What do you think?
Rate this book
Light Years From Home
Every family has issues. Most can’t blame them on extraterrestrials.
Evie Shao and her sister, Kass, aren’t on speaking terms. Fifteen years ago on a family camping trip, their father and brother vanished. Their dad turned up days later, dehydrated and confused—and convinced he'd been abducted by aliens. Their brother, Jakob, remained missing. The women dealt with it very differently. Kass, suspecting her college-dropout twin simply ran off, became the rock of the family. Evie traded academics to pursue alien conspiracy theories, always looking for Jakob.
When Evie's UFO network uncovers a new event, she goes to investigate. And discovers Jakob is back. He's different—older, stranger, and talking of an intergalactic war—but the tensions between the siblings haven't changed at all. If the family is going to come together to help Jakob, then Kass and Evie are going to have to fix their issues, and fast. Because the FBI is after Jakob, and if their brother is telling the truth, possibly an entire space armada, too.
The perfect combination of action, imagination and heart, Light Years From Home is a touching drama about a challenge as difficult as saving the galaxy: making peace with your family…and yourself.
Evie Shao and her sister, Kass, aren’t on speaking terms. Fifteen years ago on a family camping trip, their father and brother vanished. Their dad turned up days later, dehydrated and confused—and convinced he'd been abducted by aliens. Their brother, Jakob, remained missing. The women dealt with it very differently. Kass, suspecting her college-dropout twin simply ran off, became the rock of the family. Evie traded academics to pursue alien conspiracy theories, always looking for Jakob.
When Evie's UFO network uncovers a new event, she goes to investigate. And discovers Jakob is back. He's different—older, stranger, and talking of an intergalactic war—but the tensions between the siblings haven't changed at all. If the family is going to come together to help Jakob, then Kass and Evie are going to have to fix their issues, and fast. Because the FBI is after Jakob, and if their brother is telling the truth, possibly an entire space armada, too.
The perfect combination of action, imagination and heart, Light Years From Home is a touching drama about a challenge as difficult as saving the galaxy: making peace with your family…and yourself.
340 pages, Hardcover
First published January 25, 2022
About the author
Mike Chen
55 books950 followersMike Chen is a critically acclaimed science fiction author based out of the San Francisco Bay Area. His debut novel HERE AND NOW AND THEN was a finalist for the Goodreads Choice, CALIBA Golden Poppy, and Compton Crook awards. His other novels include A BEGINNING AT THE END, WE COULD BE HEROES, LIGHT YEARS FROM HOME, and STAR WARS: BROTHERHOOD. He has also contributed to the STAR WARS: FROM A CERTAIN POINT OF VIEW anthology and covers geek culture for sites like Nerdist, StarTrek.com, and The Mary Sue. In previous lives, Mike worked as a sports journalist covering the NHL, DJ, musician, and aerospace engineer. He lives with his wife, daughter, and many rescue animals. Follow him on Twitter @mikechenwriter.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 453 reviews
January 29, 2022
Light Years from Home by Mike Chen is a standalone science fiction fantasy mixed with family drama. The story in Light Years from Home is one that is told from multiple points of view and some flashes back to what happened to the characters in the past.
Fifteen years ago siblings Kass, Evie and Jakob had been camping with their father when the girls had separated from Jakob and their dad. Something happened that night and Kass and Evie couldn’t find their brother or father triggering a huge search. A few days later their father was found claiming to have been abducted by aliens.
Needless to say the Shao family struggled after that camping trip with Jakob never found and their father searching for any proof of aliens and where his son had gone until he died. Kass and Evie coped in very different way with Kass caring for their mother while Evie went off to work with a group studying alien life herself. When Evie gets a sign that something is happening near home Kass is not happy to have her back but suddenly Jakob has also returned to their lives different that he had been.
Light Years from Home by Mike Chen was different than I expected it to be with the family’s issue being more in the forefront that the science fiction side but I still enjoyed the book despite the lack of sci-fi I expected. All of the characters were so different and really stood out as the point of view changed between them and I began to like them for who they were. For me in a way the story was even more compelling to see how the alien side of the story would play into the family dynamics as the siblings came back together and I really enjoyed this one as it felt like a unique crossover of genres.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.com/
Fifteen years ago siblings Kass, Evie and Jakob had been camping with their father when the girls had separated from Jakob and their dad. Something happened that night and Kass and Evie couldn’t find their brother or father triggering a huge search. A few days later their father was found claiming to have been abducted by aliens.
Needless to say the Shao family struggled after that camping trip with Jakob never found and their father searching for any proof of aliens and where his son had gone until he died. Kass and Evie coped in very different way with Kass caring for their mother while Evie went off to work with a group studying alien life herself. When Evie gets a sign that something is happening near home Kass is not happy to have her back but suddenly Jakob has also returned to their lives different that he had been.
Light Years from Home by Mike Chen was different than I expected it to be with the family’s issue being more in the forefront that the science fiction side but I still enjoyed the book despite the lack of sci-fi I expected. All of the characters were so different and really stood out as the point of view changed between them and I began to like them for who they were. For me in a way the story was even more compelling to see how the alien side of the story would play into the family dynamics as the siblings came back together and I really enjoyed this one as it felt like a unique crossover of genres.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.com/
September 19, 2022
LIGHT YEARS FROM HOME is equal parts family drama, a tinfoil hat alien abduction tale(?), and a book that explores all too real questions of what families do in cases where those they love are dealing with dementia or mental health issues. Evie and Cass are sisters who have been at odds for the past fifteen years. Fifteen years ago, their father and brother went camping. Brother disappeared. Dad turned up days later saying he’d been abducted by aliens, and died shortly afterwards. Cass is the sister who has stayed at home to take care of their mother who has dementia. Evie ran off to join a group of UFO-enthusiasts across the country in the hopes of finding their missing brother.
Fifteen years later, Jacob shows up, but has he really been abducted by aliens, or is this yet another example of him falling off the grid? I liked the way the novel kept me guessing and the way the emotional issues of the family came into play. 4/5 stars.
Fifteen years later, Jacob shows up, but has he really been abducted by aliens, or is this yet another example of him falling off the grid? I liked the way the novel kept me guessing and the way the emotional issues of the family came into play. 4/5 stars.
December 24, 2021
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of
Light Years from Home.
I've enjoyed the author's previous books before so I was pleased when my request was approved.
I had different expectations for this after I read the premise.
** Minor spoilers ahead - no alien autopsies here **
Fifteen years ago, Jakob Shao disappeared from a camping trip with his father.
When he drops back into the lives of his fractured family after so many years away, he has a fantastic story to tell and a mission to complete.
But, the Shaos must make amends with their personal unresolved family issues before Jakob can save the world from an intergalactic war.
The narrative is told from 3 POVs; Evie, Kassie, and Jakob, and through their perspectives readers see how their lives have changed since Jakob disappeared; how they each personally dealt with the loss of their father and brother, and how his reappearance has once again altered their family dynamics.
