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The Two Lies of Faven Sythe
A search for a missing person uncovers a galaxy-spanning conspiracy in this thrilling standalone space opera from award-winning author Megan E. O'Keefe.
The Black Celeste is a ghost story. A once-legendary spaceship collecting dust in a cosmic graveyard known as the Clutch. Only famed pirate Bitter Amandine knows better, and she’ll do anything to never go near it again. No matter the cost.
Faven Sythe is crystborn, a member of the near-human species tasked with charting starpaths from station to station. She’s trained to be a navigator her entire life. But when her mentor disappears, leaving behind a mysterious starpath terminating in the Clutch, she is determined to find the truth. And only Amandine has the answers.
What they will find is a conspiracy bigger than either of them. Their quest for the truth will uncover secrets Amandine has long fought to keep buried – secrets about how she survived her last encounter in the Clutch, and what’s really hidden out there amongst the stars...
The Black Celeste is a ghost story. A once-legendary spaceship collecting dust in a cosmic graveyard known as the Clutch. Only famed pirate Bitter Amandine knows better, and she’ll do anything to never go near it again. No matter the cost.
Faven Sythe is crystborn, a member of the near-human species tasked with charting starpaths from station to station. She’s trained to be a navigator her entire life. But when her mentor disappears, leaving behind a mysterious starpath terminating in the Clutch, she is determined to find the truth. And only Amandine has the answers.
What they will find is a conspiracy bigger than either of them. Their quest for the truth will uncover secrets Amandine has long fought to keep buried – secrets about how she survived her last encounter in the Clutch, and what’s really hidden out there amongst the stars...
345 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 3, 2025
93 people are currently reading
2472 people want to read
About the author
Megan E. O'Keefe
20 books1,290 followersMegan E. O'Keefe was raised amongst journalists, and as soon as she was able joined them by crafting a newsletter which chronicled the daily adventures of the local cat population. She lives in the Bay Area of California, and spends her free time tinkering with anything she can get her hands on.
Her fantasy debut, Steal the Sky, won the Gemmell Morningstar Award and her space opera debut, Velocity Weapon was nominated for the Philip K. Dick Award.
Her fantasy debut, Steal the Sky, won the Gemmell Morningstar Award and her space opera debut, Velocity Weapon was nominated for the Philip K. Dick Award.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 220 reviews
June 3, 2025
“Faven. I don’t need a navi. I need you.”
— finished just in time, happy release day!
i loved this authors other series and this was another good book by her. i think she has very unique ideas, especially within the sci-fi genre. this book follows Faven Sythe, a navigator and crystalborn (a human and crystal hybrid). when Faven’s mother dies and she finds out she might’ve been misled by her mentor, this brings her into the path of Amandine, who’s a notorious pirate. they have to learn how to work together in order to figure out what’s been going and why Faven has a target on her back. i had no idea there would be a sapphic romance, but I’m definitely not complaining cause Faven and Amandine were cute. the whole talk about what makes family and true connection was interesting with the way certain people are constructed in this world. there was an element regarding Amandine’s crew that had me so intrigued the whole time. i don’t think the characters were that memorable, but i do think this was an engaging read regardless.
⇨ many thanks to NetGalley, the author and Orbit Books for the arc, all opinions are my own.
— finished just in time, happy release day!
i loved this authors other series and this was another good book by her. i think she has very unique ideas, especially within the sci-fi genre. this book follows Faven Sythe, a navigator and crystalborn (a human and crystal hybrid). when Faven’s mother dies and she finds out she might’ve been misled by her mentor, this brings her into the path of Amandine, who’s a notorious pirate. they have to learn how to work together in order to figure out what’s been going and why Faven has a target on her back. i had no idea there would be a sapphic romance, but I’m definitely not complaining cause Faven and Amandine were cute. the whole talk about what makes family and true connection was interesting with the way certain people are constructed in this world. there was an element regarding Amandine’s crew that had me so intrigued the whole time. i don’t think the characters were that memorable, but i do think this was an engaging read regardless.
⇨ many thanks to NetGalley, the author and Orbit Books for the arc, all opinions are my own.
June 9, 2025
lesbian pirates in space *vibrates at a frequency that could shatter glass*
a new megan o’ keefe book traumatize the masses?? where to sign up
Bookstagram | Blog
a new megan o’ keefe book traumatize the masses?? where to sign up
Bookstagram | Blog
July 15, 2025
The Two Lies of Faven Sythe secures Megan E O'Keefe as one of my favorite SciFi authors.
In this book, we follow Faven Sythe, a navigator who teams up with famed space pirate Bitten Amandine to track down her missing mentor in a cosmic graveyard. This search for a missing person uncovers a galaxy-wide conspiracy. There's some romance, lots of action, and fascinating SciFi world-building. The Two Lies of Faven Sythe is a short, punchy standalone that promises to be a great time.
This book hooked my attention right away. I was immediately intrigued by these characters and by the concept of cryst-born navigators. Faven and her fellow navigators are held in isolating levels of esteem in this society. Their power is coveted and valuable; however, it comes at the cost of slowly turning their bodies into crystal. I found the world incredibly interesting, and I loved uncovering the mystery of the navigators and what was being kept from Faven. Amandine and her crew were incredibly compelling characters. The tension and flirting between Amandine and Faven was a great addition to the action-packed plot.
Unfortunately, this one didn't totally stick the landing for me. As the story went on, the world-building started to feel a little bit too blurry for my taste. I don't know if some of the explanations were completely satisfying. I was really interested in the world-building, but it felt like this book was holding itself back from really exploring some of these Sci-Fi concepts. I don't know if it was because this is a standalone, if it needed more time, or if something else kept the ending from totally working for me.
Overall, I really enjoyed this one, and it has me excited to finally dive into O'Keefe's Velocity Weapon.
Thank you Orbit for the eARC
Links to my TikTok | Instagram
In this book, we follow Faven Sythe, a navigator who teams up with famed space pirate Bitten Amandine to track down her missing mentor in a cosmic graveyard. This search for a missing person uncovers a galaxy-wide conspiracy. There's some romance, lots of action, and fascinating SciFi world-building. The Two Lies of Faven Sythe is a short, punchy standalone that promises to be a great time.
This book hooked my attention right away. I was immediately intrigued by these characters and by the concept of cryst-born navigators. Faven and her fellow navigators are held in isolating levels of esteem in this society. Their power is coveted and valuable; however, it comes at the cost of slowly turning their bodies into crystal. I found the world incredibly interesting, and I loved uncovering the mystery of the navigators and what was being kept from Faven. Amandine and her crew were incredibly compelling characters. The tension and flirting between Amandine and Faven was a great addition to the action-packed plot.
Unfortunately, this one didn't totally stick the landing for me. As the story went on, the world-building started to feel a little bit too blurry for my taste. I don't know if some of the explanations were completely satisfying. I was really interested in the world-building, but it felt like this book was holding itself back from really exploring some of these Sci-Fi concepts. I don't know if it was because this is a standalone, if it needed more time, or if something else kept the ending from totally working for me.
Overall, I really enjoyed this one, and it has me excited to finally dive into O'Keefe's Velocity Weapon.
