Return to Earth (The Galaxy Series Book 2)

Aithal
Genre: 
Other

SCI-FI:  Don, Terry, and Kim are three NASA astronauts, on a journey to return to earth guided by their alien friend Tom.  Something goes drastically wrong and the astronauts find themselves transported to a future earth, which is nothing like the earth of their own time.  They are horrified by the devastated planet that they find and race against the clock to repair their damaged spaceship and return home.

“Return to Earth” is an ambitious offering from the author.  Set in the not-so-distant future, it is an imagining of what may happen to mankind if the warnings of global warming are ignored.  Well-researched, the author has done an admirable job imagining the consequences of humanity’s present day mistakes.  However, the underlying message takes over the storyline, and the author sacrifices character development.  The characters are one-dimensional and this makes it difficult for the reader to have any emotional investment in what happens to the space-travelers.  The plot is dictated by the author’s agenda and as such the story lacks any real tension. This allegory lacks subtlety and nuance in its telling and the author’s message doesn’t need to be spoon-fed to the reader.

The author has the elements of a timely story here. If Aitha spends more time on character and plot development, the author’s underlying message will flow more naturally to the reader.  

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