Reviews with content warning for Sexual violence - Light from Uncommon Stars

Be aware of the content warnings.

The transphobia and sexual abuse/assault I would say could be triggering for some ppl. This one is both a warm hug but can also knock the wind out of you which the author did well in setting the mood for those situations.

The concept was so ambitious as there is extensive music and violin knowledge/playing, Faustian bargains, found family, and… aliens. And honestly the author pulls it off for the most part. I do think the strongest bit of this book is the relationships between characters more so then plot etc.

(Also this is a 3 am review so if this makes no sense sorry about it)

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invertedsquares's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

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

2.75

I wasn't ready for this book, but I can see some people loving it. Parts were very good, cute and fun and insightful and interesting, but so much of the book was sadness and violence and transphobia which I found hard to bear. Read the trigger warnings!!

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winter_is_reading's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad 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

Excellent audiobook too. I’ll be recommending this to friends, family, and those that love music, violins, video games, Southern California, sci-fi twists, and Asian American, transgender, and Sapphic stories.

To trans pain and trans triumph, to violence and violins, to classical Bartok and 8 bit Undertale. This book has me stopping, reflecting, smiling, and crying. It’s not a sad book, but the beautiful introspection had me tearing up when I least expected it.

There are heavy themes in this book. There’s a lot of transphobia and violence against trans women. There’s anti-Asian racism, sexism, flashbacks to child abuse, and mentions of sex work and rape. But again, I wouldn’t say this is a sad book. There’s a lot of triumph and beauty despite the evils of men.

I can’t recommend this book enough.

Angst: 4/5
Spice: no spice, but there’s a darling romance

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monstrouscosmos's review

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challenging emotional inspiring 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

Characters: 9/10
Relationships: 8/10
Atmosphere/Setting: 10/10
Writing Style: 9/10
Plot/Intrigue: 9/10
Internal Logic: 8/10
Entertainment: 9/10
Overall: 62/70, 4.5*

sometimes a family is 2 parents, 2 kids, and a household pet. sometimes a family is a transgender runaway, The Queen of Hell and her living companion Oki, and a group of intergalactic refugees-turned-donut shop proprieters.

I think my biggest issue with the book boils down to the pacing. with 3 primary interconnecting storylines and 1-2 secondary storylines it definitely felt like none actually got the thematic exploration they deserved. specifically I would have loved to see more about the violin shop! this was also the most triggering read I've ever finished. while not necessarily a detriment never feeling like I knew when things would get very heavy very quickly definitely made it difficult to enjoy some of the more sweet and lighthearted moments.

the pros are many though. I actually appreciated the quick POV changes, they were challenging but gave a depth of understanding I appreciated. the LARGE number of neurodivergent-coded characters was also great, love to see a group of people with highly specialized interests who just want to info dump to one another. some of the character beats felt unrealistic at first, but I was quickly able to suspend disbelief when considering some of the sociocultural experiences of the characters (and, again, just coding all the characters as being neurodivergent in some way). given how explicit the writing is in other ways I would have preferred seeing more explanation of how and why characters other than Kristina react the ways they do in-the-moment, but the context clues and overarching pattern of experience was definitely there for me.

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k_fry's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

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