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Local Star
Local Star is a polyamorous space opera with a fast-paced, action-packed adventure that’s sure to punch you in the feels. It follows guttergirl Triz as she saves her hub from invaders from the Cyberbionautic Alliance, all the while negotiating her rekindled romance with Kalo, her ex who's returned from battle and won't stop hanging around the wrenchworks.
157 pages, Paperback
First published April 5, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
March 15, 2021
3.5⭐️ – This was a fun and quick read. The plot is pretty basic. On a three-day leave after a huge victory in the war against the Cyberbionautic Alliance, Casne is planning to celebrate with her best friend and partner Triz. Yet, instead of being honoured as the hero she is, Casne is accused of war crimes, with evidence Triz and Kalo – another Fleet pilot, Triz’s ex and Casne’s sometimes – are convinced is fake.
Even though Local Star is a novella, the worldbuilding is rather extensive and it only took a couple of sentences for me to feel transported to a different universe. The story is centred around Triz, a guttergirl turned mechanic who is still not sure she really fits in her own life, with Casne and Kalo never too far.
Triz has been asked to join Casne and her wife Nantha’s marriage and while she loves them both, she’s not ready to make it official. Her reluctance results from her insecurities but mainly from not wanting to be the third in a triad: she’d rather join with another partner. Whether Kalo will be the one or not remains to be seen, but he’s clearly interested in giving their relationship a second chance.
Around them are a couple more Fleet officers as well as Casne’s quadparents (some male, some female, some non-binary), one of whom is a bit quick to believe his daughter could be guilty.
Besides the world-building, the best part of this story is how normal and self-evident polyamory is. Triz’s interrogations are valid, especially given her background. She struggles with what her place would be in a marriage to Casne and Nan just as much as she struggles with her place in Casne’s family, who more or less took her in when she was rescued from an impossibly rough childhood. The only time she’s really comfortable is when she’s working on a ship.
As usual, I focus on the characters and their motivations, as much as I can without spoiling, but there are many other layers to this story. The Cyberbionautic Alliance, for example, questions transhumanism. Triz’s insecurities and her relationships with Kalo and Casne speak of self-acceptance, growth and forgiveness. This novella is a lot more complex than what the cover and the plot hint at. Complex but fun.
I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
Even though Local Star is a novella, the worldbuilding is rather extensive and it only took a couple of sentences for me to feel transported to a different universe. The story is centred around Triz, a guttergirl turned mechanic who is still not sure she really fits in her own life, with Casne and Kalo never too far.
Triz has been asked to join Casne and her wife Nantha’s marriage and while she loves them both, she’s not ready to make it official. Her reluctance results from her insecurities but mainly from not wanting to be the third in a triad: she’d rather join with another partner. Whether Kalo will be the one or not remains to be seen, but he’s clearly interested in giving their relationship a second chance.
Around them are a couple more Fleet officers as well as Casne’s quadparents (some male, some female, some non-binary), one of whom is a bit quick to believe his daughter could be guilty.
Besides the world-building, the best part of this story is how normal and self-evident polyamory is. Triz’s interrogations are valid, especially given her background. She struggles with what her place would be in a marriage to Casne and Nan just as much as she struggles with her place in Casne’s family, who more or less took her in when she was rescued from an impossibly rough childhood. The only time she’s really comfortable is when she’s working on a ship.
As usual, I focus on the characters and their motivations, as much as I can without spoiling, but there are many other layers to this story. The Cyberbionautic Alliance, for example, questions transhumanism. Triz’s insecurities and her relationships with Kalo and Casne speak of self-acceptance, growth and forgiveness. This novella is a lot more complex than what the cover and the plot hint at. Complex but fun.
I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
December 5, 2021
Massive thank you to Interstellar Flight Press and Netgalley for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Local star is a polyamorous space opera which follows Triz, a guttergirl (spaceship handywoman), her friend Casne and her ex Kalo. When Casne is accused of war crimes, Triz with the help of her ex, Kalo, must do everything she can in an attempt to save her, whilst also saving their Hab which comes under attack from the notorious Cyberbionautic Alliance (ceebees).
I picked this book up because it had polyamorous rep -which honestly is not something you see in books often. I loved how it normalised triads and quadfamilies (a family unit based around a four-person platonic, romantic and/or sexual relationship) as the norm, and it was super refreshing to see how poly relationships can also work in a platonic sense! Further, I adored how non-binary and neopronouns were normalised. For example there's a character which uses E (Spivak) pronouns and one of Casne's parents is referred to as the gender neutral Damu. Overall, fantastic LGBTQIA+ rep.
I really enjoyed the development of the relationship between Triz and Kalo, I really thought you got a sense of who Kalo was, even in such a short time frame! However, the same cannot be said for some of the other characters and relationships... The poly relationship developed by the end of the book just didn't feel right? Triz hardly had any interactions with Nan, and it almost seemed a bit like everyone had forgotten about her? I think this might be an issue with the length of the book, and I truly believe it would have benefited from being around 100 pages longer. Also, the focus on familial relationships, especially with Quelian, Casne's father, was nice to see.
A further issue is the pacing of the book (which again I think is caused by the length of it). I felt that there wasn't enough time focused actually on "main" plot point, and all of the action scenes seemed to be over very quickly, resulting in me just left wanting a little bit more. I also think the novella would have benefited from a bit more explanation of some aspects of the book, such as Triz's reasoning for disliking bodymods (why??) and the backstory of the villain (why are they the way the are? - currently it seems like they're just there for plot reasons).
Finally, the glossary at the end of the book was completely necessary and cleared up a lot of previous questions I had surrounding the new sci-fi world and some of the mechanisms. I just wish it would have been at the beginning of the book (or even mentioned at the beginning, so I knew it existed!)
Overall this book was a super quick & fun read, which I would recommend to all sci-fi fans, especially those who are dreaming of a bit more LGBTQIA+ rep (that's never found in popular sci-fi books unfortunately).
CAWPILE: 6.86 / 10
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Local star is a polyamorous space opera which follows Triz, a guttergirl (spaceship handywoman), her friend Casne and her ex Kalo. When Casne is accused of war crimes, Triz with the help of her ex, Kalo, must do everything she can in an attempt to save her, whilst also saving their Hab which comes under attack from the notorious Cyberbionautic Alliance (ceebees).
I picked this book up because it had polyamorous rep -which honestly is not something you see in books often. I loved how it normalised triads and quadfamilies (a family unit based around a four-person platonic, romantic and/or sexual relationship) as the norm, and it was super refreshing to see how poly relationships can also work in a platonic sense! Further, I adored how non-binary and neopronouns were normalised. For example there's a character which uses E (Spivak) pronouns and one of Casne's parents is referred to as the gender neutral Damu. Overall, fantastic LGBTQIA+ rep.
I really enjoyed the development of the relationship between Triz and Kalo, I really thought you got a sense of who Kalo was, even in such a short time frame! However, the same cannot be said for some of the other characters and relationships... The poly relationship developed by the end of the book just didn't feel right? Triz hardly had any interactions with Nan, and it almost seemed a bit like everyone had forgotten about her? I think this might be an issue with the length of the book, and I truly believe it would have benefited from being around 100 pages longer. Also, the focus on familial relationships, especially with Quelian, Casne's father, was nice to see.
A further issue is the pacing of the book (which again I think is caused by the length of it). I felt that there wasn't enough time focused actually on "main" plot point, and all of the action scenes seemed to be over very quickly, resulting in me just left wanting a little bit more. I also think the novella would have benefited from a bit more explanation of some aspects of the book, such as Triz's reasoning for disliking bodymods (why??) and the backstory of the villain (why are they the way the are? - currently it seems like they're just there for plot reasons).
Finally, the glossary at the end of the book was completely necessary and cleared up a lot of previous questions I had surrounding the new sci-fi world and some of the mechanisms. I just wish it would have been at the beginning of the book (or even mentioned at the beginning, so I knew it existed!)
Overall this book was a super quick & fun read, which I would recommend to all sci-fi fans, especially those who are dreaming of a bit more LGBTQIA+ rep (that's never found in popular sci-fi books unfortunately).
CAWPILE: 6.86 / 10
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August 5, 2021
3.75 stars. It started out slow, I wasn’t sure I liked the main character, but then the pace picked up and there were some truly beautiful lines. I’m not sure I understand what went wrong with Kalo and Triz or what the problem was or then how they fixed it, but it was obvious they would. The intrigue was good and the conflict surrounding the CeeBees and body mods in general was interesting and given just enough depth.
April 16, 2021
I liked the concept of this novella and I enjoyed all the characters. I loved how practically every character is queer and polyamory is completely normalized in this world. Unfortunately, this novella kind of dragged for me because it’s so jargon-heavy without much in-story explanation, and I was constantly confused about what things were (though that might just be me, as I don’t read much sci-fi). While there is a glossary at the end of the book, I think that my rating would have been higher if it had been a novel in which the world was explained more in-depth (or at least, if we’d had more time to get used to the world). You’ll probably enjoy this one if you’re looking for a quick read and you’re a fan of sci-fi and queer books.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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September 7, 2021There is the start of a fun story here, but I think the length was too short to fully capture all of the elements the author was trying to include - family relationships, romantic relationships, an investigation, and some action sequences, plus all the world building. There was so much going on that no single aspect got the attention it needed, so it was hard to feel as connected or deeply invested as I would have liked. I also felt that many aspects were uneven or inconsistent over the course of the story.
One of the most frustrating things, for me, was that I was really looking forward to a queer polyamorous romance, but (while it is certainly plenty queer) neither the existing relationship between Triz, Casne, and (especially) Nan, nor the previous relationship between Triz and Kalo was explored fully enough for me to understand the relationship dynamics and feel the chemistry between the characters. This is especially disappointing because I learned after finishing the book that it's meant to be inspired by Much Ado About Nothing (my favorite Shakespeare), but Triz and Kalo's relationship had none of that humor or spark, nor did Triz feel particularly Beatrice-like.