The story isn't exciting; this isn't a sci-fi adventure, no blasters shooting at aliens or monsters, no time jumping or fancy Star Wars action scenes.
This is a story about family; loss and love, belonging and identity, communication and understanding.
Evie, Kassie and Jakob are relatable characters, though I'm not sure I fully understand Jakob's willingness to leave his family behind.
He says it's because he felt he finally belonged on an alien warcraft as opposed to returning to his family, where he never really fit in. I get that, I really do.
But, to never let them know he was okay? To never drop a line?
Sometimes my family annoys me so much I still wonder if I'm adopted, but I would never not tell my sister where I am.
Kassie is his twin! How could he treat her like that? He doesn't even have to call. Text!
I may not call my parents but I would reach out to my sister, even if we were never close before.
It's great Jakob has finally found where he belongs, what he's good at and is doing something worthwhile, but he's still a dick for leaving his family hanging.
He hasn't changed much from the same selfish and lazy brat he was 15 years ago.
I wished there were more sci-fi action, being chased by the alien bad guys, a scene or two of Jakob interacting with his alien rebel alliance.
There's some alien world-building, enough to know that Jakob's mission is an important one, who he's working with, who the bad guys are, but no exposition as to how long this war has been going on, why the bad guys act this way, stuff like that.
This is not about an alien war, dodging blasters and meeting up with the rebel alliance to continue the good fight against the Dark Side.
It's about the Shaos and how a family heals after so many years of not speaking, not listening to one another, and how reaching out, just a little, can make a huge difference in so many lives.
I've enjoyed the author's previous books before so I was pleased when my request was approved.
I had different expectations for this after I read the premise.
** Minor spoilers ahead - no alien autopsies here **
Fifteen years ago, Jakob Shao disappeared from a camping trip with his father.
When he drops back into the lives of his fractured family after so many years away, he has a fantastic story to tell and a mission to complete.
But, the Shaos must make amends with their personal unresolved family issues before Jakob can save the world from an intergalactic war.
The narrative is told from 3 POVs; Evie, Kassie, and Jakob, and through their perspectives readers see how their lives have changed since Jakob disappeared; how they each personally dealt with the loss of their father and brother, and how his reappearance has once again altered their family dynamics.
The story isn't exciting; this isn't a sci-fi adventure, no blasters shooting at aliens or monsters, no time jumping or fancy Star Wars action scenes.
This is a story about family; loss and love, belonging and identity, communication and understanding.
Evie, Kassie and Jakob are relatable characters, though I'm not sure I fully understand Jakob's willingness to leave his family behind.
He says it's because he felt he finally belonged on an alien warcraft as opposed to returning to his family, where he never really fit in. I get that, I really do.
But, to never let them know he was okay? To never drop a line?
Sometimes my family annoys me so much I still wonder if I'm adopted, but I would never not tell my sister where I am.
Kassie is his twin! How could he treat her like that? He doesn't even have to call. Text!
I may not call my parents but I would reach out to my sister, even if we were never close before.
It's great Jakob has finally found where he belongs, what he's good at and is doing something worthwhile, but he's still a dick for leaving his family hanging.
He hasn't changed much from the same selfish and lazy brat he was 15 years ago.
I wished there were more sci-fi action, being chased by the alien bad guys, a scene or two of Jakob interacting with his alien rebel alliance.
There's some alien world-building, enough to know that Jakob's mission is an important one, who he's working with, who the bad guys are, but no exposition as to how long this war has been going on, why the bad guys act this way, stuff like that.
This is not about an alien war, dodging blasters and meeting up with the rebel alliance to continue the good fight against the Dark Side.
It's about the Shaos and how a family heals after so many years of not speaking, not listening to one another, and how reaching out, just a little, can make a huge difference in so many lives.
March 23, 2022
"The Shao family had become a textbook case study in trauma. But with aliens."
I first heard of Mike Chen on the Reading Glasses podcast, as he's a friend of their show. This book is a different sort of read because it really is more about this one family than it is a more traditional science fiction novel, and even the idea of whether it is a science fiction novel depends on which character you find most trustworthy.
It's been 15 years since Jakob disappeared on a family hike at a lake, and 14 years since the father died trying to look for him. Kass, the self proclaimed responsible one, is caring for her mother who has dementia, while Evie has become the host of a show about alien abductions. Evie and Jakob are twins and she's convinced he was abducted. Kass is pretty sure he is dead or being irresponsible, probably on drugs in some foreign country. Then Jakob returns, dot dot dot.
I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley. The book came out January 25, 2022.
I first heard of Mike Chen on the Reading Glasses podcast, as he's a friend of their show. This book is a different sort of read because it really is more about this one family than it is a more traditional science fiction novel, and even the idea of whether it is a science fiction novel depends on which character you find most trustworthy.
It's been 15 years since Jakob disappeared on a family hike at a lake, and 14 years since the father died trying to look for him. Kass, the self proclaimed responsible one, is caring for her mother who has dementia, while Evie has become the host of a show about alien abductions. Evie and Jakob are twins and she's convinced he was abducted. Kass is pretty sure he is dead or being irresponsible, probably on drugs in some foreign country. Then Jakob returns, dot dot dot.
I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley. The book came out January 25, 2022.
May 13, 2022
This is a sci-fi book for people who might not like sci-fi books. By that I mean, this is a family drama but also talks about space travel and aliens.
I found it to be a really engaging book because the relationships between everyone in this book is extremely complicated in the way that family can be really complicated. It switches POVs between the siblings and personally found the brother's POV to be the least engaging out of the three, possibly because his was the one I related to the least.
Watch me discuss this book in my April wrap up: https://youtu.be/970F0zwlUOk
I found it to be a really engaging book because the relationships between everyone in this book is extremely complicated in the way that family can be really complicated. It switches POVs between the siblings and personally found the brother's POV to be the least engaging out of the three, possibly because his was the one I related to the least.
Watch me discuss this book in my April wrap up: https://youtu.be/970F0zwlUOk
May 23, 2022
It was OK. Good idea, but boring, tedious storytelling, and an unrelatable and cringe-worthy family dynamic. One of those reads that brought joy when it ended because that meant I could read something else (i.e. something better).
![Profile Image for laurel [the suspected bibliophile].](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/users/1645808644i/7494844._UX200_CR0,6,200,200_.jpg)
May 9, 2022
That low rating gave me pause, but I'm glad I read this one. Despite having a background of military science fiction and galaxy ending quest blah blah blah, it's less about saving the galaxy and more about a fractured family healing, ever so slightly, to allow themselves to move forward.
March 28, 2022
The first sentence in a well known classic goes "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." Well, this unhappy family is unhappy in a generic way, and it's a way that's a big pet peeve of mine when reading books: characters omitting key pieces of information with each other. For some reason, I can't stand conflict when it could be solved by the characters simply communicating with each other, but much like real life, that's easier said than done.
