stailysh1's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
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? No
4.5
This book is cool. I was looking for a quick sci-fi read that wasn't too tense, and this was perfect. Problems were solved with minimal suspense, there wasn't a lot of jargon or hundreds of planet names to remember, and it was generally an easy read. If you're looking for hundreds of pages and suspense, this isn't the right choice. I enjoyed the author's style and liked that it was somewhat conversational. I'm invested in the characters and I'm hoping for more!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Pregnancy, Medical trauma, and Sexual assault
Minor: Bullying, Medical content, and Trafficking
theroastedbookery's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This author came highly recommended to me by a friend who'd read their Ahsoka novel. It didn't disappoint. I like very much how grounded and real living in space and on a space station was in this book. It wasn't overly burdened with technical jargon and your understanding of the science of space travel wasn't an obstacle to enjoying this book (though I do love a good number crunching, physics explaining space adventure). I really appreciate how the magic system in this book was a portal into a discussion on bodily autonomy and choice. I also appreciate how the magic system itself wasn't overly complicated because I feel as though the point of the book wasn't the magic but the people and the choices they made with their abilities. In the end, despite the setting, this book was about the choices people make given their circumstances and I really enjoyed it.
Things I Liked:
Things I Liked:
- Typical gender roles were swapped or abandoned altogether. This was a refreshing romance and action/adventure story because of that.
- The magic system was not overly complicated nor was the technical jargon overbearing. This let me see clearly the characters behind the decisions.
- The action of the book was driven by the choices of the people in the story - there were politics, economic systems, etc in the book but those things served as the backdrop against which people acted.
- There wasn't anything about the cruelty or the romance present in the book that was gratuitous. The book was an engaging read that I didn't feel the need to take a "break" from because while the themes were hefty, the manner in which they were presented didn't knock me on my heels.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Eating disorder, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Bullying, Domestic abuse, and Trafficking
Minor: Grief and Child death
This book is set in space and the characters in it (in the beginning) are on a ship where the line between cruelty and survival blurs and in some cases disappears entirely. Because of the manner in which they operate their ship, there is a hyper-focus on food intake. Each crew member's food intake is carefully rationed and controlled to ensure survival but nothing more. Food allotments are controlled to the gram and harsh punishments are exacted for hoarding, wasting or spoiling food.little_white's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Pregnancy, Bullying, Eating disorder, and Child abuse
Moderate: War, Death, and Trafficking
Minor: Child death and Colonisation
kowari's review
The cover is beautiful, the blurb sounds exciting. Don't judge a book by its cover I guess.
I have two big problems with this book.
1) The blurb is misleading to the point of being a false description. The two characters Pendt meets already control the station. It is not an inciting incident and doesn't happen until over a third of the way through. The "scheme" they hatch is not "against all odds". In fact there is no conflict at all, and the "scheme" is resolved within a few pages before the mid-point of the novel. The story is about something else entirely. The blurb made it sound like an exciting adventure or a space heist. It is not any of those things and I strongly recommend against buying if you got that impression.
2) The editing quality is atrocious. I don't mind the typos so much. I do mind the perspective errors, where a chapter in one character's perspective suddenly shifts into another character's for one sentence. I do mind that characters know things they couldn't possibly know, like the family relationships of people they've just met. It speaks to the lack of care that went into the edits, which is surprising from Penguin.
Inside the book, after the dedication, a content warning reads: "This book contains a scene of medical violence. Characters also obsess about food and count calories." I honestly think it needs more detail. It's not just a scene of medical violence, it's a constant fear of sexual medical violence, forced pregnancy and child abuse in various forms.
Forced pregnancy and bodily autonomy are the main themes of the story. It's odd that it doesn't get a mention in the blurb or the warning. It was uncomfortable throughout and not at all what I was expecting.
Does it do a good job of what it was trying to achieve?
I don't think so. The fear of forced pregnancy is the main motivation for Pendt to escape her family onto the space station. Within literal minutes of escaping though, she happily agrees to (ever so slight spoiler) I was surprised to say the least.
We're only halfway through now and all the driving conflict has been resolved. The story potters about for a while as the characters talk about who will clean the dishes today (apparently they forgot that they have automatic machines to do that for them - it was a big part of the story earlier), or think about how lovely everything is and how happy everyone is to see them all the time.
The story meanders aimlessly into a romance plot, briefly thinks about some trans issues, something that's meant to be dramatic happens offscreen somewhere, and then I gave up with a quarter of the book left to go.
