A review by blandrea_reads
Lady Eve's Last Con by Rebecca Fraimow

adventurous mysterious slow-paced

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

3.5

 

This story was a mash up of genres that I did not expect.  A Sci Fi, High Society intrigue, Heist with Noir undertones. 

What worked really well for me was the world building.  Ruthi Johnson goes undercover on a wealthy planet to punish the socialite heir, Esteban, who jilter her sister.  The plan is to trap Esteban in a matrimonial contract and escape with enough wealth to provide for herself, her sister, pregnant with Esteban’s baby.   But Ruthi doesn’t count on running into Sol, Esteban’s sister, who starts to temp Ruthi away from her goal. 

The world building was the highlight of this book.  A lot of Sci Fi ends up either with long explanations of technology (Rendezvous with Rama) or become a facsimile of earth, but in space.  The universe in this book managed to be a truly creative new world.  Example: One of the features of the hair salon is that they intentionally vary the gravity regularly so that you can see how your hair will look in different settings.  There were a lot of little touches like that. 

The heist plot was compelling and had a satisfying ending, but the characters were slightly flat for me, not totally 3D.  More like 2.5 D, and the pacing felt a bit slow at times.  But against the EXTREMELY vivid world building, it wasn’t too much of a detractor. 

Hot lady scammers in space falling in love? Yes please!