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triftwizened's review against another edition
4.0
A lot of fun. Great actors. Really fun and thrilling script. My only problems with this were:
1. Far too little credit is given to scientists and scientific research studies. 11 years with an alien life form, spaceship and a weapon and they know next to nothing about any of these things? Yeah right.
2. No HEA. This is more an emotional problem for me that can really fuck with my mental health (depending). But now that it’s a few days after I finished this, I can say that the ending is good and fits the story well. But. Still.
1. Far too little credit is given to scientists and scientific research studies. 11 years with an alien life form, spaceship and a weapon and they know next to nothing about any of these things? Yeah right.
2. No HEA. This is more an emotional problem for me that can really fuck with my mental health (depending). But now that it’s a few days after I finished this, I can say that the ending is good and fits the story well. But. Still.
marryallthepeople's review
4.0
I started listening to the pod but gave up when the romantic nature overtook the screenplay. However, I decided to pick the book up and see if I like it more. As a general rule, I'm not a fan of sci-fi though this was easy to understand and I enjoyed the book a lot more than the podcast. I think my brain creates it's own picture sand sounds whereas an audiobook loses dimensions for me.
This book was okay - 3.5 stars. I'd recommend it but the ending happened very fast and was unsatisfying to me. Dak as a character was amazing almost all the way through; and I loved the imagery of Moss and THE moss.
This book was okay - 3.5 stars. I'd recommend it but the ending happened very fast and was unsatisfying to me. Dak as a character was amazing almost all the way through; and I loved the imagery of Moss and THE moss.
stiricide's review
3.0
Literally my exact same thoughts as the podcast. This is fine, this is entertaining, this is exciting; this is not as deep or as good as it thinks it is. The writing is fine, but the production values on the podcast are just _better_; there's no reason for you to consume both. (Unless you're Moss.)
kieralesley's review
5.0
Wow.
I think my heart rate has come down enough to review this now.
This was fantastic. The premise and key story elements alone are great. A Bonnie and Clyde love story. A secret military facility. A 20-minutes-into the future overly-corporatized America. A real Area 51 complete with alien. But it’s the intrigue and pacing layered over the top of these that really lifts this story into five-star range.
Steal the Stars is a story in two parts. Where the first part is interesting, with lots of questions and world building, the second half hares off into the desert and over a cliff. It’s a fairly stark turn and it might put some readers off, but I loved both parts equally and I was surprised at how nicely both story elements synced up in the one narrative.
I started listening to the podcast version of Steal the Stars before switching to the novelisation, so I feel I can comment a bit on both here. The podcast is really well produced. The acting and audio production are excellent. I can find radio plays a bit disorienting, but Dak’s first person perspective really helps to guide the listener through what’s going on. The voice actors bring a lot of charisma to their roles and set up emotional connections with the characters a lot faster than could be done in text. Lloyd, for example (fun fact: voiced by Nat Cassidy who wrote the novelisation), I loved from his first sentence. There’s a warmth and charm there that you can get from 30 seconds of conversation that takes a bit more to convey on the page.
Having said that, Cassidy has done an excellent job with the novelisation. The prose style retains the feel of Dak’s narrative voice in the podcast, while providing the description and background information required for transitioning the work to text. I found in some ways the text was more comprehensive, and more clearly conveyed some actions and world building elements which were less clear in audio cues or weren’t able to be included in the podcast due to space.
It would have been easy to go bare-bones on the additional information and fleshing out in the novel and stick to just what was required to convert the story to a text version of the podcast. But I was pleasantly surprised at how much additional material Cassidy slipped in without losing the tone, pacing and sequence of the podcast. Special shout out specifically to how well Cassidy worked in ‘Dak-style’ metaphors and similes.
Dak herself is a different strong, female protagonist which I appreciated. Middle aged. Stocky. Physically competent. Practical. Her trajectory and character arc over the course of the story is fascinating to watch. It’s internally consistent and yet quite extreme. Each step of the way felt inevitable, but in a way that felt driven by Dak’s choices and as if it could never have gone any other way. Particularly the second half had this increasing tension and pace to it that felt like it was hurtling headlong into a doom with only a slim chance of survival and the window just kept getting narrower the further you went.
