There's been some discussion within the SFF community recently about books with romance as the central focus and the SFF aspect as a backdrop, rather There's been some discussion within the SFF community recently about books with romance as the central focus and the SFF aspect as a backdrop, rather than the other way around. I'm mentioning this because WINTER'S ORBIT is exactly the kind of work that slots itself neatly (in my mind) as a sci-fi romance rather than sci-fi with romance. And so is exactly the kind of romance-focused SFF work people (including myself) are interested in seeing pop up more.
It's been pitched as many things: Ancillary Justice meets Gideon the Ninth, or Ancillary Justice meets Red, White & Royal Blue. Personally, I'd pitch to fans of MDZS/The Untamed - it's got the same bubby x stoic dynamic (Kiem really reminded me of WWX), useless gays and a slowburn romance born out of misunderstanding.
Anyway, it is first and foremost a romance and secondly a book about a murder and galactic politics. It was fun and charming, with worldbuilding on the lighter side. And true to its roots as an online novel, the heroes are faced with convenient problems and a fair smattering of tropes. (Example: in the middle of the book, these two useless individuals - in a marriage of convenience and both mistakenly thinking the other doesn't like them - have crashed in the middle of nowhere. Dramatics ensue, including the love interest (sexily) fighting off a bear to save the hero. Then they have to huddle together for warmth in their tiny tent in what is essentially the 'there's only one bed' trope.)
It wasn't perfect - there were bits where I thought it meandered just a bit too much and I felt my attention slipping, and I wished I could've loved Jainan (the love interest) rather than just liking him. It also didn't make my heart flutter as much I wish it could have done. But it was fun, and I've already recommended it to others.
If you're a reader who wants detailed worldbuilding and a narrative that adheres strictly to the plot rather than meandering for personal & romantic character developments, WINTER'S ORBIT may not be the perfect read for you. But if you like your romance and your science fiction, then hurrah.
> 4 stars
+ content warning for domestic abuse (in a relationship prior to the story's start, mainly alluded to but seen clearly in flashbacks near the end of the novel)
Thank you to Orbit UK for the proof copy!
*
as a useless gay myself, I am very interested in a book full of similarly useless gays...more
Out of the whole trilogy, the first book (DEFY THE STARS) was the best. Not that this was bad - this is one of the better sci-fi trilogies out there aOut of the whole trilogy, the first book (DEFY THE STARS) was the best. Not that this was bad - this is one of the better sci-fi trilogies out there at the moment imo - but there’s been a slip.
DEFY THE FATES is not a bad ending; it ticks all the boxes needed for a conclusion. But this doesn’t change the fact the book seemed rushed, and many problems were solved conveniently within the same page. There were no true struggles to speak of, and everything just felt strangely artificial.
(However, there was good humour.)
Nevertheless, I’d recommend this series - at least for the first book. It’s just a pity the second and third books didn’t have quite the same level of sophistication and complexity as the first. ...more
why do I TORTURE MYSELF LIKE THIS?! THE NEXT BOOK ISNT OUT FOR TWO YEARS *screams*
I loved this just a little less than SKYWARD - I found the beginningwhy do I TORTURE MYSELF LIKE THIS?! THE NEXT BOOK ISNT OUT FOR TWO YEARS *screams*
I loved this just a little less than SKYWARD - I found the beginning oddly paced and I couldn’t quite get into it - but the second half was killer. I have so many questions.
Generally I really enjoyed all of it, but the one negative that sticks the most in my mind is how that romantic interaction between Jorgen & Spensa was handled in the beginning. It seemed too rushed considering the first book had such a slow-burn between them, but given they spend the rest of the book apart and there was no other time to possible build up their romance .... maybe it makes sense?
But just watch, I’m going to beat up anyone who hurts M-Bot. I was crying during that last quarter! My AI son!!...more
I’m trash for scifi books with quirky AI characters. But damn, I was not expecting to love this so much! It’s my first Sanderson book and> 4/4.5 stars
I’m trash for scifi books with quirky AI characters. But damn, I was not expecting to love this so much! It’s my first Sanderson book and I am converted, all. (Friends who have been egging me to read him for years - you know who you are - be proud. I’m now one of you.)
I can’t actually point out why I loved this so much - it’s slightly overlong for a book that’s technically supposed to be YA, but I wasn’t bored and enjoyed it all throughly as the length made for good development. The worldbuilding isn’t the flashiest nor the most complex I’ve read - humans trapped on a planet being attacked by alien forces is not new - but I found it really engaging. The fact that some of the biggest reveals didn’t happen to the end was something that aggravated me because I was dying for answers, and this book kinda does end with a cliffhanger, but I don’t mind too much about that either.
