Tag: Science Fiction

Joint Review: “Overgrowth”

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Book: “Overgrowth” by Mira Grant

Publishing Info: Tor Nightfire, May 2025

Where Did We Get This Book: Kate received an eARC from NetGalley,

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: Annihilation meets Day of the Triffids in this full-on body horror/alien invasion apocalypse.

This is just a story. It can’t hurt you anymore.

Since she was three years old, Anastasia Miller has been telling anyone who would listen that she’s an alien disguised as a human being, and that the armada that left her on Earth is coming for her. Since she was three years old, no one has been willing to listen.

Now, with an alien signal from the stars being broadcast around the world, humanity is finally starting to realize that it’s already been warned, and it may be too late. The invasion is coming, Stasia’s biological family is on the way to bring her home, and very few family reunions are willing to cross the gulf of space for just one misplaced child.

What happens when you know what’s coming, and just refuse to listen?

Kate’s Thoughts

I have read a fair amount of Mira Grant, and have mostly enjoyed basically all of the stories I have read! I really enjoyed the “Feed” Series, and also liked “Into the Drowning Deep”, and I always find her horror stories fun and incredibly readable. So when Serena approached me asking if I wanted to do a joint review of her newest book “Overgrowth”, I immediately jumped on board. Sure it sounded a bit more Science-Fiction-y, but at the same time the idea of plant aliens invading Earth sounded a lot like “Little Shop of Horrors”! And plus, it was Mira Grant! I had high hopes!

Me picking up this book, before disaster inevitably struck (source).

But. I did not like this book. What did I like? Well, I did like the little nods to “Little Shop”, including Stasia having a cat named Seymour, which REALLY tickled me. And I liked that Grant continues to do a bang up job of having great rep for LGBTQIA+ characters in her books, this time having Graham, Stasia’s trans boyfriend, being a well rounded and compelling player in the story. I even liked the way that Grant draws comparisons between the treatment of marginalized groups being Othered with Stasia and her own Othering as an alien who never hides who she is, and is seen as weird and treated as such by others.

But the not so good. The first thing is that the pacing is a bit stilted. It can go from feeling like it’s lagging and slow, to going WAY too fast by the end (once we got to the invasion itself, VERY close to the end of the book, it was warp speed, and that was jarring). The second thing is that this is definitely more heavy on the Sci-Fi than it is horror, and that genre just isn’t for me outside of some very VERY specific parameters. But the biggest issue for me includes a spoiler, even if it’s very early in the story and will be clear pretty quickly, but still, be warned: SPOILER ALERT. We have a very gruesome scene almost right away in which a three year old little girl gets consumed by an alien plant, in lots of really unsettling and upsetting detail. With little to no warning. This is just the kind of stuff that I really can’t abide anymore in books that I read, and had I known that it was going to include that, I wouldn’t have read it. Is this probably more of a ‘me’ problem than a problem with the book? Yeah, almost assuredly. But it really turned me off, and there wasn’t really any recovery in regards to my reading experience, so my review stands as such.

Will “Overgrowth” work for others? Yeah, probably! But for me, I didn’t enjoy it.

Serena’s Thoughts

I largely agree with Kate. While I have read Mira Grant’s “Feed” series, I’m more familiar with Seanan McGuire (Mira Grant is her pen name for most of her horror and horror adjacent titles) and her fantasy works, all of which I’ve enjoyed to some extent or another. But yeah, this one was a struggle.

Kate already touched on the pacing, and I completely agree with her assessment there. I’ll also add that tonally the book felt equally out of sync as it did with its pacing. It starts out in an incredibly dark and gruesome manner (I’ll also talk a bit of spoilers in my last paragraph and will warn you ahead of time!) and then ends in a way that, I felt, was also pretty dark. But in between it seemed to be almost going for a romcom-like tone? There were a bunch of quirky characters and found family moments and much more emphasis on the love story than I had been expecting. Of course, I’m never one to complain about a love story, but, again, the romcom-like tone of the love story sat uncomfortably alongside the more serious aspects of, you know, the world being invaded by plant aliens.

I didn’t mind the science fiction elements nearly as much as Kate (obviously, since this is a preferred genre of mine). But at the same time, there’s a reason I don’t read horror, and for me, this book highlighted my struggles with that genre. So, it’s kind of funny in how predictably Kate and I reacted, with regards to our priors of genre preference! Mostly, this came down to the darker aspects of the horror elements. By no means do I need every book to wrap up with flowers and rainbows, but I also tend to struggle with the horror genre with the morally grey/questionable/is it really over?? type endings that you sometimes find. And this one…yeah, I couldn’t feel great about any of it. However, I do want to applaud the author for following through on her concept.

Likewise, and here come the spoilers, I had similar feelings about the beginning. Right away, you know it’s going to a dark place in that first chapter. And she GOES THERE. So, on one hand, I can appreciate that she didn’t shy away from the horrific nature of what she was writing. But on the other hand, yeah…I, too, could have lived without reading this scene. I don’t think I’m overly sentimental as a mother, but there are definitely new lines that I really try to avoid crossing in my media consumption, and this was a perfect illustration of that exact line. Beyond the scene itself being hard to read, I never really recovered. I know it’s not the main character’s “fault” that this happened, but I couldn’t ever really invest in her either, with this horrible image constantly in my mind. Like Kate said, this was definitely a personal reaction to this scene, and other readers may not struggle with it as much.

So, there ya go. Unfortunately, this one didn’t really work for either of us. But I also think it’s one of those reads that others may enjoy much more!