The romance and chemistry between Dak and Matt was intense and well-depicted. This wasn’t a slow burn or a coy young love. This is two consenting adults in one of those once-in-a-lifetime crazy chemistry encounters.
I found the ending strange, but not problematically so. Without spoilers, I enjoyed the reinterpretation of well-known facts in a way that was logical in hindsight but not obvious as you went through. I found it a bit abrupt and in some ways unsatisfying for it, but overall I think I liked it. I like the questions it raises about what happens next. I like the neatness of some elements of the ending and the significant can of worms opened by it as well. I liked having some answers - but not all of them - and getting to see a glimpse of the next story to come.
Whatever format you check this out in, Steal the Stars is a worth experiencing. It’s different to a lot of other scifi out at the moment. It’s punchy and fast. The style and tone are unique and vibrant, and it’ll leave you wanting to rant and debrief with your friends.
An advance copy of this book was kindly provided by Tor Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I think my heart rate has come down enough to review this now.
This was fantastic. The premise and key story elements alone are great. A Bonnie and Clyde love story. A secret military facility. A 20-minutes-into the future overly-corporatized America. A real Area 51 complete with alien. But it’s the intrigue and pacing layered over the top of these that really lifts this story into five-star range.
Steal the Stars is a story in two parts. Where the first part is interesting, with lots of questions and world building, the second half hares off into the desert and over a cliff. It’s a fairly stark turn and it might put some readers off, but I loved both parts equally and I was surprised at how nicely both story elements synced up in the one narrative.
I started listening to the podcast version of Steal the Stars before switching to the novelisation, so I feel I can comment a bit on both here. The podcast is really well produced. The acting and audio production are excellent. I can find radio plays a bit disorienting, but Dak’s first person perspective really helps to guide the listener through what’s going on. The voice actors bring a lot of charisma to their roles and set up emotional connections with the characters a lot faster than could be done in text. Lloyd, for example (fun fact: voiced by Nat Cassidy who wrote the novelisation), I loved from his first sentence. There’s a warmth and charm there that you can get from 30 seconds of conversation that takes a bit more to convey on the page.
Having said that, Cassidy has done an excellent job with the novelisation. The prose style retains the feel of Dak’s narrative voice in the podcast, while providing the description and background information required for transitioning the work to text. I found in some ways the text was more comprehensive, and more clearly conveyed some actions and world building elements which were less clear in audio cues or weren’t able to be included in the podcast due to space.
It would have been easy to go bare-bones on the additional information and fleshing out in the novel and stick to just what was required to convert the story to a text version of the podcast. But I was pleasantly surprised at how much additional material Cassidy slipped in without losing the tone, pacing and sequence of the podcast. Special shout out specifically to how well Cassidy worked in ‘Dak-style’ metaphors and similes.
Dak herself is a different strong, female protagonist which I appreciated. Middle aged. Stocky. Physically competent. Practical. Her trajectory and character arc over the course of the story is fascinating to watch. It’s internally consistent and yet quite extreme. Each step of the way felt inevitable, but in a way that felt driven by Dak’s choices and as if it could never have gone any other way. Particularly the second half had this increasing tension and pace to it that felt like it was hurtling headlong into a doom with only a slim chance of survival and the window just kept getting narrower the further you went.
The romance and chemistry between Dak and Matt was intense and well-depicted. This wasn’t a slow burn or a coy young love. This is two consenting adults in one of those once-in-a-lifetime crazy chemistry encounters.
I found the ending strange, but not problematically so. Without spoilers, I enjoyed the reinterpretation of well-known facts in a way that was logical in hindsight but not obvious as you went through. I found it a bit abrupt and in some ways unsatisfying for it, but overall I think I liked it. I like the questions it raises about what happens next. I like the neatness of some elements of the ending and the significant can of worms opened by it as well. I liked having some answers - but not all of them - and getting to see a glimpse of the next story to come.