Really, I just like this book (even though I felt too many words were put into italics). Spensa and M-Bot are incredibly loveable - Spensa has her quirkiness that’s matched by M-Bot’s humour, and even Doomslug is cute and I love Jorgen too (and his relationship with Spensa is probably going to be the most slow burn of slow burn relationships, probably lasting over several books but hey, I’m here for it.) Also, Rig. He needed more time and love.
The ending has me really intrigued to read the second book, which I was going to read either way because I was invested in this freaking FOUR BOOK SERIES from about 50 pages in, but HOW DO I WAIT THAT LONG?! October 2019 please hurry.
buddy read with my favourite weird Aussie Cindy! ...more
Full review to come, but this was essentially a really fun novel with incredible diversity (an almost entirely queer cast, a central sapp > 3.5 stars
Full review to come, but this was essentially a really fun novel with incredible diversity (an almost entirely queer cast, a central sapphic romance, an enby character, PoCs) but rather haphazard plotting with irregular jumps in the narrative that weren't easily overlooked, and twists towards the end that I didn't like as much. (But either way, some of these things might be fixed in the final copy and it was a brilliantly diverse book with interesting worldbuilding & I would recommend it.)
DRAGON PEARL is a sumptuous space opera sci-fi influenced by Korean mythology, and it's just so nice to see a Korean-Americanlet's go let's go gumihos
DRAGON PEARL is a sumptuous space opera sci-fi influenced by Korean mythology, and it's just so nice to see a Korean-American author take on a genre which traditionally has been white-dominated and create a world wherein all the characters and worldbuilding are Korean-coded. James Kirk? I don't know him.
It goes to show how accessible diversity can be in all genres and age brackets of literature. DRAGON PEARL is a middle grade, but the world is rich and textured, and the inclusion of a nonbinary character in Sujin was absolutely seamless. (The argument that PoC/LGBTQ+ diversity is too 'complex' for kids is ridiculous, okay, this book is one of many that proves it.)
Sad this seems to be a standalone though because I would have really enjoyed more :( the worldbuilding alone could sustain a trilogy and the ending is left open, so my fingers are crossed.
When I got an arc of this in an Illumicate box, I 100% looked at the cover and wasn’t all that sure about it; I’m not that fond of cover mode↠ 4 stars
When I got an arc of this in an Illumicate box, I 100% looked at the cover and wasn’t all that sure about it; I’m not that fond of cover models or faces on books. However, when I picked it up, I discovered it was a really addictive book with good characters and an interesting storyline. To be sure, it’s nothing super original or overly special, but it is pretty fun and seemed to be exactly what I wanted to read.
Perfect for fans of Illuminae or Across The Universe, Light Years centres around 4 narrative characters from different planets across the galaxy who all end up in an elite space academy for future members of space flight crews. The four planets that the main characters are from are interesting enough for them to take form in the imagination, though only Deva really gets any significant worldbuilding.
Now, the four central characters:
Cormak: a boy from a toxic planet called Deva, who takes his dead older brother’s place in the Quatra Fleet Academy.
Vesper: the privileged daughter of one of the Quatra Fleet’s elite commanders, who’s struggling to live up to her mother’s brilliance.
Arran: a ridiculously smart boy from the icy planet of Chetire.
Orelia: a girl from the planet of Loos (or so but who’s hiding a much darker secret.
I actually don’t have a favourite character, as I liked all of them equally. Each of them has their own unique story, therefore making each enjoyable as none of them have content that’s crossed over and taken from the other character’s chapters.
There were some really well-conceptualised secondary characters too! I thought Dash, Arran’s love interest, was really sweet; I also really liked Zafir. Also, kudos to Kass Morgan for including a plethora of diversity in really natural ways – there was a LGBTQ+ relationship, a character with a prosthetic leg, and a lot of racial diversity.
This book isn’t also as long as you’d think, and doesn’t have as many central plot “beats” as a reader might expect from a 360-page book. With four characters, each with their own narrative story, not as much happens as it could, but I enjoyed this as it mean it wasn’t overwhelming, nor did I get bored. It is a book that goes by surprisingly quickly.
Really, the only thing I can criticise is the mystique surrounding the villains – but then, that’s to be expected, isn’t? I expect more reveals will come about in the sequel, so I can’t really pick a fight with it.
TL;DR: An easy, really enjoyable read for fans of Illuminae or any fan of space opera / the school setting.
