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kparrbooks's review
4.0
I received an advanced copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.
A strong voice, awesome action, interesting character dynamics, fast plot, and a fun writing style makes this sci-fi adventure a very enjoyable read! I loved the world-building, the intensity of the stakes, and the protagonist who was just a joy to follow - even as physically battered as he got! I also enjoyed his relationships with other characters, including the 'found family' vibe with his Shadows crew. It's a book that I definitely recommend.
A strong voice, awesome action, interesting character dynamics, fast plot, and a fun writing style makes this sci-fi adventure a very enjoyable read! I loved the world-building, the intensity of the stakes, and the protagonist who was just a joy to follow - even as physically battered as he got! I also enjoyed his relationships with other characters, including the 'found family' vibe with his Shadows crew. It's a book that I definitely recommend.
paperbackmatt's review
1.0
DNF at 43%
I tried so hard to get through this book; but the thought of picking it back up just exhausted me.
The pace is very fast, the violence seems likes it's solely for violence sake. I have little to no attachment to any of the characters and the world-building has been almost non-existent. I can tell it's a sci-fi? I think...
I found this book on a list of LGBT sci Fi recommendations .. I don't think I'll be trusting that book riot list again. This book reads like a YA novel, which I have been known to enjoy, but I guess I'm not in the mood for right now?
I see there are a lot of people who have enjoyed this novel, so read some of their reviews and see if it is for you before you knock it. Happy Reading everyone!
I tried so hard to get through this book; but the thought of picking it back up just exhausted me.
The pace is very fast, the violence seems likes it's solely for violence sake. I have little to no attachment to any of the characters and the world-building has been almost non-existent. I can tell it's a sci-fi? I think...
I found this book on a list of LGBT sci Fi recommendations .. I don't think I'll be trusting that book riot list again. This book reads like a YA novel, which I have been known to enjoy, but I guess I'm not in the mood for right now?
I see there are a lot of people who have enjoyed this novel, so read some of their reviews and see if it is for you before you knock it. Happy Reading everyone!
emjayreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
tythebooknerd's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
morebedsidebooks's review against another edition
fast-paced
3.5
Content Warnings
(content notes from author: This book contains graphic violence (including shootings, beatings, tasing, mild gore, depictions of a hanging, and an execution by burning), explicit sexual content (including mentions of sex work, a sexual relationship that begins in a negotiated contract for sexual services, and on- and off-page descriptions of explicit sexual situations involving bondage, control, mild pain play, and Dominant/submissive dynamics), trauma (including allusion to past physical and sexual abuse, and a depiction of a panic attack), deaths of supporting characters (including a young teen, mentions and depiction of assisted suicide, and one queer character who is a person of color), as well as substance abuse (alcohol, smoking, drugs, and a mention of an overdose).
taylorcatherinemareads's review against another edition
5.0
I’m still new to Sci-Fi, but I have the best person to recommend me great books in this genre, @crofteereader. She’s actually reading this for her buddy read so definitely go check that out if you want to join along.
This book was gritty, funny, and romantic all wrapped into one book. The relationships, friend and romantic, were very complex and messy and is one of the main reasons why I loved this book so much.
It was very different from the other books I read *cough* romance *cough*. I can’t wait for the next book to come out in this series!
This book was gritty, funny, and romantic all wrapped into one book. The relationships, friend and romantic, were very complex and messy and is one of the main reasons why I loved this book so much.
It was very different from the other books I read *cough* romance *cough*. I can’t wait for the next book to come out in this series!
oatpix's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 rounded down. Interesting action, cool world building, fun interactions btwn characters. But all characters are underdeveloped, lots of unnecessary deaths, lots of unnecessary “surprise! I’m NOT dead” moments, and unfortunate narration style. Maybe just not for me.
seeowlread's review against another edition
5.0
Empire of Light by Alex Harrow
5 of 5 stars
This review was originally posted on yarnowlreads.wordpress.com.
