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3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
Maybe this isn't truly a 5 star read, but I just enjoyed the heck out of it and devoured it over a weekend.
This story picks up after the two short stories [b:Interference / Insurgency|37943223|Interference / Insurgency|Michelle Diener|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1516042399l/37943223._SY75_.jpg|59669061] that you don't have to read first, but they will add a lot to your reading enjoyment if you do.
Sophie is a special snowflake who kicks serious ass, when she's not jumping from one moving hover vehicle to another.
She grew up on Garmen, one of the Breakaway planets in the Verdant String, where greed and mobsters rule. The story opens with her on a date with one of the mobsters, but he's a small time mobster. There's no love lost between Leo and the 'Cores' who are the planet ruling mobsters.
Before you know it, she's kicking Mobster butt and saving Leo's life and I was HOOKED!
Leo's character was a little unbelievable. He's supposed to be a kinda Robin Hood criminal, but he doesn't come across as hardened enough. I loved how smitten he was with Sophie, right from the first! But Leo's back story was pretty interesting.
I loved the detailed world building, and the science in the fiction.
Sophie is recovering from grief over her sister who was killed a few years earlier and has had her head in the sand as she dealt with her loss. Now that she starts to take stock of what's going on, events spiral out of control and there are many hands stirring the pot of intrigue.
The ending was a little to quick and kinda deus ex machina, but I still loved it!
safety is good
This story picks up after the two short stories [b:Interference / Insurgency|37943223|Interference / Insurgency|Michelle Diener|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1516042399l/37943223._SY75_.jpg|59669061] that you don't have to read first, but they will add a lot to your reading enjoyment if you do.
Sophie is a special snowflake who kicks serious ass, when she's not jumping from one moving hover vehicle to another.
She grew up on Garmen, one of the Breakaway planets in the Verdant String, where greed and mobsters rule. The story opens with her on a date with one of the mobsters, but he's a small time mobster. There's no love lost between Leo and the 'Cores' who are the planet ruling mobsters.
Before you know it, she's kicking Mobster butt and saving Leo's life and I was HOOKED!
Leo's character was a little unbelievable. He's supposed to be a kinda Robin Hood criminal, but he doesn't come across as hardened enough. I loved how smitten he was with Sophie, right from the first! But Leo's back story was pretty interesting.
I loved the detailed world building, and the science in the fiction.
Sophie is recovering from grief over her sister who was killed a few years earlier and has had her head in the sand as she dealt with her loss. Now that she starts to take stock of what's going on, events spiral out of control and there are many hands stirring the pot of intrigue.
The ending was a little to quick and kinda deus ex machina, but I still loved it!
safety is good
Spoiler
no details about their sexual histories except that neither has been in a serious relationship and neither are virgins. There's no OM/OW stuff.
What a letdown after the ‘Class 5’ trilogy! I absolutely binged all three of the ‘Class 5’ books by this author (like 3 books in 3 days...I did not sleep), but I did not even finish the first book of this series, because the story dragged so much, and the characters were so bland and un-compelling. This book is technically also Sci Fi like the ‘Class 5’ books, but the world building/space opera plot is seriously lacking for the ‘Verdant String’ series by comparison, and the actual Sci Fi aspect is not remotely integral to the story. Felt like a possible mob boss story that then was also a sort of a political rebellion story that then weirdly turned into a old timey western mining story? The actual Sci Fi part of the plot was just that everything took place on a “non-Earth” planet... that was exactly like Earth...like as if the author at the end of writing the story went “Oh crap! I forgot to make the book Sci Fi!” and then wrote it in later. Ah well. Sadly, this series is just not for me.
Loving this series. Action, suspense, intrigue and romance make for an awesome read.
