The first half of the book I found to be very slow and not very engaging. Of course, characters need to be developed, but why do so when they get ejected in an escape pod without much fanfare later. This all changed in the second half of the book, when everything speeds up, and the story becomes more hectic in true Brown style. I especially liked the conversations with Dieter. Also I liked how a very interesting bridge is built towards part 3 of the Saga, which I will now start reading! :)