I also think in general I was expecting something a bit lighter and more humorous, and the fact that some parts did seem to be headed in that direction made the parts that were heavier (some of the family dynamics, Triz's insecurities, Triz's prejudices around body mods) feel a bit jarring. I think it would have been possible to navigate between a lighter tone and these weightier topics, but not at this length with so much else going on. The prejudice around body mods was especially hard to swallow, because of the ableism in this attitude, which I didn't feel was sufficiently examined - this aspect could have been left out, and still kept the larger discussion of the different attitudes towards tech, which was much more interesting.
The lack of commitment to being either a light adventure or a heavier story also made a lot of the plot hard to accept - there were a number of elements that I could have gone along with if I didn't have to take them seriously or if the world-building was grittier to justify them. However, what the story gave me was a generally pleasant world where many of the events felt overly dramatic and things were Very Bad as convenient to the plot, which constantly challenged my suspension of disbelief.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an eARC of this book.
One of the most frustrating things, for me, was that I was really looking forward to a queer polyamorous romance, but (while it is certainly plenty queer) neither the existing relationship between Triz, Casne, and (especially) Nan, nor the previous relationship between Triz and Kalo was explored fully enough for me to understand the relationship dynamics and feel the chemistry between the characters. This is especially disappointing because I learned after finishing the book that it's meant to be inspired by Much Ado About Nothing (my favorite Shakespeare), but Triz and Kalo's relationship had none of that humor or spark, nor did Triz feel particularly Beatrice-like.
I also think in general I was expecting something a bit lighter and more humorous, and the fact that some parts did seem to be headed in that direction made the parts that were heavier (some of the family dynamics, Triz's insecurities, Triz's prejudices around body mods) feel a bit jarring. I think it would have been possible to navigate between a lighter tone and these weightier topics, but not at this length with so much else going on. The prejudice around body mods was especially hard to swallow, because of the ableism in this attitude, which I didn't feel was sufficiently examined - this aspect could have been left out, and still kept the larger discussion of the different attitudes towards tech, which was much more interesting.
The lack of commitment to being either a light adventure or a heavier story also made a lot of the plot hard to accept - there were a number of elements that I could have gone along with if I didn't have to take them seriously or if the world-building was grittier to justify them. However, what the story gave me was a generally pleasant world where many of the events felt overly dramatic and things were Very Bad as convenient to the plot, which constantly challenged my suspension of disbelief.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an eARC of this book.
April 2, 2021
This is my first book by Aimee Ogden and it certainly won't be my last! Local Star follows Triz who, at the start of the novella, is witness to her partner being dragged off by justice officials to stand trial for war crimes, but her partner is adamant that she didn't commit these crimes. What intrigued me about this book was the fact that it's sci-fi that focusses around a polyamorous triad and, although I don't read a lot of sci-fi, I was definitely not disappointed! Triz grew up having nothing and although she was taken in by her partner's family, she still feels very much on the outside of their dynamic. She's a mechanic on the hub that she calls home and I loved how much detail was shown about her work. The interpersonal relationships were also done really well, between Triz and her partner Casne, Triz and her ex Kalo, Triz and Casne's family, and all the side characters, too! For being such a short book, so much was packed into the 170-odd pages and it really felt like the perfect length! I also adored how normal polyamorous relationships and families, as well as the frequent use of neopronouns, are in this book - it was such a joy to read!
My only reason for taking a star off the rating is that I felt, particularly at the start but also throughout the entire book, that I was missing so much background information. Although I said that the book is the perfect length, I wouldn't have been mad if there was more explanation of the 'jargon' used throughout. Though there is a glossary of sorts at the end of the book that explains these words, I read the book on my Kindle and really was not aware of it being there until I had finished, so I would have much preferred that the information be developed throughout the prose. All in all, though, I highly recommend this novella!
Thanks to Netgalley and Interstellar Flight Press for an eARC in return for an honest review!
My only reason for taking a star off the rating is that I felt, particularly at the start but also throughout the entire book, that I was missing so much background information. Although I said that the book is the perfect length, I wouldn't have been mad if there was more explanation of the 'jargon' used throughout. Though there is a glossary of sorts at the end of the book that explains these words, I read the book on my Kindle and really was not aware of it being there until I had finished, so I would have much preferred that the information be developed throughout the prose. All in all, though, I highly recommend this novella!
Thanks to Netgalley and Interstellar Flight Press for an eARC in return for an honest review!
March 11, 2021
Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
I loved this little space opera novella so much!! Triz is a guttergirl who lives in the wrenchworks. When her partner, Casne, comes back from a victorious battle, she thinks things are looking up. Then invaders attack the hub and Casne is framed for committing treason. Triz doesn't know what to do and the only person willing to help her is Kalo, her ex.
This was so much freaking fun! I enjoyed every second of this book. The normalized polyamory made me so happy. I want my own triad or quadfamily to just have giant group hugs all the time. Once the action starts going it doesn't start with this book. Full of thrills and cute ships, I highly recommend this book!
I loved this little space opera novella so much!! Triz is a guttergirl who lives in the wrenchworks. When her partner, Casne, comes back from a victorious battle, she thinks things are looking up. Then invaders attack the hub and Casne is framed for committing treason. Triz doesn't know what to do and the only person willing to help her is Kalo, her ex.
This was so much freaking fun! I enjoyed every second of this book. The normalized polyamory made me so happy. I want my own triad or quadfamily to just have giant group hugs all the time. Once the action starts going it doesn't start with this book. Full of thrills and cute ships, I highly recommend this book!
August 27, 2021
That’s in exchange of an honest review that I received an ARC of "Local Star" by Aimee Ogden from Interstellar Flight Press (via NetGalley).
So, here it is !!!
My rating : 1⭐️
Despite me not being into YA, I chose to give a try to "Local Star" because, from time to time, I like a good space opera story (I'm quite found of Star Trek and other series like that) … I also love to discover new(-to-me) authors and I love diversity in the rainbow spectrum...
Since "Local Star" has been tagged on Netgalley as a LGBTQIA book & was supposedly a polyamorous space opera with a fast-paced, action-packed adventure, it should have done the trick. But nope !!!
Yeah, in the book the story itself moves pretty fast but the so-called space opera (I still wonder why was it labeled like this …) has nothing really original — it’s the really basic sci-fi plot of" wrongly accused, the enemy really did it" sort of thing — & there was a lot of basic generic sci-fi stuff — talks of ships and hub systems,.etc — as a matter of fact, therewas to much of it given the shortness of the book which appeared to be longer than it really was because of the long glossary provided at the end …
I really wanted to love this book, but for,sure it wasn’t a book for me. TBH, I had to force myself to read (sometimes it was just a page at a time) & I even had to begin the story several times … And when it comes to the polyamorous relationship … dont get me wrong, it was great to have a bi/pan/omni/poly... MC but, in addition to the NON-connection I felt between the characters, this story could have easily been read as straight basic sci-fi. And I have ENOUGH of that on TV !!! When I pick up a LGBTQIA book, I want to actually read about LGBTQIA realationships … Seriously, I felt relieved to be done with the book ‘cause even the tiniest details pissed me off.
OK, I could go on and on, and on but the review could be longer than the book itself & I don’t have any more time to waste on this …
If I had to make a very short and quite different version of my review, it’d be something like this :
- Did I enjoy this book? => Nope
- Did I find the characters believable? => Nope
- Is this book now included in my "must be re-read"-list? => Nope
- Will I purchase the paperback? => Nope
- Would I read another book by this author? => I don’t think so …
- Would I recommend this book => Nope
So, here it is !!!
My rating : 1⭐️
Despite me not being into YA, I chose to give a try to "Local Star" because, from time to time, I like a good space opera story (I'm quite found of Star Trek and other series like that) … I also love to discover new(-to-me) authors and I love diversity in the rainbow spectrum...
Since "Local Star" has been tagged on Netgalley as a LGBTQIA book & was supposedly a polyamorous space opera with a fast-paced, action-packed adventure, it should have done the trick. But nope !!!
Yeah, in the book the story itself moves pretty fast but the so-called space opera (I still wonder why was it labeled like this …) has nothing really original — it’s the really basic sci-fi plot of" wrongly accused, the enemy really did it" sort of thing — & there was a lot of basic generic sci-fi stuff — talks of ships and hub systems,.etc — as a matter of fact, therewas to much of it given the shortness of the book which appeared to be longer than it really was because of the long glossary provided at the end …
I really wanted to love this book, but for,sure it wasn’t a book for me. TBH, I had to force myself to read (sometimes it was just a page at a time) & I even had to begin the story several times … And when it comes to the polyamorous relationship … dont get me wrong, it was great to have a bi/pan/omni/poly... MC but, in addition to the NON-connection I felt between the characters, this story could have easily been read as straight basic sci-fi. And I have ENOUGH of that on TV !!! When I pick up a LGBTQIA book, I want to actually read about LGBTQIA realationships … Seriously, I felt relieved to be done with the book ‘cause even the tiniest details pissed me off.
OK, I could go on and on, and on but the review could be longer than the book itself & I don’t have any more time to waste on this …
If I had to make a very short and quite different version of my review, it’d be something like this :
- Did I enjoy this book? => Nope
- Did I find the characters believable? => Nope
- Is this book now included in my "must be re-read"-list? => Nope
- Will I purchase the paperback? => Nope
- Would I read another book by this author? => I don’t think so …
- Would I recommend this book => Nope
April 2, 2021
Using the phrase “polyamorous space opera” and hinting at cyborg-adjacent stuff in the synopsis may as well be a magic phrase to summon me instantly. Local Star by Aimee Ogden gives us a familiar plot with a few fresh takes, particularly the diversity, and as a fan of queer space opera, it was like a well-done comfort meal: not particularly surprising, but still incredibly delicious.
This novella follows mechanic Triz, whose partner Casne comes back from the space battlefront as a war hero; almost immediately, local officials detain her for an alleged treasonous act in said war. The only person who takes Triz’s worry about this turn of events seriously is a pilot named Kalo—who is, of course, both Triz’s ex and a metamour of Casne.
