THE VELA – Review of Episodes 1 & 2 by SL Huang and Becky Chambers

I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The Vela by Yoon Ha Lee, Becky Chambers, S.L. Huang, Rivers Solomon
Published by Serial Box on March 6 2019
Genres: Adult, Science fiction
Pages: 377
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Goodreads

 

---

So yeah, I’m a little behind kicking off my coverage of Season 1 of The Vela, a serialized story from none other than Serial Box! Today I’m reviewing the first two episodes, and starting next weekend, I’ll be reviewing one episode a week. So far I’m LOVING this story! First, here’s a brief recap to whet your appetite:

In the fading light of a dying star, a soldier for hire searches for a missing refugee ship and uncovers a universe-shattering secret.

Asala Sikou is used to looking after number one while crisis reigns in her dying planetary system. But when she’s hired to find a missing refugee ship, she discovers that this is no ordinary rescue mission, and she must play a role in deciding the fate of the whole universe.

---

Episode 1: A Leisurely Extinction by S.L. Huang

Are you ready for another play-by-play review extravaganza? Well, once again I’m tackling one of Serial Box’s new stories! The Vela is written by veteran authors S.L. Huang, Becky Chambers, Rivers Solomon and Yoon Ha Lee. Already we’re off to a thrilling start, and I can tell I’m going to love this intergalactic space opera featuring a diverse cast of characters and tons of action.

Asala Sikou is a former military Corporal and now acts as a “gun for hire” on the planet of Khayyam. When the story opens, she’s been tasked with protecting a visiting dignitary from Gan-De named General Cynwrig. She’s also being pressured by President Ekrem to help him with a problem: he’s been instrumental in arranging for the transportation of Eratos refugees aboard a ship called the Vela, and its arrival on Khayyam will cement his political future. The problem is, the Vela has disappeared, veered off course, and according to rumors, might have touched down on the planet of Hypatia for repairs. Now Ekrem wants Asala to go find it, bring it back, and save his political career, and he wants his kid Niko, a talented computer whiz, to go with her.

Asala wants nothing to do with the mission. She’s got personal reasons for not wanting to go to Hypatia, but after Niko shows her an old photo of her long-lost sister, who may still be on Hypatia, Asala reluctantly agrees to go.

This episode was longer that I expect the other episodes to be, mostly because Huang is setting everything up, introducing the characters, and giving us critical backstory information. So far I’m really enjoying Asala’s and Niko’s characters in particular. Asala is a refugee from Hypatia and was separated from her family years ago as a child, and now that Ekrem wants her to go back, all those memories are coming back to haunt her. She thinks her entire clan must be dead by now, but she’s also curious to see if her sister is still alive. She’s got a clan mark on her face, a tattoo that identifies her as a refugee, and there’s a lot of tension between her and General Cynwrig, who calls her by a racial slur. Not a good way to start things off!

Niko is a non-binary character who uses the pronouns “they/them,” and I loved how the author normalized this. Niko’s youth and enthusiasm are a great contrast to Asala’s more serious personality, and I did love their personality clash, especially as Niko is excited to join the mission to find the Vela, but Asala feels as if they will be nothing but a burden.

We also get some background on the situation of the planets in this world, and that situation is dire, to say the least. Asala was forced to leave Hypatia years ago due to a dying sun, as the planet was getting colder and colder and not fit for human survival. Environmental concerns seem to be important, especially since Khayyam doesn’t even have its own natural water supply, and so they import ice from the outer Ring.

By the end of the episode we have a clear, driving plot: Asala is on a mission to locate a missing ship, and along the way I expect there will be plenty of danger, adventure and emotional conflict. This was a great opening episode, and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for these characters.

---

Episode 2: The Third Passenger by Becky Chambers

Having never read anything by Becky Chambers before (I know, I’m shocked as well), I was very curious to dive into Episode 2. And now I see what all the fuss is about! Chambers kicks off her episode as Asala and Niko board the ship they’ll be using to track down the Vela. And to Niko’s surprise and horror, General Cynwrig is hitching a ride in order to keep her route home a secret, still nervous after the three recent assassination attempts on Khayyam. Tensions are high as the three try to settle in together for the short time Cynwrig will be aboard, but Niko despises everything she stands for and wants nothing to do with her.

The General doesn’t know the real reason for their mission, which Ekrem has insisted they keep a secret, and has simply been told it’s of a diplomatic nature. But she’s not one to trust anyone, and even a short time on board with Niko and Asala makes her want to get off the ship as soon as possible.

Chambers intersperses her story with short snippets of interviews with the refugees aboard the Vela, and these tantalizing moments give the reader a sense of the lives of these people, forced to flee their homes, but thrust into a dangerous situation where they don’t know whether they’ll even make it to the planet alive or not. It’s always nice to get multiple perspectives and I love the format of these sections.

This episode has less action than the last one, since the characters are on the ship for the entire time and don’t do much. But what I loved about The Third Passenger are the interactions between the characters. I’ve heard that this is one of Becky Chambers’ strengths and I wasn’t disappointed. We get plenty of underlying tension and it made for a dynamic story. Niko can’t stand Cynwrig, but they are forced to be polite out of respect for her leadership status. I’m not sure whether Cynwrig is going to appear in future episodes, but I am curious about Niko’s utter hatred of her, so I hope she comes back. And Niko and Asala don’t see eye to eye on several things, including the fact that Asala didn’t want Niko along in the first place. We see some of Asala’s anguish about the fate of her clan back home when she tries to explain to Niko how she feels about the refugees after an argument, but even though Niko is trying to understand, you can tell they’ve still got some work to do when it comes to empathizing with others.

There are even some funny moments that lighten the mood, for example when Niko tries to find dessert on the computer’s food menu and discovers there’s only fruit available. Cynwrig makes a comment to Niko that there may be a reason why Asala doesn’t want any sugar on board, perhaps something to do with her life back on Hypatia.

An event with the computer system on the ship suggests that someone on board might be hiding something important. I can’t say more than that right now, because there’s a cool twist at the end of this episode! All I can ask is that you PLEASE read this so I can talk about it next week!

All in all, I loved this episode, and I can’t wait to find out what’s next!

---

You can learn more about The Vela here. Episode 1 is available to read for free, and you can purchase each episode individually, or buy the entire season for $13.99. Episodes are available each week on Wednesdays.