DarkShip Thieves by Sarah A. Hoyt
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
DarkShip Thieves is an entertaining read, but it is not really my taste. Although I like the space adventure, and the genetics behind the world-building, I found it to be much more about the emotions of the main characters. Some may like that, but I found it to be too thick for me. Especially since Athena’s refusal to see the obvious made me want to face-palm constantly. Especially, especially since it was usually her own inner monologue hinting at it over and over (and over) again. Another quirk of character that was hard for me to swallow was that she is super-callous at first, but is saved by love… meh, that’s a bit too tropish for me, or maybe I’m just a guy and don’t get it.
There is also a frequent requirement to accept that certain things work because…well… reasons. It just exists. That’s fine, I can willingly suspend disbelief for the sake of a tale, but do it over and over and I get bored. I like to think about the science in my science fiction… otherwise it is ‘magic’ and then I’m reading fantasy, which is a whole other path for me to go down mentally.
The story was a good one, but it never focused on the parts I was hoping it would. There is a whole history in the backstory that begs to be explored. Maybe the sequels do, but I have more books to read than time, so I may never get to them.
All told, I’m glad to have read the book. I like the author. I follow her blog, which I highly recommend. And I plan to read other works by her. The Shifter series has gotten my attention and may be added to my queue soon. So, I give this one 3 stars and call it a Good, But Not My Flavor Read.
Words from the Wampuscat 