Sea of Tranquility: A novel

I actually read this book months ago and am just now coming back to review it, because I think about this book all the time. For me, this is a book that pops into my mind on a regular basis, where I come back to the story and the characters and just how well done everything was. I absolutely loved the book. I finished it and sort of just sat for a while. It’s one of those books that makes you think about aspects of life, like its meaning and love and yourself and others etc., but it’s all done subtly throughout the telling of the story (or in this case, five stories that all interconnect). And I think that’s what incredible writing and storytelling can do. to this day I wish I could read this book for the first time, or there could be more to it. But it’s definitely perfect as is, and not only is the story really amazing and entertaining to read, but it subtly hints at things that you find yourself thinking about months later

“No star burns forever.” - Sea of Tranquility. Edwin St. Andrew is eighteen years old when he crosses the Atlantic by steamship, exiled from polite society following an ill-conceived diatribe at a dinner party. He enters the forest, spellbound by the beauty of the Canadian wilderness, and suddenly hears the notes of a violin echoing in an airship terminal--an experience that shocks him to his core. Two centuries later a famous writer named Olive Llewellyn is on a book tour. She's traveling all over Earth, but her home is the second moon colony, a place of white stone, spired towers, and artificial beauty. Within the text of Olive's bestselling pandemic novel lies a strange passage: a man plays his violin for change in the echoing corridor of an airship terminal as the trees of a forest rise around him. When Gaspery-Jacques Roberts, a detective in the Night City, is hired to investigate an anomaly in the North American wilderness, he uncovers a series of lives upended: The exiled son of an earl driven to madness, a writer trapped far from home as a pandemic ravages Earth, and a childhood friend from the Night City who, like Gaspery himself, has glimpsed the chance to do something extraordinary that will disrupt the timeline of the universe. I was so excited for this book and as per usual, Emily St. John Mandel did not disappoint. After reading the synopsis, I had no idea what kind of book this would be, but I ended up being blown away. There are so many little details and plot points in this book that come together beautifully and make this story unique. Since this book follows several points of view, there is a lot to keep up on, but I never found it confusing and felt that each voice was distinct. In addition, the prose is wonderfully done and so lyrical making it easy to read. I definitely would recommend this book and others by Emily St. John Mandel if you haven’t read them yet.

I very much enjoyed this book. It was well written and the characters aren't two dimensional. It is interesting enough to hold your attention and want to see what happens next without feeling like the author is just waiting to pull the rug out from under your feet.

I'm a huge fan of Mandel, having first read the stunning Station Eleven about 4 years ago. I next read The Glass Hotel and enjoyed it so much, my curiosity was stoked, and I quickly read all three of her earliest novels. I loved them all, particularly The Singer's Gun, and the way she was effortlessly able to create an amazing page-turning tension, a sense of dread throughout her storytelling. I'd compare those books to much of Patricia Highsmith's novels but I actually prefer Mandel's writing. So I very eagerly jumped into Sea of Tranquility with the highest hopes and found the first two parts, the non-futuristic parts, intriguing and engaging. But as the book went on into the distant future and then even more distant future, I lost patience a bit. I couldn't quite see what was relating all of the characters and it began to feel like ideas for several books that never cohered. Finally, in the last chapters, much was explained (and I'll admit that smarter minds than mine might have seen what was coming sooner), but it ultimately all felt rather lame and insufficient for the grand ideas that were being expostulated. I'm still pleased to award this book 3 stars because so much of the writing, the descriptions of characters and places, is up to Mandel's usual standards. It was a page-turner for me as I read it in two days. And I'd recommend it to any Mandel fans just because you'll reacquaint yourself with some characters from previous books and truly enjoy the character who is clearly based on herself.

There is a mystery that links all the storylines in this book. The novel spans several different timelines and in each the characters are interesting in themselves but also in how they may be connected across time. It is a literary work that has an element of Science Fiction without that dominating. I can heartily recommend this book.

Très bien, merci.

Come da titolo, difficile giudicare un libro. Un libro e’ troppo personale, sia se un romanzo sia se tecnico. Personalmente questo in oggetto non mi ha entusiasmato ma, ripeto, e’ molto personale. Buon lavoro, Enzo

Emily St. John Mandel had already brought thoughtfulness to the pandemic novel with Station Eleven. With Sea of Tranquility, she infuses another classic science fiction trope with soul, hitting the perfect note between poignant and playful. Were this time travel novel a movie, it would fit smugly between Terry Gilliam’s Twelve Monkeys (or rather Chris Marker’s La Jetée, the short that inspired it) and Ryan Johnson’s Looper. Set in multiple time periods and not always on Earth, Sea of Tranquility tells a compelling story from false beginning to richly satisfying end, tying up all loose ends, and avoiding the convolution the genre is known for. I already want to read it again, forcing myself to read more slowly, moving beyond the clever, complex but crystal-clear narrative, to mull over its gentle philosophical questions. Every reader is generously encouraged to become their own metaphysical detective. As with Station Eleven, we are invited to ponder our responsibility to generations past and future, and the role of art as a thread knitting the history of mankind into a coherent story. Precise, elegant, and ultimately quite moving, it may have the makings of a future classic.

What struck me the most after finishing Sea of Tranquility was how much it covered in just 200 pages — spanning centuries, multiple storylines, and several themes — without ever feeling rushed or overly complex. Despite its brevity, the novel takes its time with each of its main characters, immersing the reader in their lives making their journeys feel intimate. It is difficult to write about the book’s premise without spoiling it for readers. Suffice to say, Sea of Tranquility is a beautifully written novel that blends science fiction with human themes. The book follows multiple characters across different timelines. In 1912, Edwin St. Andrew, a young English aristocrat, is banished to Canada and stumbles upon a mysterious anomaly in the forest. In the 2200s, Olive Llewellyn, a bestselling author from a lunar colony, embarks on an Earth book tour, unaware of the eerie parallels between her novel and reality. In 2401, Gaspery-Jacques Roberts, a detective from the Night City on the Moon, is assigned to investigate a strange pattern in time that links these characters. Mandel moves fluidly between the various narratives, keeping the story brisk yet immersive, allowing readers to absorb its multiple layers without feeling overwhelmed. The novel ends satisfyingly, tying the threads of its intricate plot together — a feat that is often difficult in stories of this genre. The book’s structure reminded me somewhat of Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, another book that I love. Like that book, Sea of Tranquility weaves together multiple timelines and perspectives, exploring the interconnectedness of human lives across centuries. However, Cloud Atlas leans more heavily on stylistic shifts between its narratives, whereas Sea of Tranquility maintains a more uniform tone. Readers who appreciate the philosophical underpinnings of Cloud Atlas but prefer a more straightforward, emotionally resonant narrative with a dash of science fiction will likely find Sea of Tranquility particularly compelling. Pros: Elegant writing, interesting themes, easily devoured in one sitting Cons: Light on the sci-fi mechanics