Thank you Orbit for the eARC
Links to my TikTok | Instagram
May 19, 2025
4.0 Stars
I have read most of this author's previous books and I think this new one is her best, or at least my personal favourite.
This author is good at writing the kind of accessible science fiction that makes for a great starting place for readers new to the genre. Her books don't have a big focus on science or technology. Instead those elements exist in the background. I personally have a preference for science fiction more grounded in science but I can still appreciate a fun entertaining story.
This was a solid narrative that was enjoyable with interesting characters and fun twists and turns. I would recommend this one as a great place to start with this author's work.
Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
I have read most of this author's previous books and I think this new one is her best, or at least my personal favourite.
This author is good at writing the kind of accessible science fiction that makes for a great starting place for readers new to the genre. Her books don't have a big focus on science or technology. Instead those elements exist in the background. I personally have a preference for science fiction more grounded in science but I can still appreciate a fun entertaining story.
This was a solid narrative that was enjoyable with interesting characters and fun twists and turns. I would recommend this one as a great place to start with this author's work.
Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
June 13, 2025
Lesbian space pirates, found family, sentient spaceships, sword fights AND gun fights, celestial gods and goddesses slowly turning to crystal, a spacefaring society built among the ruins of an alien species that came before…
This was a DELIGHTFUL science fantasy romp! It’s ultra fast paced and action packed, with strong characters and incredibly unique worldbuilding. I was immediately obsessed and completely charmed by everything from the sense of humor to the memorable side characters and the delicious crumb of sapphic romance.
Up until the halfway point, I was positive this would be a 5 star read. I have to admit, though, that the book somewhat lost me in the third act. The nature of the science fantasy genre allowed the “how’s” of the worldbuilding to be pretty nebulous and hand-wavy, which I actually liked in the beginning. How does any of this work? Don’t worry about it! It’s magic from the aliens who came before! Don’t ask questions, it’s time for the space pirates to brawl and then the ladies kiss.
In the end, I just think this book needed to reign in its scope and stick to what it was really excelling at. The stakes get wayyyy too high, a bit convoluted, and hinge entirely too much on worldbuilding that felt too vague and muddy to matter as much as it did. Some of the major reveals didn’t feel properly foreshadowed or threaded in, and some characters who end up being major players suffer from not having been introduced or developed properly.
So, do I “understand” everything that happened? Well… in a broad sense, sure. Not exactly. I do know, however, that I love Faven and Amandine and if Megan O’Keefe writes more in this world, I will absolutely be reading.
This was a DELIGHTFUL science fantasy romp! It’s ultra fast paced and action packed, with strong characters and incredibly unique worldbuilding. I was immediately obsessed and completely charmed by everything from the sense of humor to the memorable side characters and the delicious crumb of sapphic romance.
Up until the halfway point, I was positive this would be a 5 star read. I have to admit, though, that the book somewhat lost me in the third act. The nature of the science fantasy genre allowed the “how’s” of the worldbuilding to be pretty nebulous and hand-wavy, which I actually liked in the beginning. How does any of this work? Don’t worry about it! It’s magic from the aliens who came before! Don’t ask questions, it’s time for the space pirates to brawl and then the ladies kiss.
In the end, I just think this book needed to reign in its scope and stick to what it was really excelling at. The stakes get wayyyy too high, a bit convoluted, and hinge entirely too much on worldbuilding that felt too vague and muddy to matter as much as it did. Some of the major reveals didn’t feel properly foreshadowed or threaded in, and some characters who end up being major players suffer from not having been introduced or developed properly.
So, do I “understand” everything that happened? Well… in a broad sense, sure. Not exactly. I do know, however, that I love Faven and Amandine and if Megan O’Keefe writes more in this world, I will absolutely be reading.
May 2, 2025
Space pirates and a tantalising queer romance.
Faven is a cryst-born navigator, grown from a crystal and returned to crystal. She is following a conspiracy after her mentor flies into the Clutch, a graveyard no one returns from, and gets herself captured by pirates.
Bitter Amandine is the captain of a misfit crew just trying to get by. Think of her as a Robin Hood-esque pirate.
Faven is impulsive. She wants to decide for herself for once instead of relying on the strict and protective governing body - the Choir. She has a self-imposed cage to keep the feelings at bay.
Amandine is a woman wrapped in wry amusement, carrying a fierce protective streak for her tiny crew of three. She is running from a past and does NOT dally with hostages.
This is snarky, emotional, and thrilling.
“That’s a terrible plan.”
“We know,” Tully said with a toothy grin, “but we were hoping that once things were in motion, you’d catch wind of what was up and come up with a better one.”
Amandine laughed. “The faith you have in me.”
The cryst-born are slowly consumed by the very power they wield until there is nothing left but a beautiful edifice. Now tell me this doesn’t scream potential PAINFUL EMOTIONAL DAMAGE.
“You’re telling me you’re a rock.”
Her chin lifted. “I am a concretion of divine light.”
“All right. A very pretty rock.”
This felt very satisfying to read as a standalone, but I could also see the world being expanded with more adventures. Especially, as the epilogue tied things off too neatly with threads threatening to snap.
Arc gifted by Tor Books.
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Faven is a cryst-born navigator, grown from a crystal and returned to crystal. She is following a conspiracy after her mentor flies into the Clutch, a graveyard no one returns from, and gets herself captured by pirates.
Bitter Amandine is the captain of a misfit crew just trying to get by. Think of her as a Robin Hood-esque pirate.
Faven is impulsive. She wants to decide for herself for once instead of relying on the strict and protective governing body - the Choir. She has a self-imposed cage to keep the feelings at bay.
Amandine is a woman wrapped in wry amusement, carrying a fierce protective streak for her tiny crew of three. She is running from a past and does NOT dally with hostages.
This is snarky, emotional, and thrilling.
“That’s a terrible plan.”
“We know,” Tully said with a toothy grin, “but we were hoping that once things were in motion, you’d catch wind of what was up and come up with a better one.”
Amandine laughed. “The faith you have in me.”
The cryst-born are slowly consumed by the very power they wield until there is nothing left but a beautiful edifice. Now tell me this doesn’t scream potential PAINFUL EMOTIONAL DAMAGE.
“You’re telling me you’re a rock.”
Her chin lifted. “I am a concretion of divine light.”
“All right. A very pretty rock.”
This felt very satisfying to read as a standalone, but I could also see the world being expanded with more adventures. Especially, as the epilogue tied things off too neatly with threads threatening to snap.
Arc gifted by Tor Books.
Bookstagram
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May 25, 2025
Welp, today’s the day I don’t give five stars to a Megan E. O’Keefe book. I’m sad.
The Two Lies of Faven Sythe is a fast-paced space opera with a touch of fantasy, where crystborn navigator Faven Sythe becomes acquainted with the pirate Bitter Amandine to go to the Clutch to follow her mentor and a ghost story.
I found the ideas interesting, but O'Keefe usually shines in having plots within plots within plots, and the book was too short for the amount of twists it had. It came at the expense of world-building and character-building, which are two things I have usually obsessed over in the author's previous books. When I started the book, I was sure I'd be obsessed with Amandine, but then I found the character development to be thinner than in others of her books? Maybe it's me.