I received an eARC from the author in exchange for my honest review.
REP: The main character is a Person of Color (POC), gay, and demisexual. One of his love interests is pan, and the other is pan, polyam, kinky, and a sex worker. They are all three amazing beans that I love with my whole heart. Supporting characters include a badass old lady who’s blind and a WOC, a whole variety of gender identities, sexualities, and other ways of existing, and a run-down spaceship called Shadow (it’s a character and you can’t tell me otherwise).
CWs: There’s a lot. This is a dark book. There are many graphic depictions of violence, several executions (some attempted, some successful, varying from hanging to burning to shooting), and some of this violence is against kids, queer folks, and POC. There are some intense trust violations and several instances of unwanted/non-consensual groping. The main character is a survivor of sexual abuse and there are both flashbacks to that and lots of him dealing with those feelings in the present day. One of the love interests has an intense fear regarding fire (I’m not sure if it would be considered a phobia when this fear is 1000% rational… more like PTSD, I think). The author offers very detailed warnings at the beginning of the book as well, which can I just say I LOVE AND APPRECIATE.
In June of 2018 I participated in a daily Twitter challenge called #LGBTWIP. It was there I met Alex Harrow, who was discussing their 2019 debut and described it as gay Firefly with magic. We ended up becoming friends and Empire of Light jumped to my most anticipated read of 2019 (tied with Mason Deaver's I Wish You All the Best).
I think this was the first time I was this hyped for a first book in a series. I threw my heart and soul into being excited for this book, which was definitely a little scary. I had moments of worrying: what if I was building it up too much in my head? What if I just didn't click with Alex's writing? Was I setting myself up for failure with this book? I am so incredibly grateful that wasn't the case and I ended up loving it just as much as I had hoped.
Though there are many amazing parts of this book, the crowning jewel was the characters. The three main characters (heretoafter referred to as The Murder Boys*) all stood on their own with compelling backstories and unique voices. While the secondary characters didn't get as much development (yet! Alex is working on some short origin stories), they still added to the story in important and enjoyable ways.
While this is a darker book (see CWs above), it also had an amazing, dry humor that spoke to my soul. From witty banter to snarky one-liners, I giggled much more that I expected to while reading. Some of my favorite lines included:
"I would ask if you had any last words, but I prefer we cut the theatrics, don't you?"
"Well, I always wanted to go out with 'Fuck you,' but whatever."
Chapter 8
Ferris blinked at the heap of guns, knives, and spare clips I piled in front of her. Aris gave me a look and a nudge. I sighed, adding a beat-up pocket knife on top of it all.
Chapter 11
A crow perched high on some of the Shadow's rusty piping. Its head cocked to one side, then it slowly righted itself again as it stared at me with flat, beady black eyes...
"At least wait 'till I'm dead, damn it... 'S bad manners. Staring at your food while it's still twitching."
Chapter 17
Alex is also the reigning monarch of tropes. They talked about how they incorporated and subverted tropes in a blog post soon after Empire came out. There are several overarching tropes they did well, such as enemies-to-lovers and hurt/comfort. A few smaller tropes we saw in individual scenes were leave-all-your-weapons-at-the-door-wait-one-more (see quote above) and the fake-out-make-out. Alex wielded these to create humor, vulnerability, and relatability in each moment.
I would recommend this book to readers who like:
* science fiction that's not set in space
* dystopians set in post-America
* stories with some magic thrown in
* fast-paced stories with lots of action and explosions.
You can pick up your own copy of Empire of Light from the publisher (e-book), Amazon (e-book and paperback), or from Alex themself (signed paperback).
*P.S. I'm sorry I didn't actually refer to Damian, Aris, and Raeyn as The Murder Boys again in this review, but I call them that often enough that I felt I should leave it in.
5 of 5 stars
This review was originally posted on yarnowlreads.wordpress.com.
I received an eARC from the author in exchange for my honest review.
