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starrysteph's review
challenging
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The Stars Undying combines famous historical figures with theatrical charm and an expansive galactic & queernormative setting. It’s ambitious, lush, and subtly genius.
We alternate perspectives between two power-hungry leaders. Princess Altagracia has lost the throne of her planet Szayet & the Pearl that holds the soul (or AI) of her god Alekso Undying. She’s desperate to win back her queenship … and to do so, she must charm Commander Matheus Ceirran (and his lieutenant, Anita).
It’s a retelling of Julius Caesar and Antony & Cleopatra (though more of that in the sequel) sparkling with easter eggs and jabs and teases ... but also lush enough to offer something bold, new, and brilliant. Gracia, Ceirran, and Ana orbit each other - and push and pull - in the most miraculous of ways. They’re incredibly complex and compelling, and their overlapping relationships and dynamics are fascinating to watch unfold.
Gracia tells you she’s lying. Many times over. And yet … you’re still inclined to believe her, still surprised when she doubles back and admits she’s been withholding, still rooting for her to maneuver her way out of every corner.
Though we did not get POV chapters from Ana (I expect we will in the next book), she had my whole heart.
Pulling back from the individual characters, the overarching questions about immortality and souls and religion felt very (charmingly) Jewish; you are not being led towards a “right” answer but instead encouraged to philosophize and wonder and challenge.
It is slow burn … with an emphasis on slow. A lot of the book is spent in rumination, slow conversation, and simmering political tension. Occasionally I felt this became detrimental to the pacing, and it seemed hints were laid out for the sequel that took away from the movement and fullness of the arc that should be the first book.
The Stars Undying also has some of the longest sentences I’ve ever read, which sometimes delighted me and sometimes challenged my attention and patience.
It’s so twisted and compelling. Things are never, ever laid out for you directly as a reader. You are entrusted with all the information, the conversations, and the schemes you need to know (and often are manipulated by unreliable narration) but you are meant to fend for yourself and interrogate these events through your own eyes. It was all so delightfully rich.
CW: death (incl. death of a parent & child death), murder, war, imprisonment, violence & gun violence, grief, colonization, classism
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Child death, Death of parent, Colonisation, Murder, War, Death, Violence, Confinement, Gun violence, and Classism
beforeviolets's review
5.0
Thank you Orbit for a copy in exchange for an honest review.
I heard queer Shakespeare in space, how could I not come running?
The Stars Undying is a queer space opera retelling of Julius Caesar and Antony and Cleopatra (partially the history, partially Shakespeare), featuring a butch lesbian Mark Antony and a gay dead god based on Alexander the Great.
Reading this book, I was constantly torn between the desire to pace myself to savor the material and the incapability to put it down. Emery Robin has delivered a shining pearl of a debut, overflowing with fascinating character dynamics, captivating dialogue, and expansive political world-building. And at the heart of the story stood Gracia, one of my FAVORITE main characters in a long time. She is quick and blunt and sexy and terrifying and badass, but most of all, fabulously unreliable. I had no idea what she had up her sleeve at any given time, and loved being on the edge of my seat all the way through her chapters.
I also didn't expect this book to be as Jewish as it was. Mind you, it isn't marketed as such, but Emery Robin is indeed Jewish and I found this to be reflective in the text, especially in some of the more religious elements of the story. It's not an obvious feature, and a goy would never recognize it, but I found myself gushing over some of the parts of the story that I found to deeply emulate the Jewish experience.
And though yes, it is based on history and Shakespeare, I don't think you need to be familiar with either to appreciate the craft of this work.
If you like dense political SFF stories, unreliable badass MCs, religious discussions, and were obsessed with either the Roman Empire, Ancient Egypt, or Shakespeare at any point in your life, I'd HIGHLY recommend The Stars Undying.
CW/TW: war, imprisonment, violence, gun violence, parental loss, grief, decapitation, sexual content (not graphic), child death, suicide (mention)
I heard queer Shakespeare in space, how could I not come running?
The Stars Undying is a queer space opera retelling of Julius Caesar and Antony and Cleopatra (partially the history, partially Shakespeare), featuring a butch lesbian Mark Antony and a gay dead god based on Alexander the Great.
Reading this book, I was constantly torn between the desire to pace myself to savor the material and the incapability to put it down. Emery Robin has delivered a shining pearl of a debut, overflowing with fascinating character dynamics, captivating dialogue, and expansive political world-building. And at the heart of the story stood Gracia, one of my FAVORITE main characters in a long time. She is quick and blunt and sexy and terrifying and badass, but most of all, fabulously unreliable. I had no idea what she had up her sleeve at any given time, and loved being on the edge of my seat all the way through her chapters.
I also didn't expect this book to be as Jewish as it was. Mind you, it isn't marketed as such, but Emery Robin is indeed Jewish and I found this to be reflective in the text, especially in some of the more religious elements of the story. It's not an obvious feature, and a goy would never recognize it, but I found myself gushing over some of the parts of the story that I found to deeply emulate the Jewish experience.
And though yes, it is based on history and Shakespeare, I don't think you need to be familiar with either to appreciate the craft of this work.
If you like dense political SFF stories, unreliable badass MCs, religious discussions, and were obsessed with either the Roman Empire, Ancient Egypt, or Shakespeare at any point in your life, I'd HIGHLY recommend The Stars Undying.
CW/TW: war, imprisonment, violence, gun violence, parental loss, grief, decapitation, sexual content (not graphic), child death, suicide (mention)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Violence, and War
Moderate: Sexual content, Child death, Grief, and Death of parent
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