Anyways, I do recommend this if you like sci-fi fantasy, alien mysteries, space pirates, sapphic romance, and badass women overall. I found the twists to be interesting, but I lacked the understanding of the world to be properly wowed this time. I did manage to 'sniff' a twist because I started overthinking something (spoiler: ).
This bit I liked because I was like "Tarquin would love to lick this" ANYWAYS:
"You're telling me you're a rock."
Her chin lifted. "I am a concentration of divine light."
"All right. A very pretty rock."
I'm looking forward to O'Keefe's next series/book, I'm honestly so sad I didn't love this ;-;
*ARC provided for free, this hasn't impacted my review.
The Two Lies of Faven Sythe is a fast-paced space opera with a touch of fantasy, where crystborn navigator Faven Sythe becomes acquainted with the pirate Bitter Amandine to go to the Clutch to follow her mentor and a ghost story.
I found the ideas interesting, but O'Keefe usually shines in having plots within plots within plots, and the book was too short for the amount of twists it had. It came at the expense of world-building and character-building, which are two things I have usually obsessed over in the author's previous books. When I started the book, I was sure I'd be obsessed with Amandine, but then I found the character development to be thinner than in others of her books? Maybe it's me.
Anyways, I do recommend this if you like sci-fi fantasy, alien mysteries, space pirates, sapphic romance, and badass women overall. I found the twists to be interesting, but I lacked the understanding of the world to be properly wowed this time. I did manage to 'sniff' a twist because I started overthinking something (spoiler: ).
This bit I liked because I was like "Tarquin would love to lick this" ANYWAYS:
"You're telling me you're a rock."
Her chin lifted. "I am a concentration of divine light."
"All right. A very pretty rock."
I'm looking forward to O'Keefe's next series/book, I'm honestly so sad I didn't love this ;-;
*ARC provided for free, this hasn't impacted my review.
June 13, 2025
Many thanks to Orbit Books for sending me a copy!
LESBIAN!!! SPACE!!! PIRATES!!!
LESBIAN!!! SPACE!!! PIRATES!!!
July 4, 2025
4.0 lots of fun, a bit silly, and VERY gay. a sheltered noble scholar teams up with snarky pirate to investigate the suspicious disappearance of a beloved mentor, and together they uncover a lot more secrets about the power structures of their society than they bargained for. i adored the devoured worlds trilogy, so when i saw that megan e. o’keefe was writing a sapphic standalone, i immediately added it to my list.
what i loved:
- the dynamic between faven and amandine is one of my favorites: completely different classes of people learning just how wide the gap is in their worldviews, and both learning to respect each other despite it. loved to watch faven specifically realize her privilege and start doing something to change the system.
- the way o’keefe writes a romantic subplot is so delicious. you’ll never see her characters completely abandon logic to fulfill an obvious trope, but you WILL see two dummies unable to stop thinking about each other’s muscles even in dire situations. this was particularly fun when amandine’s crew teased her for an established history of being weak for a pretty girl.
- the cryst mythos was very cool and i love all the backstory planning that went into justifying “what if there were a big stained glass window on a spaceship?”
what was just okay:
- mostly just wish this were longer! the whole book is fast paced, but the second half in particular rushes through a LOT of reveals and resolution that don’t leave a lot of time for the reader to react and absorb them. this was always planned to be a standalone, but the bones are there for a much deeper story. as always, o’keefe writes sci-fi in a very accessible way, especially for me as not a huge sci-fi reader, but there were several little plot points that felt underdeveloped, particularly in regard to the side characters.
nevertheless, a good time was had. o’keefe’s tone strikes a perfect balance between humorous and sincere, and the romantic elements are woven into the bigger plot in a way that makes sense rather than sidelines the action.
what i loved:
- the dynamic between faven and amandine is one of my favorites: completely different classes of people learning just how wide the gap is in their worldviews, and both learning to respect each other despite it. loved to watch faven specifically realize her privilege and start doing something to change the system.
- the way o’keefe writes a romantic subplot is so delicious. you’ll never see her characters completely abandon logic to fulfill an obvious trope, but you WILL see two dummies unable to stop thinking about each other’s muscles even in dire situations. this was particularly fun when amandine’s crew teased her for an established history of being weak for a pretty girl.
- the cryst mythos was very cool and i love all the backstory planning that went into justifying “what if there were a big stained glass window on a spaceship?”
what was just okay:
- mostly just wish this were longer! the whole book is fast paced, but the second half in particular rushes through a LOT of reveals and resolution that don’t leave a lot of time for the reader to react and absorb them. this was always planned to be a standalone, but the bones are there for a much deeper story. as always, o’keefe writes sci-fi in a very accessible way, especially for me as not a huge sci-fi reader, but there were several little plot points that felt underdeveloped, particularly in regard to the side characters.
nevertheless, a good time was had. o’keefe’s tone strikes a perfect balance between humorous and sincere, and the romantic elements are woven into the bigger plot in a way that makes sense rather than sidelines the action.
July 17, 2025
Pirates? Check. Space? Check. Sapphic? Check. Eldritch beings beyond human comprehension? Check. Yup, this book has everything.
The protagonist of this book is the titular Faven Sythe. (Aside: I have to say, though I really enjoyed reading this, I just plain hate the title.) She’s a Navigator, a human infused in some way with the technology of the long-extinct mysterious aliens known as the cryst. Navigators are able to chart pathways between the stars for FTL travel, but doing so means their bodies will gradually, inevitably turn into crystal. Faven’s mother has just finished her transformation into a statue when the book begins.
She’s dealing with grief over her mother, anxiety over her own body beginning its transformation, and anxiety over a dear friend and mentor who has vanished and reportedly died on a mission to the dead home of the cryst. She suspects foul play with the last one, and is determined to find the truth. So when she gets a request for a meeting that is very obviously a prelude to kidnapping her - Navigators are very valuable - she decides to take the bait in hopes of getting out of her cloister and finding her friend.
Our co-protagonist is the pirate Bitter Amandine. She sees one of her fellow pirates engaged in a very obvious attempt at kidnapping a Navigator for ransom - a stupid idea to start with, and he’s really not being as subtle as he thinks. So when a Navigator actually shows up and takes what is very clearly bait, Bitter is naturally curious what the Navi’s game is and intervenes. The story unfolds from there, with kidnappings, rescues, escapes, more kidnappings (consensual kidnappings? Is that a thing?), pirate queens ruling over pirate havens, space battles, flirtation battles, shifting loyalties, and many assorted twists and turns.
Standalone, and lots of fun. Strongly recommended, and Megan E. O’Keefe is on my “read it no questions asked” list.
My blog
The protagonist of this book is the titular Faven Sythe. (Aside: I have to say, though I really enjoyed reading this, I just plain hate the title.) She’s a Navigator, a human infused in some way with the technology of the long-extinct mysterious aliens known as the cryst. Navigators are able to chart pathways between the stars for FTL travel, but doing so means their bodies will gradually, inevitably turn into crystal. Faven’s mother has just finished her transformation into a statue when the book begins.