Kate’s Rating 4: This just didn’t work for me, in spite of the “Little Shop of Horrors” nods and the well done representation of queer and trans characters. I had high hopes that weren’t met.

Serena’s Rating 5: I think that trigger warnings can definitely go too far and get into spoiler territory sometimes, but one definitely could have been used here! Other than that, some mismatches in tone and pacing also let this read down for me.

Reader’s Advisory

“Overgrowth” is included on the Goodreads list “2025 Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction”.

Serena’s Review: “Last Chance to Save the World”

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Book: “Last Chance to Save the World” by Beth Revis

Publishing Info: DAW, April 2025

Where Did I Get this Book: Netgalley!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: After a few weeks trapped on board a spaceship with Ada (and, oh look, there’s only one bed), Rian has to admit that maybe Ada’s rebels have a point. The nanobots poised to be unleashed on Earth are infected with malware that will ultimately leave the residents of Earth in a worse position than they’re in now. But is it too late?

Ada and Rian arrive on Earth with little time to spare. Together, they have to break into a high-security facility and infect the nanobots with a counter-virus before they’re released in order to give Earth a fighting chance. And if Ada happens to notice some great tech laying around in this high-security facility she shouldn’t have access to and then happens to steal a bunch of it when Rian’s not looking? Well, he knew who she was before he teamed up with her. And if he wants it back, he’s going to have to catch her first. 

With countless twists and turns, this enemies-to-lovers slow-burn and high-tension romance plays on a Sherlock and Moriarity character dynamic rooted in science fiction with a heavy romance and mystery angle.

Previously Reviewed: “Full Speed to a Crash Landing” and “How to Steal a Galaxy”

Review: I’ve been really enjoying this series of science fiction/romance novellas, so it was with a heavy heart that I picked up this, the final one in the trilogy! But, like the ones that came before, it delivered on every level! And in many ways, this one was even more satisfying than the ones that came before as we finally got to see Ada’s long game come into play. By this point in the series, readers are familiar with not only Ada’s methods, but also the narrative tricks the author uses to emphasize the bewilderment that Rian must feel, tugged along mostly blind in Ada’s chaotic wake. And like in the first two books, it was incredibly gratifying to see everything slot into place, even if it was a bit easier to predict just what Ada was up to.

Instead, many of the new twists and turns and surprises came in the form of deeper reveals into Ada’s history. I don’t want to go into too many details, as many of the late-stage events are tied up in all of this, but I really enjoyed some of the new characters we met, and the ways in which they shone a light on Ada’s life and the shaping of her unique moral compass.

It was also nice getting to spend as much time with Rian and Ada together, more than we’ve seen in the previous books it seems. After now reading the last planned book in this series, I will say that I think these novellas will work better for science fiction/heist readers who also enjoy a dash of romance than for strict romance readers. For some of those readers, they may be a bit disappointed, as the series doesn’t adhere closely to all of the conventions of the romance genre that they might expect. That said, I think the ending for this trilogy was perfect, and really the only thing that made sense for these characters. Anything else would have compromised core portions of their identities in a way that I think would have undercut the excellent work that had gone into creating them.

I also really enjoyed the themes of environmental justice and the ways in which humanity has a tendency to hurt not only the world around us but everyone living in it. There was a short conversation about pigeons that really hit home in a way that was surprising, given that it was a…conversation about pigeons! And throughout, the balance between the exploration of these themes, the fast-moving action of the plot, and the quippy love story was all navigated expertly. I definitely recommend this trilogy to all science fiction/heist readers who are looking for a fun, fast series to consume!

Rating 8: Ada leaves a chaotic wake everywhere she goes, and Rian and the readers are just along for the fun that is the ride!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Last Chance to Save the World” can be found on this Goodreads list: Can’t Wait Books of 2025

Serena’s Review: “Chaos”

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Book: “Chaos” by Constance Fay

Publishing Info: Bramble, March 2025

Where Did I Get this Book: Netgalley!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: He’s a mind controlled killing machine, until her touch frees him

Engineer Caro Ogunyemi thinks she has everything in control. Sure, she has a dark secret in her past and aim so bad that she can’t shoot the side of a spaceship when she’s right in front of it, but those are minor details in the life of a space mercenary. When Caro embarks on a solo mission infiltrating a prison planet that is run by the deadly Pierce family, she embraces the opportunity to prove she’s a hero.

It’s there that Caro meets Leviathan, a super soldier with a chip in his head that turns him into a mindless killer. He’s drop dead gorgeous with an emphasis on drop dead, until she touches him and renders his chip inert. The danger begins when she lets him go.

In the heart of enemy territory, where love is at stake, life is treacherous and time is short, Caro and Leviathan must figure out how to recover his agency, protect her crew from Pierce’s sinister machinations, and stage a prison-break before Leviathan is lost to her―and himself―forever.

Previously Reviewed: “Calamity” and “Fiasco”

Review: I’ve been really enjoying this science fiction romance series! Not only is it a breath of fresh air to see a blending of romance and science fiction instead of always fantasy, but Constance Fay is one of those rare authors who seems to have an effortless handle on the important factors found in both genres and effortlessly blends them into enjoyable, stand-alone novels! That said, while I enjoyed this one as well, it has been my least favorite in the series overall.

But let’s start with the purely positive points! As I said, the science fiction elements in this series have always been great, and this one was no exception. We had A.I., we had a luxury space prison, we had cyborgs, we had new aliens! And, on top of it all, the main plot of this one wove in and out of the greater political machinations going on between the powerful families who run the galaxy and who increasingly seem to be on target for a massive conflict at some point.

