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rjbedell's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
A gripping, intimate, and profound romance plot line is weakened only slightly by incomplete world-building and repetitive language. The sci-fi component drives the plot, but takes a back seat to the two emotionally embattled and haunted leading men.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Grief, and Colonisation
Minor: Medical content, Murder, and War
miraileah's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
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
5.0
5.0. I absolutely love the arranged marriage trope in romance novels, and this one was an outstanding example. I adored the two leads and reading about each of their unique baggage, as well as the ways their partner and friends helped them process and move past it. I can’t speak to if the domestic abuse rep is good/accurate, but as someone who has not gone through that, I thought it seemed excellent. I also really enjoyed the politics and the mystery elements of the novel. Highly recommend this book!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Racism, Sexual violence, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Sexual content, Torture, and War
analenegrace's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This was a very interesting sci-fi with loveable characters, a good romance, and an interesting mystery to solve. My greatest criticism is that I was, at times, a little confused about how this world functioned, and I needed a little bit more understanding of the universe.
My big question is about the humanness/earth of this world, they used the word human but didn't seem to be traditionally human on earth and there weren't, seemingly, other species besides humans that I could tell.
My big question is about the humanness/earth of this world, they used the word human but didn't seem to be traditionally human on earth and there weren't, seemingly, other species besides humans that I could tell.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Torture, Toxic relationship, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual content
thoseoldcrows23's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I wanted to like this a lot more than I actually did. There are some solid bones here; however, I think the execution was clunky and deeply unsatisfying in a lot of places. This was sold to me as a sci-fi romance, and, while I love speculative romance in general, I find that sometimes authors struggle to balance the speculative plot and the romance, and I think that that was a problem here. Much of the book’s energy is put into the science fiction plot and the romance suffers for it. By the end of the book our two leads are talking about how much they love each other I couldn’t fathom why. A big part of the reason for that is that the entirety of the romance pivots on chronic miscommunication, which I found absolutely infuriating. It feels like they barely know each other because all their conversations are riddled with misunderstanding. They each spend way more time in their own heads when they're talking to each other than they do focused on the other person. So much of the tension between the two leads would be completely gone if they would just behave like adults and talk honestly with each other but they don't do that until over halfway into the book. At the same time, the sci-fi plot wasn't compelling enough to warrant all the focus that was put on it. It's effectively a mystery plot, and I didn't find myself particularly caring who the culprit turned out to be, and in fact struggled through most of the book to even remember who people were because nobody really stood out that much besides our two main characters. Overall, this was just a big letdown for me. It's not a bad book, and I understand why people like it, but I definitely think it's been way overhyped, and this is a story that could have been told much more effectively than it was.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Mental illness, and Violence
Moderate: Physical abuse, Torture, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Medical content, and Kidnapping
Minor: Sexual content, Sexual violence, Alcohol, and War
kanonkita's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
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
4.5
The romance plot of the book was some sweet hurt/comfort. I felt that the leads had good chemistry with each other and their relationship had satisfying pacing. The only thing I'd change is that I would have liked a little more complexity in the world building and political situations. There were a lot of times where the ways that things just sort of shook out in the characters' favor because very important people with a lot of responsibility just trusted them without question took me out of the immersion of the story. That's not really the point of the book though, so if you can shut that part of your brain off, you'll probably have a great read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, and War
stinkologist's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
tense
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Gaslighting, and Colonisation
Minor: Violence, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, and War
gardens_and_dragons's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I read this in a day because it is simply too good to put down once you start reading. It tells a very intense political tale, wrapped up with interplanetary war, and a great romance. It also covers some really hard hitting topics with past abusive relationships, insecurity, and we use the miscommunication can really affect mental health. The world building was so perfect. It really felt like there was this huge, interplanetary empire just beyond the scope of the story that added this very realistic element to all of the politics surrounding the plot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Kidnapping, and Colonisation
Moderate: Domestic abuse and War
unwise_samwise's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Violence, and Xenophobia
Minor: Sexual violence, Torture, and War
hayleys_comment's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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
4.0
One word: cute!
Winter’s Orbit is a fun, character-focused space opera that does a wonderful job of balancing romance with interplanetary politics.
As someone who doesn’t read much sci-fi (or romance, for that matter), I enjoyed this book immensely. Maxwell writes with a great amount of emotional awareness. Her characters are lovable (and, boy, do I love them) and react realistically to the world(s) around them. The setting is interesting, but not complicated, and I would love to see it expanded.
It’s one of those novels that could easily become somebody’s comfort book.
Winter’s Orbit is a fun, character-focused space opera that does a wonderful job of balancing romance with interplanetary politics.
As someone who doesn’t read much sci-fi (or romance, for that matter), I enjoyed this book immensely. Maxwell writes with a great amount of emotional awareness. Her characters are lovable (and, boy, do I love them) and react realistically to the world(s) around them. The setting is interesting, but not complicated, and I would love to see it expanded.
It’s one of those novels that could easily become somebody’s comfort book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Torture, Murder, Sexual harassment, and War
netflixismyroommate's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Torture, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Death, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Xenophobia
Minor: Death of parent and War