She’s dealing with grief over her mother, anxiety over her own body beginning its transformation, and anxiety over a dear friend and mentor who has vanished and reportedly died on a mission to the dead home of the cryst. She suspects foul play with the last one, and is determined to find the truth. So when she gets a request for a meeting that is very obviously a prelude to kidnapping her - Navigators are very valuable - she decides to take the bait in hopes of getting out of her cloister and finding her friend.
Our co-protagonist is the pirate Bitter Amandine. She sees one of her fellow pirates engaged in a very obvious attempt at kidnapping a Navigator for ransom - a stupid idea to start with, and he’s really not being as subtle as he thinks. So when a Navigator actually shows up and takes what is very clearly bait, Bitter is naturally curious what the Navi’s game is and intervenes. The story unfolds from there, with kidnappings, rescues, escapes, more kidnappings (consensual kidnappings? Is that a thing?), pirate queens ruling over pirate havens, space battles, flirtation battles, shifting loyalties, and many assorted twists and turns.
Standalone, and lots of fun. Strongly recommended, and Megan E. O’Keefe is on my “read it no questions asked” list.
My blog
April 26, 2025
So, I lied...
I initially thought this book took place underwater in some shape and after reading the first chapter,.. I was convinced that this was the case..
I was wrong, somewhat. Hear me out, our new friend has scales!
In the beginning of our new adventure we meet Faven Sythe, a cryst-human hybrid. She is a navigator of sort and can weave star-paths for spacecrafts. This is important because once upon a time humanity was about to die and well, hybrids! I wont spoil the adventure for you, but there are pirates!
Megan E. O'Keefe created a sapphic adventure that will carry you through time and space! Consider the people around you and maybe even consider the woman your mother was before you. The story is fast pace, the chapters have the right length and the characters all are lovable.
At a couple of pages short of 400, this is a decent read that wont overwhelm you, but transports you into different universe filled with betrayals, duplicitous friends and lovers..
Thank you to Orbit Books, Megan E. O'Keefe and Netgalley, I was swept away and enjoyed this adventure through space!
I initially thought this book took place underwater in some shape and after reading the first chapter,.. I was convinced that this was the case..
I was wrong, somewhat. Hear me out, our new friend has scales!
In the beginning of our new adventure we meet Faven Sythe, a cryst-human hybrid. She is a navigator of sort and can weave star-paths for spacecrafts. This is important because once upon a time humanity was about to die and well, hybrids! I wont spoil the adventure for you, but there are pirates!
Megan E. O'Keefe created a sapphic adventure that will carry you through time and space! Consider the people around you and maybe even consider the woman your mother was before you. The story is fast pace, the chapters have the right length and the characters all are lovable.
At a couple of pages short of 400, this is a decent read that wont overwhelm you, but transports you into different universe filled with betrayals, duplicitous friends and lovers..
Thank you to Orbit Books, Megan E. O'Keefe and Netgalley, I was swept away and enjoyed this adventure through space!
November 4, 2025
gay people and pirates in space yay
May 15, 2025
A missing mentor leads crystborn and Navigator, Faven Sythe, to cross paths with a pirate, Bitter Amandine. A fun and thrilling standalone space opera.
I loved Megan E. O'Keefe's Devoured Worlds trilogy earlier this year and quite literally devoured them. Since her only other works are another trilogy, I wanted to dive into her newest release since it was a standalone.
I neither liked nor disliked anything about this book. Genuinely, there is NOTHING I loved about this book and NOTHING I disliked, it was just average for me. It was one of those reading experiences where, from the beginning, I kind of knew it wasn't going to be something I was obsessed with. Do you ever get that feeling when you start a new book that's like, "UUUGHHHH, can't believe I have to start ANOTHER book!"I also read it for what felt like forever, but it was only four days, and every day I read it, I liked it less and less.
Once again, there is literally nothing wrong with this book. If you read the synopsis, and it sounds good, pick it up! To be honest, I only read this now because I've read her other books on my Kindle, and I downloaded this 1) because it's a DRC, so it was free, and 2) my friend wanted to read this, so my hive mentality meant I wanted it too.
This review is based on the DRC I received from Orbit! This title is set to release on June 3, 2025. Thank you!
I loved Megan E. O'Keefe's Devoured Worlds trilogy earlier this year and quite literally devoured them. Since her only other works are another trilogy, I wanted to dive into her newest release since it was a standalone.
I neither liked nor disliked anything about this book. Genuinely, there is NOTHING I loved about this book and NOTHING I disliked, it was just average for me. It was one of those reading experiences where, from the beginning, I kind of knew it wasn't going to be something I was obsessed with. Do you ever get that feeling when you start a new book that's like, "UUUGHHHH, can't believe I have to start ANOTHER book!"I also read it for what felt like forever, but it was only four days, and every day I read it, I liked it less and less.
Once again, there is literally nothing wrong with this book. If you read the synopsis, and it sounds good, pick it up! To be honest, I only read this now because I've read her other books on my Kindle, and I downloaded this 1) because it's a DRC, so it was free, and 2) my friend wanted to read this, so my hive mentality meant I wanted it too.
This review is based on the DRC I received from Orbit! This title is set to release on June 3, 2025. Thank you!
May 23, 2025
I received this book for free from Orbit Books in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Well, the author who single-handedly made me like science fiction has done it again with The Two Lies of Faven Sythe. The second I saw that Megan E. O’Keefe had written another book, I had to read it as soon as humanly possible. And it did not disappoint, like all of O’Keefe’s works, The Two Lies of Faven Sythe features spectacular and creative world-building, lovable characters, and a thrilling story with a twist.
The novel follows eponymous Faven Sythe, a cryst-born (a member of the near human species tasked with charting starpaths from station to station), as she hunts down her missing mentor. Not only has her mentor vanished, but she left a perplexing and mysterious starpath that ends in a cosmic graveyard known as the Clutch. Faven will stop at nothing to find answers, including defying the very order she’s spent her entire life serving, arranging her own kidnapping, and consorting with pirates, like the notorious Bitter Amandine. Amandine is a captain of the Marquette and has a reputation that’s larger than life and a past that haunts her even more than she knows.
And the spaceships aren’t the only things zooming through space—the sparks between Amandine and Faven are flying from day one. So on top of the action, the intrigue, the pirate politics, the interesting galactic organizations, there’s also an entire star-crossed lovers romance that starts with an undeniable attraction. With Faven a member of the Choir of Stars, which rules the galaxy and its starpaths, and Amandine a former rebel and the leader of her own pirate crew, the two stand on opposite sides of an ideological chasm. This creates a delicious tension that spices up the entire novel. Personally, I would’ve liked the characters to spend a little more time yearning before acting on their feelings—but given the shorter length of the novel, it makes sense that things moved a bit faster.
Adding even more weight to their relationship—or lack thereof—is the fact that every time Faven uses her navigator powers to weave starpaths, the cryst she was born from encroaches further on her body, slowly turning her into a petrified cryst-scale statue. This process will eventually lead to her paralysis—an unavoidable fate for all of her kind. Amandine hesitates to let Faven use her powers, even when the fate of both humanity and the cryst-born hangs in the balance.