There’s action aplenty, there’s great character banter, and the story progresses at a steady and appropriate pace. As a fan of sci-fi, this novella was such a treat, and I appreciated the blend of plot and character driving forces. There are some larger questions about transhumanism tackled at points, particularly in regards to Triz’s prejudice against augmented humans that make up the opposing force in the war.
Other reviewers have mentioned this novella not being ‘queer enough’, to which I wonder if I received the wrong eARC file by mistake. Triz is bi/pan/mspec, as is her female partner Casne—the novella starts by establishing Triz and Casne’s relationship. Casne also has a wife named Nantha who is transgender. And of course, Kalo has been involved with both Triz and Casne. While it’s true that a large bulk of the plot involves Triz and Kalo working together to navigate the challenges they face within the novella, I feel it’s blatant misrepresentation (and bi erasure) to say this novella isn’t queer because one M/F relationship gets a lot of attention; this is especially true since the polyamorous nature of the relationship structures within this novella are referenced multiple times and provide context for character arcs within.
Overall, Local Star was a highly entertaining queer space opera treat. This was totally my brand and I finished it in one delightful setting. Between this and Aimee Ogden’s other novella, Sun-Daughters, Sea-Daughters, she has become one of my authors to watch out for.
Thank you to Interstellar Flight Press and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
This novella follows mechanic Triz, whose partner Casne comes back from the space battlefront as a war hero; almost immediately, local officials detain her for an alleged treasonous act in said war. The only person who takes Triz’s worry about this turn of events seriously is a pilot named Kalo—who is, of course, both Triz’s ex and a metamour of Casne.
There’s action aplenty, there’s great character banter, and the story progresses at a steady and appropriate pace. As a fan of sci-fi, this novella was such a treat, and I appreciated the blend of plot and character driving forces. There are some larger questions about transhumanism tackled at points, particularly in regards to Triz’s prejudice against augmented humans that make up the opposing force in the war.
Other reviewers have mentioned this novella not being ‘queer enough’, to which I wonder if I received the wrong eARC file by mistake. Triz is bi/pan/mspec, as is her female partner Casne—the novella starts by establishing Triz and Casne’s relationship. Casne also has a wife named Nantha who is transgender. And of course, Kalo has been involved with both Triz and Casne. While it’s true that a large bulk of the plot involves Triz and Kalo working together to navigate the challenges they face within the novella, I feel it’s blatant misrepresentation (and bi erasure) to say this novella isn’t queer because one M/F relationship gets a lot of attention; this is especially true since the polyamorous nature of the relationship structures within this novella are referenced multiple times and provide context for character arcs within.
Overall, Local Star was a highly entertaining queer space opera treat. This was totally my brand and I finished it in one delightful setting. Between this and Aimee Ogden’s other novella, Sun-Daughters, Sea-Daughters, she has become one of my authors to watch out for.
Thank you to Interstellar Flight Press and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
April 10, 2021
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway by the publisher.
Probably more like 3.5 stars? Rounded up.
Local Star is a fun sci fi action/romance novella that I just generally enjoyed reading. The action and plot is fast-paced and entertaining and the world-building is impressively vast and interesting. I feel that the middle part got to be a bit rough to get through - not a lot happening, lots of repetition of how (understandably, but still redundantly) upset Triz is about her partner, Casne, being accused of a horrendous war crime and trying to think of ways to prove her innocence - but the start got my attention, and the ending was snappy and well-paced as the story reached the climax.
It was also nice to get to read a novella with queer polyamorous representation, and I loved that the metamours had their own bonding and closeness. I am not polyamorous myself so I don't want to speak as an authority, but one thing that did bother me was this idea that Triz needed her own partner to bring into a quad? At first I thought that this was a result of her own insecurity and unhealthy self-esteem and would be challenged more, but...ultimately it didn't feel as contested as I had hoped? I did really enjoy Triz's interactions and dynamics with Casne's quadfamily and the struggle for her to feel a part of the family, too, despite loving Casne and her quadparents.
I did also wish Nantha, Casne's wife, had more of a presence in the story. She's mentioned several times but only appears once and seems almost forgotten at times? Triz feels guilt over forgetting her at certain points, too, but ultimately I really felt her absence.
Obviously, I had my few complaints, but I also did really enjoy this novella. It's fun, I enjoyed the character dynamics and sense of found family (for Triz), and the world-building was interesting and well-done. I'd certainly recommend this novella if you're looking for a quick and fun sci fi action/romance read with a queer polyamorous focus.
Probably more like 3.5 stars? Rounded up.
Local Star is a fun sci fi action/romance novella that I just generally enjoyed reading. The action and plot is fast-paced and entertaining and the world-building is impressively vast and interesting. I feel that the middle part got to be a bit rough to get through - not a lot happening, lots of repetition of how (understandably, but still redundantly) upset Triz is about her partner, Casne, being accused of a horrendous war crime and trying to think of ways to prove her innocence - but the start got my attention, and the ending was snappy and well-paced as the story reached the climax.
It was also nice to get to read a novella with queer polyamorous representation, and I loved that the metamours had their own bonding and closeness. I am not polyamorous myself so I don't want to speak as an authority, but one thing that did bother me was this idea that Triz needed her own partner to bring into a quad? At first I thought that this was a result of her own insecurity and unhealthy self-esteem and would be challenged more, but...ultimately it didn't feel as contested as I had hoped? I did really enjoy Triz's interactions and dynamics with Casne's quadfamily and the struggle for her to feel a part of the family, too, despite loving Casne and her quadparents.
I did also wish Nantha, Casne's wife, had more of a presence in the story. She's mentioned several times but only appears once and seems almost forgotten at times? Triz feels guilt over forgetting her at certain points, too, but ultimately I really felt her absence.
Obviously, I had my few complaints, but I also did really enjoy this novella. It's fun, I enjoyed the character dynamics and sense of found family (for Triz), and the world-building was interesting and well-done. I'd certainly recommend this novella if you're looking for a quick and fun sci fi action/romance read with a queer polyamorous focus.
March 22, 2021
3.5 stars - rounded up for casual queernormativity AND the normalization of polyamory in a functional, practical, and totally believable way.
I feel like we didn't get quite enough of the events surrounding our main plot. It felt kind of like a bigger problem appeared out of nowhere that just happened to align with what our characters were already doing. I also wanted quite a bit more of Triz confronting her anti-mod prejudice - it comes up like twice with Triz getting shot down for it but not really internalizing why her prejudice is wrong.
It felt like we were supposed to get a novel but a lot of the extra weight was stripped away. That being said, I would 100% read that novel, returning to this world and these characters and even this conflict. I felt like we ended a chapter rather than the whole book. Though I guess that is often the problem with novellas.
Basically: badass queer military scifi novella where the main character isn't actually in the military and isn't secretly an amazing fighter - instead using ingenuity, the experiences of her sordid past, and an unlikely ally to save the day. Without compromising her character for the sake of heroics.
{Thank you Storygram Tours and Interstellar Flight Press for the complementary copy; all thoughts are my own}
I feel like we didn't get quite enough of the events surrounding our main plot. It felt kind of like a bigger problem appeared out of nowhere that just happened to align with what our characters were already doing. I also wanted quite a bit more of Triz confronting her anti-mod prejudice - it comes up like twice with Triz getting shot down for it but not really internalizing why her prejudice is wrong.
It felt like we were supposed to get a novel but a lot of the extra weight was stripped away. That being said, I would 100% read that novel, returning to this world and these characters and even this conflict. I felt like we ended a chapter rather than the whole book. Though I guess that is often the problem with novellas.
Basically: badass queer military scifi novella where the main character isn't actually in the military and isn't secretly an amazing fighter - instead using ingenuity, the experiences of her sordid past, and an unlikely ally to save the day. Without compromising her character for the sake of heroics.
{Thank you Storygram Tours and Interstellar Flight Press for the complementary copy; all thoughts are my own}
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March 24, 2021I wish I would have liked this one much more than I did. In the end, it didn't work for me.
I found that either the scope or the tone wasn't attuned to my liking. The first chapters envisioned a novel in which there was a lot to unravel (extended family relationships anxiety in polyamory partnerships, space opera setting, a breakup and the echoes of the earthquake it provided, a great cast of diverse characters, some class struggles), but Aimee Ogden decided to tunnel vision to a love triangle, which... seemed not polyam? enough?
The thing that didn't work for me about the queer polyamory love triangle was the lack of chemistry between an ex-pair. Triz and Kalo needed a little bit more of banter, or a little bit more of development, to find what was happening to them more credible. Instead, we get some tropey adventure-space opera situations, whose tone I didn't buy (why on earth if 'shitting stars' is the favorite curse, is Aimee Ogden being so pulcrous about saying that the MCs are covered in shit?), a blackmail situation that seems resolved just because... And some class-struggles that were just pinpointed as unpleasant and bad, without any pride whatsoever (it's clear that the MC is beyond relief not to be a gutter girl anymore).
I had lots of expectations to see Aimee Ogden's work in a longer form (I've liked some of her short stories), but in the end, Local Star didn't work for me. The only thing I did get is that extended family in polyamory relationships must be beyond stressful, but beyond that, I found very difficult to commit myself to the characters, the plot, the scope and the tone of this little novel.
Thanks to NetGalley and Interstellar Flight Press for providing me an eARC of this book
I found that either the scope or the tone wasn't attuned to my liking. The first chapters envisioned a novel in which there was a lot to unravel (extended family relationships anxiety in polyamory partnerships, space opera setting, a breakup and the echoes of the earthquake it provided, a great cast of diverse characters, some class struggles), but Aimee Ogden decided to tunnel vision to a love triangle, which... seemed not polyam? enough?
The thing that didn't work for me about the queer polyamory love triangle was the lack of chemistry between an ex-pair. Triz and Kalo needed a little bit more of banter, or a little bit more of development, to find what was happening to them more credible. Instead, we get some tropey adventure-space opera situations, whose tone I didn't buy (why on earth if 'shitting stars' is the favorite curse, is Aimee Ogden being so pulcrous about saying that the MCs are covered in shit?), a blackmail situation that seems resolved just because... And some class-struggles that were just pinpointed as unpleasant and bad, without any pride whatsoever (it's clear that the MC is beyond relief not to be a gutter girl anymore).