Despite my frustration with this family not talking to each other (and maybe I'm just sensitive about it because I grew up in kind of a similar family) the book was enjoyable. I liked the intergalactic war as a backdrop and thought it gave a fresh coat of paint to the dynamics between the kids.
Despite my frustration with this family not talking to each other (and maybe I'm just sensitive about it because I grew up in kind of a similar family) the book was enjoyable. I liked the intergalactic war as a backdrop and thought it gave a fresh coat of paint to the dynamics between the kids.
September 23, 2022
What happens to your family when you're abducted by aliens? For Jakob, it turns out that his younger sister and father dedicate their lives to proving the existance of extraterrestrials, while his twin sister becomes a hardened cynic, and his mother descends into dementia. When Jakob returns to Earth after 15 years of being an inter-galactic soldier and engineer, he must navigate all the family dynamics that he missed, and convince his family that he's not the ne'er-do-well they always thought he was if he's going to be able to save the galaxy.
The best science fiction is as much a story about characters as it is about science, which means that the characters have to read as real, 3-dimensional people (human or otherwise). Unfortunately, Chen's characters don't live up to that standard. We're supposed to believe that working together to save the universe changes their relationship, but none of the siblings changes much as an individual. The tone of book veers between sentimentality and harshness, with one sister repeatedly mentally berating the other for not being present throughout their mother's decline, and Jakob continuously displaying a facial expression that apparently tells his family everything they need to know about him. This is how we're supposed to understand the familial tensions.
Not being able to give Chen many points on characters, I hoped that at least the science fiction aspect of the book would redeem it. Unfortunately, not so. The science fiction parts almost seem just grafted on to give something to hold the story together. Jakob tells us about this vast, horrible inter-galactic war, but it's really just stage setting. Fortunately for Jakob, though, the aliens who abduct him are the good guys in this very black-and-white, good-vs-evil struggle. I would have hated for him to be captured by the bad guys, but it might have made for a more compelling story.
FTC Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for this review.
The best science fiction is as much a story about characters as it is about science, which means that the characters have to read as real, 3-dimensional people (human or otherwise). Unfortunately, Chen's characters don't live up to that standard. We're supposed to believe that working together to save the universe changes their relationship, but none of the siblings changes much as an individual. The tone of book veers between sentimentality and harshness, with one sister repeatedly mentally berating the other for not being present throughout their mother's decline, and Jakob continuously displaying a facial expression that apparently tells his family everything they need to know about him. This is how we're supposed to understand the familial tensions.
Not being able to give Chen many points on characters, I hoped that at least the science fiction aspect of the book would redeem it. Unfortunately, not so. The science fiction parts almost seem just grafted on to give something to hold the story together. Jakob tells us about this vast, horrible inter-galactic war, but it's really just stage setting. Fortunately for Jakob, though, the aliens who abduct him are the good guys in this very black-and-white, good-vs-evil struggle. I would have hated for him to be captured by the bad guys, but it might have made for a more compelling story.
FTC Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for this review.
January 30, 2022
I’ve been itching for more stand alone sci-fi so I’m so glad I picked this book up. It was very unique and interesting, the plot was different than anything else I’ve ever read. It was sci-fi but it took place on earth in the present day, it had family drama at the center of it, and we only saw actual alien things that would be genre correct for a small part of the story. As a matter of fact, I really enjoyed about halfway through when the story went in a slightly different direction (it would be a spoiler to give it away, so I’m being purposefully vague). It only took me about a day to read because it was short and a bunch of fun, definitely worth a read.
April 1, 2022
If you're looking for a stand alone sci-fi novel that primarily focuses on family, Light Years From Home by Mike Chen is for you. Mike Chen has quickly become one of must read authors. I really appreciate his style.
January 27, 2022
This novel alternates perspectives between three adult siblings, Kass, Evie, and Jakob. 15 years before the book began, Jakob and their dad disappeared - their dad reappeared a few days later saying they’d been kidnapped by aliens, but Jakob never reappeared. But now 15 years later, Jakob has come back from outer space - or is that where he really was? Evie wants to believe so because she has basically dedicated her life to a group dedicated to proving alien life but sensible Kass would never believe it - meanwhile Jakob needs to get back to outer space.
This book definitely was more family drama and even a bit of suspense than it was science fiction, which was a little disappointing to me as I was definitely expecting it to tilt more the other way. I have read all of Mike Chen’s previous books, the first two of which I loved and the third which was just ok for me. I will probably still give his next book a try though.
3.5 stars.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
This book definitely was more family drama and even a bit of suspense than it was science fiction, which was a little disappointing to me as I was definitely expecting it to tilt more the other way. I have read all of Mike Chen’s previous books, the first two of which I loved and the third which was just ok for me. I will probably still give his next book a try though.
3.5 stars.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
December 2, 2021
I will start by saying that I generally don’t read science fiction. However, I like family dramas, and this fits the bill. I read the author’s earlier book “Here and Now and Then” and liked it so much that I jumped when I saw an advanced reader’s copy from NetGalley.
What would you do if your family was broken, your mother had dementia, and your brother, who has been missing for years, shows up and tells you that he’s been living in space. Sounds a little farfetched, right? But somehow, the author blends it all together so that you feel the character’s pain of carrying her family burdens, and then you start to believe that the brother does have an alien armada after him.
As in his previous book, this one is so beautifully written and easily flows. If I didn’t have to work, I would have easily finished this in one sitting.
Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased opinion.
What would you do if your family was broken, your mother had dementia, and your brother, who has been missing for years, shows up and tells you that he’s been living in space. Sounds a little farfetched, right? But somehow, the author blends it all together so that you feel the character’s pain of carrying her family burdens, and then you start to believe that the brother does have an alien armada after him.
As in his previous book, this one is so beautifully written and easily flows. If I didn’t have to work, I would have easily finished this in one sitting.
Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased opinion.
August 4, 2023
Like most of Chen’s books this was fun. He’s writing is fine and he plots the stories well. I didn’t love We Could be Heros, but this one is a solid 3.5. He says he was inspired by a story of family trauma which fits with the story but I think the most real feelings came from the sub-plot of the mother with dementia.
January 27, 2022
This is a really strange book. Part of me was thinking there'd be some ambiguity about whether or not Jakob was telling the truth about the abduction, but the book starts with immediately revealing the answer. So later scenes where his sisters question/suspect his version of events fall completely flat because we already know if he's telling the truth or not. There's no mystery. And without it, the book just ends up feeling a little bland.
September 2, 2022
Slow and then got super corny at the end
January 24, 2022
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
Light Years from Home is a SF family story. A book that will wring tears from your eyes, laughter from your heart, and carve itself into your soul. It's full of action, family dynamics, and a story about siblings. About the things we think we know about the ones we love. About the lies we tell the ones we love and the lies we tell ourselves. These relationships with some of our closest people on the planet, and the distance in between.