As other reviewers have pointed out, there are very few men in this book. This is truly a lesbian space pirate book that only features male characters as villains, which I personally didn’t have a single problem with, but some readers may find this unbalanced and not to their taste. O'Keefe has always written strong female protagonists, so it was a delight to have only Faven and Amandine's perspectives as the focus. On top of the lesbian characters, there’s multiple characters who use they/them though, which adds to the representation. This world kind of reminded me of the show Firefly in a way, with a fast-thinking and loveable captain, much like Captain Mal, and a close-knit crew who often get in over their heads, but always manage to find their way out of trouble despite impossible odds. However, it didn’t have the western aspect, thankfully, sticking to advanced technology like spaceflights and starpaths.
I was excited that like O’Keefe’s other series, The Devoured Worlds and The Protectorate, The Two Lies of Faven Sythe provides yet another fascinating portrayal of artificial or in this case, crafted, intelligence. O’Keefe never misses with these characters and always manages to breathe life into these beings and though I didn’t think the portrayal was quite as strong as in her other works, such as Velocity Weapon, I still really enjoyed seeing her depiction of this idea again in a different flavor.
As always, the strongest part of this novel is its original world-building. Much like Brandon Sanderson, who creates fantastical realms that feel like you could simply step into them, O’Keefe crafts settings so vivid and realistic, it’s as if the door’s already open and your boots are halfway through. In this story, the universe feels like it’s at the reader’s fingertips—and for Faven, it actually is, which makes the journey all the more magical. I’d happily leap at the chance to return to this world, whether with new faces or familiar ones.
And despite this intricate and interesting world-building, O’Keefe doesn’t make the explanations feel overly detailed, information dumpy, or overwhelmingly scientific. It feels very accessible and easy to understand, which is not something a lot of science fiction novels manage to do. This makes it perfect for fans of science fiction and readers, like me, who are hesitant to divert from their preference for fantasy novels.
The only thing that I’m not sure that worked as well for me was the twist near the very end of the novel. Readers find out at the same time as Amandine and Faven that everything they thought they knew was, well, a lie, and it rocks their worlds. I saw part of the twist coming, but not all of it, and perhaps because of what I felt was too little build-up for the other part, it felt somewhat unearned and didn’t have quite the impact that it should have for me.
Even if I wasn’t completely sold on the twist, I loved The The Two Lies of Faven Sythe—and I think it’s the fastest-paced of all O'Keefe’s novels so far. It’s officially secured the second spot on my list of O’Keefe favorites, right behind The Blighted Stars. Still, this book has fully cemented O'Keefe as a day-one author for me. Whether it’s part of a series or a standalone, I’ll be on the lookout for whatever comes next.
Well, the author who single-handedly made me like science fiction has done it again with The Two Lies of Faven Sythe. The second I saw that Megan E. O’Keefe had written another book, I had to read it as soon as humanly possible. And it did not disappoint, like all of O’Keefe’s works, The Two Lies of Faven Sythe features spectacular and creative world-building, lovable characters, and a thrilling story with a twist.
The novel follows eponymous Faven Sythe, a cryst-born (a member of the near human species tasked with charting starpaths from station to station), as she hunts down her missing mentor. Not only has her mentor vanished, but she left a perplexing and mysterious starpath that ends in a cosmic graveyard known as the Clutch. Faven will stop at nothing to find answers, including defying the very order she’s spent her entire life serving, arranging her own kidnapping, and consorting with pirates, like the notorious Bitter Amandine. Amandine is a captain of the Marquette and has a reputation that’s larger than life and a past that haunts her even more than she knows.
“‘Because when we first met, you were sticking your neck out to find out a truth. This about the Clutch. This is about what you think is happening here. And the only way you’re going to get your answers now that you know someone back home wants you dead is being honest with pirates.’”
And the spaceships aren’t the only things zooming through space—the sparks between Amandine and Faven are flying from day one. So on top of the action, the intrigue, the pirate politics, the interesting galactic organizations, there’s also an entire star-crossed lovers romance that starts with an undeniable attraction. With Faven a member of the Choir of Stars, which rules the galaxy and its starpaths, and Amandine a former rebel and the leader of her own pirate crew, the two stand on opposite sides of an ideological chasm. This creates a delicious tension that spices up the entire novel. Personally, I would’ve liked the characters to spend a little more time yearning before acting on their feelings—but given the shorter length of the novel, it makes sense that things moved a bit faster.
“‘You’d better keep your word and get me out of here, Bitter Amandine. It seems I have a score to settle.’ Amandine grinned. ‘I knew you had some teeth goddess.’”
Adding even more weight to their relationship—or lack thereof—is the fact that every time Faven uses her navigator powers to weave starpaths, the cryst she was born from encroaches further on her body, slowly turning her into a petrified cryst-scale statue. This process will eventually lead to her paralysis—an unavoidable fate for all of her kind. Amandine hesitates to let Faven use her powers, even when the fate of both humanity and the cryst-born hangs in the balance.
As other reviewers have pointed out, there are very few men in this book. This is truly a lesbian space pirate book that only features male characters as villains, which I personally didn’t have a single problem with, but some readers may find this unbalanced and not to their taste. O'Keefe has always written strong female protagonists, so it was a delight to have only Faven and Amandine's perspectives as the focus. On top of the lesbian characters, there’s multiple characters who use they/them though, which adds to the representation. This world kind of reminded me of the show Firefly in a way, with a fast-thinking and loveable captain, much like Captain Mal, and a close-knit crew who often get in over their heads, but always manage to find their way out of trouble despite impossible odds. However, it didn’t have the western aspect, thankfully, sticking to advanced technology like spaceflights and starpaths.
“When pirates braved the Clutch, it was only to slip behind the outer layer to the wreckage that lurked within. You did not take from the darkness, it was said, or the dark would take from you.”
I was excited that like O’Keefe’s other series, The Devoured Worlds and The Protectorate, The Two Lies of Faven Sythe provides yet another fascinating portrayal of artificial or in this case, crafted, intelligence. O’Keefe never misses with these characters and always manages to breathe life into these beings and though I didn’t think the portrayal was quite as strong as in her other works, such as Velocity Weapon, I still really enjoyed seeing her depiction of this idea again in a different flavor.
As always, the strongest part of this novel is its original world-building. Much like Brandon Sanderson, who creates fantastical realms that feel like you could simply step into them, O’Keefe crafts settings so vivid and realistic, it’s as if the door’s already open and your boots are halfway through. In this story, the universe feels like it’s at the reader’s fingertips—and for Faven, it actually is, which makes the journey all the more magical. I’d happily leap at the chance to return to this world, whether with new faces or familiar ones.
And despite this intricate and interesting world-building, O’Keefe doesn’t make the explanations feel overly detailed, information dumpy, or overwhelmingly scientific. It feels very accessible and easy to understand, which is not something a lot of science fiction novels manage to do. This makes it perfect for fans of science fiction and readers, like me, who are hesitant to divert from their preference for fantasy novels.
The only thing that I’m not sure that worked as well for me was the twist near the very end of the novel. Readers find out at the same time as Amandine and Faven that everything they thought they knew was, well, a lie, and it rocks their worlds. I saw part of the twist coming, but not all of it, and perhaps because of what I felt was too little build-up for the other part, it felt somewhat unearned and didn’t have quite the impact that it should have for me.