I had lots of expectations to see Aimee Ogden's work in a longer form (I've liked some of her short stories), but in the end, Local Star didn't work for me. The only thing I did get is that extended family in polyamory relationships must be beyond stressful, but beyond that, I found very difficult to commit myself to the characters, the plot, the scope and the tone of this little novel.
Thanks to NetGalley and Interstellar Flight Press for providing me an eARC of this book
November 23, 2020
Thank you Netgalley and Interstellar Flight Press for an ARC of this book!
Local star is a fast-paced space opera / romantic comedy with a lot of action and a strong worldbuilding.
In this book we are very quickly introduced to a complex universe with its own history, rules and traditions. In my opinion, the worldbuildingis too fast and aggressive. We are so quickly introduced to so many unknown words and concepts that it is easy to get lost in them in the first few pages. In my case, it took me a couple of chapters to feel completely submerged in this world. Nevertheless, I do think that was the author’s intent, the first two chapters introduce us to this world and characters and by the end of the second chapter the main plot begins.
One thing I found interesting about this book is how the main character, Triz, is not a pilot, a general or a Fleet officer but a handywoman who fixes spaceships and is also an orphan. That is also quite uncommon in books, specially in science fiction books where we’re used to the story being told from the perspective of those who are in the highest spheres or live the most adventurous lives.
In Local Star we see this world through Triz’s eyes and we get to visit places and emotions that we would usually overlook, like the wrenchworks where Triz works and the feelings of not belonging or not feeling good enough. If Local Star was Star Wars, Triz would be the person who repairs Luke Skywalker’s spaceship and who, for some reason, ends up being caught in the middle of all the action but was never supposed to be there.
Another interesting thing about this book is the concept of quadfamily “a family unit based around a four-person platonic, romantic and / or sexual relationship”. It is very refreshing to find that in this fictional world there are plenty of options for those who want to start a family. Families are comprised of two or more people and they can be female, male or genderless. In the case of Casne’s quadparents; she has two fathers, a mother and a genderless parent that is referred to as “Damu”, a nickname for nonbinary parents.
Additionally, in this novella we don’t only get polyamory relationships, we also get genderless characters with their genderless pronouns (e, eir, em), which I don’t usually find in speculative fiction that often.
Local Star explores polyamory as a natural way of mating and forming families and it introduces genderless / non-binary characters without further explanation. That is what I loved about the book! It is a space opera that makes space for LGBTQ people.
The main characters in this book are Triz, Casne and Kalo.I think that just a few pages in we already have a sense of who Triz is what her motivations are. The same thing happens with Kalo, we get to know him and understand him and who he is. However, in my opinion, we don’t really get to know the rest of the characters as much as we know these two. For example with Casne, we know little about her besides from what happens to her in the book, and I don’t really think we get a sense of what she is actually like and what she wants, other than what concerns her relationships.
The same thing happens with our villainof the story, Rocan. I thought he was an interesting character and I was curious to learn more about him. However, I don’t really think I knew him well by the end of the book.
Another characters that has a lot of importance in the book is Quelian. Quelian is Casne’s father but he is also the person who adopts Triz and gives her a home. He is also Triz’s boss and because of her relationship with Casne, he is also her father-in law. The dynamic between Triz and Quelian felt slightly weird to me because she thinks of him as her father, her boss and her love-interest’s father.
I think for this book, I didn’t really need to know all the characters as much as I knew Triz and Kalo, because in the end they’re the ones driving the story. Nevertheless, I would have liked to know more about Casne and Rocan and about the Ceebees; who they are, how they came to be and what is their ultimate purpose.
We are introduced to the Ceebees through the galactic war between the Fleet and them (the Ceebees or members of the Cyberbionautic Alliance), but we don’t really get to know that much about them. In my opinion, the Ceebees represent more of a philosophical problem or question than an actual villain.
Yes, they are the antagonists of the novella, but I think their role in the story is to make us question things. There’s a moment in the book when certain things about body modification are revealed to Triz, and the reader, as well as her, is left wondering “what makes the Ceebees less than human? Is it really their modifications or is it perhaps their lack of humanity?” For this reason, I believe the Ceebees are just a way of introducing the question of “what really makes us human?”. But perhaps I’m just reading too much into this and Ceebees are just cruel villains that want humanity to be destroyed and have nothing in common with humans at all.
Overall I really enjoyed reading this book, it only took me a couple of days to read it and now I feel like Triz and Kalo are two old friends who I love and miss. It is because of that reason that I would have liked for the book to be longer, if it was longer and more slow-paced we could have got to know more about the characters and their motivations and the plot would have felt less rushed. Moreover, I would have enjoyed the story more if all the new terms and concepts were introduced in-text and not only in the glossary. I really enjoy books with invented imaginative concepts and I love a good glossary, but this felt too long for a novella.
However, I really enjoyed how worldbuilding is explored through expressions and idioms. In the book we often see the characters saying things like “shitting stars” or “Gods of Issam”, which are concepts unique to this world.
I loved this complex universe created by Aimee Ogden and I think I would enjoy it even more if this book was the first one in a saga. This way, it would have served as an introduction to the world, and in the following books in the series we would get more character development and more sub-plots.
I will definitely say that if there is a second book, I want the pirates to feature! They are mentioned a couple of times but we never get any action from them, and who doesn’t love space pirates?
Finally I have to add that somehow, I believe this book makes more sense as a romantic-comedy than it does as a space opera. I don’t mean I didn’t enjoy all the complex space elements and worldbuilding, but I think in the end the book is character-driven and it is mainly a love story between Triz, Casne and Kalo.
3’5/5
Rep: LG(B)T - Main characters (heteronormativity doesn’t exist in this book and therefore I will assume all characters are bisexual/pansexual) / non-binary secondary characters / polyamory.
Local star is a fast-paced space opera / romantic comedy with a lot of action and a strong worldbuilding.
In this book we are very quickly introduced to a complex universe with its own history, rules and traditions. In my opinion, the worldbuildingis too fast and aggressive. We are so quickly introduced to so many unknown words and concepts that it is easy to get lost in them in the first few pages. In my case, it took me a couple of chapters to feel completely submerged in this world. Nevertheless, I do think that was the author’s intent, the first two chapters introduce us to this world and characters and by the end of the second chapter the main plot begins.
One thing I found interesting about this book is how the main character, Triz, is not a pilot, a general or a Fleet officer but a handywoman who fixes spaceships and is also an orphan. That is also quite uncommon in books, specially in science fiction books where we’re used to the story being told from the perspective of those who are in the highest spheres or live the most adventurous lives.
In Local Star we see this world through Triz’s eyes and we get to visit places and emotions that we would usually overlook, like the wrenchworks where Triz works and the feelings of not belonging or not feeling good enough. If Local Star was Star Wars, Triz would be the person who repairs Luke Skywalker’s spaceship and who, for some reason, ends up being caught in the middle of all the action but was never supposed to be there.
Another interesting thing about this book is the concept of quadfamily “a family unit based around a four-person platonic, romantic and / or sexual relationship”. It is very refreshing to find that in this fictional world there are plenty of options for those who want to start a family. Families are comprised of two or more people and they can be female, male or genderless. In the case of Casne’s quadparents; she has two fathers, a mother and a genderless parent that is referred to as “Damu”, a nickname for nonbinary parents.
Additionally, in this novella we don’t only get polyamory relationships, we also get genderless characters with their genderless pronouns (e, eir, em), which I don’t usually find in speculative fiction that often.
Local Star explores polyamory as a natural way of mating and forming families and it introduces genderless / non-binary characters without further explanation. That is what I loved about the book! It is a space opera that makes space for LGBTQ people.
The main characters in this book are Triz, Casne and Kalo.I think that just a few pages in we already have a sense of who Triz is what her motivations are. The same thing happens with Kalo, we get to know him and understand him and who he is. However, in my opinion, we don’t really get to know the rest of the characters as much as we know these two. For example with Casne, we know little about her besides from what happens to her in the book, and I don’t really think we get a sense of what she is actually like and what she wants, other than what concerns her relationships.
The same thing happens with our villainof the story, Rocan. I thought he was an interesting character and I was curious to learn more about him. However, I don’t really think I knew him well by the end of the book.
Another characters that has a lot of importance in the book is Quelian. Quelian is Casne’s father but he is also the person who adopts Triz and gives her a home. He is also Triz’s boss and because of her relationship with Casne, he is also her father-in law. The dynamic between Triz and Quelian felt slightly weird to me because she thinks of him as her father, her boss and her love-interest’s father.
I think for this book, I didn’t really need to know all the characters as much as I knew Triz and Kalo, because in the end they’re the ones driving the story. Nevertheless, I would have liked to know more about Casne and Rocan and about the Ceebees; who they are, how they came to be and what is their ultimate purpose.
We are introduced to the Ceebees through the galactic war between the Fleet and them (the Ceebees or members of the Cyberbionautic Alliance), but we don’t really get to know that much about them. In my opinion, the Ceebees represent more of a philosophical problem or question than an actual villain.
Yes, they are the antagonists of the novella, but I think their role in the story is to make us question things. There’s a moment in the book when certain things about body modification are revealed to Triz, and the reader, as well as her, is left wondering “what makes the Ceebees less than human? Is it really their modifications or is it perhaps their lack of humanity?” For this reason, I believe the Ceebees are just a way of introducing the question of “what really makes us human?”. But perhaps I’m just reading too much into this and Ceebees are just cruel villains that want humanity to be destroyed and have nothing in common with humans at all.