The family drama and exploration in Light Years from Home is epic and poignant. There were moments I was close to tears and others with tears streaming down my face. How people can come into our lives, disappear, and appear in front of our eyes. Thematically, Light Years from Home explores belief and perception. How we are forced to confront not only what we know about the world, but about the ones we love and ourselves.
full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/revi...
Light Years from Home is a SF family story. A book that will wring tears from your eyes, laughter from your heart, and carve itself into your soul. It's full of action, family dynamics, and a story about siblings. About the things we think we know about the ones we love. About the lies we tell the ones we love and the lies we tell ourselves. These relationships with some of our closest people on the planet, and the distance in between.
The family drama and exploration in Light Years from Home is epic and poignant. There were moments I was close to tears and others with tears streaming down my face. How people can come into our lives, disappear, and appear in front of our eyes. Thematically, Light Years from Home explores belief and perception. How we are forced to confront not only what we know about the world, but about the ones we love and ourselves.
full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/revi...
August 20, 2022
I gave it over 100 pages but this is faaar too much repetitive YA style sibling drama for me and way too little actual sci fi/aliens. If you want to watch a set of fraternal twins and their younger sister have the same boring argument from all 3 points of view this will be up your alley but for me I’m tapping out.
January 31, 2022
Jakob, Kass, Evie, and their father Arnold went camping fifteen years ago, and their lives changed forever. There was an unusual electrical storm, and two days later, only their father is found. Arnold and Jakob disappeared together, so where is Jakob? Arnold tells everyone that they were abducted by aliens, who kept Jakob and sent him back.
The story opens with Jakob on a mission to save the universe when he runs into trouble. His only option, going back to earth and hopefully finding what he needs to contact his ship. Evie has been searching for him since he vanished, while Kass believes he just took off. Their father is now deceased, and their mother is suffering from dementia. These two sisters’ lives are galaxies apart.
When Jakob reappears with his rather fantastic tale, half of me believed he was telling the truth and the other half was sure he was delusional. The only thing that tipped the scales in his favor, was his father's story. His father came back with an object the family called “It”. Could this be the one thing that will assist Jakob or is it just a useless piece of junk?
You might think this is a science fiction story, and it certainly has its basis in that genre. But the real story is what happens to family members left behind when someone is just gone. Evie and Kass are strangers, but once Jakob returns, old resentments become the main focus of the story. Can they trust him, and more importantly can their family heal after so many years of secrets and bad decisions? I was glued to my Kindle trying to guess the truth and rooting for this family to somehow get a second chance.
The story opens with Jakob on a mission to save the universe when he runs into trouble. His only option, going back to earth and hopefully finding what he needs to contact his ship. Evie has been searching for him since he vanished, while Kass believes he just took off. Their father is now deceased, and their mother is suffering from dementia. These two sisters’ lives are galaxies apart.
When Jakob reappears with his rather fantastic tale, half of me believed he was telling the truth and the other half was sure he was delusional. The only thing that tipped the scales in his favor, was his father's story. His father came back with an object the family called “It”. Could this be the one thing that will assist Jakob or is it just a useless piece of junk?
You might think this is a science fiction story, and it certainly has its basis in that genre. But the real story is what happens to family members left behind when someone is just gone. Evie and Kass are strangers, but once Jakob returns, old resentments become the main focus of the story. Can they trust him, and more importantly can their family heal after so many years of secrets and bad decisions? I was glued to my Kindle trying to guess the truth and rooting for this family to somehow get a second chance.
November 25, 2021
Mike Chen's books are always SO good. He must spend a lot of time figuring out character arcs and laying them into the plot. His characters seem so real, and they drive the story. The plots wouldn't be plots without them, and I really like that. I've loved all his books, but the characters here are some of my favorites. The Shao family has got a lot of issues to deal with. There's Jakob, the man who disappeared fifteen years ago as a teen and holds the key to saving the universe from hostile aliens. His sisters, Evie and Kassie, have taken different approaches to dealing with his absence--Evie has gotten involved in an alien-hunting society, while Kassie has retreated into video games and denial. Kassie has also been charged with the care of their mother, who has developed dementia. Their father and husband, Arnold, passed away in search of Jakob, leaving the three women in the pain of missing both of the men. Jakob's return sends the family into turmoil, and they're forced to confront the emotions they've been burying all these years. Although not as action-packed as WE COULD BE HEROES, the science fiction element keeps the reader's interest and interplays well with the characters' journeys. I'm very excited to host Mike Chen at my library in January and can't wait to ask him questions about this book (hopefully without spoiling anything for our patrons!)
March 29, 2022
3.5 stars
January 27, 2022
This book is much more a family drama than a space opera. That must have been intentional because we could have found out much more about the space parts. But I can understand that we needed the ambiguous truth of aliens to make the family dynamics play out the way they did, creating doubt for us just as doubt crept into the minds of the sisters.
But as a family drama, it was superb. Siblings separated by time, distance, and pride. Everyone in their own bubble, necessarily separate and understandably isolated. The old wounds rolling into larger fissures. If nothing else, the novel reveals the hurts and resentment of unacknowledged trauma in each member, as well as the lack of empathy for anyone outside one’s own orbit of experience.
Thank you to TLC Book Tours and the publisher for my free physical copy. These opinions are my own.
But as a family drama, it was superb. Siblings separated by time, distance, and pride. Everyone in their own bubble, necessarily separate and understandably isolated. The old wounds rolling into larger fissures. If nothing else, the novel reveals the hurts and resentment of unacknowledged trauma in each member, as well as the lack of empathy for anyone outside one’s own orbit of experience.
Thank you to TLC Book Tours and the publisher for my free physical copy. These opinions are my own.
February 7, 2022
Light Years from Home is Mike Chen’s latest novel, and, in my opinion, it fits right in with the rest of the author’s portfolio. It is a sci-fi story written in Chen’s signature smooth style, with a narrative that includes family drama and alien technology, and a message full of hope. I definitely enjoyed this read.
There is always an easy connection with the characters in Chen’s books, and Light Years from Home is no different. There are many elements that go into this. All of the characters hopes, dreams, and even their hostilities are evident as their thoughts are laid bare. The reader really gets in the characters’ heads, and, to me, if done right it can be really touching. I care what happens to them, and that is crux of a great narrative, to me.
I thought the storyline was really unique. The reader comes in kind of in the middle of something, and also leaves in the middle of something. There is much left for the reader to extrapolate. I think where many authors would have taken this story and tried to turn it into Epic Space Opera, Chen gives us a snapshot in time – a couple of days out of an event that spans decades. I really love me some space opera, but I enjoy taking a break from it, too. There is something to be said for not having every detail explained, 10 different perspectives, and a thousand years of history taken into account every once in a while. Do not get me wrong, there are aliens (at least the existence of them), galactic war, and spaceships in the story, but the fact that this book singles in on a small family over a couple of days feels very intimate, and I enjoyed that closeness.