Another unique science fiction element is an ability that Caro develops after being exposed to an alien bug whose bite/sting leaves her with the ability (disability?) to essentially shut down any sort of technology with only her touch. Not only is this an incredibly interesting concept and we see many variations on how it can be utilized throughout the book, but I enjoyed the way that this specifically impacted Caro, a character whose entire sense of self-worth is caught up in her technical prowess. It wasn’t explored as thoroughly as I would have liked, but I did enjoy the brief moments of reflection we got from this.

But this also speaks to one of my first stumbling blocks: Caro’s inner journey. The first two books in this series were successful, in my opinion, not only because the romances were excellent, but because the main character’s had incredible backstories and personal arcs that were explored throughout their story. Now, there is an attempt here to give Caro something similar. However, it just doesn’t hold up against the incredible stakes and backstories that came before. Caro’s entire inner journey revolves around an incident that was A.) entirely accidental and B.) one that she immediately tried to remedy. That being the case, there really isn’t a whole lot more to do with this backstory or much of a character arc to explore. This is so much the case that another character pretty much lays it out for her exactly as I have here! In the previous books, both main characters had some dark stuff in their pasts, things that were heavily reflected in the way they saw themselves and the choices they made. This lead to incredible journeys for them to explore. Unfortunately, Caro just didn’t really have that.

I also struggled with the romance in this one. It’s not bad, by any means, and what we did get, especially in the latter half of the book, I really enjoyed. However, the nature of the situation lead to what felt a lot like an instalove situation. Levi barely speaks for the first half of the book almost! And while I liked the idea behind this romance, as well as Levi himself, especially when he became more involved in the story, the actual love story itself felt very truncated.

This wasn’t helped by the inclusion of a second POV character, something we’ve never seen before. And, unfortunately, I think this inclusion worked against this story in a few ways. For one thing, by devoting even a handful of chapters to another character, the book lost much-needed page time that could have been spent on better pacing for the primary romance. For another thing, this is one of those weird situations where I enjoyed this secondary character so much (and the hints of a future romance!) that I almost began to want to spend more time with her than Caro! Definitely not something you want, though I am very excited for what I hope is the next book’s main couple!

The pacing was also a bit strange here. There was a ton of action, which I really enjoyed. But there was also a “Mad Max: Fury Road” situation towards the end where our group of characters spend a significant amount of time breaking out of the prison only to travel for a few days before, for plot reasons, needing to turn right around and break back IN to the prison!

Overall, there was still a lot of great action and romance in this book. It just didn’t quite live up to the highs of the previous two books. That said, I’m incredibly excited for the next book, if the other POV character we had here is going to be the lead! Fans of this series should still definitely check this one out, as it’s still a fun time all around, these quibbles aside.

Rating 7: While Caro’s backstory was a bit weaker than previous characters’ in the series, this was still a fun, romantic science fiction romp!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Chaos” is on this Goodreads list: All the New Horror, Romantasy, and Other SFF Crossover Books Arriving in March 2025

Kate’s Review: “Earthdivers (Vol. 3): 1776”

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Book: “Earthdivers (Vol.3): 1776” by Stephen Graham Jones & Davide Gianfelice (Ill.)

Publishing Info: IDW Publishing, December 2024

Where Did I Get This Book: I own it.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: Join or die! New York Times best-selling author Stephen Graham Jones and artist Davide Gianfelice are back in action for the next chapter of their heart-pounding historical sci-fi slasher Earthdivers!

A team of time-traveling Indigenous survivors had one goal: save the world from an American apocalypse by sending one of their own on a suicide trip to kill Christopher Columbus and course-correct world history.

Mission accomplished? Maybe not. Blood is still soaking into the sands of San Salvador as Tad’s friends suffer the consequences of his actions—and their own slippery moral rationalizations—620 years in the future. Faced with a choice to watch the world crumble or double down on their cause, the path is clear for Seminole two-spirit Emily: it’s personal now, and there’s no better time and place to take another stab at America than Philadelphia, 1776.

But where violence just failed them, she has a new plan: pass as a man, infiltrate the Founding Fathers, and use only wit and words to carve out a better future in the Declaration of Independence. No need to cut throats this time…right?

The next chapter of the critically acclaimed sci-fi epic is here in Earthdivers Vol. 3. Collects Earthdivers #11–16.

Review: So I didn’t realize that “Earthdivers: 1776” was going to be the last volume in the “Earthdivers” series until I was reading it and it kind of clicked for me. And while I’m sad that this intense and always creative historical fiction/Science-Fiction series has come to an end, I’m pretty thrilled that Stephen Graham Jones got to see his vision through and bring this story to life. When we left off in “Ice Age”, Tawny had gone back to, well, the Ice Age, and we hadn’t seen what had become of Emily, who had disappeared into the cave at the end if “Kill Columbus”. Well for those who were wondering about her, I have great news! It is finally her time!

Given how much I enjoyed Emily in the past volumes, I was very much looking forward to her story in 1776 as she tries to take on rewriting history by infiltrating the Founding Fathers on the dawn of the Declaration of Independence. I also thought that her approach was an interesting contrast to those of Tad and Yellow Kid and his theorizing, and really matched up with how her character was portrayed in the first volume when we got to know her the most. Jones takes this arc to explore the hypocrisies of the Founding Fathers of this country as they interact with a disguised Emily and treat her as less than due to her skin, as well as exploring the nuances of Benjamin Franklin when he becomes an ally to her on her mission. I really enjoyed their back and forth, and the way that this storyline plays out made a lot of sense and really paid off. But we also had another aspect of the time travel system suddenly become apparent in this final volume, as previous travelers start falling from the sky in the 2100s storyline, their dead bodies being returned to their time after their deaths in the past. This was such a shocking twist and development, and it really added to the overall Sci-Fi system.

