Reviews with content warning for Colonisation - The Stars Undying

Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

The Stars Undying by Emery Robin

7 reviews

jalexpulliamkepler's review

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mysterious sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

an incredible debut and strong retelling that still stumbles some in the pacing and tension

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iftheshoef1tz's review

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challenging mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

This book was a chore. Clunky, paragraph-long exposition and worldbuilding that only had 2-3 sentences in it (and they were long paragraphs!! Literally a page and a third in one memorable section), characters that felt wooden and completely unknowable despite being in first person…the last 100 pages were the most interesting, although there were glimmers of interesting things sprinkled throughout, which is what kept me going.

I appreciated Altagracia being an unreliable narrator, especially when it’s revealed that

she lied about being chosen as the next prophet

I also really liked that same-sex relationships and nonbinary people just were, there was no fanfare or scandal in those identities. The relationship between Anita and Gracia was baffling, as if it were unsure about where and when it wanted to be said relationship. I thought they had negative chemistry for most of the book, although both of them clearly loved Ceirran. I think they could be an interesting pair in future books, but their sex scene felt SO shoe-horned in (and I think it was immediately after

Ceirran died

, to boot.

The pacing overall was confused. The middle section should’ve been a lot shorter and the last 100 pages should’ve been expanded (where was all the fighting?? I didn’t want to read a reflection on the war, I wanted to READ the war!). I also frequently felt that the characters were telling each other and themselves how clever they were, and most of the time their wants and desires were opaque, so I couldn’t tell if they were being clever after all.

Tropes:
Unreliable narrator
Queers in outer space
Politics ™️
Cleopatra retelling

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hailstorm3812's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This wasn't what it was advertised as to me, but I'm glad I stuck with it because I quite enjoyed it. As some points I kinda felt like we just checking off historical events, but what really shine is the characters and their relationships. I love Gracia and Anita so much and can't wait to see more of them in the next book.

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aileron's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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booksthatburn's review against another edition

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starrysteph's review

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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

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mugs_it_is's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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