contracted habitat. But Mars is a dangerous place and ‘accidents' happen.
I really enjoyed this book. Frank's an interesting narrator who knows about as much as the reader with regards to what's going on. A lot of the mystery and suspense surrounds the aspects of the mission that the ‘crew' aren't aware of as they're rushed through training and shipped off to Mars.
I thought there was a good mix of characters in terms of personality and the reason they were behind bars. I did wonder why Brack was so obviously antagonistic towards the convicts, considering he needed the group to work together. Yes, they needed to stay in line, but he generally did more harm than good with his comments.
The depictions of life on Mars were great. A lot of care was obviously taken to point out the very real dangers of living and working there.
Due to a lack of attention, it took me a while to realize that the opening quotes weren't in chronological order as I'd expected. Pay attention to the dates so you can piece together the history of XO's planning for - and problems regarding - the Mars mission.
The story is fast paced. While I figured out one mystery quite early, the ending was still very tense and suspenseful.
Series
2 primary booksFrank Kittridge is a 2-book series with 2 primary works first released in 2018 with contributions by S. J. Morden and S.J. Morden.
