Welcome to Quill Quotes Book Club’s discussion of How It Unfolds by James S.A. Corey! We hope you enjoyed the book. Note, that this discussion covers the full book and will contain spoilers, so if you haven’t finished reading yet you may want to go back to The Far Reaches Collection Summary Page for the other book discussions.
Kevin’s Thoughts
Very interesting idea but I think it could have been executed better. The jumps between versions of Roy and the others were hard to keep up with and stay engaged with the story. I also would have preferred more focus on the “slow light” exploration method and surprise they were back on Earth instead of Roy’s love interests. The takeaway that two people may not be compatible no matter how many tries they give it makes you think though. Similarly, that Roy and Megan were compatible in all the versions is alluded to. I can somewhat agree since they both have the same history each time at the start but also it seemed they took a long time to get together so I’d expect they had many more new experiences that wouldn’t always line up with Roy and Megan being a match. Ultimately, I rated How It Unfolds 4 stars.
Favorite Quote
“Lots of people will give you the “all your eggs in one basket” argument for spreading out to multiple solar systems. But that’s not the reason for me. For me, some chances you take just because the possibilities are beautiful.”
– James S.A. Corey, How It Unfolds
Brooke’s Thoughts
I gave this 3 stars. The plot twist of them actually being on Earth reminded me of Planet of the Apes and I feel this plot twist has been done too many times to be a good plot twist anymore. It was a fast-paced read but I don’t really like books that jump around in time. I understand why it makes sense for this book though. It was definitely unique in the way they sent colonizers to other planets. I can’t even begin to imagine the hardships of starting from scratch in an inhospitable environment.
Favorite Quote
We can only take comfort knowing that our ancestors are not dead, only elsewhere, brought to life anew from the same light that once fell here, and beginning again the great adventure that is our past.
– James S.A. Corey, How It Unfolds
How It Unfolds Discussion Prompts/Questions
Feel free to comment whatever thoughts and questions you have! But if you aren’t sure where to start, consider some of the prompts/questions below:
- Were you surprised they ended up back on Earth?
- Do you agree or disagree that Roy’s romances would end up the same in every version?
- Did you read or listen to the book? Which do you prefer? Did you like the narrator?
- Have you read or watched The Expanse by James S.A. Corey? Which did you prefer or what similarities/differences did you notice?
- Share a favorite quote!
- What’d you rate How It Unfolds?
Commenting
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We hope you enjoy this discussion and join us again next week!
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