Whatever format you check this out in, Steal the Stars is a worth experiencing. It’s different to a lot of other scifi out at the moment. It’s punchy and fast. The style and tone are unique and vibrant, and it’ll leave you wanting to rant and debrief with your friends.
An advance copy of this book was kindly provided by Tor Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
teanahk's review
2.0
Oh this book. What even to say about this book.
It began with such promise, secret research lab, reasonably interesting alien, funky spaceship. But then an awful “romance” plot took over that never really felt right with our lead “strong female character” losing her mind over a cute guy she barely knows. Bizarre twists and turns, new characters appear out of nowhere to save the day, just generally ridiculous.
The ending was almost good. Like the idea of it was interesting, but it was poorly executed and somewhat poisoned by the middle part of the book just being so full of suck.
I am disappointed.
(I won a free copy of this book through a giveaway on goodreads)
It began with such promise, secret research lab, reasonably interesting alien, funky spaceship. But then an awful “romance” plot took over that never really felt right with our lead “strong female character” losing her mind over a cute guy she barely knows. Bizarre twists and turns, new characters appear out of nowhere to save the day, just generally ridiculous.
The ending was almost good. Like the idea of it was interesting, but it was poorly executed and somewhat poisoned by the middle part of the book just being so full of suck.
I am disappointed.
(I won a free copy of this book through a giveaway on goodreads)
wishanem's review
4.0
"Steal the Stars" is a gripping and emotionally intense Sci-Fi/Romance with a heist element. There's a good mixture of action, humor, and suspense throughout, with a couple of big twists that I really appreciated. The audio version it is also excellent.
alyssinreality's review
4.0
I read this because I really enjoyed the podcast. It took me awhile to read but I think I just have a hard time finishing a story when I know what’s going to happen already. I was very impressed with the ending and think it was done even better than it was in the podcast. Nat Cassidy definitely had a way of bringing Dak and her emotions to a new dimension which I think was needed from the podcast. I got exactly what I wanted out of the novelization which was a better understanding of Dak and her motivations.
globetrottingcat's review
4.0
Steal the Stars is based on a 14-episode podcast that has been adapted and expanded into a novel by the author Nat Cassidy.
Steal the Stars is primarily a science fiction love story between two characters, Dakota and Matthew, but it feels like an epic novel as the story takes on some crazy plot turns.
Dak is an employee at a secret service facility. She is on high alert, and her high-pressured lifetime job leaves her never considering a future beyond the here and now. In her line of work, there really are no consequences for what she does in the outside world. After all, she is working for an agency that is harboring a UFO and spaceship!
Introduced as an ex-military, all-around bad ass, her character was intriguing from the start. In part one titled ‘The Death of Dakota Prentiss,’ the first lines inform the reader that she has just broken a guy’s collarbone twice her size. Along with the chapter name, the reader is led to believe that this incident is the pivotal moment that changes everything.
Back at work, she learns of a new recruit joining the security team. On first sight, Dakota knows that something is different, and her life changed forever. Matt is the change. He is also ex-military and years younger than Dakota. When they first met, Dakota hoped and prayed that Matt passed all the security checks and was already willing to risk her own life for his for a man that is a stranger.
The problem is that their job has a strict policy of no fraternizing with co-workers. Their magnetism meant they couldn’t stay away from one another, and you know that this will become a tragedy.
Their relationship started out as purely sexual, and the couple had nothing else to cling to. They were both ex-military and had been trained not to discuss their previous tours and their personal lives, and they soon discovered they were not on the same page of this ‘risk it all’ love.
Dak’s vulnerabilities were juvenile, and the way they were played out in the novel didn’t seem to ring true of a middle-aged woman that had been alone for so long. Her selfishness and her jealous traits undermined how she was introduced at the beginning of the novel. They say that love does funny things to you, but as the reader, this was infatuation, lust, and loneliness rather than love.
