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booksthatburn's review against another edition
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I enjoyed this overall, I didn't see the twist coming, and I think the romance was underdeveloped. I'm too demisexual to vibe with romances where they just click without really getting to know each other on more than a repeated proximity level.
Most of the major characters are related to each other, which means the options for romance are limited. The one that’s chosen is between Esmae and the cousin who was adopted into the family. Given that this is a retelling of a much older story, it seems like any hints of incest are from that source material. To any readers who aren’t interested in a romance between cousins where one of them is adopted, this isn’t going to be the series for you. I don’t mind it, it makes sense in the story, especially since her best friend isn’t written as a romantic interest at all, and has a very specific narrative trajectory that was sent doesn’t lend itself well to being the love interest.
The worldbuilding is well done, I like how everything's in space, on different planets and ships. There’s enough detail to make it feel like a different place, but it doesn’t get bogged down in the minutia of life in space. The balance is handled really well, which is important to help keep it feeling like this epic that uses outer space, rather than an epic that is completely about space. As the first book in a series, this resolves a prophecy which was teased early on and then stated explicitly partway through. It changes the state of play, and makes it clear that the next book will involve much more war.
Most of the major characters are related to each other, which means the options for romance are limited. The one that’s chosen is between Esmae and the cousin who was adopted into the family. Given that this is a retelling of a much older story, it seems like any hints of incest are from that source material. To any readers who aren’t interested in a romance between cousins where one of them is adopted, this isn’t going to be the series for you. I don’t mind it, it makes sense in the story, especially since her best friend isn’t written as a romantic interest at all, and has a very specific narrative trajectory that was sent doesn’t lend itself well to being the love interest.
The worldbuilding is well done, I like how everything's in space, on different planets and ships. There’s enough detail to make it feel like a different place, but it doesn’t get bogged down in the minutia of life in space. The balance is handled really well, which is important to help keep it feeling like this epic that uses outer space, rather than an epic that is completely about space. As the first book in a series, this resolves a prophecy which was teased early on and then stated explicitly partway through. It changes the state of play, and makes it clear that the next book will involve much more war.
Content Warnings
Moderate: War, Violence, Death, Grief, Blood, Child death, and Ableism
Minor: Abandonment, Pregnancy, and Death of parent
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