Seven Story Publishing

1. Title: Landing
2. Author: Olivia Hawker
3. Genre: Fiction
4. Summary: Doubt plagues a new marriage when a young NASA engineer focuses more on the Apollo 11 moon landing than his own future in this poignant short story by bestselling author Olivia Hawker.
   Alan is able to imagine every way critical equipment might break during the launch and landing of Apollo 11. But his experience in preventing cosmic disasters does nothing to prepare him for the pressures of a hasty marriage to a woman he barely knows—or the strain of keeping up appearances amid the shifting social attitudes of the late ’60s. When a crisis at home forces Alan back to earth, he’s faced with a choice he doesn’t know how to make: whether to let go or move forward.
   Olivia Hawker’s Landing is part of A Point in Time, a transporting collection of stories about the pivotal moments, past and present, that change lives. Read or listen to each immersive story in a single sitting.
5. Publisher: Amazon Original Stores
6. Publication Date: July 28, 2022
7. Page Count: 34

General Review

1. Description and Imagery: The author mainly focuses on the inner world of the characters such as thoughts, feelings, and facial expressions to convey the time period the story is set in. The author also does a great job of capturing the emotional journey of each character throughout the story.
2. Relatability of MC: The story focuses on a couple that has a shotgun marriage and now has to figure everything out during a time touted to be the most important in US history. Alan, NASA Engineer, is relatable in the sense of being overwhelmed and feeling like a failure in everything he does due to being unable to find a balance between his marriage and career.
3. Pacing: Personally, the story dragged on a bit longer than I would’ve liked, as if there were some sort of word count the author had to hit before the assignment was due. The pacing was good overall, just not a pace that allowed me to flow into the story.
4. Perspective: This story takes place in the sixties which may present a disconnect for younger readers; however, the author does a great job capturing the time period so as not to confuse readers about where they are in time. Personally, I couldn’t care less about a period I wasn’t born in unless something catastrophic happened but hey, to each their own.
5. Vibe Check: This story wasn’t it for me. I prefer fantasy, action-based and some horror. Literary or general fiction is something I have to be in the mood to read rather than something I enjoy reading all the time. This story wasn’t terrible but I had to force myself to finish it for the sake of writing a review.

Personal Review

Honestly, this story wasn’t for me. Objectively, there’s nothing wrong with the story and I suggest people read it for themselves and form their own opinions.

The characters are relatable and can easily be people in real life. The way the author sets the scene perfectly captures the time period the story is written in, the scenario is realistic and almost indecipherable from reality which is a testament to the author’s capabilities.

This story just wasn’t my cup of tea. There’s honestly nothing else to it.

Rating: 3/5 stars

About Olivia Hawker

Olivia Hawker is the pen name of American author Libbie Grant. Olivia writes historical “book club” fiction, for which she has appeared on the Washington Post bestseller list and has been a finalist for the Washington State Book Award and the Willa Literary Award. Her novel One for the Blackbird, One for the Crow, a favorite of readers around the world, was among Amazon’s Top 100 Bestselling Books of 2020. Under her real name, she writes literary fiction, and—via her podcast, Future Saint of a New Era—experiments with modern storytelling techniques that transcend the limitations of the printed word. A permanent resident of Canada, she divides her time between Victoria, BC and the San Juan Islands of Washington State.

For more information, please visit hawkerbooks.com.