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majabwds's review against another edition
4.0
A fun sci-fi romance. Easy to read and entertaining.
The rogue queen tries to find an abducted emperor to ransom him back to help her people. She gets involved with the emperor's traitor problem and they decide to work together. They are also really attracted to each other.
The rogue queen tries to find an abducted emperor to ransom him back to help her people. She gets involved with the emperor's traitor problem and they decide to work together. They are also really attracted to each other.
winterreader40's review against another edition
4.0
Samara's people are on the brink of starvation so she plans rescue and then ransom back Valentin, the Kos Emperor, but nothing goes according to plan, even after she manages to escape with Valentin things continue to go sideways. She winds up making a deal with Valentin instead to help him figure out who's trustworthy and who isn't in his government.
This feels a lot like her Consortium Rebellion series but it's still a fun read with entertaining characters.
This feels a lot like her Consortium Rebellion series but it's still a fun read with entertaining characters.
heabooknerd's review against another edition
3.0
THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT was a pretty quick read, filled with lots of action and a variety of interesting technological advances. While we don't get a ton of background on the world there is just enough to keep things interesting and make it easy to understand what's going on.
My biggest reason for not rating higher is because the entire story is a telling of all of the action and fighting that's going on. There's very little internal thought, introspection, or emotion. I still don't really know Samara or Valentine and I know almost nothing about their pasts. They felt very flat as characters and I needed more emotional depth.
In terms of the budding romance between Samara and Valentine, it doesn't really happen until the very last chapter. While I would have been fine with that I was thrown to see it all summed up in single sentences like "we spent two weeks talking and soon became friends." A brief flirtation follows but after so little build up it felt a bit out of place.
Obviously there's more to their story that I assume will be explored in the following books, and I'm intrigued enough by the world building to at least see what comes next.
My biggest reason for not rating higher is because the entire story is a telling of all of the action and fighting that's going on. There's very little internal thought, introspection, or emotion. I still don't really know Samara or Valentine and I know almost nothing about their pasts. They felt very flat as characters and I needed more emotional depth.
In terms of the budding romance between Samara and Valentine, it doesn't really happen until the very last chapter. While I would have been fine with that I was thrown to see it all summed up in single sentences like "we spent two weeks talking and soon became friends." A brief flirtation follows but after so little build up it felt a bit out of place.
Obviously there's more to their story that I assume will be explored in the following books, and I'm intrigued enough by the world building to at least see what comes next.
jesuismoi's review
3.0
This is a very fast read, to me, feels like a third of a book. Surprise! It’s 1/3 of a trilogy. At least they are all out and you don’t have to wait for the rest of the story to continue, because this really does feel like the beginnings of a book not a full story. I like it, it just doesn’t feel complete. There’s not enough character growth, if any, to really make it work on its own. And, no calling it a novella doesn’t get you out of a need for a character arch, not just a plot.
emelialangstone's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
angelatte's review against another edition
4.0
Would have been a 5 I think if it was longer, this was a really fun time!
maudalorian's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.5
Sometimes cheesy sci-fi romance is just what the doctor ordered, and it turns out Jessie Mihalik always delivers. I think this was her debut, and it shows on all fronts, but I can already see the shape of everything I liked about her Starlight's Shadow series here—a fun premise, fast-paced writing, likable characters, and deliciously straightforward world-building. And it makes me happy that filthy rich, powerful, chivalrous dreamboats falling for plucky heroines is her jam because that's ALSO MY JAM, JESSIE.
kathlgpa's review against another edition
4.0
I love all of Mihalik's book. I don't know why they are considered romance when 90% of the books focus on the space setting and the political intrigue/action.
This was a fun short one.
This was a fun short one.
amyreadsandsails's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This is the first book in a trilogy of three short novels. Jessie Mihalik is very consistent for me, and this one is no exception. I enjoyed the plot and action a lot, however, I did not like the narration. I will be reading the rest of the series.