This review is also available on my blog, faerieontheshelf.wordpress.com...more
I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I might as well start by saying this right off the bat: I did not enjoy↠ 4 Stars
I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I might as well start by saying this right off the bat: I did not enjoy this one as much as the first one. It seems to have a case of the dreaded (le gasp) middle book syndrome. But, this should not be misunderstood as me saying it was bad!
Abel and Noemi are just as enjoyable as ever - in fact, I really enjoyed Abel's exploration of his humanity and he remains one of my favourite characters. Some additional secondary characters were also introduced who I really enjoyed, and I also loved the return of some older characters - Virginia and her "pterodactyl screams" will be forever relatable.
What this book suffered from was the fact that it focused a large amount of narrative/plot time on something that, now that I look back at it, wasn't as significant and useful as it should've been. Yes, aforementioned event provided narrative complications, but really, I'm not sure about it. The beginning and ending of Defy the Worlds were good (the ending was really good, and that twist!!) but the middle was a bit of an oddity. It was relevant but didn't necessarily feel like it tied all the way into the main plot, and sometimes it even felt more like a side quest.
Another reason this book just isn't as good is because it lacks the thoughtfulness and philosophical discourse that made the first one so good. There is some still there, but now Abel has largely sorted out his "mech vs. human" dilemma so there's less deliberation over what makes something human, which was something I did feel made the first book special.
But like I said before, I really enjoyed the ending though! I did not see it coming and honestly, I'm really excited to see where it will take the story. It also opens up the platform for more philosophical debate so I'm ready for that.
TL;DR: Not as exciting as the first novel, but still a fun read with a shocking ending that will leave readers desperately awaiting the final instalment in this sci-fi space opera series. ...more
I was kindly provided with an ARC by the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I deliberated for a few days over this ↠ 3 stars
I was kindly provided with an ARC by the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I deliberated for a few days over this. A bookstagram friend really enjoyed this book; I have friends on Goodreads who hated it. There has been a real issue with people believing Sasha Alsberg (FYI, a popular BookTuber), got this book published on a silver platter when there are others working so so hard to get their books published. But, at the end of the day, a book is a work of love – writing a book is not easy, regardless of whether it’s a good book or not – and I wanted to review it as fairly as I could.
(This is a somewhat long review, so beware!)
So:
I gave Zenith 3 stars because it I found it mediocre; I did not think it was a work of sheer awesomeness, but neither was it an actual flop.
I wasn’t invested in Zenith until 30% in, then I was invested for about 10% where it was high octane (which is the one time I debated 4 stars), then I lost interest again right till the end. I’ve been reading this book for WEEKS, and not once could I get fully into it, but I refused to DNF it out of sheer stubbornness. There were WAY too many characters with POVs that it distracted from the narrative (even though the multiple POVs were probably supposed to make the story more immersive) and it was a chronological mess. Flashbacks abounded – some were used to flesh out backstory, which is okay, but some were just . . . there without clear purpose, and as such, unnecessary. And it wasn’t just one character who got flashbacks, but loads.
And thus, the confusion of multiple POVs and who’s-who continued.
Let’s start with the characters: our protagonist, Androma (Andi for short), is a carbon copy of Celaena Sardothien from Throne of Glass. That is, if Celaena decided she wanted to take up a job as a space pirate. It’s like they came from the same “make your own character” kit. They both have blonde hair, they’re both hot and attract men like a magnet, they both have this badass veneer that’s actually just a cover for the fact that they’re hiding a lot of trauma underneath. They both have weirdly spelt names – Celaena is just an unusual spelling of Selena, and Androma is a mutilation of Andromeda (I kept misreading her name as Andromeda and honestly Androma just sounds like some kind of bacterial strain, like Ebola or something, and I'm not that fond of it).
I also can’t take her nickname “the Bloody Baroness” seriously, because it is also one of the epithets of Elizabeth Bathory – a Hungarian aristocrat/serial killer who was genuinely a LOT more terrifying (and fascinating) than Andi ever was. There was a lot of song and dance about how dangerous Andi was, but honestly? I never saw it. If you want to have a character who’s genuinely dangerous, you need to go into antiheroine territory (Mia from Nevernight is a perfect example of a character who is actually as dangerous as they’re said to be) but in Zenith, Androma sticks safely to heroine grounds.