Even if I wasn’t completely sold on the twist, I loved The The Two Lies of Faven Sythe—and I think it’s the fastest-paced of all O'Keefe’s novels so far. It’s officially secured the second spot on my list of O’Keefe favorites, right behind The Blighted Stars. Still, this book has fully cemented O'Keefe as a day-one author for me. Whether it’s part of a series or a standalone, I’ll be on the lookout for whatever comes next.
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April 27, 2025
tl;dr: 3rd person from two main POVs/excellent writing/fully fleshed-out characters/lesbians/one character referred to as "them".
Arr, me mateys! This here be a story about pirates...in space! Arr. And according to the blurb a ghost ship...in space! What could be more exciting? Well (switching from pirate voice to normal voice) I hate to break it to you but there's no ghost ship and I'm sorry if that's too much of a spoiler but I don't want other readers to get all excited as I was only to find out there's no ghost ship. There is a spooky place full of ghosts--sort of--and maybe it is a ship in a way but not in the conventional way we think of ships.
Some background first before I delve into the plot and characters. Many millennia ago the alien Cryst came and gave the gift of how to navigate the stars to the humans by creating a merging of Cryst with Human to create the crystborn. Only they can see the paths between the stars as a trail of light. The crystborn become the navigators for humanity, and the Cryst themselves are swallowed up in history so that only the crystborn and normal humans remain.
Faven Sythe, our titular heroine, is crystborn and when she follows the path her mentor took on her latest trip she finds it ends in the Clutch, that mysterious place that so many of the crystborn have been disappearing to, never to be seen again. Faven is determine to follow the path and find out what happened to her mentor.
Bitter Amandine (not her real name) is a pirate. A swaggering, swashbuckling pirate though without the parrot or peg-leg. And without a sword too. Amandine uses a shotgun if you can believe it. Yes, a shotgun in a space-faring world. You'd think they'd have better technology than to rely on shotguns. Maybe it's a more advanced form of shotgun.
Those two are our main POV characters. They have an ill-fated first meeting. Then later they meet again and Faven and Amandine start this dance around each other (figuratively, not literally). They could not be more different and yet drawn to each other. Each strong in their own way. These are fully-fleshed out 3D characters, they seemed like real people to me.
The story will take us from the Spire of the crystborn and their Choir to the main den of pirates, and finally into the mysterious Clutch where we find out some shocking truths. And that's all I'll say for fear of spoilers.
I devoured this book. I can't say enough about the two main characters. They are the center of the book. The story was intriguing too. You've got post-human people who seem to have all these benefits and yet they have a sad ending because the more they use their abilities to make pathways for ships the more their bodies turn into cryst-glass, until they are entirely taken over by it and are nothing but a cryst-glass statue. That Achilles heel reminds me of something a fantasy writer once said about writing magic. That you can't have just magic that can do anything, instead magic has to have rules, sometimes a downside to it. And that's what O'Keefe has done with the crystborn, given them a downside to their "magic" ability to find safe pathways from point A to point B.
If I have one negative thing to say about the book it is that there are women everywhere. There's a woman in charge of the crystborn, a woman in charge of the pirates, a woman here a woman there. And lots of lesbians, not that there's anything wrong with that it just seemed a little to coincidental that every woman Amandine comes across is a lesbian. There are two male characters that we meet and both end up ineffective. It just seems unbalanced to me. But then the focus of the narrative is so focused on Amandine and Faven that we really don't get a chance to meet that many other people nor get to know them so who knows, maybe there's tons of strong male characters there.
That's the only thing that bothered me (a little, not a lot), that and that my head reeled at the end with the Big Reveal Twist Thing that all books must have nowadays. Knocked me a 180 and took awhile for my brain to settle again.
The Two Lies of Faven Sythe (love the almost rhyme) is an adventurous story that I give a solid 5 stars to. Get yourself a copy when it comes out and read your heart out.
(I received an e-book advanced copy through NetGalley. This did not affect my opinion in any way.)
Arr, me mateys! This here be a story about pirates...in space! Arr. And according to the blurb a ghost ship...in space! What could be more exciting? Well (switching from pirate voice to normal voice) I hate to break it to you but there's no ghost ship and I'm sorry if that's too much of a spoiler but I don't want other readers to get all excited as I was only to find out there's no ghost ship. There is a spooky place full of ghosts--sort of--and maybe it is a ship in a way but not in the conventional way we think of ships.
Some background first before I delve into the plot and characters. Many millennia ago the alien Cryst came and gave the gift of how to navigate the stars to the humans by creating a merging of Cryst with Human to create the crystborn. Only they can see the paths between the stars as a trail of light. The crystborn become the navigators for humanity, and the Cryst themselves are swallowed up in history so that only the crystborn and normal humans remain.
Faven Sythe, our titular heroine, is crystborn and when she follows the path her mentor took on her latest trip she finds it ends in the Clutch, that mysterious place that so many of the crystborn have been disappearing to, never to be seen again. Faven is determine to follow the path and find out what happened to her mentor.
Bitter Amandine (not her real name) is a pirate. A swaggering, swashbuckling pirate though without the parrot or peg-leg. And without a sword too. Amandine uses a shotgun if you can believe it. Yes, a shotgun in a space-faring world. You'd think they'd have better technology than to rely on shotguns. Maybe it's a more advanced form of shotgun.
Those two are our main POV characters. They have an ill-fated first meeting. Then later they meet again and Faven and Amandine start this dance around each other (figuratively, not literally). They could not be more different and yet drawn to each other. Each strong in their own way. These are fully-fleshed out 3D characters, they seemed like real people to me.
The story will take us from the Spire of the crystborn and their Choir to the main den of pirates, and finally into the mysterious Clutch where we find out some shocking truths. And that's all I'll say for fear of spoilers.
I devoured this book. I can't say enough about the two main characters. They are the center of the book. The story was intriguing too. You've got post-human people who seem to have all these benefits and yet they have a sad ending because the more they use their abilities to make pathways for ships the more their bodies turn into cryst-glass, until they are entirely taken over by it and are nothing but a cryst-glass statue. That Achilles heel reminds me of something a fantasy writer once said about writing magic. That you can't have just magic that can do anything, instead magic has to have rules, sometimes a downside to it. And that's what O'Keefe has done with the crystborn, given them a downside to their "magic" ability to find safe pathways from point A to point B.
If I have one negative thing to say about the book it is that there are women everywhere. There's a woman in charge of the crystborn, a woman in charge of the pirates, a woman here a woman there. And lots of lesbians, not that there's anything wrong with that it just seemed a little to coincidental that every woman Amandine comes across is a lesbian. There are two male characters that we meet and both end up ineffective. It just seems unbalanced to me. But then the focus of the narrative is so focused on Amandine and Faven that we really don't get a chance to meet that many other people nor get to know them so who knows, maybe there's tons of strong male characters there.
That's the only thing that bothered me (a little, not a lot), that and that my head reeled at the end with the Big Reveal Twist Thing that all books must have nowadays. Knocked me a 180 and took awhile for my brain to settle again.
The Two Lies of Faven Sythe (love the almost rhyme) is an adventurous story that I give a solid 5 stars to. Get yourself a copy when it comes out and read your heart out.
