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nixoneshoe's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism
Moderate: Sexual content and Toxic relationship
mogojojo1013's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was so amazingly good. All of these characters are so diverse and three dimensional. The pacing is really good and the writing is beautiful. The amount of character growth that happens is just astounding, and we get great commentary on things happening in our world through this sci-fi lense. We get great looks at mental illness and disability as well which I always love seeing. I will need to get the second and third books in this trilogy immediately so I can find out what happens next!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Sexism, Sexual content, Torture, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual harassment, and War
booksthatburn's review
adventurous
reflective
tense
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
4.0
The short version is that I loved this book and found it to be one of the more satisfying sci-fi books I've read in a while. Fantasy is my preferred genre, and I like my sci-fi squishy, conversation- or thought-driven, and not worried overly much about making sure I know how the FTL functions. This ticked all those boxes in addition to being a thoughtful exploration of various structures of power and how they are used to justify and perpetuate exploitation in the name of some other good.
THE FIRST SISTER is relationship-driven in the sense that their decisions have implications for other people and they're very aware of this as they proceed. Lito, in particular, has been ordered to hunt down his former partner. While he does want to find Hiro, he hasn't totally made up his mind about what he will do when that confrontation comes. First Sister has been ordered to spy on Captain Ren, also finding herself drawn to her. She's both terrified and intrigued by the captain's condition that restores some parity between them, but also places First Sister in even more danger.
I love the way the world is built here. There's a history of colonization and and an ongoing conflict, with main characters from different sides of the war. This means there's several places where he get to know what each side's propaganda is about the basic events, which shows what they actually do, what they say about themselves, and what their enemies think of them. I understand why this book gets compared to THE HANDMAID'S TALE, and while I do think some of that comparison is appropriate, it also made me nervous before I started reading, and gave me a distorted anticipation of how traumatic this book might be. While it does deal with systematic sexual exploitation (mostly of women but implicitly some men as well), it focuses much more on the systems and structures that are controlling and perpetuating this exploitation and lack of agency -- as well as the way that the sister within this exploitative system are encouraged to work against each other in order to support the group as a whole and eke out some measure of comfort and privilege at the expense of those around them. There are many moments when First Sister is terrified of what might happen to her, but much of my trepidation was soothed when it became clear that I was not going to have to read a graphic assault scene just to have the book hammer home how frightening a loss of bodily autonomy can be. Instead, THE FIRST SISTER takes a multifaceted approach to exploring different kinds of exploitation and loss of autonomy, from classism and financial precarity making people vulnerable to medical experimentation, loss of individual freedom and mental autonomy in military settings, to commodification of emotional labor and sexual exploitation in the Sisterhood.
I like the soft sci-fi approach; things work because they work, they have particular ways that they function, but the story never grinds to a halt to make sure I understand exactly how a mercurial blade can do what it does. The things that it does take the time to specifically explain are much squishier things, like the various ways that people synced by an implant can or can't access each other's minds. Even those come up in the moment as they're needed, when a character is trying to do something and it either succeed or fails.
There's a pair of revelations towards the end which completely reframed my understanding of some dynamics which had been been in play for most of the book. The reveal is a very cool moment and I absolutely do not want to spoil it, but one of them sits in that sweet spot of being a twist in a deeply personal sense related to one of the main characters without quite changing what the rest of the story means. It's followed up with a different discovery in the same incident, in a delightful moment of revelation and confusion as three seemingly disparate plot threads cohere and the main characters actually meet.
I like the trio audiobook narrators, in particular I appreciate Emily Woo Zeller's performance, as always. She's narrated several other audiobooks that I've enjoyed and this was no exception.
As the first book in a trilogy, THE FIRST SISTER resolves several major plot points in a way that gets the three main characters to each have a new status quo and an idea of their plan for what's next. Because of the way the story is structured, it makes sense that all three of them would have new situations and goals as the result of what transpired, especially with the upheaval towards the end of the book. I'm excited for the rest of the trilogy, especially for how the structure of the Sisterhood is affected by what transpires next.
*A quick note that this follows a Western anglophone trend of naming the only significant Japanese character “Hiro”. No one instance is automatically a problem, but over time it starts to seem like the main Japanese name fiction authors reach for. Part of what bothers me particularly in this instance is that the name “Hiro” is a traditionally male name in Japanese, and while nonbinary people are not limited to ambiguously-gendered names, I get the sense that this name was chosen for the “Hiro”/“Hero” pun (which is made explicitly at one point.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Ableism, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, Xenophobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Dysphoria, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Rape, Self harm, and Vomit
ericadawson's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Actual review is 3.9 stars. The day I'll be able to use any increment I want is the day I'll rejoice.
