Atmosphere: A Love Story

*AN INSTANT #1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER*

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones & The Six comes an epic new novel set against the backdrop of the 1980s space shuttle program, about the extraordinary lengths we go to live and love beyond our limits.

Joan Goodwin has been obsessed with the stars for as long as she can remember. She is content with her life as a professor of physics and astronomy and as aunt to her precocious niece, Frances, until she comes across an advertisement seeking the first women scientists to join NASA's space shuttle program. Suddenly, Joan burns to go to space.

Selected from a pool of thousands of applicants in the summer of 1980, Joan begins training at Houston's Johnson Space Center, alongside an exceptional group of fellow candidates: Top Gun pilot Hank Redmond and scientist John Griffin, easygoing even when the stakes are high; mission specialist Lydia Danes, who has worked too hard to play nice; warmhearted Donna Fitzgerald, navigating her own secrets; and Vanessa Ford, the magnetic and mysterious aeronautical engineer who can fix any engine and fly any plane.

As they become unlikely friends and prepare for their first flights, Joan finds a love she never imagined. In this new light, Joan begins to question everything she thinks she knows about her place in the observable universe.

Then, in December of 1984, on mission STS-LR9, it all changes in an instant.

Fast-paced, thrilling, and emotional, Atmosphere is Taylor Jenkins Reid at her best: telling a passionate and soaring story about the transformative power of love–this time among the stars.

Taylor Jenkins Reid is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of nine novels, including Carrie Soto Is Back, Malibu Rising, Daisy Jones & The Six, and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and their daughter.

ISBN: 9780385695824
Format: Paperback
Pages: 352
Publisher: Doubleday Canada
Published: June 03, 2025

"Her most propulsive novel yet. . . . A heart-pounding race against the clock combined with a love story adds up to a novel that’s impossible to put down." —Kirkus, starred review

"Atmosphere is a character study brimming with heart, both quietly lyrical and an action-packed nail-biter."—USA Today

"A thrilling story of adventure, unexpected romance and a moment in time that will change her world—and possibly the world—forever." —Town & Country

"A richly drawn page-turner. . . . It would take a stony reader to turn away from its pleasures." —The Observer

"An ambitious novel that explores human limitation, sacrifice and the essence of love itself." —Woman & Home