REP: The main character is a Person of Color (POC), gay, and demisexual. One of his love interests is pan, and the other is pan, polyam, kinky, and a sex worker. They are all three amazing beans that I love with my whole heart. Supporting characters include a badass old lady who’s blind and a WOC, a whole variety of gender identities, sexualities, and other ways of existing, and a run-down spaceship called Shadow (it’s a character and you can’t tell me otherwise).
CWs: There’s a lot. This is a dark book. There are many graphic depictions of violence, several executions (some attempted, some successful, varying from hanging to burning to shooting), and some of this violence is against kids, queer folks, and POC. There are some intense trust violations and several instances of unwanted/non-consensual groping. The main character is a survivor of sexual abuse and there are both flashbacks to that and lots of him dealing with those feelings in the present day. One of the love interests has an intense fear regarding fire (I’m not sure if it would be considered a phobia when this fear is 1000% rational… more like PTSD, I think). The author offers very detailed warnings at the beginning of the book as well, which can I just say I LOVE AND APPRECIATE.
In June of 2018 I participated in a daily Twitter challenge called #LGBTWIP. It was there I met Alex Harrow, who was discussing their 2019 debut and described it as gay Firefly with magic. We ended up becoming friends and Empire of Light jumped to my most anticipated read of 2019 (tied with Mason Deaver's I Wish You All the Best).
I think this was the first time I was this hyped for a first book in a series. I threw my heart and soul into being excited for this book, which was definitely a little scary. I had moments of worrying: what if I was building it up too much in my head? What if I just didn't click with Alex's writing? Was I setting myself up for failure with this book? I am so incredibly grateful that wasn't the case and I ended up loving it just as much as I had hoped.
Though there are many amazing parts of this book, the crowning jewel was the characters. The three main characters (heretoafter referred to as The Murder Boys*) all stood on their own with compelling backstories and unique voices. While the secondary characters didn't get as much development (yet! Alex is working on some short origin stories), they still added to the story in important and enjoyable ways.
While this is a darker book (see CWs above), it also had an amazing, dry humor that spoke to my soul. From witty banter to snarky one-liners, I giggled much more that I expected to while reading. Some of my favorite lines included:
"I would ask if you had any last words, but I prefer we cut the theatrics, don't you?"
"Well, I always wanted to go out with 'Fuck you,' but whatever."
Chapter 8
Ferris blinked at the heap of guns, knives, and spare clips I piled in front of her. Aris gave me a look and a nudge. I sighed, adding a beat-up pocket knife on top of it all.
Chapter 11
A crow perched high on some of the Shadow's rusty piping. Its head cocked to one side, then it slowly righted itself again as it stared at me with flat, beady black eyes...
"At least wait 'till I'm dead, damn it... 'S bad manners. Staring at your food while it's still twitching."
Chapter 17
Alex is also the reigning monarch of tropes. They talked about how they incorporated and subverted tropes in a blog post soon after Empire came out. There are several overarching tropes they did well, such as enemies-to-lovers and hurt/comfort. A few smaller tropes we saw in individual scenes were leave-all-your-weapons-at-the-door-wait-one-more (see quote above) and the fake-out-make-out. Alex wielded these to create humor, vulnerability, and relatability in each moment.
I would recommend this book to readers who like:
* science fiction that's not set in space
* dystopians set in post-America
* stories with some magic thrown in
* fast-paced stories with lots of action and explosions.
You can pick up your own copy of Empire of Light from the publisher (e-book), Amazon (e-book and paperback), or from Alex themself (signed paperback).
*P.S. I'm sorry I didn't actually refer to Damian, Aris, and Raeyn as The Murder Boys again in this review, but I call them that often enough that I felt I should leave it in.
fixatedonfiction's review against another edition
3.0
I liked the concept of the book and I really liked the characters. But it got confusing with what was going on. And who was with who etc.
pnwbookishmama's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75