I do kind of feel like the ending was really sped up. Maybe sped up isn’t the right phrasing, but while we got some pretty in depth explorations of the Columbus storyline, the Ice Age storyline, and the 1776 storyline, I thought that the final arc, with Yellow Kid and Sosh, while incredibly powerful, was a bit less in depth. But that said, I didn’t feel like that took away from their story, as the two of them find themselves in two separate times, with Sosh specifically in a potentially neverending timeloop at Wounded Knee and being killed over and over again, only to come back. The chaos and the endless violence she is subjected to is unrelenting, and it’s a bleak but evocative commentary on how Indigenous people have to keep on fighting for their lives against colonial violence. Yellow Kid’s story was a bit less clear to me, but Sosh’s was so well done I wasn’t as bothered by it.

Overall, I thought that “Earthdivers: 1776” was a satisfying end to an incredibly creative and engaging Sci-Fi series. Stephen Graham Jones continues to bring us very enjoyable and engaging genre fiction.

Rating 8: A solid and satisfying end to a historical fiction time travel epic.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Earthdivers: 1776” isn’t on any Goodreads lists as of now, but it would fit in on “Time Travel Fiction”.

Serena’s Review: “How to Steal a Galaxy”

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Book: “How to Steal a Galaxy” by Beth Revis

Publishing Info: DAW, December 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: Netgalley!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Ada had no intention whatsoever to continue working for the rebel group that hired her to retrieve the government’s plans for a nanobot climate cleaner if they weren’t willing to pay her for it, but then they offer a different an undercover mission to a charity gala where Rian will be in attendance. Rian, meanwhile, has volunteered his services for the gala believing that the rare items up for auction will attract Ada’s eye. Hoping to catch her in the act and pin her with a punishable crime, Rian has no idea that Ada’s real mission is to convince him to join the rebels. And the rebels have no idea that Ada’s decided that kidnapping Rian is the most efficient means to an end.How to Steal the Galaxy continues the sexy, rip-roaring good time that Beth Revis began in Full Speed to a Crash Landing, with the return of Ada, Rian, and all the tension, twists, and turns that made the first novella so much fun.

Previously Reviewed: “Full Speed to a Crash Landing”

Review: I didn’t plan it this way, I swear, but I somehow ended up scheduling two books by Beth Revis in the same week! To be fair, the first one was a jointly written sequel, so it wasn’t just two Revis books completely. And also also to be fair, there are very few new releases that come out in December, and this one was one of the few titles that I planned on for this month! The entire thing is all the more funny because the first book I read by this author was a YA science fiction book about ten years ago that I…didn’t enjoy. But now, almost a decade later, she’s made her way onto my list of authors to always check out when she releases a new book. And this series of novellas is a perfect example of why that is!

I read the first book in this novella trilogy only a few months ago, but even with some more distance, I’m sure the word that would come to mind when describing it would be “fun.” It told a solid little story, was chock full of adventure, and had an excellent snarky (but complicated!) main character at its heart. And really, it’s that last part that really sold me on the continued success of this series. This book yet again highlights that while Ada can come across as your typical “badass, snarky thief extraordinaire,” her priorities, approach to her work, and sometimes even her own conflicting and tangled moralities, all give her an unexpectedly deep level of characterization for a lead in only two short novellas.

While I think the first book perhaps had more straight action, this one really honed in on the way that Ada works and thinks. This was particularly intriguing when we see her run up against her own limits or when she attempts to explain to others how she draws the lines that she does, what she considers acceptable and unacceptable (always a rich topic for a main character whose career is crime). We do learn more about what drives her, but I was pleased to see the author shy away from the tendency for these sorts of thief characters to quickly veer away from morally grey and fall straight into the typical resistance freedom fighter/Robin Hood re-imagined character that we’ve all read a million times. No, Ada needs to get paid to work.

Of course, we see more of Rian, too, and the development of this romance. Like the first book, I enjoyed the way this romance played out. There is definitely more of it, but it was also never forgotten that these two truly only barely know one another, each having read more about the other from reports than from any true amount of time spent with one another. And, of course, Rian is now aware of Ada’s work and spends the majority of his time throughout this book attempting to thwart her, giving the reader all the enjoyment of watching him fail repeatedly.

For such a short book, I was also impressed by the amount of page time devoted to expanding on the political and social structures of this universe, particularly the ways in which the populations of these other planets view the perils of the original Earth and its struggling population. Without being too heavy handed, Revis does an excellent job of skewering the dangers of leaving crucial projects in the hands of tech billionaires. But at the same time, she takes several swings at the inefficiencies and corruption of government to accomplish the same task. When you write it out, it’s quite dire. But the fact that this book, like the first, is such a fun time is testament to the strength of Revis’s comedic writing and the sheer force of the main character’s personality on the page.

If you can’t tell by now, I had a blast with this book! More so than the first, this set up a lot of moving pieces that are primed to come into play in the next book. And I, for one, can’t wait to see how Ada’s plans all pan out!

Rating 8: Proof that a book can tackle tough topics of climate change, tech billionaires, and corruption while also not skimping on the the comedy, adventure and romance!