Overall I really enjoyed reading this book, it only took me a couple of days to read it and now I feel like Triz and Kalo are two old friends who I love and miss. It is because of that reason that I would have liked for the book to be longer, if it was longer and more slow-paced we could have got to know more about the characters and their motivations and the plot would have felt less rushed. Moreover, I would have enjoyed the story more if all the new terms and concepts were introduced in-text and not only in the glossary. I really enjoy books with invented imaginative concepts and I love a good glossary, but this felt too long for a novella.
However, I really enjoyed how worldbuilding is explored through expressions and idioms. In the book we often see the characters saying things like “shitting stars” or “Gods of Issam”, which are concepts unique to this world.
I loved this complex universe created by Aimee Ogden and I think I would enjoy it even more if this book was the first one in a saga. This way, it would have served as an introduction to the world, and in the following books in the series we would get more character development and more sub-plots.
I will definitely say that if there is a second book, I want the pirates to feature! They are mentioned a couple of times but we never get any action from them, and who doesn’t love space pirates?
Finally I have to add that somehow, I believe this book makes more sense as a romantic-comedy than it does as a space opera. I don’t mean I didn’t enjoy all the complex space elements and worldbuilding, but I think in the end the book is character-driven and it is mainly a love story between Triz, Casne and Kalo.
3’5/5
Rep: LG(B)T - Main characters (heteronormativity doesn’t exist in this book and therefore I will assume all characters are bisexual/pansexual) / non-binary secondary characters / polyamory.
March 7, 2021
Local Star by Aimee Ogden is a wonderful space opera Sci-Fi novel published by Interstellar Flight Press (thank you to them and NetGalley for the ARC!) with gallons of intrigue, sci-fi antics and queerness. The representation is just as fantastic as the fast-paced and joyfully convoluted narrative.
The story primarily follows Triz who is a guttergirl (read: a space-mechanic, of sorts) as she is swept into a scandalous and highly volatile plot. She has a girlfriend named Casne and rekindles her relationship with ex-boyfriend Kalo (who is the most interesting character, in my opinion, and is very fleshed out as the novel progresses), with the three of them forming a polyamorous triad.
Ogden wonderfully explores how polyamorous family units operate through the use of supporting characters and background details, normalising this entirely in a Sci-fi setting. The concepts of quad-families and platonic families are explored in such a great and casual way.
My only complaint with this novel was the depth of the world-building with very little time for the reader to adjust or really learn what anything meant before being given yet more information. The first chapters especially were a little hard to get into due to this and I felt like I had to keep flicking back a few pages as to know what was happening or who was where.
Ultimately, if you love space operas, drama, crime and queer families then this is the perfect book for you!
The story primarily follows Triz who is a guttergirl (read: a space-mechanic, of sorts) as she is swept into a scandalous and highly volatile plot. She has a girlfriend named Casne and rekindles her relationship with ex-boyfriend Kalo (who is the most interesting character, in my opinion, and is very fleshed out as the novel progresses), with the three of them forming a polyamorous triad.
Ogden wonderfully explores how polyamorous family units operate through the use of supporting characters and background details, normalising this entirely in a Sci-fi setting. The concepts of quad-families and platonic families are explored in such a great and casual way.
My only complaint with this novel was the depth of the world-building with very little time for the reader to adjust or really learn what anything meant before being given yet more information. The first chapters especially were a little hard to get into due to this and I felt like I had to keep flicking back a few pages as to know what was happening or who was where.
Ultimately, if you love space operas, drama, crime and queer families then this is the perfect book for you!
July 11, 2021
Disclaimer: This review is based on a review copy given to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
The Confederated Fleet has returned victorious from war, and all Triz wants is to join in the celebration—and especially to spend time with her war hero girlfriend, Casne. What Triz definitely does not want is to be stuck working late in the wrenchworks repairing her ex-boyfriend’s fighter craft—her ex-boyfriend Kalo, who is also a war hero and cocky as hell. But when Triz finally does get away for the celebration, the party is cut short when her girlfriend Casne is framed for a war crime. Now Triz has to team up with Kalo to clear her girlfriend’s name, uncover a conspiracy, and fight off a threat to the space habitat itself. Oh, and along the way she’ll also confront her past and insecurities, and perhaps resolve and rekindle some feelings for her ex. . .
Sometimes, author Aimee Ogden writes in the Acknowledgements section of this book, you just want a “big queer happy space romp.” And that’s exactly what Odgen delivers in Local Star, a fast-paced space adventure novella. Once the action kicks in it never flags, as Triz and Kalo race to save both Casne and their home. Along the way is plenty of banter, sparks, romance, and feels. The main romance is between Triz and Casne and Triz and Kalo (and other relationships are referenced or hinted at). Local Star is set in a future world where polyamorous family groupings are a norm; Triz’s girlfriend Casne was brought up by a parent group of four, and wants to bring Triz into a formal quad group with Casne herself, Casne’s wife Nantha, and a fourth person. A fourth person who, Casne once hoped, might be Kalo himself.
The world-building of Local Star is one of the most impressive aspects of the book. Within the slim space of a novella, Ogden creates a world that feels lived in, that feels real. The space habitat is finely described—from the living quarters to the Arcade with its restaurant and shops and bars; from the top level with its offices of Justice to the bottoms levels where the wrenchworks and recycling areas are. References to the wider war and world give a sense of depth to the world Ogden’s created. Triz and her friends are fighting a war against the “Ceebees”—The Cyberbionautic Alliance, a group of modified humans who are forcibly terraforming other planets for their use, regardless of what the original inhabitants of a planet might feel. I love the references to future biotechnology (“biopunk”) in this book. I also love the way the story encompasses both technological and social world-building/change. Triz’s world is a complicated one, with some similarities to our own, but with a social structure and culture that is also different.
For the most part, Local Star is a fun and breezy read; we’re never in any real doubt that Casne is innocent of the charges against her, or that Triz and Kalo will find a way to save the day. Nevertheless, there are still fun twists and turns, and there is some real emotional poignancy here, too—particularly in the dynamics between Casne and one of her fathers, and Triz’s role as a surrogate daughter of sorts for Casne’s parents. If you’re looking for a fun, sexy space romp—for, as Ogden herself calls it, “a big queer happy space romp,” this is definitely it.
The Confederated Fleet has returned victorious from war, and all Triz wants is to join in the celebration—and especially to spend time with her war hero girlfriend, Casne. What Triz definitely does not want is to be stuck working late in the wrenchworks repairing her ex-boyfriend’s fighter craft—her ex-boyfriend Kalo, who is also a war hero and cocky as hell. But when Triz finally does get away for the celebration, the party is cut short when her girlfriend Casne is framed for a war crime. Now Triz has to team up with Kalo to clear her girlfriend’s name, uncover a conspiracy, and fight off a threat to the space habitat itself. Oh, and along the way she’ll also confront her past and insecurities, and perhaps resolve and rekindle some feelings for her ex. . .
Sometimes, author Aimee Ogden writes in the Acknowledgements section of this book, you just want a “big queer happy space romp.” And that’s exactly what Odgen delivers in Local Star, a fast-paced space adventure novella. Once the action kicks in it never flags, as Triz and Kalo race to save both Casne and their home. Along the way is plenty of banter, sparks, romance, and feels. The main romance is between Triz and Casne and Triz and Kalo (and other relationships are referenced or hinted at). Local Star is set in a future world where polyamorous family groupings are a norm; Triz’s girlfriend Casne was brought up by a parent group of four, and wants to bring Triz into a formal quad group with Casne herself, Casne’s wife Nantha, and a fourth person. A fourth person who, Casne once hoped, might be Kalo himself.
The world-building of Local Star is one of the most impressive aspects of the book. Within the slim space of a novella, Ogden creates a world that feels lived in, that feels real. The space habitat is finely described—from the living quarters to the Arcade with its restaurant and shops and bars; from the top level with its offices of Justice to the bottoms levels where the wrenchworks and recycling areas are. References to the wider war and world give a sense of depth to the world Ogden’s created. Triz and her friends are fighting a war against the “Ceebees”—The Cyberbionautic Alliance, a group of modified humans who are forcibly terraforming other planets for their use, regardless of what the original inhabitants of a planet might feel. I love the references to future biotechnology (“biopunk”) in this book. I also love the way the story encompasses both technological and social world-building/change. Triz’s world is a complicated one, with some similarities to our own, but with a social structure and culture that is also different.
For the most part, Local Star is a fun and breezy read; we’re never in any real doubt that Casne is innocent of the charges against her, or that Triz and Kalo will find a way to save the day. Nevertheless, there are still fun twists and turns, and there is some real emotional poignancy here, too—particularly in the dynamics between Casne and one of her fathers, and Triz’s role as a surrogate daughter of sorts for Casne’s parents. If you’re looking for a fun, sexy space romp—for, as Ogden herself calls it, “a big queer happy space romp,” this is definitely it.
November 21, 2020
This book is a fantastic, fast-paced, space romp with wonderfully written queer characters. As a polyamorous person, this is the first time I've really seen that kind of representation anywhere and I felt so seen! A fun, quick read.
April 2, 2021
Thanks to Netgalley and Interstellar Flight Press for gifting me an eARC of this book!
I wish I liked this book more than I did. The beginning was quite slow and at some points, it did start to pick up but overall this book wasn't really for me.
Before going into this book, I read the synopsis and was promised a polyamorous space opera and I sort of got that? Sure there were mentions here and there but not nearly as much as I expected from a book marketed as polyamorous. I just wanted more of it.
I didn't care for the main character nor any of the side characters which made it really hard for me to be invested in the story. I'm supposed to care that this character got arrested but I didn't because I barely knew her. I wasn't convinced of any of the relationships either. The plot wasn't my favourite either. The stakes never felt high and I didn't have this sense of urgency to get Casne out.
Overall, this book was a big meh for me
I wish I liked this book more than I did. The beginning was quite slow and at some points, it did start to pick up but overall this book wasn't really for me.
Before going into this book, I read the synopsis and was promised a polyamorous space opera and I sort of got that? Sure there were mentions here and there but not nearly as much as I expected from a book marketed as polyamorous. I just wanted more of it.