That really goes back to Chen’s writing, which I mentioned in the premise. The author has this way of writing a story that makes it feels really graceful. I find it hard to pinpoint exactly why, but I find it easy to keep going. I never wanted to stop reading, and not necessarily in an anticipatory way. More like I appreciated being in this space the author created. Even though there is conflict that needs resolved, there is this overall tone of hope. I think we need more of that right now: stories that convey a sense of positivity for the future.
The family drama was a huge aspect of this book, too, and that was both a positive and a negative for me. I did like it as a baseline for what is going on. There is a lot of history and emotion in that space, and that creates a ton of tension. Waiting for the culminating aspect of the narrative that allows that tension to release is one of my favorite aspects of the book, because I love the anticipation. At the same time, I did feel as though it got so pounded into my head that I eventually got a little annoyed with it. Definitely more good than bad with this, though, and it is such a staple of the story that I am not sure how you do it differently.
The biggest reason why this book does not receive a higher rating for me is the pacing. The overall tension is great, but I could use more mini-conflicts along the way to bring just a little more excitement. The narrative did feel flat at times, and I think some more pronounced ups and downs would do it good.
Light Years from Home is another solid installation in Chen��s portfolio. I like the closeness of it, the emotion, combined with the science fiction. For sci-fi fans looking for a lighter read, I recommend picking it up.
There is always an easy connection with the characters in Chen’s books, and Light Years from Home is no different. There are many elements that go into this. All of the characters hopes, dreams, and even their hostilities are evident as their thoughts are laid bare. The reader really gets in the characters’ heads, and, to me, if done right it can be really touching. I care what happens to them, and that is crux of a great narrative, to me.
I thought the storyline was really unique. The reader comes in kind of in the middle of something, and also leaves in the middle of something. There is much left for the reader to extrapolate. I think where many authors would have taken this story and tried to turn it into Epic Space Opera, Chen gives us a snapshot in time – a couple of days out of an event that spans decades. I really love me some space opera, but I enjoy taking a break from it, too. There is something to be said for not having every detail explained, 10 different perspectives, and a thousand years of history taken into account every once in a while. Do not get me wrong, there are aliens (at least the existence of them), galactic war, and spaceships in the story, but the fact that this book singles in on a small family over a couple of days feels very intimate, and I enjoyed that closeness.
That really goes back to Chen’s writing, which I mentioned in the premise. The author has this way of writing a story that makes it feels really graceful. I find it hard to pinpoint exactly why, but I find it easy to keep going. I never wanted to stop reading, and not necessarily in an anticipatory way. More like I appreciated being in this space the author created. Even though there is conflict that needs resolved, there is this overall tone of hope. I think we need more of that right now: stories that convey a sense of positivity for the future.
The family drama was a huge aspect of this book, too, and that was both a positive and a negative for me. I did like it as a baseline for what is going on. There is a lot of history and emotion in that space, and that creates a ton of tension. Waiting for the culminating aspect of the narrative that allows that tension to release is one of my favorite aspects of the book, because I love the anticipation. At the same time, I did feel as though it got so pounded into my head that I eventually got a little annoyed with it. Definitely more good than bad with this, though, and it is such a staple of the story that I am not sure how you do it differently.
The biggest reason why this book does not receive a higher rating for me is the pacing. The overall tension is great, but I could use more mini-conflicts along the way to bring just a little more excitement. The narrative did feel flat at times, and I think some more pronounced ups and downs would do it good.
Light Years from Home is another solid installation in Chen��s portfolio. I like the closeness of it, the emotion, combined with the science fiction. For sci-fi fans looking for a lighter read, I recommend picking it up.
November 28, 2021
I really like Mike Chen's books and was really excited to be able to read this via NetGalley. (thank you, Net Galley!)
So here's the thing--I did not like this nearly as much as any of his other books. But in reading the author's afterward I'd have to say my lukewarm response is not due to his writing or anything, just that I didn't love what this was all about. In the afterward he explains that he very deliberately was writing a story about a family and he definitely achieved that. It's just that he gives you a taste of what the abducted guy's life has been like fighting in a big space battle with incredible technology, and that was what I wanted to read more about. I became tired very quickly of the bitchy eldest sister (but who could blamer her?) and her relationship with the younger sister.
So, while it was well written, it just wasn't the story I wanted.
So here's the thing--I did not like this nearly as much as any of his other books. But in reading the author's afterward I'd have to say my lukewarm response is not due to his writing or anything, just that I didn't love what this was all about. In the afterward he explains that he very deliberately was writing a story about a family and he definitely achieved that. It's just that he gives you a taste of what the abducted guy's life has been like fighting in a big space battle with incredible technology, and that was what I wanted to read more about. I became tired very quickly of the bitchy eldest sister (but who could blamer her?) and her relationship with the younger sister.
So, while it was well written, it just wasn't the story I wanted.
January 27, 2022
Read this review and other Science Fiction/Fantasy book reviews at The Quill to Live
The covers of Mike Chen’s books have haunted my Goodreads feed and the genre’s “most anticipated” lists for years. The synopses beckon like a faint siren’s call, but I never found the time to pick one up and dive in. Well, this year I decided to break out of the vicious cycle, and by god look at that cover. Light Years From Home is a heartfelt tale about a family broken by both time and distance that vividly captures familial tensions and the work needed to release them.
Jakob Shao went missing, leaving his family behind on an intervention disguised as a camping trip. His father came back holding a strange polished rock, convinced it was a piece of alien technology. Jakob, in his words, had been abducted by aliens. Kass, Jakob’s twin sister, did not buy it, and cleaned up her own slacking ways to carry the weight of the family. Evie, however, became involved in her father’s quest to find the truth. Fifteen years later, Evie gets some information from her skywatching friends suggesting Jakob is back on Earth. She returns home to California in search of her missing brother. Kass, while taking care of their mother with dementia, just can’t believe Evie has chosen now to interrupt her steady, if isolated life after years of no contact. Meanwhile, Jakob needs to find a missing piece of alien technology that will allow him to even the odds against the empire that threatens the galaxy, if only his two sisters would believe him.
While I could say a number of positive things about Chen’s writing, his strength lies in his ability to convey the thoughts and feelings of his characters. Whether they are processing new information or doubling down on existing preconceptions, the Shao family feel like individuals who don’t know how to handle the world around them. Each character feels deeply entrenched in who they are, and any sort of disturbance to their worldview shakes the ground until they stamp it their feet back until the earth stops shaking. While the characters all feel similar in that they lash outwards, it takes different forms. Kass, the family psychologist, hides behind her intimate knowledge of emotions and coping mechanisms to secure her own truth. Evie, after years of estrangement from her entire family, feels she has all the answers because everything she has done is supported by “science” or “data.” And Jakob, well, he’s caught between the heroic person he’s become and the slacker his family still sees him as, unable to reconcile the distance and own up to the trauma he caused them.