Reader’s Advisory:

“How to Steal a Galaxy” can be found on this Goodreads list:Best Science Fiction & Fantasy Books

Kate’s Review: “This World Is Not Yours”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “This World Is Not Yours” by Kemi Ashing-Giwa

Publishing Info: Tor Nightfire, September 2024

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an eARC from NetGalley.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: This World is Not Yours by USA Today bestseller Kemi Ashing-Giwa is the perfect blend of S.A. Barnes’ space horror and Cassandra Khaw’s beautiful but macabre worlds. An action-packed, inventive novella about a toxic polycule consumed by jealousy and their attempts to survive on a hostile planet.

After fleeing her controlling and murderous family with her fiancée Vinh, Amara embarks on a colonization project, New Belaforme, along with her childhood friend, Jesse. The planet, beautiful and lethal, produces the Gray, a “self-cleaning” mechanism that New Belaforme’s scientists are certain only attacks invasive organisms, consuming them. Humans have been careful to do nothing to call attention to themselves until a rival colony wakes the Gray.

As Amara, Vinh, and Jesse work to carve out a new life together, each is haunted by past betrayals that surface, expounded by the need to survive the rival colony and the planet itself.

There’s more than one way to be eaten alive.

Review: Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this novella!

When “This World Is Not Yours” by Kemi Ashing-Giwa ended up in my inbox, the cover alone caught my attention. I mean dang, look at that cover. The expression on that person’s face! And looking more into the story itself, I was absolutely intrigued by the premise of a space colony with a strange ecosystem, and a ‘toxic polycule’ (we all know that I LOVE that kind of drama). And the phrase ‘There’s more than one way to be eaten alive’? GIVE IT TO ME NOW. Suffice to say, I was going into this novella with some high hopes.

First the highlights. I am always game for a sci-fi/space horror tale that brings up some of the perils of colonialism, especially on an unfamiliar planet with an unfamiliar ecosystem and with mechanisms that aren’t fully understood. This is one of the reasons I loved “Annihilation”, and the Gray and New Belaforme colony really reminded me of that novel in a number of ways. Secondly, the space horror in this book is unrelenting, it builds some good tension, and when the tension breaks it is GORY AS HELL and in the best and most horrifying ways possible. First with the tension bit. There was one moment where someone was literally swimming in The Gray and I am pretty sure I clamped my hand over my mouth because I knew that could NOT be a good idea, but Ashing-Giwa takes her sweet time in pulling out all she can from the suspense. And then when we do finally get a pay off for it, and the tension breaks into a gory, terrifying mess?

It was disgusting and absolutely nasty. Which is exactly what I want from space based body horror. ( source)

All of this was spot on.

That being said, and this is in a lot of ways a ‘me’ issue, I wasn’t as enthralled with the Science Fiction stuff. I am at the point where I need to just tell myself ‘look Kate, even if it’s Space Horror, Sci-Fi isn’t your thing’ and maybe not take it on. And in “This World Is Not Yours” we get a lot of that, with colonies, space intrigue, Science Fiction scenarios involving populations and ecology, and lots of references to tech that kind of made me skim the pages a bit. I will reiterate that these are all things that are to be expected in this genre, and people who like that will probably like how it is done in this. So that negative aspect is probably on me. But along with that I didn’t feel like I really got to know our characters as much as I would have liked, especially Jesse, one of the cornerstones of the polycule that has been forced upon our main characters. I understood his connection to Amara, but the connection to Vinh was more talked about than really demonstrated. I think to buy some of the high stakes moments at the end I needed more from Jesse. I also needed more development of Vinh’s assigned husband Henry, because Amara REALLY hates him and I understood why she would hate him as a jealous wife, but he seemed pretty bland until there were a couple of hail Mary moments of terribleness that felt like they were there to be like SEE THIS IS WHY YOU SHOULD HATE HIM that didn’t feel super earned. On top of that, Amara and Vinh as the couple we are supposed to be rooting for didn’t really click with me. But this could have been solved had we explored them more, and I think that we probably needed more pages to do so.

So all in all “This World Is Not Yours” was a bit mixed for me. The space horror at its peak was fantastic. But it wasn’t as centered as I had hoped it would be.

Rating 6: When the space horror was in full force it was terrifying. But a lack of character development and a little too much Sci-Fi made this not the home run I had hoped for.

Reader’s Advisory:

“This World Is Not Yours” is included on the Goodreads list “Queer Polyamory”.

Serena’s Review: “Full Speed to a Crash Landing”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “Full Speed to a Crash Landing” by Beth Revis

Publishing Info: DAW, August 2024

Where Did I Get this Book:

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Ada Lamarr may have gotten to the spaceship wreck first, but looter’s rights won’t get her far when she’s got a hole in the side of her ship and her spacesuit is almost out of air. Fortunately for her, help arrives in the form of a government salvage crew—and while they reluctantly rescue her from certain death, they are not pleased to have an unexpected passenger along on their classified mission.

But Ada doesn’t care—all that matters to her is enjoying their fine food and sweet, sweet oxygen—until Rian White, the government agent in charge, starts to suspect that there’s more to Ada than meets the eye. He’s not wrong—but he’s so pretty that Ada is perfectly happy to keep him paying attention to her—at least until she can complete the job she was sent to pull off. But as quick as Ada is, Rian might be quicker—and she may not be entirely sure who’s manipulating who until it’s too late…

Review: I’ve had a bit of a mixed reading experience with this author’s books. I read her YA science fiction novel, “Across the Universe,” years ago and really struggled with it. But then, more recently, I absolutely loved “Night of the Witch,” which Revis wrote collaboratively with another author. Given the strength of my more recent experience, I’d been eying this upcoming novella for a bit before the publisher reached out about potential coverage, and I was decided!

