Reviews

Edge of Nowhere by Felicia Davin

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heabooknerd's review against another edition

4.0

From the moment I read the blurb of EDGE OF NOWHERE I was excited and what was supposed to be a few chapters of reading turned into finishing this book in one sitting. Felicia Davin's writing and storytelling flows quickly and I was sucked into the mystery, the world, and the characters from the very beginning. I'm a huge fan of science fiction romance and EDGE OF NOWHERE is one that certainly stands out from the rest. This is such an interesting world that's been created and I hope to find out more in future books. Though a lot is covered about the Nowhere and the work being done at Facility 17 I did want a bit more about the world overall. What is shared is weaved into the story nicely so that I never felt like I was getting an info-dump and though I wanted more there was still plenty to understand the world and how it worked.

The characters really set the tone for the overall story and I was so happy to see so much queer representation shown and in such a normal way. When authors write science fiction they are presenting a futuristic world and when diverse characters are left out it's like saying they don't exist in the future. That's not a problem in this book and it's filled with all the diversity one would expect to see in a future world. Both heroes were great but Kit was definitely my favorite. He has a strong wall around his heart but his actions speak louder than his unspoken words. After an orphaned upbringing Kit is used to keeping people at a distance but even he can't stand by when he figures out what's really going on at Facility 17. He might be a smuggler who works with criminals but there's a core of honor inside Kit that he tries to hide but it slowly emerges as the book goes on.

Emil is the quintessential protector always thinking about others and concerned with his team. This makes him a great leader but also means he's very focused on duty. From the beginning Emil is taking care of Kit but in a way that's sincere and caring instead of patronizing. Though Emil and Kit are quite different they fall in love pretty quickly and though circumstances can advance feelings, for their sake, I wish they had more opportunities to just be together. The romance may be fast but I felt like Kit and Emil really came to understand each other by the end of the book and they truly find comfort in each other . I can't wait for more books in this series!

**ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review**

Content Warning: Kidnapping and starvation of secondary characters

mx_t_books's review against another edition

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4.0

Yes to everything in this book. That's it.

krystaldelusion's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny mysterious

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

nolemdaer's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted medium-paced

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

2.75

The dynamic of this romance seemed fun enough at first, and then I realized it was a surprise age gap (which is supposed to be hot, I guess) and it became weird, because it turned into main character Kit acting like a surly teenager and other main character Emil responding with a beatific, vaguely paternal indulgence while also being thirsty enough to suck the Pacific dry. Awks!

The characters, fundamentally, were a struggle. Kit was just endlessly rude and generally maladjusted and the story is all “he had a hard life” about it, which is logically valid, but really annoying to read — especially when the response from the love interest was more foster father than love interest. Emil also had the most frustrating moral superiority complex, especially about how a shady scientist on the space station was sleeping with one of his teammates. There’s even a content warning about scientist/test subject relationship (and none about age gap, by the way) — except it’s test subject in the way of “I signed up to have my vitals taken by the shady corporation I’m working for and then I started knocking knuckles with the evil scientist who takes them who is working for the same company and is the same age and level of expertise as me so the power dynamic is minimized.” And Emil is all “I CAN’T believe this dirty woman dares to pollute and EXPLOIT my poor innocent teammate who is a grown woman who can make her own decisions! Please forget about how I am an established scientist, thirty years of age and leader of this entire scientist team, and I am sleeping with a twenty-one-year-old who has no legal job or even a social security number and is currently being exploited by the corporation I willingly work for! Also every five pages we have to remind you that I am approximately five feet taller and four hundred pounds stronger than him! But there’s absolutely no power dynamic there, because we’re the M/M romantic leads and our love is pure and true!” Cup a hand to your ear — do you hear that? It’s me screaming forever.

The scifi setting and the worldbuilding around the state of space exploration and the concept of “Nowhere” (ie. teleportation) were interesting in themselves and capable of holding up an extended plot over the course of the series, but here it was so tangled up in characters I didn’t like that I wasn’t thrilled by it. Overall, I think the series has a lot of potential to be enjoyable — the writing itself was fluid and fun — but the pairing made this one difficult.

tessisreading2's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional 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

A great science fiction romance, which balances the romance and the science fiction really well - there is some complex worldbuilding and overarching mysteries to be solved (sort of) even as Kit and Emil fall for each other despite their better judgment. There is a cast of interesting and diverse secondary characters, a heavy found family vibe, and some creative explanations for teleportation. That said, the science fiction plot has some small solutions but remains very open-ended (for the sequel(s), one presumes) and there's a bit of unrealistically-easy wrapping-up of certain dilemmas at the end. I will definitely be reading the sequel.