(I received an e-book advanced copy through NetGalley. This did not affect my opinion in any way.)
July 9, 2025
Review originally on JamReads
The Two Lies of Faven Sythe is a standalone space opera novel, written by Megan E. O'Keefe, published by Orbit Books. An imaginative story that gives us a good dose of space pirates and a tantalising queer romance, with an intriguing worldbuilding that keeps you wanting to learn more about the secrets behind the universe of this novel, all with a great cast of characters.
Faven Sythe is a cryst-born navigator, grown from a crystal; dealing with the grief from her mother's death. The lack of answers about her mentor's disappearing, when the flight path was pointing to the Clutch, a graveyard from where nobody returns, makes her get captured by pirates, as she wishes to investigate it by herself instead of relying in the strict chorus.
Bitter Amandine is the captain of a misfit crew, just trying to survive; running from her past, and really protective of her tiny crew. She wasn't thinking about having to deal with hostages, but her destiny and Faven's end being intertwined in an adventure that will take them to not only finding about Amandine's past, but also the conspiracy that the Choir is hiding from everybody.
Faven is quite a curious character: her plan tells us about an impulsiveness, but also the desire to flee from the iron hands of the Choir; she's rebellious, but she's also dealing with a fair share of grief, not only with her mentor's disappearance, but also with her mother's death, which partly motivates her plan. She's forced to trust in Amandine, especially when they are put in difficult situations in a world she hasn't been an active part as a cryst-navigator.
Our other main character, Amandine, is a woman hardened by her past; she's wary of trusting outsiders and Faven is definitely the last thing she could have expected. As you might imagine, we have a dash of romance between our characters; the evolution from reluctant allies feels really natural, and honestly, I'm always for a sapphic subplot.
For being a standalone novel, the worldbuilding is really ambitious: the own concept of the navigators and their origins is intriguing, and O'Keefe plays the best to create a rich imagery out of the concept; and the pirate's society and lore add also a dash of salt to the dish.
The pacing is relatively fast, with plenty of action scenes; the stakes are high and that helps the reader to devour the book.
The Two Lies of Faven Sythe is a really enjoyable space opera novel, perfect if you are looking for a rompy science fantasy proposal with tons of actions and a well-fleshed cast of characters. With the epilogue hinting for more, I hope to eventually revisit this universe in other novels!
The Two Lies of Faven Sythe is a standalone space opera novel, written by Megan E. O'Keefe, published by Orbit Books. An imaginative story that gives us a good dose of space pirates and a tantalising queer romance, with an intriguing worldbuilding that keeps you wanting to learn more about the secrets behind the universe of this novel, all with a great cast of characters.
Faven Sythe is a cryst-born navigator, grown from a crystal; dealing with the grief from her mother's death. The lack of answers about her mentor's disappearing, when the flight path was pointing to the Clutch, a graveyard from where nobody returns, makes her get captured by pirates, as she wishes to investigate it by herself instead of relying in the strict chorus.
Bitter Amandine is the captain of a misfit crew, just trying to survive; running from her past, and really protective of her tiny crew. She wasn't thinking about having to deal with hostages, but her destiny and Faven's end being intertwined in an adventure that will take them to not only finding about Amandine's past, but also the conspiracy that the Choir is hiding from everybody.
Faven is quite a curious character: her plan tells us about an impulsiveness, but also the desire to flee from the iron hands of the Choir; she's rebellious, but she's also dealing with a fair share of grief, not only with her mentor's disappearance, but also with her mother's death, which partly motivates her plan. She's forced to trust in Amandine, especially when they are put in difficult situations in a world she hasn't been an active part as a cryst-navigator.
Our other main character, Amandine, is a woman hardened by her past; she's wary of trusting outsiders and Faven is definitely the last thing she could have expected. As you might imagine, we have a dash of romance between our characters; the evolution from reluctant allies feels really natural, and honestly, I'm always for a sapphic subplot.
For being a standalone novel, the worldbuilding is really ambitious: the own concept of the navigators and their origins is intriguing, and O'Keefe plays the best to create a rich imagery out of the concept; and the pirate's society and lore add also a dash of salt to the dish.
The pacing is relatively fast, with plenty of action scenes; the stakes are high and that helps the reader to devour the book.
The Two Lies of Faven Sythe is a really enjoyable space opera novel, perfect if you are looking for a rompy science fantasy proposal with tons of actions and a well-fleshed cast of characters. With the epilogue hinting for more, I hope to eventually revisit this universe in other novels!
May 11, 2025
Thank you so much to Orbit and Netgalley for an eARC of The Two Lies of Faven Sythe! I ADORE Megan E. O'Keefe's writing and was thrilled to get my hands on a copy of her upcoming novel. Can we take a moment to appreciate this cover? I'm obsessed.
O'Keefe continues to be my go-to sci-fi author recommendation. The way she writes these worlds and characters consistently blows me away; I find myself using her books as my baseline comparison in this genre. I enjoyed Two Lies and found myself completely sucked in to this story, although had a harder time grasping the world building in this particular book (which is probably more of a 'me' problem than anything else, but I digress). In classic fashion, the found family trope was beautifully represented, as was the development of Faven and Amandine's relationship (I've been literally dying for lesbians in these books, though I've appreciated O'Keefe's queer inclusions thus far). The pirate aspect was unexpected, but I didn't hate it. I do wish there was a little bit more backstory fleshed out for our side characters, or otherwise just omitted- unless this turns into a continuous series, there was some information that didn't seem overly relevant and could have given time to explain other things.
With that being said, I genuinely don't know how O'Keefe creates stories that are equally immersive, unique, and complex without being *too* confusing- and I will continue to consider her one of my auto-buy authors. The Two Lies of Faven Sythe is out this upcoming June, and die-hard Megan O'Keefe fans should be keeping an eye out for this one. If you're new to her books, I HIGHLY recommend starting with Velocity Weapon (protectorate trilogy superiority FOREVER)- but I can't wait to see this book out in the world!
O'Keefe continues to be my go-to sci-fi author recommendation. The way she writes these worlds and characters consistently blows me away; I find myself using her books as my baseline comparison in this genre. I enjoyed Two Lies and found myself completely sucked in to this story, although had a harder time grasping the world building in this particular book (which is probably more of a 'me' problem than anything else, but I digress). In classic fashion, the found family trope was beautifully represented, as was the development of Faven and Amandine's relationship (I've been literally dying for lesbians in these books, though I've appreciated O'Keefe's queer inclusions thus far). The pirate aspect was unexpected, but I didn't hate it. I do wish there was a little bit more backstory fleshed out for our side characters, or otherwise just omitted- unless this turns into a continuous series, there was some information that didn't seem overly relevant and could have given time to explain other things.
With that being said, I genuinely don't know how O'Keefe creates stories that are equally immersive, unique, and complex without being *too* confusing- and I will continue to consider her one of my auto-buy authors. The Two Lies of Faven Sythe is out this upcoming June, and die-hard Megan O'Keefe fans should be keeping an eye out for this one. If you're new to her books, I HIGHLY recommend starting with Velocity Weapon (protectorate trilogy superiority FOREVER)- but I can't wait to see this book out in the world!