Then there’s the other characters: Dex, a bounty hunter (with cool constellation tattoos); Valen, a guy she has to go rescue; and then the members of her ship. Dex and Androma are ex-lovers and have a love-hate relationship that brings loads of emotional angst and hormones to the story. Valen is a painter. The rest I don’t care much about. The thing is, many characters were given POVs, but it was to establish narrative – not characterisation, which was honestly a total waste. I don’t care about some queen from God-knows-where called Klaren (?) who does something or other; I would rather have a backstory for all of Androma’s crewmates so the core of the novel stood stronger. It’s all good having a flashy narrative, but if you don’t have characters with substance, it just doesn’t work. It’s like playing with stick figures; even if they storm the castle and win the war, if the characters are unremarkable and you can’t connect to them, you don’t get the visceral emotions associated with the story and you won’t take anything away, leaving the book unmemorable and totally forgettable.
Also, there’s a focus on the whole all-girls crew in the blurb as a selling point but do we get any badass girl power scenes? NO (though there are some cute supportive friendship scenes, which are also important). There’s diversity in the amount of alien races featured in this book, but do we get any LGBTQ+ rep anywhere? Nope (and this is really disappointing because there was so so much opportunity and so many characters).
I did like the worldbuilding, though. This is because I generally do like space-y books as space is such an interesting place, but I thought the Mirabel galaxy and the planets in the book were well thought out. Whenever they were on a planet, a unique image was conjured in my mind, and this was enjoyable.
The writing style was also fluid; with two authors in one book, different writing styles can show and the narrative can become disjointed, but thankfully this didn’t happen with Zenith. However, some small complaints are that someone kept on using ‘kiss’ too much as a synonym for touch and some of the metaphors were unwieldy.
Now, the twist at the end was surprising and enjoyable, but most of the book was a dull slog. If the second book is available on NetGalley and reviews are okay, I might pick it up, but who knows? If I want good stories set in space, I’m going to stick to authors such as Becky Chambers (The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet) and Amie Kaufman (Illuminae; These Broken Stars).
TL;DR: A confusion of multiple narratives forms a massive, tangled, knotted story, but it does have elements that other readers are bound to enjoy.
This review is also available on my blog (faerieontheshelf.wordpress.com)...more
I’ve been reading this on and off for a few weeks now and I just can’t seem to get into it, so I think it’s time to call it a day and put this on DNF
I’ve been reading this on and off for a few weeks now and I just can’t seem to get into it, so I think it’s time to call it a day and put this one down 😩 (I even read an entire plot recap out of desperation to see if I’d like it later on but still nope)
I’m sure it’s great and I know lots of my friends really enjoyed this but I just can’t seem to get invested & the writing style doesn’t suit me at alllll. I love the diversity though....more
This one was good, but maybe because some of originality had worn off, it wasn't as awesome as Illuminae (which deserved ALL THE STARS). I a4.5 stars.
This one was good, but maybe because some of originality had worn off, it wasn't as awesome as Illuminae (which deserved ALL THE STARS). I also didn't like Hanna and Nik as much as Kady and Ezra - in fact I didn't truly warm up to Hanna/Nik till halfway through (and I was so over Nik being flirty with Hanna from the very beginning because I didn't see what he saw in her lol).
The Gemina particle theory, though convincingly done - I googled it and was disappointed upon finding out it was fiction ha - but really could've been implemented from an earlier stage somehow.
Also, the alien parasites are cool butttt the biological disease in Illuminae was creepier and felt more threatening. Illuminae seemed to have higher stakes.
Ella Malikova is the best though YASS little pauchok. And Jackson, well, I'm glad there was a British character cos I love when people stress the posh accent.
But the thing is, this series remains vastly enjoyable and still remains vastly unique in execution. I was planning to wait longer to read Gemina but then they had a copy at the library ... and now I have to wait bloody ages for Obsidio fff
Sci-fi books set in space have a tendency to be big and epic and extravagant - this isn't. And it's refreshing. TLW covers a big universe with a narraSci-fi books set in space have a tendency to be big and epic and extravagant - this isn't. And it's refreshing. TLW covers a big universe with a narrative intimate in scale, based on characterisation rather than plot.
One star taken off because sometimes it can be too quiet - dramatic events seem to go by surprisingly quickly, comprising of a page or two, and the event which is supposed to be the pinnacle of the narrative doesn't happen until right at the end....more
"As I wait her out, I realise I’m sitting on a space station tens of thousands of light-years away from Earth. Totally alone. How did this become my l"As I wait her out, I realise I’m sitting on a space station tens of thousands of light-years away from Earth. Totally alone. How did this become my life?”
