Whatever 1I/2017 Oumuamua and now 3I/Atlas are, they fired my imagination. These intersolar voyagers are cloaked in mystery and possibilities. David Wellington’s novel, The Last Astronaut, takes that idea and runs with it giving us a cross of Crichton, Clarke and Lovecraft. A combination of science and wonder with unnerving horror.

Sally Jansen was the Mission Commander on the failed Mars expedition, which claimed the life of one of her crew. In one moment, all of her dreams were destroyed. And she brought any future NASA missions to an abrupt end.

Then, an intersolar object, 2I is detected entering the solar system, and it has some of the same behaviors we saw in 1I, and now in 3I. NASA decides it needs to throw together a mission, one that it competition with a privately funded mission by a Space Bro.

Jansen and her small team, feel like a modern take on Clarke’s Rendezvous with Rama, and as they approach 2I they find that the private mission’s ship is desolate. What happened to them? Are they inside 2I?

Haunted by the spectre of her past mission, Jansen is determined to find and rescue the missing crew. And that means venturing inside 2I. And no one, not even the reader, is prepared for what they will find.

Wellington tells a great story. There’s a sense of the wonder, discovery and horror of exploring space, and coming face to face with something we can’t imagine, something that makes us reevaluate ourselves and the place in the universe.

It plays out incredibly well, urging you to keep turning pages to find out what happens next.

The further Jansen gets into 2I the more troubling things become. Not just for the astronauts on the mission, but those waiting back at Mission Control on Earth. There’s lots of tension and well-paced moments throughout the story, and I really enjoyed this book.

It was a potent cocktail of ideas and genres that I love and it does it in a fast-paced way that keeps you reading and turning pages. There’s science here, horror, and wonder. And as the story comes to an end, you are left wondering what the ending means in the long run.

I don’t want to mention anything more, because it needs to be experienced. And it’s better if you go into the story fairly blind – there’s something out there, and we’re going to meet it and see what it is and means for humanity.

And then let the story take you in from there. Strap yourself to this rocket and ride it out. It’s a fun, scary, and engaging read. What else have you got for me Mr. Wellington?