If you like that genre that's like a blend between sci-fi and fantasy with characters full of heart and hope, this is the book for you. Bonuses include: violin music, fantastic descriptions of food (especially donuts), and a lovely little found family.

Shizuka Satomi made a deal with the devil in order to play music again: give him seven souls of violin prodigies in exchange for her own. She's given him six. She's now looking for the seventh. That's when Katrina Nguyen enters her life. A transgender runaway, she's had no formal violin training. But she catches Shizuka's attention with her music. As Shizuka trains her, gets closer to her, she realizes this might be the hardest soul to let go.

What an unusual book. The writing style in this definitely isn't going to be for everyone, as Aoki switches quickly between points of view, sometimes without any warning. This is one of the only reasons I'm not giving this five stars, because the format didn't always work for me, especially at the beginning of the book. Once you get into the groove of it, though, you'll be swept away by these characters.

The characters! Your heart will break for all of them at some point in the book. Katrina's story in particular is hard to read at times, because she struggles with abuse and severe transphobia from her parents. The kindness Shizuka shows her makes her suspicious, and her journey to realizing that she can just be herself and there are people who will accept her is beautiful. I would recommend it for that alone.

Shizuka's story is also an interesting one. In meeting Katrina, and also Lan Tran the owner of Starrgate Donuts, she realizes how much love can alter her persepctive. Her character transforms beautifully throughout the book as well, moving from this cold "Queen of Hell" to someone who loves and has helped to create a safe space for someone who needed it.

I also enjoyed the blend of science fiction and fantasy in this. You get a little bit about space and space travel wtih Lan and her family, and a little bit of magic with Shizuka and the deal with the devil. All of these elements work seamlessly together, making the story and the writing difficult to put down.

All in all, if you're looking for something different and unique, I'd definitely recommend picking this one up!