I didn't care for the main character nor any of the side characters which made it really hard for me to be invested in the story. I'm supposed to care that this character got arrested but I didn't because I barely knew her. I wasn't convinced of any of the relationships either. The plot wasn't my favourite either. The stakes never felt high and I didn't have this sense of urgency to get Casne out.
Overall, this book was a big meh for me
August 5, 2021
Three of my favorite sentences in this book were:
"Good almost-morning. Good I-survived-flight-academy-and-I-still-don't-think-people-should-be-up-this-early-o'clock."
"He was half man and half precarious quantum state teetering on the edge of collapse."
And:
"There would be time to work over the engine of that relationship. And to consign it to the recycler if necessary, too."
I liked the polyamory relationships even if they weren't as fleshed out as I wished, but then multi-partner relationships is one of the aspects I consider really interesting in sci-fi and I can't read enough of it. I also liked the multi-layered characters and the flawed main characters.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
"Good almost-morning. Good I-survived-flight-academy-and-I-still-don't-think-people-should-be-up-this-early-o'clock."
"He was half man and half precarious quantum state teetering on the edge of collapse."
And:
"There would be time to work over the engine of that relationship. And to consign it to the recycler if necessary, too."
I liked the polyamory relationships even if they weren't as fleshed out as I wished, but then multi-partner relationships is one of the aspects I consider really interesting in sci-fi and I can't read enough of it. I also liked the multi-layered characters and the flawed main characters.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
February 19, 2021
Thank you NetGalley and Interstellar Flight Press for the ARC!
This was a super fun read! It felt like watching a movie but in a book - while I'm honestly not usually a movie person, this time I appreciated that. In the beginning of the book I couldn't quite figure out who was who (and what everyone's relationships to each other were) or what the structure of the society and the Hab looked like, but as I kept going I eventually figured it out (which is similar to my experience watching movies). This novella felt like it used more of a "show" than a "tell" attitude, which ended up working well once I figured everything out.
I enjoyed the adventure of it all! Although I pretty quickly figured out who was shady and who wasn't, the book still took a bunch of surprising turns and I was never bored. I also liked the casual way we got to see the different parts of the Hab, especially the scene where Triz goes to sort through her thoughts in the music-chamber. I loved the different relationships we got to see, even as we didn't necessarily spend a lot of time (in such a short book, how could we?) delving into each super deeply - Triz's relationship with Casne and Casne's quad-parents, Casne's relationship with her quad-parents, everyone's dynamic with Kalo- I felt like each had enough flesh to feel real and dynamic.
Triz's development over the course of the book, especially in her self-worth and in taking risks and being brave for the ones she loves, was a journey I enjoyed seeing. I did wish that Nantha's character was more fleshed out, and I missed her presence, whether physically or just via a call or message, in the end especially. Also because I've seen confusion in some reviews, while the MC has two established (poly) f/f relationships at the beginning of the book, the main romance we see on page is between her and her male ex, so if you're specifically not looking for m/f romance, this isn't necessarily your book, but I loved it and absolutely count it as a queer relationship/romance.
All in all, this was a fun and engaging book! I loved the queer and trans and poly normative world, and although it could also have gone deeper into this, found the framing of the use of biomods by the Ceebees vs. the Fleet as super interesting. There's definitely an analysis to be made about Ceebees not only destroying environments but also how their beliefs and society play into disability and ableism as exists in our world today - an analysis I won't make myself but am curious about. I think it's also important to note for anyone going in, especially who uses assistive/adaptive tech, that the MC's view on it in the beginning are not representative of the perspective of the book as a story or as a whole.
Final thought: can it be space opera if no one gets caught in a garbage shoot?
Note: I didn't realize there was such an extensive glossary at the end, and honestly it would be nice if ebooks especially would just have a little note in the beginning if there's a glossary at the end, or have it at the beginning, because when you're not rifling through physical pages you just won't know it's there until you've already finished the book (as I did).
This was a super fun read! It felt like watching a movie but in a book - while I'm honestly not usually a movie person, this time I appreciated that. In the beginning of the book I couldn't quite figure out who was who (and what everyone's relationships to each other were) or what the structure of the society and the Hab looked like, but as I kept going I eventually figured it out (which is similar to my experience watching movies). This novella felt like it used more of a "show" than a "tell" attitude, which ended up working well once I figured everything out.
I enjoyed the adventure of it all! Although I pretty quickly figured out who was shady and who wasn't, the book still took a bunch of surprising turns and I was never bored. I also liked the casual way we got to see the different parts of the Hab, especially the scene where Triz goes to sort through her thoughts in the music-chamber. I loved the different relationships we got to see, even as we didn't necessarily spend a lot of time (in such a short book, how could we?) delving into each super deeply - Triz's relationship with Casne and Casne's quad-parents, Casne's relationship with her quad-parents, everyone's dynamic with Kalo- I felt like each had enough flesh to feel real and dynamic.
Triz's development over the course of the book, especially in her self-worth and in taking risks and being brave for the ones she loves, was a journey I enjoyed seeing. I did wish that Nantha's character was more fleshed out, and I missed her presence, whether physically or just via a call or message, in the end especially. Also because I've seen confusion in some reviews, while the MC has two established (poly) f/f relationships at the beginning of the book, the main romance we see on page is between her and her male ex, so if you're specifically not looking for m/f romance, this isn't necessarily your book, but I loved it and absolutely count it as a queer relationship/romance.
All in all, this was a fun and engaging book! I loved the queer and trans and poly normative world, and although it could also have gone deeper into this, found the framing of the use of biomods by the Ceebees vs. the Fleet as super interesting. There's definitely an analysis to be made about Ceebees not only destroying environments but also how their beliefs and society play into disability and ableism as exists in our world today - an analysis I won't make myself but am curious about. I think it's also important to note for anyone going in, especially who uses assistive/adaptive tech, that the MC's view on it in the beginning are not representative of the perspective of the book as a story or as a whole.
Final thought: can it be space opera if no one gets caught in a garbage shoot?
Note: I didn't realize there was such an extensive glossary at the end, and honestly it would be nice if ebooks especially would just have a little note in the beginning if there's a glossary at the end, or have it at the beginning, because when you're not rifling through physical pages you just won't know it's there until you've already finished the book (as I did).
April 4, 2021
A wonderful read. The interpersonal drama matches nicely with the big conspiracy and action. The setting is well and quickly built, the characters interesting and fun, and the romantic elements are great, too.
August 8, 2021
I REALLY LIKED THIS ACTUALLY . i love novellas i love space i love polyamory...... right up my alley!!! triz was a bit annoying w her adversity to mods like lets be a little open minded luv.... but its ok she worked her shit out! also a message for kalo: i love u please be MY boyfriend instead 😚
May 12, 2021
A “big queer happy space romp”
So lovely to see polyamory and queer love and more-than-two-partner family units depicted as the norm, and of course layered on top of that is just plain fun science fiction. Wish it were a fully-fleshed novel. Left me wanting more.
So lovely to see polyamory and queer love and more-than-two-partner family units depicted as the norm, and of course layered on top of that is just plain fun science fiction. Wish it were a fully-fleshed novel. Left me wanting more.
April 11, 2021
Aimee Ogden’s novella, Local Star is many things. It is science fiction meets fantasy meets romance meets polyamory and is fairly well done. It is a relatively quick read that follows Triz Cierrond who was once a gutter girl who now works to save more than just spacecraft in their Hab. After an unsuccessful relationship with Kalo, Triz has moved on and found herself in a triad with characters Casne and Nantha who are already married. When Casne is accused of war crimes and the Hab comes under attack by the Cyberbionautic Alliance Triz (with the help of her ex, Kalo) jumps into action to save their Hab and her beloved Casne.
What I enjoyed most was the framing of the relationships in this book. That polyamorous relationships have been normalized and thrive in this environment. I think Ogden was thoughtful in her representation of the LGBTQIA community. Kudos!
The first half of the book read slower than I think necessary. It was bogged down with so much space jargon. But it picked up midway through.
Thanks to NetGalley and Interstellar Flight Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What I enjoyed most was the framing of the relationships in this book. That polyamorous relationships have been normalized and thrive in this environment. I think Ogden was thoughtful in her representation of the LGBTQIA community. Kudos!
The first half of the book read slower than I think necessary. It was bogged down with so much space jargon. But it picked up midway through.
Thanks to NetGalley and Interstellar Flight Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
March 1, 2021
ARC
I did struggle to finish this book, I only managed to get 50% in, however I believe that was my fault in terms of my current life and lack of adoration for high sci-fi's. I absolutely never wanted to DNF an ARC since the author has incredibly let me read it without cost, but I believe honest reviews are more useful than avoiding this review, or taking a year to finish when they no longer need ARC readers. However, with that being said, there are still many amazing things about this read. The world is such an interesting place in this book, and even though I am not a sci-fi fanatic, I really did enjoy imagining this universe. The character's got more intriguing as the book went on, although I did struggle to get behind the main character (I'm hoping she might have redeemed herself in the last half), and of course, one of my favourite plot points of this read was the polyamorous relationships; they were so normalised and adorable at times, however I do feel like not all people in the relationship had the same amount of love for each other (I'm trying to keep this as spoiler free as possible) and that was frustrating for me- again please remember I did not manage to finish this book.
Overall, although this was not my type of read, it had poly rep which is rare, a really fascinating premise and I'd recommend to lovers of this genre!!
I did struggle to finish this book, I only managed to get 50% in, however I believe that was my fault in terms of my current life and lack of adoration for high sci-fi's. I absolutely never wanted to DNF an ARC since the author has incredibly let me read it without cost, but I believe honest reviews are more useful than avoiding this review, or taking a year to finish when they no longer need ARC readers. However, with that being said, there are still many amazing things about this read. The world is such an interesting place in this book, and even though I am not a sci-fi fanatic, I really did enjoy imagining this universe. The character's got more intriguing as the book went on, although I did struggle to get behind the main character (I'm hoping she might have redeemed herself in the last half), and of course, one of my favourite plot points of this read was the polyamorous relationships; they were so normalised and adorable at times, however I do feel like not all people in the relationship had the same amount of love for each other (I'm trying to keep this as spoiler free as possible) and that was frustrating for me- again please remember I did not manage to finish this book.
