Final Orbit

This is a mystery-thriller historical fiction set in space, and I hesitate to call it sci-fi since it never really pushes past what was plausible. It feels like only Chris Hadfield could have written it, and that’s exactly why I picked it up. Growing up in Canada in the ’90s, he was such an icon of possibility. We watched him float around the ISS, he visited schools, he made science feel accessible and exciting, and he deserves an airport bigger than the tiny one in his hometown. I loved the notes at the end explaining which people and events were real. I was even more impressed with how he stitched together history with this bombastic story. It is dense with technical details at times, but it felt believable. I wasn’t alive in show more the ‘70s, but the atmosphere and tension felt real. I didn’t particularly relate to any characters, maybe Svetlana came closest with her internal eyerolls at the men around her and their casual misogyny, even as she’s clearly the most competent. The book is much more plot than character, but the motivations made sense. A few loose ends could have been tied up, but geopolitics is ongoing, I guess. With the right team, it would make a fantastic movie, absolutely something I’d see with my dad.

Thanks to NetGalley and Mulholland Books for access to this book. show less

What a fast paced space thriller! Set in 1975, the author takes real events and people and creates a propulsive story with spies, espionage, kidnapping, and edge of your seat events. There really was an Apollo - Soyuz connection in space with astronauts and cosmonauts. After the docking, a tragic event occurs and the remaining crew must dock with Sky Lab before returning to Earth. As they are attempting to dock, a surprise Chinese space craft with the first Chinese astronaut also docks at Sky Lab. Chaos ensues between the two sides and Svetlana, cosmonaut on second trip in an Apollo craft, has to take control of the situation while her two crewmembers deal with medical issues. Back on land, things are going awry as well. Kaz, CAPCOM for show more mission control, notices some nefarious stuff going on and the Chinese don't like his investigating so they kidnap him in the middle of the Apollo-Soyuz mission.
I loved that the chapters were short but every page was full of action. There was so much going on in this book that I had a hard time putting it down-I read it in 3 days. Kaz Zemeckis, the recurring character from the previous two Apollo Murder books, is back in action in this book. I could see him becoming an action hero on the big screen. Kaz is more than just a NASA flight controller. His back story gives him depth and knowledge of what is going on behind the scenes with this story. The tension in the space capsule was palpable and I could feel the strength and desperation of the crew as they try to figure out how to safely return to Earth. Only an astronaut author could write this book as he shares his knowledge to create a memorable and page-turning thriller. Now I have to go back and read the first two books in the series.
If you are a fan of thrillers and space, you will love this book!!
#FinalOrbit #NetGalley
Thank you Little, Brown and Company and Net Galley for a complimentary copy. All opinions expressed are my own. show less

LAST READ OF 2025.

Chris Hadfield is getting better at this writing fiction gig (or he's choosing better ghostwriters). This is easily the most action-packed, pedal-to-the-metal novel he's put out yet.

I'm old enough to remember the Apollo/Soyuz handshake mission. At twelve, it held just enough wonder, just enough "gosh!" quotient to captivate me. Hadfield took a relatively run-of-the-mill space mission and turned it on its head, and I'll admit I had a lot of fun with this one.

Yes, he still shows off all his insider knowledge of anything to do with NASA or space missions. Yes, he includes far too much "as you know, Bob" dialogue. Yes, he dives too much into the minutiae of...well...everything—seriously, Hadfield's never met anything show more mechanical he couldn't resist writing an overview and operating manual for. And yes, each of his characters carries an encyclopediac volume of facts, figures, stats, chemical mixes, pounds of thrust, and any other physical fact right on the tip of their tongue, accessible at any time.

Yet, for all of that, he's rarely boring. He'll make you roll your eyes on occasion, but overall, he still delivers a fun ride.

This was a pleasureable way to see out 2025. show less

***.5

One of the most disappointing things in the previous (second) book was introducing the Apollo-Soyuz mission, then completely dropping the subplot from the book as the zaniness overtook the plot. Hadfield makes up for this fumble by making it the central feature of the third book in this series. Which has the added benefit of centering Svetlana, the best character, who was largely sidelined in book 2. Her inner monologue is a savage take-down of the arrogant fly-boys she's surrounded with, as she laps them with her prowess while simultaneously treading carefully to avoid making too many waves. At a time when women are once again being forced out of the US military, her voice is an important one.

Alas, although the focus was on the show more historic Apollo-Soyez rendezvous, Hadfield felt the need to tack on a number of distracting subplots, which once again placed Kaz in the center of the action. From Chinese gangsters to domestic terrorists, he singlehandedly figures everything out before anyone else, and is always in the right place at the right time. I complained that the second book strained credulity, this one jumps the space shark, with space lasers and other silliness more appropriate for an Austin Powers movie.

I also found the inclusion of real people in the plot distracting. Everyone from Henry Kissinger to George Bush make an appearance, and actual events that took place over a period of several years are condensed into a couple of days to motivate the plot and keep the action moving, making it feel less rather than more authentic.

The best parts remain the technical descriptions of astronaut training and spaceflight, told from a perspective that can only be achieved by someone who's been there and done that. show less

Overall this was good, although perhaps overly descriptive in some ways. That said, I am never going to quibble with the amount of space description in Hadfield’s books; he gets it right, and he includes notes at the end on what was real. Some parts of this book were slower than others (and some were confusing, such as the one chapter set in 1279 China), but the second half of the book definitely delivered the suspense. I would say that this book worked better for me than The Defector, but I like The Apollo Murders best.

Apollo Murders, #3

This science-fiction Cold War-era story takes us back to 1975 during the joint Apollo-Soyuz mission but in his spin, Mr. Hadfield didn’t want things to go smoothly. A depressurization accident takes half the crew of the mission and kicks of a plot to the next level bringing China, a new player to join the space race…nothing like a geopolitics drama to spice a good story.

Although this is the third book in the series it works well as a stand-alone. Mr. Hadfield blends with ease real historical personages and events and gives them life with stormy action and along the way some historical backgrounds infused.

I love how this pulse-pounding adventure develops into a battle in space with critical errors killing two show more astronauts, one cosmonaut and destroying the Russian ship and forcing the remaining crew to Skylab an old abandoned station orbiting nearby…. but once there, company awaited them…. yes, confrontation involving guns and machete all kinds of brouhaha to keep us pinned on the action and invested till the remaining crew heads back to the joy of mission control and everyone on earth.

The narrative is inevitably peppered with an abundance of technical jargon, although the momentum is never lost by this, it keeps a steady pace and move along quite well. But why stay in space, few sub-plots on hearth bring more drama to the plate.

From start to finish this is a well-said and well-done story I enjoyed passing time with.

I received this book from Mulholland Books via Netgalley for my thoughts: this is the way I see it. show less

A good read, definitely well written as he knows his way around NASA..