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nerdatlas5's review against another edition
- 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
The book takes you into the perspective of Ocean, a excellent space pilot who's on her last chance to stay in a unite Korean government's space force; Teo, her friend and ill-favored son of a billionaire tech giant; and Haven, the new doctor on Oceon's ship who is from Prometheus, Saturn moon, where they basically have an entire culture/religion around respecting death, which of course comes with prejudice from people outside of that. The plot follows them and the rest of the rag tag crew from Ocean's ship when Teo is framed for his family's murder. Mind you, the action takes a long time to start, considering this is info from the back of the book, I was expecting it to happen before the halfway point of the book, however, I never felt bored despite that. Each character had such interesting perspectives too, so that helped a lot. I feel like the reveal of backstories and lore could have sometimes happened sooner, but by the end of the book, the important things are explained, and there's a glossary that helps break down both Korean phrases, and the structure of the Alliance, the Korean space force.
I thought the romance was fine. Predictable yet satisfying. I did find the moments of intimacy between characters very well written, even when its not necessarily romantic in nature, ie. Teo and Ocean's friendship shares a lot of tender moments that were just as impactful and the more passionate scenes with others.
I will say I did have to stop reading for a couple of days, because while not gory, there was a scene of outright murder that definitely churned my stomach a little. The book also shows the effects of PTSD so if that is a potential trigger for anyone I would maybe look into it more before reading this.
My biggest disappointment now is that there's no book 2 yet!
Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Colonisation and Death of parent
Minor: Gore and Grief
astropova's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Characters are my main reading pathway, and the characters in this book did not feel strong to me. We have this big cast of characters, and at first they are all very different from each other and vibrant. However, that quickly seems to disappear as the quirks start feeling more like window dressing rather than purposeful. Most of the characters do not end up very fleshed-out at all. Only Ocean, Teo, and Phoenix get any significant screentime during which they could possibly have a character arc. And yet it seems that Haven is the only one that experiences any significant growth.
My second issue is that the pacing seemed very off. There's this air of mystery and investigation for the entire book, but the final confrontation is extremely abrupt. It felt kind of like the author didn't really know how to tie up any of the character arcs or relationships, so instead she just plopped the final battle in. This ties into my issue with the characters. There seems to be no resolution to anyone's problems or relationships, nor to many, many plot questions. I am left wondering:
Also, I don't think the description and the comp titles do a good job of previewing the book. The comparison to Firefly I can agree with, but this felt nothing like Becky Chambers to me, probably because of the supreme lack of chemistry between the characters. The description also makes it seem like Ocean was really going to struggle with her lack of Korean-ness, but this seems to be limited to just
Finally, I read this book as an audiobook, and I do not recommend it. I think the narrator did an ok job, but struggled with male characters' voices and mispronounced pretty standard words.
Really bummed that I didn't enjoy this very much. The cover is beautiful and that's what made me grab it. Definitely props to the artist!!
Graphic: Violence and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Death of parent, Death, and Murder
Minor: Toxic relationship
chanlo1994's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Blood, Death, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Xenophobia, Gun violence, and Violence
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Car accident
starrysteph's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Death of parent, Colonisation, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, War, Classism, Grief, Mental illness, Death, Murder, and Panic attacks/disorders
btaylorb's review
- 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
I picked up the ARC and am recommending it for purchase for the library where I work. A slow start that focuses on the characters, with breadcrumbs of backstory that give early insight into both their motives and social, cultural, and technological details of a future solar system colonized by humans. The pace ramps up after about 100 pages with some well executed fights and space-chase scenes, without sacrificing some thoughtful exploration of the consequences of capitalism and colonialism on outer space. I appreciated the bi representation; The chemistry between all the characters clearly defines crew relationships, friendships and burgeoning romances. Even the side characters within the two crews feel distinctive and fleshed out. The ending feels like it could be satisfying enough as a stand-alone, but with enough things left unresolved (and also kind of a cliffhanger!) that left me excited for the possibility of follow-ups.
Other things this book has that made me love it:
- Cheeky, nerdy Shakespeare references.
- Romantic tension that is expressed and played out in different ways for the different characters involved. I didn't feel like I was reading the same love story with different faces pasted on. Hope that makes sense?
- Ocean is such a compelling character in my opinion. The moment where she tells another character that she doesn't regret something she did in her past was very powerful to me. I loved the discussion of being able to stand by your own decisions and actions, and the impact that has on her life in both good and bad ways. That steadfastness that might make her seem stubborn, arrogant or (ugh) "unlikeable" is also what makes her crew trust her.
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Gun violence
Minor: Colonisation and Classism