Conclusion:
This reads like a first draft, almost like the wrong file got sent to print. With a bit of work it could be something good, like a low-stakes, low-conflict, more depressing Becky Chambers novel (assuming the blurb wasn't misleading). Unfortunately it was released before it could ever meet its potential.
I have two big problems with this book.
1) The blurb is misleading to the point of being a false description. The two characters Pendt meets already control the station. It is not an inciting incident and doesn't happen until over a third of the way through. The "scheme" they hatch is not "against all odds". In fact there is no conflict at all, and the "scheme" is resolved within a few pages before the mid-point of the novel. The story is about something else entirely. The blurb made it sound like an exciting adventure or a space heist. It is not any of those things and I strongly recommend against buying if you got that impression.
2) The editing quality is atrocious. I don't mind the typos so much. I do mind the perspective errors, where a chapter in one character's perspective suddenly shifts into another character's for one sentence. I do mind that characters know things they couldn't possibly know, like the family relationships of people they've just met. It speaks to the lack of care that went into the edits, which is surprising from Penguin.
Inside the book, after the dedication, a content warning reads: "This book contains a scene of medical violence. Characters also obsess about food and count calories." I honestly think it needs more detail. It's not just a scene of medical violence, it's a constant fear of sexual medical violence, forced pregnancy and child abuse in various forms.
Forced pregnancy and bodily autonomy are the main themes of the story. It's odd that it doesn't get a mention in the blurb or the warning. It was uncomfortable throughout and not at all what I was expecting.
Does it do a good job of what it was trying to achieve?
I don't think so. The fear of forced pregnancy is the main motivation for Pendt to escape her family onto the space station. Within literal minutes of escaping though, she happily agrees to (ever so slight spoiler)
Spoiler
get married and pregnant with a total stranger with a lot of power over her life. The marriage happens within a week, the pregnancy soon after that.We're only halfway through now and all the driving conflict has been resolved. The story potters about for a while as the characters talk about who will clean the dishes today (apparently they forgot that they have automatic machines to do that for them - it was a big part of the story earlier), or think about how lovely everything is and how happy everyone is to see them all the time.
The story meanders aimlessly into a romance plot, briefly thinks about some trans issues, something that's meant to be dramatic happens offscreen somewhere, and then I gave up with a quarter of the book left to go.
Conclusion:
This reads like a first draft, almost like the wrong file got sent to print. With a bit of work it could be something good, like a low-stakes, low-conflict, more depressing Becky Chambers novel (assuming the blurb wasn't misleading). Unfortunately it was released before it could ever meet its potential.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Rape, Pregnancy, Medical content, Body horror, Child abuse, Sexual violence, and Eating disorder
Moderate: Transphobia and Sexism
stelepami's review against another edition
fast-paced
It wraps up OK, leaving room for more, and then it sets the hook for the next installment in the epilogue.
Discusses externally-imposed food restrictions to near-starvation levels and forced pregnancy.
Discusses externally-imposed food restrictions to near-starvation levels and forced pregnancy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Colonisation, Pregnancy, and Trafficking
cerebellum's review
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy
Moderate: Trafficking
al3xbug's review
adventurous
dark
hopeful
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
this is the type of book i think i'll be thinking about for a while- not because it was very good, but because a lot of the topics are unorthodox in contrast to mainstream books. they were definitely uncomfortable themes (forced pregnancy, calorie obsession, human trafficking). it was kinda fucked but also the complete opposite? nothing was resolved and the issues of the book were never expanded upon. the main plot point is pendt becoming happier. like... nothing else is focused on for long besides that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Trafficking, War, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Confinement, Eating disorder, Slavery, and Torture
thesummerstorms's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, and Eating disorder
Moderate: Medical trauma, Sexual violence, Slavery, Trafficking, Confinement, Child abuse, and Medical content
Minor: Transphobia and Child death
Sexual violence is an approximate tag, as we don't have a content warning for reproductive coercion.monnibo's review
dark
hopeful
reflective
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? It's complicated
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Medical content, Pregnancy, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Gaslighting, Child abuse, Abandonment, Confinement, Emotional abuse, and Colonisation
Minor: Confinement, Physical abuse, Classism, Infertility, Medical content, Sexual content, and Trafficking
mmackoy's review
hopeful
medium-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy and Misogyny
Moderate: Child death and Trafficking
Minor: Transphobia