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gwooby's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Toxic relationship, Physical abuse, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Drug use, Kidnapping, Medical content, Rape, Sexual content, and Torture
_everybookthisyear's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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
5.0
This book has one of the best presentations of inclusive gender I’ve ever read. The author devises a way to effectively divorce gender from physical characteristics, letting the characters define themselves as man, woman, non-binary, etc, while still leaving their physical appearance up to reader interpretation. It’s really wonderful to read and I hope to read more books like this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, and Gaslighting
kmfb87a5's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Toxic relationship
maryellen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
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? It's complicated
5.0
I'd give this one more than 5 stars if I could. I absolutely loved it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Rape
water_violin's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
5.0
Whew. Check the trigger warnings for this one, folks, but it was really engaging! I was very drawn into the characters and the political intrigue and the mystery of the whole story, but I also appreciated the little things like the banter between the characters and the fascinating ideas about gender and political titles. I would definitely recommend this book, but again... check the warnings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Bullying, Car accident, Confinement, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Torture
Minor: Alcoholism, Cursing, and Kidnapping
bookwormkarou's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Kidnapping
madamepincers's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Violence
the_grimdragon's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
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? It's complicated
5.0
“Pain had its uses, Jainan thought. It put things in perspective. There was something clean about the way it cut through the emotional tangles and reminded you that things could be worse.”
Winter’s Orbit is the debut novel from Everina Maxwell & it is EVERYTHING! I guess I dig romance now? At least when it’s done as gorgeously as this one!
The central story focuses on two princes as they navigate an arranged marriage in space. As one does. The Iskatian representative, Prince Taam, died under strange circumstances after five years of marriage to Count Jainan nav Adessari, the Thean representative. Prince Kiem is contracted out to be married to Jainan, ensuring that the Resolution will remain peaceful & that the treaty will be renewed. They are essentially forced to work together in order to prevent DEATH & DESTRUCTION!
The POV chapters alternate between Jainan & Kiem, which was brilliant in getting to know them both together, yet separately. After the death of his father, Kiem became quite the wild child, a rebellious teenager who made mistakes & is learning from them. He’s grown into a friendly & good-humored human, although he feels in over his head with the upcoming nuptials.
At the age of 27, Jainan has a doctorate in deep-space engineering. He’s brilliant, serious, quiet & composed. Having just lost his partner in a spacecraft crash, there are plenty of conflicting emotions for Jainan. He’s in mourning, but also dealing with the trauma of having been in an abusive relationship. There are few books I can think of that highlights abuse in a queer relationship, like this. It’s obviously a sensative topic, but Maxwell tenderly explores the resulting damage that was caused & how the survivor must heal by learning to love themselves, despite everything.. and because of everything.
I mean, I bloody adore those boys so damn much.. but it was Kiem’s sassy, smart, funny & ridiculously organized assistant Bel that respectfully caught my eye! BE STILL MY DARK, SECRETLY SOFT, HEART! I’m projecting it out into the universe, hoping that a book from Bel’s POV will manifest itself ::fingers firmly crossed::
Along with Kiem, Jainan & Bel, there is a fun group of characters to read about that have their own corner of the story. Ressid, Colonel Lunver, Professor Audel, Gairad, Aren Saffer, Chief Agent Rakal. There is.. a lot going on, especially behind the scenes!
Something I haven’t touched on yet is the worldbuilding. This is a queernormative world, one that is devoid of homophobia. Queer relationships are such a non-issue in this world, AS IT SHOULD BE! Although it’s never stated as such, there are a variety of relationships including polyamorous & pansexual. Genders aren’t immediately known by physical appearance, which was refreshing as fuck. However, there are certain details that Maxwell included that were an interesting choice. For instance, on Iskat, people indicate their gender by wearing tokens. Wooden for men, flint for women & glass for nonbinary. My only complaint was that I wish there was *more* to this. Like, what about people who choose to wear multiple adornments? How did this tradition come to be? I’m not sure if a sequel is planned, but if there is, hopefully the story explores that more.
“You can’t just tinker around the edges and jail some soldiers who worked for him, because none of this works if you keep someone in power who tried to start a war.”
Murder, embezzlement, blackmail, kidnappings, misunderstandings, hallucinations, bear attacks. I read this in two sittings, which doesn’t happen all that often. MY PRECIOUS CINNAMON ROLLS OH HOW I ADORE YOU!!
This queer space opera, heavy on the romance, blew me & my expectations away! Featuring a murder mystery, shady af characters, glorious personal developments & interplanetary political intrigue. It’s such a beautifully impressive story that is beyond five stars for me & a definite new favorite!
CW: Domestic abuse (in a prior relationship), PTSD from said abuse.
**The quotes above were taken from an ARC & are subject to change upon publication**
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Car accident, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Minor: Alcoholism and Torture
More...