Half Way Home

Half Way Home is the first stand-alone novel by American author, Hugh Howey. While it nourishes, nurtures and teaches its five hundred charges from blastocyst to adult maturity, the Colony ship's Artificial Intelligence is constantly assessing the conditions on the planet for viability of the settlement. It may, at any time, abort. And on the planet where trainee psychologist Porter's ship has landed, it does so, but then abandons the abort.

Less than sixty survive the abort. They are fifteen years old when they are woken from their nutrition vats. In the fifteen years that the ship has been on the planet, some progress has been made with mining and other chores, but food crops, clothing and shelter are not yet available. The survivors exist on fruit that falls (often dangerously) from the canopy, two thousand feet above them, wear makeshift clothing, and shelter inside work vehicles.

While some survivors make educated guesses about the justification for the abort, the reason that the AI then abandoned it is puzzling, and why, when the priority ought to be food, clothing and shelter, the AI insists they build a rocket is a mystery. As expected from a diverse group there are dissenters and when the highest-ranking survivor, a boy who believes the colony can survive, dies, not all believe it to be an accident, especially when an aggressive security officer takes over the lead.

Howey gives the reader an intriguing piece of speculative fiction. There are definitely shades of Lord of the Flies, although perhaps the greater threat comes from other quarters. At least it's not the B ship of H2G2 fame, although with ninety percent of the personnel gone, the balance of occupations may not be as intended, nor conducive to success. And of course, those remaining are all only half way through their training. Cleverly plotted and nicely resolved.

This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.