This review contains spoilers--and my opinion is overall impacted by the fact that I wasn't able to finish this in a timely fashion.
I enjoyed The First Sister, although the triple POV felt off-balance to me as I much preferred First Sister's perspective over Lito's and Hiro's, but we inevitably got more of Lito and Hiro's development than First Sister's.
The plot is enjoyable, and there are many moving parts without those parts colliding and making the reading experience confusing or unclear. I enjoyed the worldbuilding because it didn't feel too large like in some other scifis, but it wasn't contained to just Earth and the Moon like some others. The history was rich without being overwhelming, and the author did a good job of staying focused on the parts of the lore that were actually relevant (although I did forget sometimes that this was a war over resources, first and foremost). I felt Lito's transition to treason was a bit speedy, but both Hiro's and First Sister's plot twists were excellent.
The voice was strong, the pacing good, and the internal and external conflicts felt real. A very enjoyable book.
This review contains spoilers--and my opinion is overall impacted by the fact that I wasn't able to finish this in a timely fashion.
I enjoyed The First Sister, although the triple POV felt off-balance to me as I much preferred First Sister's perspective over Lito's and Hiro's, but we inevitably got more of Lito and Hiro's development than First Sister's.
The plot is enjoyable, and there are many moving parts without those parts colliding and making the reading experience confusing or unclear. I enjoyed the worldbuilding because it didn't feel too large like in some other scifis, but it wasn't contained to just Earth and the Moon like some others. The history was rich without being overwhelming, and the author did a good job of staying focused on the parts of the lore that were actually relevant (although I did forget sometimes that this was a war over resources, first and foremost). I felt Lito's transition to treason was a bit speedy, but both Hiro's and First Sister's plot twists were excellent.
The voice was strong, the pacing good, and the internal and external conflicts felt real. A very enjoyable book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, and War
Minor: Sexual content
howwoolatthemoon's review against another edition
0.25
CONTENT WARNING: rape and sex slavery.
In a sense this review *might* be spoilers, but I'm not giving away major plot points. I will merely reveal some details that I believe the author means for the reader to discover gradually. But you, Dear Reader, deserve a Strong Content Warning!
In some ways this was inventive and an interesting world, but I couldn't at all say I enjoyed it. The first sister is part of an order of priestesses who are also sex slaves. While not uncommon historically, it's certainly not pleasant to imagine. Told by a female author, it feels less like the women are objectified for the sake of the male gaze. But still, I think I'd rather not read about such a brutal and terrifying situation. They're raised from children to become sex slaves, and fairly horrible abused while growing up. They have no choice in who they have sex with unless they get a powerful man to choose to "own" them. Unless or until they are owned by one man, their job is to hear the confessions of soldiers and then fuck them. The fucking is neither optional nor rare; it's an integral part of the confession/absolution. And they take confessions at apparently all hours of the day or night, often many times a day. They also are physically unable to talk -- ostensibly so that they don't give away the military secrets of their rapists (not that they ever use this term) -- but they use sign language among themselves and communicate often and in a very detailed way, so I don't feel super confident about those military secrets being kept.
So it's absolutely brutal, but it's all slightly softened because a woman wrote it. Men so often will write a rape scene A) for the male gaze, and/or B ) as an event that furthers the story of a man, so I generally try to avoid books by men that contain any rape scenes. I would hope that a woman's perspective on a rape that takes place as part of a story would help us to better understand things from her point of view, which is the more common experience I've had with reading non male authors. And yes, I suppose this did that. But to make this entire order of priestesses as sex slaves? And to make that fact so integral to the plot? I dunno. It's too much. And too terrifying. And too brutal. And too hugely necessary for the plot -- so... why write that plot?
Why?
Also, now that I think about it, this might be an entire whole full sized book about an order of priestesses that STILL didn't pass the bechdel test. I mean maybe it did, but the fact that I'm still trying to remember any conversation between two women that wasn't about either a specific man or about men in general... nope, I don't think it did. Huh.
Also, why?
This was set in a futuristic world with space travel and an interesting military structure. Women are in the military, with ranks high and low, without anyone treating them as weaker or incapable in any way. The military also is trained from childhood, and there's a kind of parallel there with the sisterhood. There's an element of colonialism, with an oppressed culture that doesn't have the same level of tech that the oppressors use. This could have been interesting to explore further. The novel examines the complicated nature of family power and dysfunction and defining oneself in adulthood as separate from your origins, and could've done more with that. Seems like the author was able to envision a world where women were not objects. But then, there's the sisterhood of sex slave priestesses as the main plot.
Why.
Anyway, some of the world building is super interesting and I would love to read a different book with some of the same elements, but I won't be reading the rest of this series and I wish I could get my time back.
