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lifeinthebooklane's review
4.0
Every time I read a Carol Van Natta book I question myself as to why I leave so long between them. Her writing never fails to captivate nor to entertain me. I quickly find myself drawn into the story, rooting for the main characters and caught up by the exciting plot. The world building was good, with important information woven cleverly into the tale, rather than the reader being subjected to information dumps. Gavril and Anitra were two likeable characters who were nicely rounded, their personalities were very clearly defined, as well as being consistent, helping to build a layered and interesting story, without it being overly complicated.
The focus in these books is definitely more on the space opera aspects, with the romance element a very minor part of the plot. Whilst I loved all the sci-fi feels this gave me, I would have liked to see more on page interactions between Gavril and Anitra, or at least to have experienced their emotions a little more. This is a second chance romance and it felt as though all the falling in love had taken place off-page, two years prior.
Overall this book was very much a winner for me and, whilst I didn't read it in one sitting, I did read it in one day. I do have the next book in the series, so I will be jumping straight into that one next.
The focus in these books is definitely more on the space opera aspects, with the romance element a very minor part of the plot. Whilst I loved all the sci-fi feels this gave me, I would have liked to see more on page interactions between Gavril and Anitra, or at least to have experienced their emotions a little more. This is a second chance romance and it felt as though all the falling in love had taken place off-page, two years prior.
Overall this book was very much a winner for me and, whilst I didn't read it in one sitting, I did read it in one day. I do have the next book in the series, so I will be jumping straight into that one next.
lolasreviews's review
4.0
I love this series and the world that carol Van Natta created and after reading all the full length books and most of the novella's I realized I still hadn't gotten around to this one, which is technically the prequel. It really can easily be read anywhere in the series as it doesn't have any strong ties with any other plot lines or characters, although it is set in the same universe and deals with the same themes. Namely the corrupt and dangerous CPS and minders who are just trying to survive.
I really liked Last Ship Off Polaris-G, even tough it's shorter than the full length reads, the length feels right for the story it tells. The pacing is well done and I got quickly invested in these characters and their attempt to get off the planet. I also liked the plot, the planet Polaris-G is in a bit of a pickle. There is a blight and now there's a blockade and people just want to get off the planet and there is this plan to do a massive exodus from the planet with everyone who wants to leave. The main characters are right in the middle of it all. And there are also some chapters from a captain aboard one of the CPS blockade ships who will have a role in what's going down.
Gavril and Anita were easy to like and their chemistry was clear from the start. It's a bit of a second chance romance, they walked away from each other years ago when their paths took them in different directions. But now they're both stuck on this planet and Anitra asks him to help pilot and rebuild a ship she found and maybe they can also rebuild their romance. I enjoyed reading about these two. Anitra is hiding from the CPS and this frontier planet is the perfect place for it. Gavril is a trader who is now stuck behind the blockade. They both felt realistic and likable and they worked well together too.
I enjoyed seeing them work together and also meet the other side characters they interacted with. It also was great how the story had the same tone and feel than the rest of the series, but the story itself mostly stands alone. I was just happy to have had another story by Carol Van Natta to read. The plot kept my attention and got a bit suspenseful even later on. And there are some cute animals who make an appearance too.
I liked how this book had two empaths as main character as that's a minder skill we haven't seen as much about and I felt like this book definitely added to my understanding of this type of minder. And Anitra has another minder talent we hadn't heard of yet in the rest of the series, which was interesting too.
I feel like each book in this series adds to the world and makes the whole universe come more alive. I enjoy how each book has likeable realistic characters that I enjoy reading about and fun stories with a bit of action and/ or suspense. I just love the series.
To summarize: I love this series and this was another great addition to the series. While listed as prequel it can be read anywhere in the series. I enjoyed the story of this planet with a blockade around it and the people stuck on the planet who wanted to leave. Gavril and Anitra were great main characters and I enjoyed reading about them. I also liked their second chance romance and seeing how well they worked together. Their feelings for each other were clear and came across really well even with most of their history being before the start of this story. I had a fun time with this story and now am all caught up with this series before book 5 releases. Can't wait!
I really liked Last Ship Off Polaris-G, even tough it's shorter than the full length reads, the length feels right for the story it tells. The pacing is well done and I got quickly invested in these characters and their attempt to get off the planet. I also liked the plot, the planet Polaris-G is in a bit of a pickle. There is a blight and now there's a blockade and people just want to get off the planet and there is this plan to do a massive exodus from the planet with everyone who wants to leave. The main characters are right in the middle of it all. And there are also some chapters from a captain aboard one of the CPS blockade ships who will have a role in what's going down.
Gavril and Anita were easy to like and their chemistry was clear from the start. It's a bit of a second chance romance, they walked away from each other years ago when their paths took them in different directions. But now they're both stuck on this planet and Anitra asks him to help pilot and rebuild a ship she found and maybe they can also rebuild their romance. I enjoyed reading about these two. Anitra is hiding from the CPS and this frontier planet is the perfect place for it. Gavril is a trader who is now stuck behind the blockade. They both felt realistic and likable and they worked well together too.
I enjoyed seeing them work together and also meet the other side characters they interacted with. It also was great how the story had the same tone and feel than the rest of the series, but the story itself mostly stands alone. I was just happy to have had another story by Carol Van Natta to read. The plot kept my attention and got a bit suspenseful even later on. And there are some cute animals who make an appearance too.
I liked how this book had two empaths as main character as that's a minder skill we haven't seen as much about and I felt like this book definitely added to my understanding of this type of minder. And Anitra has another minder talent we hadn't heard of yet in the rest of the series, which was interesting too.
I feel like each book in this series adds to the world and makes the whole universe come more alive. I enjoy how each book has likeable realistic characters that I enjoy reading about and fun stories with a bit of action and/ or suspense. I just love the series.
To summarize: I love this series and this was another great addition to the series. While listed as prequel it can be read anywhere in the series. I enjoyed the story of this planet with a blockade around it and the people stuck on the planet who wanted to leave. Gavril and Anitra were great main characters and I enjoyed reading about them. I also liked their second chance romance and seeing how well they worked together. Their feelings for each other were clear and came across really well even with most of their history being before the start of this story. I had a fun time with this story and now am all caught up with this series before book 5 releases. Can't wait!
slc333's review
4.0
I can't get enough of this series and this world. Although a prequel I happily devoured it after reading books 1-4 (and anxiously awaiting book 5). As always I enjoyed the story, the characters and the pacing.
writeramyshannon's review
5.0
Great Prequel
It doesn't distinctly identify itself as a prequel, but that's what it is. It's a novella filled with great storytelling and adds three third-person POVs, which are distinct. It's best to read the ones that came before this, in order to get a feel for the story, but this adds to the story and was worth the read. The characters are well developed and each one has a purpose in the story.
It doesn't distinctly identify itself as a prequel, but that's what it is. It's a novella filled with great storytelling and adds three third-person POVs, which are distinct. It's best to read the ones that came before this, in order to get a feel for the story, but this adds to the story and was worth the read. The characters are well developed and each one has a purpose in the story.
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