The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers [Review]

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers #1) by Becky Chambers
Format: ebook
Source: purchased
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: July 25, 2025

Wayfarers
1. The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet - Paperback | Kindle
2. A Closed and Common Orbit
3. Record of a Spaceborn Few
4. The Galaxy, and the Ground Within

Becky Chambers
| Website | Amazon |

Synopsis (Goodreads):

Rosemary Harper doesn’t expect much when she joins the crew of the aging Wayfarer. While the patched-up ship has seen better days, it offers her a bed, a chance to explore the far-off corners of the galaxy, and most importantly, some distance from her past. An introspective young woman who learned early to keep to herself, she’s never met anyone remotely like the ship’s diverse crew, including Sissix, the exotic reptilian pilot, chatty engineers Kizzy and Jenks who keep the ship running, and Ashby, their noble captain.

Life aboard the Wayfarer is chaotic and crazy—exactly what Rosemary wants. It’s also about to get extremely dangerous when the crew is offered the job of a lifetime. Tunneling wormholes through space to a distant planet is definitely lucrative and will keep them comfortable for years. But risking her life wasn’t part of the plan. In the far reaches of deep space, the tiny Wayfarer crew will confront a host of unexpected mishaps and thrilling adventures that force them to depend on each other. To survive, Rosemary’s got to learn how to rely on this assortment of oddballs—an experience that teaches her about love and trust, and that having a family isn’t necessarily the worst thing in the universe.

Thoughts on The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet: I kind of didn't know what to expect with this book going into it (just that it was recommended based on some other books I read recently) and HOO-BOY was it a fun one. Rosemary might have joined the crew of the Wayfarer simply as an attempt to start fresh, but she got so much more than that.

So much more.

The Wayfarer became her home and the crew became her family and she got to see FAR more of the galaxy than she ever expected. Because this ship? It's about to take a long journey to a place few have seen. Well, maybe that's an exaggeration. Plenty may have seen where they're going, but not a whole lot have lived to tell about it. But the Wayfarer has a contract and the crew is darn good a their job and they're going to do what needs to be done.

This book is extremely character-driven. I mean that in a good way. As the newbie, Rosemary has to find her rhythm with the crew. Not only is she new to the ship, she's also new to life that isn't planet-side. But she has Ashby (who loves his ship and his crew is family and he wouldn't have it any other way) and the others to show her the ropes. That said, just like with any close-knit group/family, there is a little friction. And when the crew runs into potentially dangerous situations, they need to rely on one another when things get dicey.

Like I said, I didn't know what to expect with this book when I picked it up, but it REALLY hit the spot. Sad, sweet, and heroic with a whole lot of found family. *thumbs up*