Record of a Spaceborn Few, by Becky Chambers

The Exodan Fleet of homestead spaceships departed a wrecked planet Earth many centuries ago. Since acceptance by other species into the Galactic Commons the fleet has orbited a sun as a kind of giant space station nation. The ageing fleet has some maintenance issues and its population is slowly depleting as young people leave for new lives and opportunities in the GC colony planets and moons. The Exodan tale is told through the experiences of several of its inhabitants – mother of two Tess, archivist Isabel, teenage rebel Kip, immigrant Sawyer and caretaker of the dead Eyas. There is also an outside perspective from an alien visitor. The final in Becky Chambers’ space saga trilogy has only a tenuous direct link to the first two, although clearly in the same universe. Tess is the sister of Ashby, the captain of the mining ship at the centre of the first novel. The action is disjointed through most of the novel, the disparate voices painting an engaging picture of Exodan history and culture but providing little in the way of plot. A tragedy brings some of the characters together and overlaps their stories, pointing the way to the future for Exodans. It’s a little sad to farewell this fascinating universe, but this story is a fitting way to do so.