A review by mdpenguin
Happy Snak, by Nicole Kimberling

5.0

The first few chapters left a lot to be desired, but as soon as there was some real character development, I had a hard time putting this book down. I think that there was a specific moment that I realized that I'd like it: when Kimberling writes that Gaia wanted to deflate a character's apology and ego but decided to accept it, instead. There was a lot of internal conflict for the main character as she became involved with the Kishocha -- the alien race that controls the space station she lives on -- and it was fairly realistic. The way that Gaia cared for others wasn't idealistic but really more of the attitude that a person should care for others if they're decent people. She was moved by things that were moving, she cared about her business and tried to take advantage of her position to expand it, she hated people who were mean, she liked people who weren't, she was traumatized by traumatizing events...in short, she was a real person and her reaction to her experiences with the Kishocha came across as fairly realistic.