I wrote a review several months ago on Dark Horse, Diener's first book in the Class 5 series, basically extolling how much I love that series. In it, I mentioned that I didn't think the Verdant String series was quite as good. That was after reading the first book in this series, but now I really must correct myself. After reading the entire series (thus far, can't wait for more to come out), I have to say. This series is excellent. I do still (maybe) rank the Class 5 books a bit higher on the scale, but these are truly fantastic. I think Diener does such an incredible job of blending sci fi themes and world building into a really interesting plot (with lovely romance, too!). I have never really been a sci fi person, but between this author and Anna Hackett, I might be changing my mind. Though again, I'm here for the romance, the rest is just icing.
I love this series and absolutely recommend it. I think this specific book is the weakest in the series, with Trailblazer ranking highest. Wave Rider is also incredible lol. Give it a chance!
I love this series and absolutely recommend it. I think this specific book is the weakest in the series, with Trailblazer ranking highest. Wave Rider is also incredible lol. Give it a chance!
Sigh...I wanted to love this. I maybe wasn't in the right headspace but I just didn't feel like I could get into this one. I really LOVE Michelle Diener books so much, even though I prefer more spice in my books. Part of my issue here I think is that the FMC and MMC are already very much into each other before the book starts so there isn't really any tension building or any surprise here. They're already there.
My other issue is that the world-building on this one was at times, very very spotty. I found myself not understanding some of the politics or issues and would have to go back and jog my memory to see if the author had mentioned bits and pieces that I had just forgotten. I will give Book 2 a try, but I'm not that excited about it. But Michelle Diener is such a reliably good author I can't help but feel maybe it's me?
My other issue is that the world-building on this one was at times, very very spotty. I found myself not understanding some of the politics or issues and would have to go back and jog my memory to see if the author had mentioned bits and pieces that I had just forgotten. I will give Book 2 a try, but I'm not that excited about it. But Michelle Diener is such a reliably good author I can't help but feel maybe it's me?
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This book has interesting world building, but I found the heroine to be far too amaze balls - to a Mary Sue degree. Is there anything this gal can’t do? Doubtful.
Good writing and an enjoyable story. It still feels like there's something missing to make it five-star amazing or standout.
Leo is a crime lord whose operation is undermining the Cores while Sofie is an admin working for a Cores company. I liked that the story started with the two of them already starting their relationship. It had enough mystery to keep me going (Sofie thwarted Leo's assassination during their third date), because Sofie was not who Leo thought she was and it was obvious she had interesting secrets. It was really cool how being the daughter of the architect/engineer of the Felicitos sort of became her super power.
I think people who read sci-fi/space opera more for the plot than the romance would love this one but for me, I am honestly a little unsatisfied with the lack of spice.
Leo is a crime lord whose operation is undermining the Cores while Sofie is an admin working for a Cores company. I liked that the story started with the two of them already starting their relationship. It had enough mystery to keep me going (Sofie thwarted Leo's assassination during their third date), because Sofie was not who Leo thought she was and it was obvious she had interesting secrets. It was really cool how being the daughter of the architect/engineer of the Felicitos sort of became her super power.
I think people who read sci-fi/space opera more for the plot than the romance would love this one but for me, I am honestly a little unsatisfied with the lack of spice.
DNF 71%
I really liked the beginning of this book. Interesting characters, a “breakup to protect you” trope I didn’t hate because it happened before we got invested in the relationship, and a setup that felt like Rogue One, but better. I really wanted to like this.
But about half way through, I started loosing track of what was happening—there’s a lot going on with factions at multiple levels, and betrayals happening in all of them. And the romance takes a backseat to this. Then by 70%, I couldn’t keep track of who all the people on the page were. They were all newly introduced and I had no emotional connection to them
I really liked the beginning of this book. Interesting characters, a “breakup to protect you” trope I didn’t hate because it happened before we got invested in the relationship, and a setup that felt like Rogue One, but better. I really wanted to like this.
But about half way through, I started loosing track of what was happening—there’s a lot going on with factions at multiple levels, and betrayals happening in all of them. And the romance takes a backseat to this. Then by 70%, I couldn’t keep track of who all the people on the page were. They were all newly introduced and I had no emotional connection to them
I enjoy this author, but she tends to repeat a couple themes that keep her good books from being great books.
We've got a super awesome FMC who has seen some shit but is still basically sunshine.