And I’m happy to report that the positive trajectory continues, and I very much enjoyed this short, science fiction romp of a ride! The story is told in the first person which places a lot of pressure on the strength of the narrator to carry the story. And Ada was well up to the task! At first, she had the potentially of falling into the trap of “snark machine” without much substance to back it up. But as the story continued, it became clear that Ada was not a super reliable narrator, leaving the reader to the enjoyable task of attempting to piece together what was really going on as the story progressed. I also enjoyed the presentation of the other crew members, as seen through Ada’s eyes. Again, the use of first person was very successful in presenting these characters through a limited character’s view point, with Ada’s first impressions needing adjustment as she comes to better understand those around her.

I also really enjoyed the plot and action of the story. This is a novella, so there’s a lot to crunch into a fairly small page count. Not only do you have the romantic elements (more on that later), but there was entire adventure to get through, with numerous high stakes scenes. The book starts off in the middle of one of these tense moments, with Ada stranded in her broken down ship with only minutes-worth of air left. And from there, the story quickly bounces into even higher stakes as the salvage crew gets to work. With such high stakes and so much fact-paced plotting, it was sometimes easy to miss the more detailed world-building that went into the story. But whenever I came up for air, I would look back a realize just how fully fleshed out this universe, and the life of a salvager like Ada, felt.

I also, overall, liked the beginnings of the romance, though I will say that this was perhaps one of the weaker elements of the story. While Revis does show much restraint in only marginally moving this “relationship” forward (this is all that would make any sense given the fact that the entire book takes place over a few days’ time), it still felt like a bit too much at times, too close to insta-lust. But I was so well-satisfied with the fact that the envelope wasn’t pushed too far on this point, and the fact that the next book is coming out in a few months’ time, to complain too much.

The only thing that really stood out was the manner in which the book wrapped up. After the primary action is concluded, and Ada is off on her next adventure, the book concludes with several pages’ worth of epistolary material, mostly Rian’s reports on the events of the book and various messages he sends piecing together more information on Ada itself. While all of this information was interesting and crucial to enlightening Rian (and the reader) to some of the details of Ada’s life and plan, it did read as rather clunky and tacked on.

Overall, I really enjoyed this read! I blew through it in a single sit-down and am anxious to get to the next book! Readers of adventure science fiction (and those patiently waiting for more romantic science fiction to come out and catch up to the romantasy boom!) should definitely check this one out.

Rating 8: Jam-packed with adventure and intrigue, with a healthy dose of romance sprinkled on top, I can’t wait to jet off on Ada’s next high stakes adventure!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Full Speed to a Crash Landing” can be found on this Goodreads list: [ATY 2025] Science Fiction or Fantasy by a Woman

Serena’s Review: “Fiasco”

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Book: “Fiasco” by Constance Fay

Publishing Info: Bramble, June 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Cynbelline Khaw is a woman of many names. She’s Generosity, a cultist who never quite fit in. She’s Bella, the daughter who failed to save her cousin’s life. And then there’s Cyn, the notorious bounty hunter who spaced a ship of slavers.

She’s exhausted, lonely, and on her very last legs―but then a new client offers her a job she can’t refuse: a bounty on the kidnapper who killed her cousin. All Cyn has to do is partner with the crew of the Calamity, a scouting vessel she encountered when she was living under a previous alias. One tiny little issue, she’s been given an additional deliver the oh-so-compelling medic, Micah Arora, to the treacherous Pierce Family or all her identities will be revealed, putting her estranged family in danger.

Hunting a kidnapper doesn’t usually mean accidentally taking your sexy new target to dinner at your parent’s house, a local mystic predicting you’ll have an increasingly large number of children, or being accompanied by a small flying lizard with a penchant for eating metal, but, as they field investigative hurdles both dangerous and preposterous, Cyn and Micah grow ever closer. When a violent confrontation reveals that everything Cyn thought about her past is wrong, she realizes that she has the power to change her future. The first part of that is making sure that Micah Arora is around to be a part of it.

Previously Reviewed: “Calamity”

Review: I’m always so pleased when I come across a new author, especially one who is writing in a subgenre that you don’t see much of, in this case romantic science fiction! I’m even more pleased when I read a second book from the same author and can confirm that it was more than a “one hit wonder” situation! And such has been the case here; while I think I might still have preferred “Calamity” to this book, “Fiasco” is an excellent book in its own right!

I had a guess that these would be the two characters we followed in this book, based off which side characters were best set up in the first book. That said, from what we had there, I knew a lot more about the male love interest, Micah, the ship’s medic, than the mysterious woman who flits in and out of that story. That left this book with a lot of blank canvas to tell a fresh story about a character who was practically brand new to the readers. And Cyn turned out to be fantastic! In many ways, she is a much more tragic figure than our original leading lady. Carrying around not only a ton of family baggage, Cyn is also plagued by crippling PTSD from traumatic events in her past. Her life up to this point has been largely solitary, so much of her arch in this story is learning how to trust and depend on others, especially challenging perhaps with the force of personalities that make up the crew of the Calamity!

The plot revolves around a serial kidnapper, an individual Cyn has spent the majority of her life chasing down. There were a number of twists and turns here, and I enjoyed them all! I found a few things a bit predictable, but as so much of the story really depends on the reader caring about Cyn’s own growth and feelings, I think this worked fine. The last third of the book, in particular, was very action packed and there were a few moments that ratcheted up the emotional stakes so high as to be quite thrilling.