When Matt called it quits in a boyish manner after Dak had risked it all, it felt like a ‘told you so’ moment. Her rage at that moment was entirely understandable. It was a great moment in highlighting their difference in personality.
That was where the novel felt like a young adult book, as the relationship was built on no depth. When they decided to run away together with the Alien to sell to the Chinese, the plan is hurried and illogical with too many gaping failures.
Dak and Matt’s relationship was pretty much disinteresting to me. I was far more invested in the relationship that Dak had with Lloyd and Patty, her two best friends at work.
The first half of the book was the most interesting when I learned about the UFO named Moss, the Harp that is effectively a nuclear weapon, and how the agency goes from scientific research to being requested to replicate the harp.
It was the science fiction that kept me engaged more than the love story. Dak’s complicated relationship with her colleagues that yearned to be her friend was frustrating, and I wanted her to let down her guard to those that had put in the time and effort.
An even more complicated element to the novel was Dak’s relationship with other women. With both Patty and a friend from her past, there was an underlying acknowledgment that both women loved her, and they expressed discontent that she loved a man over them. I felt there was so much to read into this and the authors intention from Dak’s unrequited love (whether sexual or not) to these two women.
Overall, Steal the Stars is a good read, but next time give me more aliens and a little less love.
Steal the Stars is primarily a science fiction love story between two characters, Dakota and Matthew, but it feels like an epic novel as the story takes on some crazy plot turns.
Dak is an employee at a secret service facility. She is on high alert, and her high-pressured lifetime job leaves her never considering a future beyond the here and now. In her line of work, there really are no consequences for what she does in the outside world. After all, she is working for an agency that is harboring a UFO and spaceship!
Introduced as an ex-military, all-around bad ass, her character was intriguing from the start. In part one titled ‘The Death of Dakota Prentiss,’ the first lines inform the reader that she has just broken a guy’s collarbone twice her size. Along with the chapter name, the reader is led to believe that this incident is the pivotal moment that changes everything.
Back at work, she learns of a new recruit joining the security team. On first sight, Dakota knows that something is different, and her life changed forever. Matt is the change. He is also ex-military and years younger than Dakota. When they first met, Dakota hoped and prayed that Matt passed all the security checks and was already willing to risk her own life for his for a man that is a stranger.
The problem is that their job has a strict policy of no fraternizing with co-workers. Their magnetism meant they couldn’t stay away from one another, and you know that this will become a tragedy.
Their relationship started out as purely sexual, and the couple had nothing else to cling to. They were both ex-military and had been trained not to discuss their previous tours and their personal lives, and they soon discovered they were not on the same page of this ‘risk it all’ love.
Dak’s vulnerabilities were juvenile, and the way they were played out in the novel didn’t seem to ring true of a middle-aged woman that had been alone for so long. Her selfishness and her jealous traits undermined how she was introduced at the beginning of the novel. They say that love does funny things to you, but as the reader, this was infatuation, lust, and loneliness rather than love.
When Matt called it quits in a boyish manner after Dak had risked it all, it felt like a ‘told you so’ moment. Her rage at that moment was entirely understandable. It was a great moment in highlighting their difference in personality.
That was where the novel felt like a young adult book, as the relationship was built on no depth. When they decided to run away together with the Alien to sell to the Chinese, the plan is hurried and illogical with too many gaping failures.
Dak and Matt’s relationship was pretty much disinteresting to me. I was far more invested in the relationship that Dak had with Lloyd and Patty, her two best friends at work.
The first half of the book was the most interesting when I learned about the UFO named Moss, the Harp that is effectively a nuclear weapon, and how the agency goes from scientific research to being requested to replicate the harp.
It was the science fiction that kept me engaged more than the love story. Dak’s complicated relationship with her colleagues that yearned to be her friend was frustrating, and I wanted her to let down her guard to those that had put in the time and effort.
An even more complicated element to the novel was Dak’s relationship with other women. With both Patty and a friend from her past, there was an underlying acknowledgment that both women loved her, and they expressed discontent that she loved a man over them. I felt there was so much to read into this and the authors intention from Dak’s unrequited love (whether sexual or not) to these two women.