All of this is written in an unreliable narration style from each of their perspectives, making the reader guess at the actual truth of the situation. There were moments where I felt for each of them, that sense of “why can’t they just accept that this is the way it is now?” frustration that plagues any sort of family squabble. And then Chen would switch characters and point out the inconsistencies as seen by Evie, Kass or Jakob. Chen performed a wonderful and emotional juggling act, never giving full credence to a specific character unless it felt they were right in that moment. No one really ever had the upper hand, each member of the Shao family had work to do, sins to reconcile amongst each other and within themselves. It made each fissure feel deeper and more unmanageable as the frenetic pace of the story slammed against this small family.
While Jakob’s quest felt immediate and unavoidable, it never fully occupied the center stage. Sure it did inside his own head, but Chen managed to make it feel urgent and in need of being solved, without overshadowing the other characters. This is amplified by the constant doubt that Jakob may not actually be who he says he is, and Chen really knows how to play with ambiguity. Kass, while she is determined to cut him down and put him in the same box he was in fifteen years ago, was really good at poking holes in his story. Unfortunately, this left Evie in some tough spots, having to choose between the two sides, one of which had the backing of the FBI. All that’s to say, this genre mashup focuses more on the family dynamics than its science fiction bonafides, and I, for one, was glad for it.
Light Years from Home is a solid book about how one’s actions, conscious or not, ripple through one’s family. One can be a galactic hero, but still have fucked up the lives of one’s siblings and parents through being neglectful and inconsiderate. One can study the emotional lives of others, while building an emotional fortress your closest have to scale in order to reach you. One can intimately pin point every detail and know the precise data points that led to their conclusions while missing the fact that their family is not a graph. If you want an empathetic and heartrending tale of how a family relearns how to be a family, Chen’s latest is for you.
Rating: Light Years from Home 8.0/10
-Alex
An ARC of this book was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The thoughts on this book are my own.
The covers of Mike Chen’s books have haunted my Goodreads feed and the genre’s “most anticipated” lists for years. The synopses beckon like a faint siren’s call, but I never found the time to pick one up and dive in. Well, this year I decided to break out of the vicious cycle, and by god look at that cover. Light Years From Home is a heartfelt tale about a family broken by both time and distance that vividly captures familial tensions and the work needed to release them.
Jakob Shao went missing, leaving his family behind on an intervention disguised as a camping trip. His father came back holding a strange polished rock, convinced it was a piece of alien technology. Jakob, in his words, had been abducted by aliens. Kass, Jakob’s twin sister, did not buy it, and cleaned up her own slacking ways to carry the weight of the family. Evie, however, became involved in her father’s quest to find the truth. Fifteen years later, Evie gets some information from her skywatching friends suggesting Jakob is back on Earth. She returns home to California in search of her missing brother. Kass, while taking care of their mother with dementia, just can’t believe Evie has chosen now to interrupt her steady, if isolated life after years of no contact. Meanwhile, Jakob needs to find a missing piece of alien technology that will allow him to even the odds against the empire that threatens the galaxy, if only his two sisters would believe him.
While I could say a number of positive things about Chen’s writing, his strength lies in his ability to convey the thoughts and feelings of his characters. Whether they are processing new information or doubling down on existing preconceptions, the Shao family feel like individuals who don’t know how to handle the world around them. Each character feels deeply entrenched in who they are, and any sort of disturbance to their worldview shakes the ground until they stamp it their feet back until the earth stops shaking. While the characters all feel similar in that they lash outwards, it takes different forms. Kass, the family psychologist, hides behind her intimate knowledge of emotions and coping mechanisms to secure her own truth. Evie, after years of estrangement from her entire family, feels she has all the answers because everything she has done is supported by “science” or “data.” And Jakob, well, he’s caught between the heroic person he’s become and the slacker his family still sees him as, unable to reconcile the distance and own up to the trauma he caused them.
All of this is written in an unreliable narration style from each of their perspectives, making the reader guess at the actual truth of the situation. There were moments where I felt for each of them, that sense of “why can’t they just accept that this is the way it is now?” frustration that plagues any sort of family squabble. And then Chen would switch characters and point out the inconsistencies as seen by Evie, Kass or Jakob. Chen performed a wonderful and emotional juggling act, never giving full credence to a specific character unless it felt they were right in that moment. No one really ever had the upper hand, each member of the Shao family had work to do, sins to reconcile amongst each other and within themselves. It made each fissure feel deeper and more unmanageable as the frenetic pace of the story slammed against this small family.
While Jakob’s quest felt immediate and unavoidable, it never fully occupied the center stage. Sure it did inside his own head, but Chen managed to make it feel urgent and in need of being solved, without overshadowing the other characters. This is amplified by the constant doubt that Jakob may not actually be who he says he is, and Chen really knows how to play with ambiguity. Kass, while she is determined to cut him down and put him in the same box he was in fifteen years ago, was really good at poking holes in his story. Unfortunately, this left Evie in some tough spots, having to choose between the two sides, one of which had the backing of the FBI. All that’s to say, this genre mashup focuses more on the family dynamics than its science fiction bonafides, and I, for one, was glad for it.
Light Years from Home is a solid book about how one’s actions, conscious or not, ripple through one’s family. One can be a galactic hero, but still have fucked up the lives of one’s siblings and parents through being neglectful and inconsiderate. One can study the emotional lives of others, while building an emotional fortress your closest have to scale in order to reach you. One can intimately pin point every detail and know the precise data points that led to their conclusions while missing the fact that their family is not a graph. If you want an empathetic and heartrending tale of how a family relearns how to be a family, Chen’s latest is for you.
Rating: Light Years from Home 8.0/10
-Alex
An ARC of this book was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The thoughts on this book are my own.
February 21, 2022
I absolutely adored this book because it's so wonderfully unique!
It's funny, it's sweet, it's alien abductions and it's family drama. We all know I'm a sucker for sci-fi but this deserves its very own genre!
Another book I hugged when I finished.
It's funny, it's sweet, it's alien abductions and it's family drama. We all know I'm a sucker for sci-fi but this deserves its very own genre!
Another book I hugged when I finished.
June 30, 2022
I was saddened by how bored I was with this book. Mike Chen's books are normally fun and sci-fi lite (IMO) but this one just begged me to trudge through uninteresting plots to get to an ending I didn't find satisfactory.
January 28, 2022
Originally published at Reading Reality
Every unhappy family may be unhappy in its own way, but there are few families that are unhappy because one of the adult children has been abducted by aliens and recruited to fight in an intergalactic war.