The story also delves a lot into family trauma and the way tragic events can re-shape an entire group of people. I really liked a lot of what we saw here between Cyn and her parents in particular and their mutual realizations that they didn’t truly understand one another. At the same time, much of the first half to three quarters of the book presents most of these family members in a pretty negative light, and even understanding their circumstances, Cyn was more forgiving than I was. I wish there had been a little bit more push back on some of the tactics they used and how unhealthy the way that they treated Cyn truly was.

As for the romance, it was sweet, but I think this was the area where the story took a clear second to the first book in the series. While I liked Micah as a romantic lead, I never felt like I really understood the connection built between him and Cyn. The reader isn’t given many reasons for why these two characters are drawn to one another, only that they are. This was all the more frustrating because in many ways Micah’s character is the sort that I particularly enjoy as a leading man in romance novels: quiet, but incredibly capable, with deeper wells of emotion buried deep. But, again, it felt like much of this wasn’t fully utilized as the love story progressed.

Overall, however, I very much enjoyed this book! Cyn’s arc was incredibly sympathetic, and the overall plot was action-packed and thrilling. The love story was also sweet, but if there was one area that I think could have used just a dash bit more…something…this was it. Either way, I’m fully on board with this series and can’t wait to see what comes next!

Rating 8: A great leading lady, a thrilling adventure, and a story jam-packed with family trauma, and that’s all before you even get to the swoon-worthy romance!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Fiasco” is on this Goodreads list: June 2024 Most Anticipated Romance Releases

Serena’s Review: “Heavenbreaker”

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Book: “Heavenbreaker” by Sara Wolf

Publishing Info: Entangled: Red Tower Books, May 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Bravery isn’t what you do. It’s what you endure.

The duke of the powerful House Hauteclare is the first to die. With my dagger in his back. He didn’t see it coming. Didn’t anticipate the bastard daughter who was supposed to die with her mother—on his order. He should have left us with the rest of the Station’s starving, commoner rubbish.

Now there’s nothing left. Just icy-white rage and a need to make House Hauteclare pay. Every damn one of them. Even if it means riding Heavenbreaker—one of the few enormous machines left over from the War—and jousting against the fiercest nobles in the system.

Each win means another one of my enemies dies. And here, in the cold terror of space, the machine and I move as one, intent on destroying each adversary—even if it’s someone I care about. Even if it’s someone I’m falling for.

Only I’m not alone. Not anymore. Because there’s something in the machine with me. Something horrifying. Something…more. And it won’t be stopped.

Review: I’ve been waiting and waiting for the romantasy buzz to shift to include more science fiction as well. We’ve had a few examples (“Calamity” and the upcoming sequel come to mind), but there still isn’t much out there. But I’ve had my eyes on this one for a few months, as it seems to promise to be just what I’ve been looking for! True, the romance seems secondary in the blurb, but it’s coming out from Red Tower, which is Entangled’s SFF imprint, so one imagines a love story will be prominent somehow. All of this to say, I was incredibly excited when I was approached to review this title, and here we are!

Let’s get two things out of the way from the start: 1.) the blurb is accurate as far as the balance between the romance and the rest of the story goes (which is to say, the romance is quite light) and 2.) man, I loved this book and have zero complaints about any of point #1! I’ll talk more about the romance a bit later, but this is one of those strange situations where I’m worried that this book might be missed by several readers who would love it simply because it’s coming from an imprint that is known to focus heavily (almost exclusively!) on steamy romance stories! And while I think those readers will still enjoy this one (though there really is no spice involved), this is also the kind of science fiction story that I think would appeal to many fans of the larger genre, particularly readers who enjoyed “Red Rising” or “The Will of the Many!” Rather than romance comparisons, these are the true read-alikes for this book and I so hope that it makes its way out into the broader SF reading crowd!

Like those two books, this one is heavy on action, full of blockbuster moments, features nobles and their political maneuverings, all told from the perspective of a hero who seeks to tear it all down, and uncovers even deeper truths while she’s at it! Seriously, the twists and turns, the reveals and surprises just kept coming from the start all the way to the end! There were perhaps a few things that I could guess, but the way that it all worked together was so well-thought out and interesting. The history and culture of the space station all perfectly align to create the systems that our heroes are trapped within, with recognizable power dynamics with regards to wealth and status, but new twists with regards to the history of humankind and a dangerous enemy that was fought centuries ago. Other than book read-alikes, this one was an intriguing combination of “Pacific Rim” and “A Knight’s Tale,” as well, two things I don’t think I’d ever have put together in my head, but somehow, here, it works!

I also really loved all of the characters we followed in this book. Yes, plural. But this is one of those examples that I always point to when I think of multiple POVs done right. There is still one, distinct leading character who is driving the story, whose personal arc is the foundation of the book, and who receives the vast majority of the page time. The other characters are all peppered in between, offering unique glimpses into other aspects of this world, brief windows into the mindsets of love interests, rivals, and unknown forces. All of this works together to broaden the perspective of the reader, while also allowing us to focus deeply on the main character arc at its heart.

I also think this approach worked well for the romance. As I said, the love story is definitely secondary to the main plot following Synali’s quest for revenge, her travails in the jousting competition, and her discovery of the truth of the station’s history and its technology. Even just listing it off there, it’s easy to see how the book had more than enough plot to go around without adding in a complicated romance. Instead, we have a fairly simple, reserved love story that is very much still at its beginning stages. Synali’s focus is largely elsewhere, but we feel the draw between these two characters. And, while we didn’t have many chapters from Jax’s perspective, what we did have was very important to more fully flesh out a character who could have come off as a bit of a himbo/playboy. Even with only a few chapters, we see the pain of his childhood and begin to understand the unique draw he feels towards Synali, helping to save the love story from feeling a bit like an “instalove” situation on his part.