A MMC who leads a team of people who are skeptical of the FMC, and kind of shitty to her. Like, in this book I was ready to punch Finkle in the fucking throat.
And the awesome FMC bends over backwards to help everyone, including people who don't deserve it. Just one time, I'd like to see the FMC in these books tell people to fuck off. In this book, it was most egregious (imo) at the mines. So here's the info: her father, genius engineer and designer, created a hack for the weigh station to under-report the weight by 20%, so the shitty overlords would take a smaller amount as the tax/royalty/bullshit buyout. And then he and the miners split the profit on that 20% ... 50/50. When he died (evil overlords murdered him), his two daughters were left destitute. The miners continued to profit from his hack, but kept it all to divvy among themselves, while Sofie and her sister Rach starved. A couple visited her in that first year after Dad died, and gave the girls a few credits, which Sofie says they never understood. Guilt money, she understands now that she got the info on this weigh station (she was a kid - barely turned 18 when he died - so dad hadn't looped her in). Well, in this book, Dad's hack failed - well, not failed exactly, it seems he had it set to expire on a timer - and they want her to help figure out how to reset it.
Why doesn't she tell them to eat shit and die?
It is hard, really hard, to respect a fucking doormat. The only thing she owes those miners is her contempt. I give the MMC a pass here - he picked up on Dad's end of things, providing the transportation for a cut - but he didn't know the guy had unsupported daughters, or that his family had no access to his fortune. And he was young too, trying to keep himself from starving after his mom died, stepping into huge shoes and trying to figure it out. He didn't know, and didn't go looking, and I can understand that. But those miners who tried to assuage their conscience by tossing the girls a few credits... fuck them. I'd tell them I will try to help when you pay me for my father's cut of the last 8 years. No? Then good luck not getting murdered when the Core investigates the weird reports and finds out you've been stealing from them for nearly a decade, fuckers.
I liked the book, but the martyr doormat thing is fucking exhausting. It will keep this author off my favorites list, for sure.
We've got a super awesome FMC who has seen some shit but is still basically sunshine.
A MMC who leads a team of people who are skeptical of the FMC, and kind of shitty to her. Like, in this book I was ready to punch Finkle in the fucking throat.
And the awesome FMC bends over backwards to help everyone, including people who don't deserve it. Just one time, I'd like to see the FMC in these books tell people to fuck off. In this book, it was most egregious (imo) at the mines. So here's the info: her father, genius engineer and designer, created a hack for the weigh station to under-report the weight by 20%, so the shitty overlords would take a smaller amount as the tax/royalty/bullshit buyout. And then he and the miners split the profit on that 20% ... 50/50. When he died (evil overlords murdered him), his two daughters were left destitute. The miners continued to profit from his hack, but kept it all to divvy among themselves, while Sofie and her sister Rach starved. A couple visited her in that first year after Dad died, and gave the girls a few credits, which Sofie says they never understood. Guilt money, she understands now that she got the info on this weigh station (she was a kid - barely turned 18 when he died - so dad hadn't looped her in). Well, in this book, Dad's hack failed - well, not failed exactly, it seems he had it set to expire on a timer - and they want her to help figure out how to reset it.
Why doesn't she tell them to eat shit and die?
It is hard, really hard, to respect a fucking doormat. The only thing she owes those miners is her contempt. I give the MMC a pass here - he picked up on Dad's end of things, providing the transportation for a cut - but he didn't know the guy had unsupported daughters, or that his family had no access to his fortune. And he was young too, trying to keep himself from starving after his mom died, stepping into huge shoes and trying to figure it out. He didn't know, and didn't go looking, and I can understand that. But those miners who tried to assuage their conscience by tossing the girls a few credits... fuck them. I'd tell them I will try to help when you pay me for my father's cut of the last 8 years. No? Then good luck not getting murdered when the Core investigates the weird reports and finds out you've been stealing from them for nearly a decade, fuckers.
I liked the book, but the martyr doormat thing is fucking exhausting. It will keep this author off my favorites list, for sure.