This was quite good (3.5 stars) as a set up for the series & I must admit that I was far more interested in the actual planning of the Exodus & journey to Aurora from the technical to the societal & political than I was in any one character in particular. I'm usually much more about the characters but I felt the writer handled the other aspects so well that I craved more of that. I can only imagine that the characters are more deeply drawn & important in subsequent books as the Exodus has reached its destination & the journey toward a new society & civilization continues. I will probably read the next in the series but not right away but I am glad that I finally got around to this one on my Kindle. ( )