Overall, although this was not my type of read, it had poly rep which is rare, a really fascinating premise and I'd recommend to lovers of this genre!!
April 15, 2021
Casual queerness and polyamory, Local Star was a fun quick space operaness to it with a side of romcom.
Local Star quickly throws you into a space arena with complex world building that is never fully explained. It focuses on a big problem within the universe it takes place in, but the universe is never expanded upon in the way in which I and other reviewers had hoped. It still has a lot of untapped world building potential that could be utilized for a series/duology/etc. There is also untapped plot lines like Triz and her anti-mod prejudice, as well as the Ceebees vs. The Fleet.
The poly, queer and trans rep was great! The in book universe was queernormative and polynormative, which was refreshing and amazing to see! Some have complained that it isn't queer rep because the main relationship of the book was "het". This is confusing to me, as Triz (the MC) is explicitly queer in the novel and is in 2 different f/f poly relationships. Most, if not all, of the characters are explicitly queer, and a "het" relationship with 2 queer people in it is queer rep. It's also amazing queer rep at that!
I recommend reading Local Star if you want a quick space opera that quickly throws you into a fast paced plot with casual queerness abound!
Local Star quickly throws you into a space arena with complex world building that is never fully explained. It focuses on a big problem within the universe it takes place in, but the universe is never expanded upon in the way in which I and other reviewers had hoped. It still has a lot of untapped world building potential that could be utilized for a series/duology/etc. There is also untapped plot lines like Triz and her anti-mod prejudice, as well as the Ceebees vs. The Fleet.
The poly, queer and trans rep was great! The in book universe was queernormative and polynormative, which was refreshing and amazing to see! Some have complained that it isn't queer rep because the main relationship of the book was "het". This is confusing to me, as Triz (the MC) is explicitly queer in the novel and is in 2 different f/f poly relationships. Most, if not all, of the characters are explicitly queer, and a "het" relationship with 2 queer people in it is queer rep. It's also amazing queer rep at that!
I recommend reading Local Star if you want a quick space opera that quickly throws you into a fast paced plot with casual queerness abound!
December 2, 2020
This review is based on an ARC from NetGalley
This book was an interesting queer take on the space/sci-fi genre. The protagonist is a queer mechanic girl, which is a refreshing change for this kind of story. The main strength of this story is the rich universe of different space factions, polyamorous family units, and social/political issues that were woven together to paint picture of how the people in this universe live their lives in space.
The main weak points are the characters and their interactions. The most noticeable is that the characters are barely described; by the end of the book, I don't think I would be able to tell someone what the main characters actually look like or even how old they are. This made it more difficult to picture them in my mind as I was reading. For the couple of times descriptions were provided, they were brief and happened a chapter after the character's first appearance, which is somewhat unsatisfying from a reader's perspective. The environmental and scene descriptions are much better and this is another of the story's strengths. I could picture a swarm fighter or the recycling tanks and the gooey environment there, but I didn't know how to picture the characters when they were in the tanks.
Another aspect that I found problematic is that the story doesn't allow the characters enough meaningful interactions with each other. One of the reasons I decided to read this story was because I hadn't read a polyamorous story before. It's hard to gauge the poly aspect of the story since the characters involved (Triz, Casne, Kalo, and Nantha) are never all in the same room together, and Nantha is barely in the story. Many of the interactions between the characters aren't structured in a way that carries much emotional weight, and there wasn't much in the way of relationship building between characters. This is partially aggravated by the fact that Triz doesn't seem to have great chemistry with the other characters.
I enjoy reading queer representation as much as the next person, and this book certainly has it, but the writing may not very accessible to someone who's not already familiar with polyamory or non-binary gender identities. As an example, one of the characters, Saabe, is referred to by pronouns like E, Eir, and Em. Presumably, this means their gender is nonbinary, but this isn't explained in the story, and it probably wouldn't be immediately clear to someone not familiar with non-binary identities. The only place where these pronouns are explained is at the end in the glossary. As mentioned above, the same sort of problem exists for the poly aspect of the story, which would have been improved if more space had been dedicated to showing how the poly groups in the story form together and function. People already familiar with poly and non-binary identities would likely get more from the story.
2.5 stars
This book was an interesting queer take on the space/sci-fi genre. The protagonist is a queer mechanic girl, which is a refreshing change for this kind of story. The main strength of this story is the rich universe of different space factions, polyamorous family units, and social/political issues that were woven together to paint picture of how the people in this universe live their lives in space.
The main weak points are the characters and their interactions. The most noticeable is that the characters are barely described; by the end of the book, I don't think I would be able to tell someone what the main characters actually look like or even how old they are. This made it more difficult to picture them in my mind as I was reading. For the couple of times descriptions were provided, they were brief and happened a chapter after the character's first appearance, which is somewhat unsatisfying from a reader's perspective. The environmental and scene descriptions are much better and this is another of the story's strengths. I could picture a swarm fighter or the recycling tanks and the gooey environment there, but I didn't know how to picture the characters when they were in the tanks.
Another aspect that I found problematic is that the story doesn't allow the characters enough meaningful interactions with each other. One of the reasons I decided to read this story was because I hadn't read a polyamorous story before. It's hard to gauge the poly aspect of the story since the characters involved (Triz, Casne, Kalo, and Nantha) are never all in the same room together, and Nantha is barely in the story. Many of the interactions between the characters aren't structured in a way that carries much emotional weight, and there wasn't much in the way of relationship building between characters. This is partially aggravated by the fact that Triz doesn't seem to have great chemistry with the other characters.
I enjoy reading queer representation as much as the next person, and this book certainly has it, but the writing may not very accessible to someone who's not already familiar with polyamory or non-binary gender identities. As an example, one of the characters, Saabe, is referred to by pronouns like E, Eir, and Em. Presumably, this means their gender is nonbinary, but this isn't explained in the story, and it probably wouldn't be immediately clear to someone not familiar with non-binary identities. The only place where these pronouns are explained is at the end in the glossary. As mentioned above, the same sort of problem exists for the poly aspect of the story, which would have been improved if more space had been dedicated to showing how the poly groups in the story form together and function. People already familiar with poly and non-binary identities would likely get more from the story.
2.5 stars
April 2, 2021
Content warnings:
As with most of my book choices lately, I picked this up solely based on the cover. It’s an enjoyable and quickly-paced scifi romance novella.
After a decisive win against the Cyberbionautic Alliance, Triz is excited to go party with her newly-returned-from-the-war partner Casne – after she finishes up taking a look at her fighter pilot ex’s seriously smashed up ship. It doesn’t help that Kalo seems more interested in hanging around chatting with her than joining the party. But when Casne is arrested for treason, Triz must work with Kalo to figure out who framed her – and stop them from taking over the hab.
The novella is told solely from Triz’s point of view, and a lot of it revolves around Triz feeling unworthy. She grew up in the bowels of a hab, scrounging for food scraps and bits of discarded trash to sell. She’s made a place for herself as a mechanic, and while most of Casne’s family has accepted her, she still feels separate and struggles with her self-worth. While Casne and her wife have invited her to join their gon (what the book calls their poly relationships), Triz struggles with worrying about how she’ll fit in, and she’s reluctant to join without bringing someone else to the triad. Polyamory is completely accepted in their society, and Casne herself comes from a quad poly family. Casne actually introduced Kalo, a fighter pilot, to Triz – and is still sometimes involved with him – but Triz couldn’t deal with how dangerous his job is. Her feelings for him are complicated and all tied up with feeling like she doesn’t truly belong, especially since she’s not part of the Fleet.
For such a small novella, there’s a lot going on plotwise. There’s Triz’s understandable feelings of inadequacy, exacerbated by one of Casne’s quadparents, who seems perfectly willing to believe Casne is a traitor. Plus, there’s the romance angle with navigating her feelings for Casne and Kalo. The part I didn’t think worked was a minor thread where Triz is extremely prejudiced against any type of body mods, basically assuming anyone with mods would support the (unmitigatedly awful) Cyberbionautic Alliance. I didn’t quite understand where those feelings came from or why she felt so strongly about it, though I felt her change of view was handled well. I also wish there had been more time to explore the dynamics of Triz and Kalo and then Triz, Kalo and Casne as a triad. I did love the whole clear-Casne’s-name plot, though, and the pacing was nice and snappy. It made it very easy to read this in one sitting (and then wish there was more!).
Overall, this is an action-packed read, and I really hope the author choses to revisit this setting in the future!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
As with most of my book choices lately, I picked this up solely based on the cover. It’s an enjoyable and quickly-paced scifi romance novella.
After a decisive win against the Cyberbionautic Alliance, Triz is excited to go party with her newly-returned-from-the-war partner Casne – after she finishes up taking a look at her fighter pilot ex’s seriously smashed up ship. It doesn’t help that Kalo seems more interested in hanging around chatting with her than joining the party. But when Casne is arrested for treason, Triz must work with Kalo to figure out who framed her – and stop them from taking over the hab.
“Some people were suns, some were moons, and some were just rocks who soaked up others’ light and warmth. Triz was not a sun.”
The novella is told solely from Triz’s point of view, and a lot of it revolves around Triz feeling unworthy. She grew up in the bowels of a hab, scrounging for food scraps and bits of discarded trash to sell. She’s made a place for herself as a mechanic, and while most of Casne’s family has accepted her, she still feels separate and struggles with her self-worth. While Casne and her wife have invited her to join their gon (what the book calls their poly relationships), Triz struggles with worrying about how she’ll fit in, and she’s reluctant to join without bringing someone else to the triad. Polyamory is completely accepted in their society, and Casne herself comes from a quad poly family. Casne actually introduced Kalo, a fighter pilot, to Triz – and is still sometimes involved with him – but Triz couldn’t deal with how dangerous his job is. Her feelings for him are complicated and all tied up with feeling like she doesn’t truly belong, especially since she’s not part of the Fleet.
