A review by kelsahud
In the Black by Sheryl Nantus
2.0
Although I appreciated the thought that went into the world building, this was pretty bad. The motivations of the characters were just plain bizarre-Sam, the military vet who has a horrible experience and so she decides, hey why don't I run a space brothel for a corrupt organization who requires a five year contract and will charge me for things like extra air and gravity? And then there's Daniel, the creeper detective who thinks it's okay to hit on a woman in the middle of a murder investigation.
The premise is alright, I guess: One of Sam's courtesan ladies is murdered and it's up to Daniel to figure out whodunit. The problem is that Daniel is a rather shitty detective, and that Sam literally does his job for him. I suppose he was too busy thinking of witty double entendres to review security footage or do anything useful other than being the village creep. They also fell in love in the space of about ten minutes and without having any meaningful interactions with one another, but hey, when you know, apparently, you know, even if there's a dead body floating past you when you first meet.
The premise is alright, I guess: One of Sam's courtesan ladies is murdered and it's up to Daniel to figure out whodunit. The problem is that Daniel is a rather shitty detective, and that Sam literally does his job for him. I suppose he was too busy thinking of witty double entendres to review security footage or do anything useful other than being the village creep. They also fell in love in the space of about ten minutes and without having any meaningful interactions with one another, but hey, when you know, apparently, you know, even if there's a dead body floating past you when you first meet.