Not that the Shao family was exactly happy BEFORE Jakob Shao joined the intergalactic fleet – but back then they were unhappy in ways that would be a bit more familiar. Now, not so much.
Light Years from Home isn’t quite the story we’re expecting from the blurb, because it’s not really about Jakob or his alien abduction at all. Not that he’s not part of it, but the story isn’t about him.
The story is about collateral damage, specifically the collateral damage of the Jakob-shaped hole in the Shao family. A hole that has only opened wider in the 15 years since Jakob left his family and his planet behind.
He comes back to Earth believing that nothing will have changed in his absence, and that it won’t matter if he leaves again. After all, he has a mission to complete and a universe to save. Healing the hole in his family’s heart is way above the level of feckless incompetence he left behind.
But Jakob Shao isn’t that man any longer. Not that his family will EVER let him forget it. Or them.
Escape Rating A: Light Years from Home is one of those stories that’s much greater than the sum of its parts. Parts that initially seem so far apart that they might as well be from different planets – if not galaxies.
This story is also very much what my book group has been calling “sad fluff”. Although this is sad fluff with spaceships.
By sad fluff I mean that this story is, in spite of the science fictional trappings, relationship fiction. It’s not about Jakob and the epic space battles. We believe they exist, but they’re not actually the point of the story. The point of the story is Jakob’s relationship with his family, and their relationships with each other.
This could be a story about any family dealing with the lack of closure wrapped about the disappearance of a family member. They all know Jakob left them behind. Their late father died believing Jakob had been abducted by aliens, but that’s a pretty far-fetched conclusion for the rest of the family. Except for Jakob’s younger sister Evie, who has made a career of investigating UFO sightings and the possibilities of extraterrestrial contact with Earth.
It’s much easier for Kass and their mother to believe that Jakob – charming, irresponsible, feckless Jakob – just wanted to get away from his parents’ endless expectations that he “live up to his potential” and “not waste his education,” etc., etc., etc. He has a history of that kind of behavior – he’s just been gone a whole lot longer this time.
And there are plenty of times in the story when Kass has nearly everyone convinced that Jakob has returned because he’s having a psychotic break. She nearly convinces both their younger sister Evie – who does believe in UFOs and alien abductions – AND THE READER! It’s only when Evie finds actual proof that Kass begins to believe that the thing that tore her family apart is real – and that she can’t blame Jakob for everything. That she has to start looking inside herself for answers.
As I was reading Light Years from Home, in spite of pretty much ALL the names of all the characters coming from the Assassin’s Creed videogame series, the things this story actually reminded me of came from other places.
While Jakob’s intergalactic experiences are mostly off stage, the setup reminded me more than a bit of The Last Starfighter – without that slam bang ending because Jakob’s story doesn’t get that kind of unabashed happy ending – nor should it.
Jakob’s personality and some of his story had echoes in Fergus Ferguson, the protagonist of The Finder Chronicles. If you’re wishing that Light Years from Home focused more on Jakob’s travels, try Finder.
But the thing this made me think of the most was Elton John’s song Rocket Man. Because this reads like it’s that song told from the point of view of the people that the Rocket Man has left behind back home.
If that’s not enough of a gut punch, the conclusion of Light Years from Home reached back into the ending of one of SF’s classic stories, Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes. And it’s every bit as much of a heartbreaker in Light Years from Home as it was back then.
Every unhappy family may be unhappy in its own way, but there are few families that are unhappy because one of the adult children has been abducted by aliens and recruited to fight in an intergalactic war.
Not that the Shao family was exactly happy BEFORE Jakob Shao joined the intergalactic fleet – but back then they were unhappy in ways that would be a bit more familiar. Now, not so much.
Light Years from Home isn’t quite the story we’re expecting from the blurb, because it’s not really about Jakob or his alien abduction at all. Not that he’s not part of it, but the story isn’t about him.
The story is about collateral damage, specifically the collateral damage of the Jakob-shaped hole in the Shao family. A hole that has only opened wider in the 15 years since Jakob left his family and his planet behind.
He comes back to Earth believing that nothing will have changed in his absence, and that it won’t matter if he leaves again. After all, he has a mission to complete and a universe to save. Healing the hole in his family’s heart is way above the level of feckless incompetence he left behind.
But Jakob Shao isn’t that man any longer. Not that his family will EVER let him forget it. Or them.
Escape Rating A: Light Years from Home is one of those stories that’s much greater than the sum of its parts. Parts that initially seem so far apart that they might as well be from different planets – if not galaxies.
This story is also very much what my book group has been calling “sad fluff”. Although this is sad fluff with spaceships.
By sad fluff I mean that this story is, in spite of the science fictional trappings, relationship fiction. It’s not about Jakob and the epic space battles. We believe they exist, but they’re not actually the point of the story. The point of the story is Jakob’s relationship with his family, and their relationships with each other.
This could be a story about any family dealing with the lack of closure wrapped about the disappearance of a family member. They all know Jakob left them behind. Their late father died believing Jakob had been abducted by aliens, but that’s a pretty far-fetched conclusion for the rest of the family. Except for Jakob’s younger sister Evie, who has made a career of investigating UFO sightings and the possibilities of extraterrestrial contact with Earth.
It’s much easier for Kass and their mother to believe that Jakob – charming, irresponsible, feckless Jakob – just wanted to get away from his parents’ endless expectations that he “live up to his potential” and “not waste his education,” etc., etc., etc. He has a history of that kind of behavior – he’s just been gone a whole lot longer this time.
And there are plenty of times in the story when Kass has nearly everyone convinced that Jakob has returned because he’s having a psychotic break. She nearly convinces both their younger sister Evie – who does believe in UFOs and alien abductions – AND THE READER! It’s only when Evie finds actual proof that Kass begins to believe that the thing that tore her family apart is real – and that she can’t blame Jakob for everything. That she has to start looking inside herself for answers.
As I was reading Light Years from Home, in spite of pretty much ALL the names of all the characters coming from the Assassin’s Creed videogame series, the things this story actually reminded me of came from other places.
While Jakob’s intergalactic experiences are mostly off stage, the setup reminded me more than a bit of The Last Starfighter – without that slam bang ending because Jakob’s story doesn’t get that kind of unabashed happy ending – nor should it.
Jakob’s personality and some of his story had echoes in Fergus Ferguson, the protagonist of The Finder Chronicles. If you’re wishing that Light Years from Home focused more on Jakob’s travels, try Finder.
But the thing this made me think of the most was Elton John’s song Rocket Man. Because this reads like it’s that song told from the point of view of the people that the Rocket Man has left behind back home.
If that’s not enough of a gut punch, the conclusion of Light Years from Home reached back into the ending of one of SF’s classic stories, Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes. And it’s every bit as much of a heartbreaker in Light Years from Home as it was back then.
