If I could sum this book up in a sentence: this was undeniably a fun and entertaining read but it just did not pack the punch I expected it to. There were so many things that this story did right… but it was also just not for me? I enjoyed it - don’t get me wrong - but I felt that there were a few too many elements that just did not hit the bar for me and I could not get as attached to the characters or their story as I would have liked.

Both Solara and Daron were decent protagonists. Their budding relationship was developed well across the story - with the perfect blend of hatred, awkward bumbling just-become-friends moments and actual romance. The problem was that I just did not connect to them. They were well-written characters, especially Solara whose determination to carve a path for herself in a tough, unforgiving world was admirable, but I just did not connect with them on a personal level. I think this had a tiny bit to do with the fact that Daron went from “privileged, rich dickhead” to “flirty but friendly goofball” a little bit too quickly for my liking… but that is probably me being picky, to be honest. Like I said, the romance was well-paced. If you love hate-to-love romances, I would recommend it hands down, but my lack of connection to the characters meant I was not quite as attached to their relationships as I would have liked to be. I didn’t not ship them. In fact, I thought they were quite cute together. I just did not get onboard their relationship like everyone else seemed to. I think this is just a case of it’s me, not you.

The secondary characters were what let me down most of all. I don’t know if it is just me or whether the synopsis misled anyone else but I thought this was about a ragtag family-like group of anti-heroes/criminals doing schemy space-pirate things. And it wasn’t? Not really. Please don’t get me wrong, I think that the secondary characters were so well-written. They were absolutely adorable and complex and the banter (!) but I just did not get the relationship dynamics I wanted and it let me down.

The plot was definitely entertaining. I found the complexity of the world was balanced quite well. The advancement in technology was not stretched too far to be unbelievable but still felt authentically futuristic. Landers’ attention to detail - especially the whole they-forgot-to-add-birds thing - was what got me so onboard her descriptions of the various planets the characters visited. I did think that the plot was spread out a little bit too much. It would have been better focusing on one particular obstacle (and by that I mean: the pirates, it should have been about the pirates). Also, I found that the story was building up to an epic ending… and it was just entertaining, not epic? I don’t know. It was missing that sense of desperation. I didn’t feel as emotionally invested as I should have been.

Overall?

I hate that I feel like I’m being unnecessarily picky about this book but while this was a good book, it was missing so many little things to make it truly great. The plotline was entertaining and fast-paced but it was missing a clear focus and… something. I don’t know what! The characters were all really decent and I loved them as individuals, I just wanted more from their relationships. I did enjoy this book as whole but it is not a favourite of mine. I wanted more from it. Hopefully, the sequel will make up for it.