C H A R A C T E R S
> Tyler Jones. Squad leader, golden boy, alpha, moniker of “captain hotness”.
> Aurora Lie-Jin O’Malley. Cryogenically frozen for 200+ years before being rescued from a space ship crash. Trying to adapt to an unfamiliar world. Half Chinese. Unfortunately seems to be unrelated to O’Malley the Alley Cat (brownie points for whoever catches my joke).
> Scarlett Jones. Tyler’s older sister. Rule breaker, does not adhere to dress codes. A strong woman! She’s hot af and she knows it.
> Kaliis “Kal” Idraban Gilwraeth. This is the rumoured hot space elf everyone is talking about who probably got lost on the way to Middle-Earth (or the Jedi training school, considering his species seem to use lightsabers.) Also I just want to say that I was reading Kristoff's summary of this book on Goodreads and he used a GIF of Thranduil for Kal and I choked. on. my. freaking. tea. All, Thranduil is the love of my life.
> Zila Madran. Low-key crazy scientist. A fan of earrings and always has a unique pair.
> Finian. Another alien. Has an exoskeleton to support his movements. Flirtatious bisexual?
> Cat. Breaks chairs over people’s heads. Has a Phoenix tattoo over her throat (hardcore) and a few others elsewhere. Will not take crap from anyone. Is a little bit like tough meat; my feelings on her were varied across the book.
This book is essentially Six of Crows x Star Trek with a tiny side of Indiana Jones and Annihilation. Interstellar training schools, misfit underdog groups, ancient artefact heists, and fucking creepy dangerous plants. The very early parts reminded me a bit of Light Years by Kass Morgan.
At the current moment, I'm the only person in my mutuals who's given this book 4 stars instead of 5 *shifty look*. Don't get me wrong, it isn't bad, but I also ... didn't think it was a 5 star read for me. In my opinion, Illuminae was better. I was more emotionally invested in Illuminae.
One thing I struggled with in Aurora Rising was all the POVs. There were seven, one for each character. I enjoyed Aurora's, Tyler's, and Kal's the most, but at some points it just felt like everyone was overlapping. And honestly, sometimes I would be reading and I would have no idea whose narrative I was reading through (they're all in first person) so I'd have to skip back to the beginning of the chapter to check. Kal was the only one I could mark as really individual, as he has a more archaic narrative voice.
I also felt like some of the characters lacked a certain depth. Kaufman & Kristoff have given each character a story, some sadder than others, but I just . . . didn't feel for some of them? Aurora is my fave bean though. She captured my heart the moment she unashamedly started oogling Tyler.
In terms of plots too, it was good and interesting and some parts were very fresh/concepts I haven't seen in YA sci-fi for a while, but I also wasn't blown out of my mind. (I know I sound derogatory and so I do want to highlight that this was quite an enjoyable read lmao.) The whole novel was well-plotted and set at a good pace.
Also, I never thought I'd say this, but there was a steady load of innuendo in this book and like . . . I don't normally care much but it just made the book push more into NA territory and I didn't always care for it. Maybe I'm getting old and grouchy, but I was just over some of the jokes.
Now, onto something I really liked! The freaking Middle-Earth jokes. Kal gets so confused about Aurora calling him Elrond/Legolas and he's just like "... that's not my name why are you calling me that". This character reminded me quite a bit of Rowan Whitethorn (Kal is tall, broad, broody and silver-blonde wowowow perfect love interest material), and his race of Slydrathi is heavily based on elvish/fae appearance and lore. Including the idea of a mating bond that is oh-so prominent within a certain set of YA/NA fantasy novels. I swear, there are points where I felt like Kaufman & Kristoff were using his character as one big joke/being cleverly subversive, and I won't lie, I really enjoyed that.
Aurora Rising was a steady novel. Good cast diversity (including aliens), though I won't lie, I was expecting an LGBTQ+ relationship somewhere (especially since I know Kristoff is so good at them), but that might be something for later books. I'm interested to see how others find this, and whether I've just missed some vital 5-star aspect about this novel really. I'll definitely be continuing with the series though!
Let's be honest, though: if this book had had a prominent quirky AI in it (not you, Magellan, I'm sorry but you're no AIDAN/X-Bot) I probably would've bumped it up a little.
Also, I still don't think this cover really gets the actual aspect of the story across. Aurora is a big part and so it’s fitting she should be the cover model - but as much as I love Bowater's art, I'm not so sure about this and it ignores the group dynamic of the book and the tone of this novel. But I can also acknowledge that this cover will sell copies and help it do well in the market.
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