We Have Always Been Here

Written by Lena Nguyen

Narrated by Catherine Ho

This psychological sci-fi thriller from a debut author follows one doctor who must discover the source of her crew's madness... or risk succumbing to it herself.

Misanthropic psychologist Dr. Grace Park is placed on the Deucalion, a survey ship headed to an icy planet in an unexplored galaxy. Her purpose is to observe the thirteen human crew members aboard the ship—all specialists in their own fields—as they assess the colonization potential of the planet, Eos. But frictions develop as Park befriends the androids of the ship, preferring their company over the baffling complexity of humans, while the rest of the crew treats them with suspicion and even outright hostility.

Shortly after landing, the crew finds themselves trapped on the ship by a radiation storm, with no means of communication or escape until it passes—and that’s when things begin to fall apart. Park’s patients are falling prey to waking nightmares of helpless, tongueless insanity. The androids are behaving strangely. There are no windows aboard the ship. Paranoia is closing in, and soon Park is forced to confront the fact that nothing—neither her crew, nor their mission, nor the mysterious Eos itself—is as it seems.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 6, 2021
• ISBN: 9781980085386

Reviews for We Have Always Been Here

[aug3zimm-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was engaged from the first page and enjoyed seeing each storyline (Park's childhood friendship with robot Glenn, the first men stranded on the planet, the mysterious present-day ongoings on the ship) slowly unfold and answer some questions. The end evolution of the story, while presented in definitely sci-fi terms, felt a little metaphysical to me which threw me off, but I imagine that's more a my-issue than the book issue. Still, an enjoyable mash-up of suspense and sci-fi.

[Joe · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

God awful bad storytelling. it's likely the worst and most confusing nonsensical story yet.

[capewood · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

2021 book #52. 2021. A pretty good job by a 1st time author in this story of a science survey ship sent to a weird planet. Dr. Grace Park is the ship psychologist trying to keep the crew healthy but she doesn't much care for them or they for her. Falls apart a bit at the end.

[strider66_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Pros: interesting protagonist, tense action, compelling mysteryCons: somewhat frustrating openingGrace Park is the Orbiter on the spaceship Deucalion, a psychologist sent to monitor the crew on their mission to scout out a newly discovered planet and prepare it for colonization. Her role, her standoffishness and the fact that she not a conscripted member of ISF makes her something of an outsider among the crew, fitting in more with the androids on board. Things immediately start going wrong when they arrive at the planet. Facing mistrust and paranoia, Park has to figure out what’s going on before it’s too late.The opening’s a bit slow as you’re introduced to a lot of characters, settings, and history. It’s also frustrating as you’ve only got the information that Park is privy to (with the exception of some emails at the start of some chapters), so it takes quite a while before you both begin to understand what’s going on. That slow opening pays off at the half way point when the tension ramps up and it becomes very hard to put the book down.The book begins with a mystery but parts in the middle felt very much like a horror novel. The action is fast and explanations limited (though eventually you do learn enough to understand what’s really going on).Park is a challenging protagonist as she has a limited range of emotions. It’s easy to understand why she’s ostracized by her peers, but seeing her actions from the inside helps the reader empathize with her. I did find it a little strange that a 13 member human crew could make a 3 floor ship feel crowded and full of ‘cliques’, but those early complaints faded as the action ramped up. I enjoyed seeing Park’s friendship with various androids as the book progressed.It’s an interesting book. Definitely worth pushing past the opening to see where the book goes. The ending felt right, though it left unanswered questions.