Reading this book didn’t physically take me to outer space, so why does it feel like I touched the stars?
An all too brief and sudden burst of intoxicating love, Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid burns bright as it soars towards a greatness we once reserved for The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.
Two women, with the weight of the world on their shoulders, fight to carve out a corner of history where their love story can take off. Joan and Vanessa’s courageous tale is a down-to-earth demonstration of the everyday heroics women face, with a splash of space travel to get that heart pumping. Their emotional journey is one that will resonate with every reader.
Taylor Jenkins Reid has demonstrated time and again with novels like Malibu Rising and Carrie Soto Is Back that she can weave epic love stories that graze the core of the human soul. However, there is something particularly gut-wrenching about her All-American forays into sapphic storytelling. She captures a fictional snapshot of an iconic moment in American history from the perspective of women who possess a great capacity for love and growth.
Leading lady stargazer Joan is no different as she aims her sights on space travel with grace and kindness as her compass, faltering only when the universe gives her a reason to stay on Earth. Joan is a people person, uplifting everyone on the crew with her calm, inclusive demeanor. It allows many of the side characters in this NASA ensemble to feel just as alive through their encounters with Joan as she coaxes a softer side out of them.
Her best work happens with the blunt, promotion-hungry Lydia, who initially believes she will have to stop at nothing to be the first woman in their group to go to space. Joan never forces change directly on Lydia, but her ability to draw out the truth behind the brainiac’s competitive, male-forward nature is far more fascinating. Joan’s separate journey to uncovering her sexuality after so many years of believing she understood her place in the world is equally enthralling.
There’s no better protagonist to lead this mission to victory.
“I was circling two hundred miles above the Earth, and all I wanted was to get home and see you. Do you understand that? Do you understand that I don’t care how big or small this world is, that you are the center of mine? Do you understand that, to someone, you are everything that matters on this entire planet?”
― Taylor Jenkins Reid, Atmosphere
Vanessa is the perfect foil to that objective, ruling over Joan’s quiet presence with unruly hair and a knowing smile that practically undresses Joan in every group outing. Their chemistry is a fireball of unsaid confessions and unbearable tension. When the two women finally collide, it’s enough to put down the book and shout, “Housten, we have lift off!”
Each relationship, romantic or otherwise, is tender-hearted and dynamic, drawing the reader in and keeping them engaged throughout the story.
Regardless of the route this book takes on its journey, the dialogue pulls you in, and the author maintains a strong enough hold on the fictional world of NASA space travel. However, her out-of-this-world character developments have us eager to look elsewhere for entertainment. Joan’s time with her beloved niece could easily clash or overpower the slow-burn romance at the center of this story. Instead, Jenkins-Reid plays them off each other, using two powerful love stories to prop each other up.
It is a balancing act that is cruel and calculating in its victories, too. The novel utilizes time jumps to keep us enthralled by the outcome of Joan and Vanessa’s mission to become the first female astronauts. It is in these time jumps that we are shattered and put back together over and over again. As the book expertly develops relationships between Joan and her crewmates, it stands to tear them down just as quickly to demonstrate the merciless hand of God that is outer space. This story fires on every cylinder, offering a healthy dose of found-family themes and positive, women-forward discussions where the women’s achievements and struggles take center stage. All while keeping its eyes on the sky and the possibilities that lay beyond the horizon.
Atmosphere is a cosmic love ballad for space nerds who look to the stars for that once-in-a-lifetime love. Its smooth dialogue and sharp tongue will break your heart over and over, then make you laugh out loud on the very next page. When the grand finale of this thrill ride appears, the book slams shut, leaving the reader breathless and disoriented.
The unconventional ending rushes at you so suddenly and violently that you have this urge to be angry with the author for not delivering a traditional happy ending. However, it is all the small moments of happiness collected throughout this tale that make the journey far more valuable than the destination.
Atmosphere is a ride you will give anything to experience again.
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