May 17, 2022
A family is torn apart when a son, Jakob and father disappear 15 years previously, only for the father to re-appear 3 days later with his mind amiss and a crazy tale of alien abduction. The son is nowhere to be found.
Now, 15 years later, the family is adrift and a mess. Kass, Jakob's twin sister lives in the family home caring for her mother who has Alzheimer's disease. The father is dead. Kass, who is divorced / separated from her husband, blames the missing Jakob for everything. She has not told Evie, her younger sister about her mother's condition. Evie who lives far away, works in a vet clinic but really spends most of her time trying to find clues about Alien Abduction with a group of scientists / UFO fanatics called the Red.
Into this family in triage, Jakob reappears. Although Kass thinks he has been hiding out in Europe escaping responsibility, he really was abducted by "good aliens" who are fighting a intergalactic war against the bad aliens "the Awakened". Jakob has been in a battle and learns from a fallen comrade at arms top secret info that could turn the tide of the war, but he needs to escape from the Awakened so he chooses to go to Earth, but first he wipes his memories partly so if he is captured he can not reveal the information.
But his trip to Earth leaves tell tale signals that the Reds track and Evie goes home to Kass to crash at her house while following the signals, just when Jakob shows up. Its a screwed up situation.
Chen's novel explores what happens to these people in this odd situation, but one of the central conceits, that he throws in the mix is that Jakob could really give two "sh_ts" about the family he left behind. In the 15 years he has been gone he has become a space hero, but lost some of his humanity in the process or maybe he had little to go on to begin with, as it appears he harmed his father 15 years ago.
I found Jakob's mindset to be an issue. I understand mission centric people, but Jakob really seems to have stopped feeling for his family at all (or maybe Chen's point is that once you go into space and face those issues, family life left behind is lost forever. Its not clear.
But the effect of Jakob returning does push Kass and Evie together and to get clarity. So even though Jakob's feelings for his family are a hole I think the novel does not overcome, the effect of his return does force a reckoning for Kass and Evie and that reckoning is emotional and worth seeing as each comes to make decisions about their lives and Kass life with her mother -- so the return is the catalyst for much growth.
Its not really science fiction. Its mostly a novel about family and reunions and life altering events.
I didn't love it, but it does make one think. Not all return home stories of people who went away and now return go the happy way, but maybe they make people involved make the right decisions that get them to change for the better.
Now, 15 years later, the family is adrift and a mess. Kass, Jakob's twin sister lives in the family home caring for her mother who has Alzheimer's disease. The father is dead. Kass, who is divorced / separated from her husband, blames the missing Jakob for everything. She has not told Evie, her younger sister about her mother's condition. Evie who lives far away, works in a vet clinic but really spends most of her time trying to find clues about Alien Abduction with a group of scientists / UFO fanatics called the Red.
Into this family in triage, Jakob reappears. Although Kass thinks he has been hiding out in Europe escaping responsibility, he really was abducted by "good aliens" who are fighting a intergalactic war against the bad aliens "the Awakened". Jakob has been in a battle and learns from a fallen comrade at arms top secret info that could turn the tide of the war, but he needs to escape from the Awakened so he chooses to go to Earth, but first he wipes his memories partly so if he is captured he can not reveal the information.
But his trip to Earth leaves tell tale signals that the Reds track and Evie goes home to Kass to crash at her house while following the signals, just when Jakob shows up. Its a screwed up situation.
Chen's novel explores what happens to these people in this odd situation, but one of the central conceits, that he throws in the mix is that Jakob could really give two "sh_ts" about the family he left behind. In the 15 years he has been gone he has become a space hero, but lost some of his humanity in the process or maybe he had little to go on to begin with, as it appears he harmed his father 15 years ago.
I found Jakob's mindset to be an issue. I understand mission centric people, but Jakob really seems to have stopped feeling for his family at all (or maybe Chen's point is that once you go into space and face those issues, family life left behind is lost forever. Its not clear.
But the effect of Jakob returning does push Kass and Evie together and to get clarity. So even though Jakob's feelings for his family are a hole I think the novel does not overcome, the effect of his return does force a reckoning for Kass and Evie and that reckoning is emotional and worth seeing as each comes to make decisions about their lives and Kass life with her mother -- so the return is the catalyst for much growth.
Its not really science fiction. Its mostly a novel about family and reunions and life altering events.
I didn't love it, but it does make one think. Not all return home stories of people who went away and now return go the happy way, but maybe they make people involved make the right decisions that get them to change for the better.
June 1, 2022
A family drama that is out of this world! While I still favor A Beginning at the End (perhaps because that was my first introduction to Mike Chen), I liked Light Years From Home much more than Here and Now and Then or We Could Be Heroes.
I felt that the story was just complex enough, dealing with family relationships, mental illness and dementia - keeping the reader guessing about was really going on. After not being impressed by the last two Mike Chen novels I read, Light Years From Home was a pleasant surprise.
Favorite Passages:
He had much bigger things to worry about than family.
_______
He looked over the room, first catching the clock before checking the street behind him, orienting his location by memory with options and possibilities.
_______
"Have you heard the term delusions of grandeur before?"
_______
Each sentence landed like blades cutting through stilts, the house built on top of it beginning to crumble.
_______
". . . these are all classic signs of mental illness. Schizophrenia or possibly bipolar. Given everything you know about Jakob, what's more likely: he's the only space soldier who can win an intergalactic war, or all the drugs he's done have finally caught up with him? I'm gonna have a smoke."
_______
Couchsurfing wasn't exactly out of Jakob's realm of experience, regardless of whether he'd been in space.
_______
Evie had done the stupid thing, the dreamy awestruck thing, and forgotten to record anything yesterday. She'd been too caught up in having Jakob color in all her dreams, answer by answer, both about his disappearance and what lay beyond the solar system.
I felt that the story was just complex enough, dealing with family relationships, mental illness and dementia - keeping the reader guessing about was really going on. After not being impressed by the last two Mike Chen novels I read, Light Years From Home was a pleasant surprise.
Favorite Passages:
He had much bigger things to worry about than family.
_______
He looked over the room, first catching the clock before checking the street behind him, orienting his location by memory with options and possibilities.
_______
"Have you heard the term delusions of grandeur before?"
_______
Each sentence landed like blades cutting through stilts, the house built on top of it beginning to crumble.
_______
". . . these are all classic signs of mental illness. Schizophrenia or possibly bipolar. Given everything you know about Jakob, what's more likely: he's the only space soldier who can win an intergalactic war, or all the drugs he's done have finally caught up with him? I'm gonna have a smoke."
_______
Couchsurfing wasn't exactly out of Jakob's realm of experience, regardless of whether he'd been in space.
_______
Evie had done the stupid thing, the dreamy awestruck thing, and forgotten to record anything yesterday. She'd been too caught up in having Jakob color in all her dreams, answer by answer, both about his disappearance and what lay beyond the solar system.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 453 reviews