For such a small novella, there’s a lot going on plotwise. There’s Triz’s understandable feelings of inadequacy, exacerbated by one of Casne’s quadparents, who seems perfectly willing to believe Casne is a traitor. Plus, there’s the romance angle with navigating her feelings for Casne and Kalo. The part I didn’t think worked was a minor thread where Triz is extremely prejudiced against any type of body mods, basically assuming anyone with mods would support the (unmitigatedly awful) Cyberbionautic Alliance. I didn’t quite understand where those feelings came from or why she felt so strongly about it, though I felt her change of view was handled well. I also wish there had been more time to explore the dynamics of Triz and Kalo and then Triz, Kalo and Casne as a triad. I did love the whole clear-Casne’s-name plot, though, and the pacing was nice and snappy. It made it very easy to read this in one sitting (and then wish there was more!).
Overall, this is an action-packed read, and I really hope the author choses to revisit this setting in the future!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
April 5, 2021
Local Star was one of those books I'd seen mentioned somewhere (probably on Twitter) and sounded like it might be something I'd like, so when it was available on Netgalley I jumped at the chance of picking it up. Yes, I am a poor bookworm and trying not to actually buy books, so both Netgalley and the local library's click-and-collect service are currently doing me proud.
Anyway, on to the book itself. This is basic nuts and bolts science fiction, set in the middle of a war with people who are intent on transforming themselves by the use (and abuse) of technology, to the point where prisoners of war have to have bits of themselves surgically removed - this might not work well for some readers, though it's not massively graphic.
Our protagonist is Triz, who works as a spaceship mechanic and whose point of view we get everything from. She's just come out of a relationship with a pilot and is currently involved in a relationship with other characters in the novella - this is a universe where polyamory is pretty much commonplace and Triz is part of a triad at the point the book starts. She is, however, relentlessly self-deprecating in terms of her own ability and the likelihood of this relationship lasting, much affected by her own very deprived background, and that gets a bit tiring when it keeps coming up so regularly. One of her current lovers then gets arrested and accused of war crimes, which Triz is adamant can't be the case, but she doesn't have much trust in Things Working Out so enlists the help of her former boyfriend the pilot to spring her from space jail.
The main point of interest for me with this novella is one that gets skimmed over, in my opinion - the whole thing about technology and self-modification. At one point it's revealed pretty dramatically that most of 'our side' have also had quite a bit of tech implanted in them for the purpose of fighting better but the enemy are relentlessly Othered for being that much more extreme. I'd have expected a bit more introspection from Triz about why it's okay when the people she loves does it but not otherwise and how ready she is to fall into bed with said people but reacts with loathing at other examples.
Anyway, in general it's an easy enough read of 180 pages or so, which only had me skimming a bit in the 'let's blow this popsicle stand' chase sequence around the rescue attempt. I'm sure it'll work perfectly for some folks but I've dropped a couple of stars because of just how fed up I got with Triz's mental processes and the lack of explanation for her getting back together with her ex.
I received a copy of this book from the publishers via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
Anyway, on to the book itself. This is basic nuts and bolts science fiction, set in the middle of a war with people who are intent on transforming themselves by the use (and abuse) of technology, to the point where prisoners of war have to have bits of themselves surgically removed - this might not work well for some readers, though it's not massively graphic.
Our protagonist is Triz, who works as a spaceship mechanic and whose point of view we get everything from. She's just come out of a relationship with a pilot and is currently involved in a relationship with other characters in the novella - this is a universe where polyamory is pretty much commonplace and Triz is part of a triad at the point the book starts. She is, however, relentlessly self-deprecating in terms of her own ability and the likelihood of this relationship lasting, much affected by her own very deprived background, and that gets a bit tiring when it keeps coming up so regularly. One of her current lovers then gets arrested and accused of war crimes, which Triz is adamant can't be the case, but she doesn't have much trust in Things Working Out so enlists the help of her former boyfriend the pilot to spring her from space jail.
The main point of interest for me with this novella is one that gets skimmed over, in my opinion - the whole thing about technology and self-modification. At one point it's revealed pretty dramatically that most of 'our side' have also had quite a bit of tech implanted in them for the purpose of fighting better but the enemy are relentlessly Othered for being that much more extreme. I'd have expected a bit more introspection from Triz about why it's okay when the people she loves does it but not otherwise and how ready she is to fall into bed with said people but reacts with loathing at other examples.
Anyway, in general it's an easy enough read of 180 pages or so, which only had me skimming a bit in the 'let's blow this popsicle stand' chase sequence around the rescue attempt. I'm sure it'll work perfectly for some folks but I've dropped a couple of stars because of just how fed up I got with Triz's mental processes and the lack of explanation for her getting back together with her ex.
I received a copy of this book from the publishers via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
March 5, 2021
Local Star by Aimee Ogden presents itself as a wonderful and unique space opera with a polyamorous representation. The plot is actually quite interesting, with a complex construction of the world in which it is set, and the characters are all peculiar and well diversified - not only the main ones, but the surrounding characters are well written as well. Overall, I enjoyed the reading quite a lot, but I admit I had some difficulties in settling into the story, and I got lost several times in the first two / three chapters. When it says "fast-paced, action-packed adventure", it really means it. The author introduces up to the beginning of the story so many elements and words unknown to the reader, and the pace is so fast that at times I was confused by the narration and the dialogues. In this regard, I would have preferred the glossary at the beginning of the book rather than at the end, in order to familiarize myself a little with the terms before starting the book.
As specified in the book description, Local Star deals with polyamorous relationships and features a broad spectrum of LGBTQ+ representations: heteronormativity simply does not exist in this universe, and in addition to same-sex relationships and polyamorous family units, there are several genderless and non-binary characters that are referred to using their genderless pronouns (E, Eir, Em), which makes it all very inclusive. A big thumbs up for the author!
In conclusion, the book is quite pleasant and the author's writing style noteworthy and well structured. I probably would have appreciated it much more if Local Star had been a longer book with a more detailed introduction to the universe in which it is set and a slower description of the context and the events, instead of an extremely fast paced novella. As it is, I found it too quick, and I had a lot of trouble getting used to the general context, only to find myself at the end too soon.
However, the reading was enjoyable and the plot unique, so my final rating is 3,5 stars.
Thank you NetGalley and Interstellar Flight Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
As specified in the book description, Local Star deals with polyamorous relationships and features a broad spectrum of LGBTQ+ representations: heteronormativity simply does not exist in this universe, and in addition to same-sex relationships and polyamorous family units, there are several genderless and non-binary characters that are referred to using their genderless pronouns (E, Eir, Em), which makes it all very inclusive. A big thumbs up for the author!
In conclusion, the book is quite pleasant and the author's writing style noteworthy and well structured. I probably would have appreciated it much more if Local Star had been a longer book with a more detailed introduction to the universe in which it is set and a slower description of the context and the events, instead of an extremely fast paced novella. As it is, I found it too quick, and I had a lot of trouble getting used to the general context, only to find myself at the end too soon.
However, the reading was enjoyable and the plot unique, so my final rating is 3,5 stars.
Thank you NetGalley and Interstellar Flight Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
May 15, 2021
thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free ebook in exchange for an honest review! this has not affected my review in any way, all opinions are mine.
local star is an interesting and quick sci fi novella that is begging to be made into a longer book— or even a series.
i wanted to like this book so much more than i actually did. i really struggled at the beginning to understand what was going on with all the terminology, and even was unclear with some of the words at the end of the story. (i didn't realize there was a glossary until i reached it). while i do appreciate being thrown into the story, it felt like i was a little TOO thrown in, and i struggled to follow what was being said since so much was mechanical. meaning that it wasn't really important to the story, just triz's job.
i also wanted so much more background on the characters and cultures of this universe. while i ended up with an idea of what was going on by the end, i wanted a more in-depth exploration, because i think it really is incredibly interesting. i wanted to see more of what made this world work and actually SEE more of the relationships between the characters. i'm not sure if i ever entirely bought the relationships, although i very much wanted to.
also as a tiny note, i was disappointed that (if my memory is correct), all the explicitly trans and nonbinary characters were so minor. the fact that we never see nantha onscreen was such a disappointment—it felt like she really should have been an important character as well. i also wish that there had been MORE of the polyamorous aspect in this book, since romance really was on the backburner of this novella in my opinion.
really, i just wanted this story to be longer and take its time to develop the world, the characters, and the relationships. i think there's something really good here, but it ended up being rushed and slightly hard for me to understand with one read. i ended up rounding up to 3 stars because it stuck with me, and i kept thinking about the characters afterward, because i really wanted to know more.
2.5/5
local star is an interesting and quick sci fi novella that is begging to be made into a longer book— or even a series.
i wanted to like this book so much more than i actually did. i really struggled at the beginning to understand what was going on with all the terminology, and even was unclear with some of the words at the end of the story. (i didn't realize there was a glossary until i reached it). while i do appreciate being thrown into the story, it felt like i was a little TOO thrown in, and i struggled to follow what was being said since so much was mechanical. meaning that it wasn't really important to the story, just triz's job.
i also wanted so much more background on the characters and cultures of this universe. while i ended up with an idea of what was going on by the end, i wanted a more in-depth exploration, because i think it really is incredibly interesting. i wanted to see more of what made this world work and actually SEE more of the relationships between the characters. i'm not sure if i ever entirely bought the relationships, although i very much wanted to.
also as a tiny note, i was disappointed that (if my memory is correct), all the explicitly trans and nonbinary characters were so minor. the fact that we never see nantha onscreen was such a disappointment—it felt like she really should have been an important character as well. i also wish that there had been MORE of the polyamorous aspect in this book, since romance really was on the backburner of this novella in my opinion.
really, i just wanted this story to be longer and take its time to develop the world, the characters, and the relationships. i think there's something really good here, but it ended up being rushed and slightly hard for me to understand with one read. i ended up rounding up to 3 stars because it stuck with me, and i kept thinking about the characters afterward, because i really wanted to know more.
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