As you can probably tell by now, I really loved this book! It was so fast-paced and fun, I stayed up way to late reading it several nights in a row! The only downside is that it ends on a fairly major cliffhanger (and there are still some questions, at least in my mind, about exactly what is going on and the choices of some characters from the past). But, at the same time, these are effective hooks to get me amped up to pick up the second book as soon as possible! If you’re here for just the romance, you might be disappointed. But on the other hand, I think this is an excellent book for a much broader group of science fiction readers, especially those who enjoy action-packed reads like “Red Rising!”

Rating 9: What a crowed-pleaser! Another blockbuster in the making, perfect for fans of “Red Rising” and “The Will of the Many.”

Reader’s Advisory:

“Heavenbreaker” can be found on this Goodreads list: Upcoming Romantasy Releases 2024

Serena’s Review: “A Letter to the Luminous Deep”

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Book: “A Letter to the Luminous Deep” by Slyvie Cathrall

Publishing Info: Orbit, April 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: A beautiful discovery outside the window of her underwater home prompts the reclusive E. to begin a correspondence with renowned scholar Henerey Clel. The letters they share are filled with passion, at first for their mutual interests, and then, inevitably, for each other.

Together, they uncover a mystery from the unknown depths, destined to transform the underwater world they both equally fear and love. But by no mere coincidence, a seaquake destroys E.’s home, and she and Henerey vanish.

A year later, E.’s sister Sophy, and Henerey’s brother Vyerin, are left to solve the mystery of their siblings’ disappearances with the letters, sketches and field notes left behind. As they uncover the wondrous love their siblings shared, Sophy and Vyerin learn the key to their disappearance – and what it could mean for life as they know it.

Review: While I used to think I didn’t enjoy epistolary-style stories, I’ve read a number of really great ones over the last few years to the point where I’m now wondering if I had originally just read a few not so great ones and judged the entire format just on that. As it stands, the “Emily Wilde” series has done a lot to reform my opinion, and this one sounded very similar, not only using a similar format but also leaning heavily into the academia side of fantasy and science fiction. Let’s dive in (heh, how clever)!

I think this will be one of those books that might be a struggle for the average fantasy reader, but will also garner devoted fans who also adore it! This largely comes down to the overall style and tone of the writing. Like I said, “Emily Wilde” is definitely a comparable title, but in comparison to this one, that is “epistolary academia fantasy lite!” Pretty much take the tone and style of that book and magnify it and you will get this story! There’s simply more of everything: more focus on the intricacies, oddities, and cultures of academia, more complicated and verbose sentence structure and specialized vocabulary, and even more commitment to the epistolary style. In “Emily Wilde,” many times her journal entries would read as a straight narrative. Here, the author is fully invested in telling a story only through letters and supporting documents, so the narrative plays out in a more distanced way.

And I loved all of this! I love authors who can so naturally capture this sort of long-form, “old fashion” style of writing where sentences are long and word choices are elaborate. I also really enjoyed the slow reveals of the many mysteries and secrets at the heart of the story. Not only do we have the remove of learning this story through the more limited form of what letter writers choose to share with one another, but we also are piecing together what happened in the past as the siblings of another pair of characters work to compile the correspondence of two characters who have passed away.

I really enjoyed all the characters we have here, both pairs of writers feeling fully realized and interesting. E, I think, rose to the top simply for how well the author managed to portray a character who lives with high levels of anxiety that affect how she lives her life. In the past, I’ve often found myself frustrated and disappointed by the rather surface level portrayal of characters like these, but the topic is so perfectly explore in E, both honestly depicting her struggles, but also not defining her by this trait. I also really enjoyed Sophy, her younger sister who has her own adventure and must later work through E’s past letters to try to discover what happened to her. Sophy is a much more action-oriented character, and the contrast between them was nice, as well as the loving, strong sisterly relationship we see between them.

I’ll also make a small plug here with regards to the genre of this book. I’ve seen a lot of reviewers calling this fantasy, but I think this is a perfect example of a science fiction novel that doesn’t take place in space. Too often, it feels like readers and marketers think that “science fiction” and “space” are synonymous, but this book perfectly highlights why science fiction needs to be remembered as being a broader category. In almost every way, this book much more closely aligns with the conventions of science fiction over fantasy, especially with its academic focus, which is very scientific in nature. Not only that, but the history of this world and the mysteries we discover all fall in better line with science fiction than fantasy (in many ways, it reminds of the movie “The Abyss.”) This isn’t necessarily a hugely important distinction, but I do think science fiction readers might miss this one due to the fact that it’s being called a fantasy story much of the time. Anyways, there’s my TED talk on that topic!

Overall, I really enjoyed this book! I was surprised to find that it’s the start of the series, and it does end on a mild cliffhanger. But there were so many interesting twists and turns (both with the larger mystery and with a few character turns that really took me by surprise) that I can’t wait to see where things go from here! Readers who enjoy rather long-winded, heavily academic fiction will likely enjoy this one! Also those looking for a lovely slow-burn romance!

Rating 9: Cathrall embraces the full beauty of the epistolary novel, creating a vivid, immersive world and peopling it with characters I’d follow into the darkest depths!

Reader’s Advisory:

“A Letter to the Luminous Deep” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Related to the Sea