Overall, Steal the Stars is a good read, but next time give me more aliens and a little less love.
thiefofcamorr's review
5.0
Written by Nat Cassidy, this is based on the podcast everyone is currently talking about, Steal the Stars, which was written by Mac Rogers.
First things first - I haven’t yet listened to the podcast, wanting to provide a review from the aspect of someone behind on the times and not yet invested. I assumed the majority of reviews would be from people who are already fans, and so while I download each episode as they come out, I haven’t yet jumped in.
What strikes me immediately about this is the sense of self of Dak (Dakota) - the novel is written in a very personal view which helps, but her attitude and thought patterns shine through. It’s written with stark honesty, which, in a place of secrecy is a weird justification that makes for writing you simply can’t put down.
You’re drip-fed facts. We know she works for a company that is a front for something that freaks out the locals. They think they deal in weapons, that there’s a chance for something like Chernobyl, or god knows what. From the outside it appears to be a company that has ‘marine’ in the title, but it certainly doesn’t repair boat motors. We see her enter her place of work and that immediately there’s a deadline, but also a ridiculous amount of security that needs to be passed… and left wondering why.
Of course we’re given a new guy to follow, which is the easiest way to introduce the readers - everything has to be explained to him, and we get to learn alongside. And he, too, is someone instantly likeable. Possibly because we know Dak doesn’t want to have to shoot him in the back of the head, so we don’t, either. Also because he’s taking in all this utterly batshit crazy circumstances pretty cooly, and is in awe of Dak herself.
I always love seeing that. Two highly-capable people who respect and appreciate the abilities the other has - and especially when the man is military also and knows the woman could kick his highly-skilled ass? Excellent. I’m hooked.
From here it gets real pretty quickly. I won’t say much more because 1. Spoilers, and 2. I’m still reading and don’t want to waste any more time here. Let’s just say this book gets the full five stars, and I’ll be listening to the podcast tonight. Coz I’ll certainly be done with the book by then.
(Review written previously and set to auto-post closer to publication date of the book. Podcast will have long since be enjoyed so come talk to me about it!)
First things first - I haven’t yet listened to the podcast, wanting to provide a review from the aspect of someone behind on the times and not yet invested. I assumed the majority of reviews would be from people who are already fans, and so while I download each episode as they come out, I haven’t yet jumped in.
What strikes me immediately about this is the sense of self of Dak (Dakota) - the novel is written in a very personal view which helps, but her attitude and thought patterns shine through. It’s written with stark honesty, which, in a place of secrecy is a weird justification that makes for writing you simply can’t put down.
You’re drip-fed facts. We know she works for a company that is a front for something that freaks out the locals. They think they deal in weapons, that there’s a chance for something like Chernobyl, or god knows what. From the outside it appears to be a company that has ‘marine’ in the title, but it certainly doesn’t repair boat motors. We see her enter her place of work and that immediately there’s a deadline, but also a ridiculous amount of security that needs to be passed… and left wondering why.
Of course we’re given a new guy to follow, which is the easiest way to introduce the readers - everything has to be explained to him, and we get to learn alongside. And he, too, is someone instantly likeable. Possibly because we know Dak doesn’t want to have to shoot him in the back of the head, so we don’t, either. Also because he’s taking in all this utterly batshit crazy circumstances pretty cooly, and is in awe of Dak herself.
I always love seeing that. Two highly-capable people who respect and appreciate the abilities the other has - and especially when the man is military also and knows the woman could kick his highly-skilled ass? Excellent. I’m hooked.
From here it gets real pretty quickly. I won’t say much more because 1. Spoilers, and 2. I’m still reading and don’t want to waste any more time here. Let’s just say this book gets the full five stars, and I’ll be listening to the podcast tonight. Coz I’ll certainly be done with the book by then.
(Review written previously and set to auto-post closer to publication date of the book. Podcast will have long since be enjoyed so come talk to me about it!)