Airlock

by Tash McAdam

Brick, a young thief, is terrified of outer space. But they’re forced to escape Earth when a warrant goes out for their arrest. There’s nothing left for them on the dusty, barren wasteland of Earth anyway. Brick stows away on a cargo ship headed for the moon. They reluctantly allow a local teenage enforcer named Amar to tag along. But the ship ends up containing unusual cargo and the crew members may not be who they appear to be. Suddenly the spaceship is taken over by pirates, who imprison the crew in the airlock. Brick and Amar come up with a plan to rescue the crew. The only problem is that, in order to succeed, Brick must venture out into the deep darkness of space.

Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Dystopia, Space

112 pages, Paperback

Published August 15, 2023

About the author

Tash is a Welsh-Canadian author, activist and educator. Their publications include The Psionics (Nine Star Press), and the Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selections Blood Sport and Sink or Swim (Orca Books). They are also featured in multiple anthologies. Tash is a recipient of the Shoot for the Moon fund for trans writers, and a founding mentor with the Gender Generations Project.

When they’re not writing or reading you can probably find Tash in a lake, lying on the carpet thinking about monsters, or getting a new tattoo. They enjoy regular cups of tea, existential philosophy, and sharp objects.

Reviews

[Alexander Peterhans · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sci-fi novella with some ambitious worldbuilding in its first half. Sadly the second half doesn't live up to expectations, and the ending feels rushed. It reads as the start of a novel, not a novella, and because of that it basically stops when it starts to get interesting.

Still, I'd be interested to see more of this world.

(Picked up a review copy through Edelweiss)

[Skye Kilaen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a hi-lo YA written to be a high interest plot but for teens (and adults) with lower reading skills. It does exactly what it set out to do and I found it enjoyable! It makes me sad that some adults are reading it and rating it low based on their own reactions to the short length and accessible prose. :(

[alexa · Rating 2 out of 5]

The concept and story of Airlock is very interesting, but, structurally, the book doesn't hold up very well.
The sentence structure is a bit awkward and clunky at times, but it gets better throughout the book. The pacing is the biggest problem, though. The book is 100 pages long, so not a lot of wiggle room in terms of development, but the main conflict starts at page 48, which gives almost no time for it to be solved in a satisfying way. Characters don't have a lot of depth and have barely explained motivations
Physical descriptions of characters are excessive and repetitive. More explained /showed world building is needed for readers to fully understand what is going on and why.
Also, I don't understand why Amar and Brick have such a quick friendship. Amar is described as a "local enforcer" which I'm assuming is a police officer. Why would Brick, a wanted criminal, trust him? In my opinion, it wouldve been better if they had some sort of brief interaction in the beginning as an introduction to Amar, and then he found his own way on the same ship as Brick. While that might be a bit out of character of Amar, it would make it so they HAVE to work together, because then it would make more sense that they were allies.
The actual fight with the space pirates only lasted a couple pages, and Brick wasnt even present for it.
It was an easily digestible book, but nothing really happens in it. The end does set up a sequel, but I think a longer book that would contain more in it, including Brick joining a rebel cause, would be more interesting. A longer page count would also allow for more development of characters, world-building, etc. It just seems very underbaked, but good ingredients are there.

[Sharon Mariampillai · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay Read

Actual Rating: 2.5

I received an advanced review copy for free from Edelweiss, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you Tash McAdam for the opportunity to read your book. This was an alright read. I have to say that the concept was very intriguing, but the story did not live up to my expectations. In this book, Brick, a young thief, is terrified of outer space, but they are forced to escape Earth when there is a warrant for Brick's arrest. Brick goes on a cargo ship, and allows a young person, Amar. While they are on the cargo ship, Pirates take over the ship and puts the crew in the Airlock. Brick and Amar try to free the crew. Will they succeed? I thought that the story was good, but there could have been longer. I thought that there could have been more action scenes. I feel like if the story was longer, there is more opportunities for the story to grow. Also, I wish we could have had more of a backstory for Brick and Amar. I thought they were okay characters. I did not love them, but I did not dislike them. I thought the ending was short and abrupt. I will try to read more Orca Soundings books. Overall, an okay read.

[Maureen Marovitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Airlock" starts at breakneck speed and doesn't slow down. It's the story of Brick, a non-binary sixteen-year-old who is wanted for theft, and forced to escape crumbling planet Earth or face great punishment. En route to the spaceship port, Brick becomes allies with Amar, a towering local tough who is equally desperate to leave the planet. Brick has to constantly fight their panic attack inducing claustrophobia while managing to slip aboard a spaceship unseen. But Brick and Amar's troubles grow further when the ship is overtaken by pirates. Do they try to help the crew or save themselves?

Brick's inner turmoil over trying to appear brave while fighting their anxieties made them a highly sympathetic character, and the unlikely budding friendship between them and Amar was another high point of the story. The world building was impressive given the few number of pages - I only wished there was room for further Dystopian backstory and more of Brick and Amar's adventures- it all ended a little too quickly for me. Perhaps one day a series?

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first high interest, low readability book that I’m aware of, but I picked it up after finding it at the library! I found the characters and plot very compelling right away. It felt fresh even though the sci-fi elements were familiar. I also enjoyed reading about a main character with anxiety/panic attacks, which I found personally relatable. This would be a great book for teens or adults looking for something fun to read - I read it in one day, which was very satisfying!

[Ben Lillard · Rating 2 out of 5]

Airlock by Tash McAdam introduces Brick, a non-binary teen thief who must escape Earth on a ship that is bound for the moon. break has two faces or fear of outer space to outsmart the Pirates and save everybody. This book carried themes of identity, courage, and resilience as a brick line line there are others out there they can rely on.

[Erica Schimmel · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Katie Lawrence · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very intriguing premise with lots of nonstop action. I mostly just wanted so much more! More character development, more development with the plot etc. The ending felt rather abrupt as well and a little confusing. A fun quick read that felt underbaked.