(Also I've noticed that I tend to spend more time on reviews of books I disliked than books I loved, and I don't know how to feel about that.)
In a sense this review *might* be spoilers, but I'm not giving away major plot points. I will merely reveal some details that I believe the author means for the reader to discover gradually. But you, Dear Reader, deserve a Strong Content Warning!
In some ways this was inventive and an interesting world, but I couldn't at all say I enjoyed it. The first sister is part of an order of priestesses who are also sex slaves. While not uncommon historically, it's certainly not pleasant to imagine. Told by a female author, it feels less like the women are objectified for the sake of the male gaze. But still, I think I'd rather not read about such a brutal and terrifying situation. They're raised from children to become sex slaves, and fairly horrible abused while growing up. They have no choice in who they have sex with unless they get a powerful man to choose to "own" them. Unless or until they are owned by one man, their job is to hear the confessions of soldiers and then fuck them. The fucking is neither optional nor rare; it's an integral part of the confession/absolution. And they take confessions at apparently all hours of the day or night, often many times a day. They also are physically unable to talk -- ostensibly so that they don't give away the military secrets of their rapists (not that they ever use this term) -- but they use sign language among themselves and communicate often and in a very detailed way, so I don't feel super confident about those military secrets being kept.
So it's absolutely brutal, but it's all slightly softened because a woman wrote it. Men so often will write a rape scene A) for the male gaze, and/or B ) as an event that furthers the story of a man, so I generally try to avoid books by men that contain any rape scenes. I would hope that a woman's perspective on a rape that takes place as part of a story would help us to better understand things from her point of view, which is the more common experience I've had with reading non male authors. And yes, I suppose this did that. But to make this entire order of priestesses as sex slaves? And to make that fact so integral to the plot? I dunno. It's too much. And too terrifying. And too brutal. And too hugely necessary for the plot -- so... why write that plot?
Why?
Also, now that I think about it, this might be an entire whole full sized book about an order of priestesses that STILL didn't pass the bechdel test. I mean maybe it did, but the fact that I'm still trying to remember any conversation between two women that wasn't about either a specific man or about men in general... nope, I don't think it did. Huh.
Also, why?
This was set in a futuristic world with space travel and an interesting military structure. Women are in the military, with ranks high and low, without anyone treating them as weaker or incapable in any way. The military also is trained from childhood, and there's a kind of parallel there with the sisterhood. There's an element of colonialism, with an oppressed culture that doesn't have the same level of tech that the oppressors use. This could have been interesting to explore further. The novel examines the complicated nature of family power and dysfunction and defining oneself in adulthood as separate from your origins, and could've done more with that. Seems like the author was able to envision a world where women were not objects. But then, there's the sisterhood of sex slave priestesses as the main plot.
Why.
Anyway, some of the world building is super interesting and I would love to read a different book with some of the same elements, but I won't be reading the rest of this series and I wish I could get my time back.
(Also I've noticed that I tend to spend more time on reviews of books I disliked than books I loved, and I don't know how to feel about that.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Colonisation
mandkips's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Sexual assault and Sexual violence
Minor: Sexual content and Transphobia
caseythereader's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
tense
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
- It's hard to summarize THE FIRST SISTER. It's set in a huge, complex galaxy with two factions at war with each other, and we see those two sides intersect throughout the book, through defections, strategizing, secrecy and more.
- This is one of those dual POV books where you're always eager to return to the action of whoever's storyline you're in. Both First Sister and Lito's stories were so gripping.
- There are a couple of great plot twists: even if you see them coming, this book is fantastically plotted.
- I feel like I am not doing this book justice, lol. It's great! Just hard to condense into an IG caption. If you love space opera and romance and discussing power and inequality through sci-fi, go get it!
- This is one of those dual POV books where you're always eager to return to the action of whoever's storyline you're in. Both First Sister and Lito's stories were so gripping.
- There are a couple of great plot twists: even if you see them coming, this book is fantastically plotted.
- I feel like I am not doing this book justice, lol. It's great! Just hard to condense into an IG caption. If you love space opera and romance and discussing power and inequality through sci-fi, go get it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content
luckykosmos's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
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
4.75
Fascinated to see where this one goes. An interesting world built, the political factions build off common tropes and fleshes them out beautifully for this world. I loved seeing the perspectives of Lito and the First Sister ebb and flow as information is presented to them, and how the twist pulls them into each other's orbits.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Transphobia
danijbalt's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
fast-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
4.75
The first-person narration threw me off, and the ending felt rushed in order to set up the next book, but I adored this book!! Picked it up and assumed the romance involving the First Sister would be straight, only for it to not be :')
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Sexual content, Violence, Xenophobia, and Blood
peach_pie's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Colonisation, and War