April 30, 2025
This was a highly anticipated book for me because I really enjoyed O’Keefe’s last two series and was eager to see how she’d handle herself with a standalone novel.
The strongest aspect by far for me was the world building. She immediately drew me in with that from the first page on. Somehow each of her scifi universes feels very different from the others and I always love learning about the creatures and lore within them. This was well done all throughout.
The pacing of the plot was a little dicey for me sometimes. The setup felt pretty long for a standalone so I was worried that it wouldn’t come together well enough. For the most part, I think she did well. There were some exciting moments along the way and then it all really built up towards the climax at the end. I did struggle a little bit with following some of the finer details there and the ending felt a bit abrupt before the epilogue, but overall it was cool to see the conclusion.
There were two main characters that came from very different backgrounds and I definitely preferred one over the other. While Faven had lots of neat world building in hers, I thought Amandine’s background and emotions were better developed and conveyed. Granted, Faven did work on limiting her feelings on purpose but even when she did get emotional in various situations, it just didn’t come across the page as fluidly.
There were several prominent side characters and there as well I felt like some of them were better developed than others. Amandine’s crew was pretty fun to follow along with and while Faven was surrounded by interesting people, they felt a bit more flat than I would’ve liked. I liked how distinct their roles were within Faven’s life though and how that affected the story in different ways.
Overall, I had a good time reading this book. As always, the world building stood out and there were definitely some characters I liked to cheer on, which made it a pretty quick read for me. I do still have to say though that it doesn’t quite reach the level of The Devoured Worlds for me. There were several things in this standalone that made me reminisce about her last series and now I’m so tempted to read that one again.
The strongest aspect by far for me was the world building. She immediately drew me in with that from the first page on. Somehow each of her scifi universes feels very different from the others and I always love learning about the creatures and lore within them. This was well done all throughout.
The pacing of the plot was a little dicey for me sometimes. The setup felt pretty long for a standalone so I was worried that it wouldn’t come together well enough. For the most part, I think she did well. There were some exciting moments along the way and then it all really built up towards the climax at the end. I did struggle a little bit with following some of the finer details there and the ending felt a bit abrupt before the epilogue, but overall it was cool to see the conclusion.
There were two main characters that came from very different backgrounds and I definitely preferred one over the other. While Faven had lots of neat world building in hers, I thought Amandine’s background and emotions were better developed and conveyed. Granted, Faven did work on limiting her feelings on purpose but even when she did get emotional in various situations, it just didn’t come across the page as fluidly.
There were several prominent side characters and there as well I felt like some of them were better developed than others. Amandine’s crew was pretty fun to follow along with and while Faven was surrounded by interesting people, they felt a bit more flat than I would’ve liked. I liked how distinct their roles were within Faven’s life though and how that affected the story in different ways.
Overall, I had a good time reading this book. As always, the world building stood out and there were definitely some characters I liked to cheer on, which made it a pretty quick read for me. I do still have to say though that it doesn’t quite reach the level of The Devoured Worlds for me. There were several things in this standalone that made me reminisce about her last series and now I’m so tempted to read that one again.
November 16, 2025
I saw another review describe this succinctly as "lesbian pirates in space," and that is exactly what this is. I have been craving a space opera lately, so I was happy to finally try Megan E O'Keefe's new standalone adventure.
Crystborn goddess, Faven Sythe, finds an unexpected ally in the space pirate Bitter Amandine. And Faven is in desperate need of an ally as she investigates the growing disappearances of other crystborns like her. When someone sabotages her ship as she heads for the Clutch, a cosmic graveyard that very few return from, Faven is saved by Amandine while also becoming her captive. Meanwhile, Amandine has a list of questions in need of answers and a big secret of her own regarding her possibly sentient ship, the Marquette.
This is a fast-pace spaced opera with themes of conspiracy and corruption, a heavy focus on protecting one's family as well as uncovering the hidden truths in one's past, and it has a fun romantic subplot. I will definitely be trying Megan O'Keefe's future projects, and I can see myself eventually rereading The Two Lies of Faven Sythe!
Actual Rating: 4.0 stars
Pub Date: 3 June 2025
Reading Format: e-book and audiobook
Thank you NetGalley and Orbit for an E-ARC copy in exchange for this honest review!
Crystborn goddess, Faven Sythe, finds an unexpected ally in the space pirate Bitter Amandine. And Faven is in desperate need of an ally as she investigates the growing disappearances of other crystborns like her. When someone sabotages her ship as she heads for the Clutch, a cosmic graveyard that very few return from, Faven is saved by Amandine while also becoming her captive. Meanwhile, Amandine has a list of questions in need of answers and a big secret of her own regarding her possibly sentient ship, the Marquette.
This is a fast-pace spaced opera with themes of conspiracy and corruption, a heavy focus on protecting one's family as well as uncovering the hidden truths in one's past, and it has a fun romantic subplot. I will definitely be trying Megan O'Keefe's future projects, and I can see myself eventually rereading The Two Lies of Faven Sythe!
Actual Rating: 4.0 stars
Pub Date: 3 June 2025
Reading Format: e-book and audiobook
Thank you NetGalley and Orbit for an E-ARC copy in exchange for this honest review!
May 20, 2025
I loved The Devoured Worlds series so when I saw that Megan E. O'Keefe had a new book out, I immediately requested it. This is the kind of sci fi that rarely gets published anymore and I am thirsting after it. I miss good old-fashioned adventuresome space opera. It has been overshadowed in recent years by romantasy. And Megan E. O'Keefe does space opera the way I like it; she's quickly become one of my favorite authors.
I did have the same issue with starting The Devoured Worlds though; I was never quite sure how I felt about her writing style and the pacing when I was reading, but then her immersive worldbuilding and amazing characters stay with me long after I put down the book.
This book can basically be summed up in three words: Lesbian space pirates. Literally. There were very few men in this book. But there were many strong queer women. I didn't know how much I needed that in my life. Lesbian pirates, bodyguards and knights are a soft spot for me. Love love love.
The book follows the adventures of Faven Sythe, one of the cryst-born, or human hybrid navigators, as she chases down clues as to what happened to her missing mentor. The science behind the cryst-born is shaky at best, so just don't overthink that bit.
Faven ends up tangling with a pirate captain who has a strange ship and secrets of her own, and the two of them have a lovely love story with flirty banter, minimal angst, "touch her and die" protectiveness and no betrayals! Finally! I thought those two were swoon worthy. The worldbuilding also blew me away - that is one of O'Keefe's talents, her rich imagination.
This was basically one fun romp from start to finish and I loved every minute.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I did have the same issue with starting The Devoured Worlds though; I was never quite sure how I felt about her writing style and the pacing when I was reading, but then her immersive worldbuilding and amazing characters stay with me long after I put down the book.
This book can basically be summed up in three words: Lesbian space pirates. Literally. There were very few men in this book. But there were many strong queer women. I didn't know how much I needed that in my life. Lesbian pirates, bodyguards and knights are a soft spot for me. Love love love.
The book follows the adventures of Faven Sythe, one of the cryst-born, or human hybrid navigators, as she chases down clues as to what happened to her missing mentor. The science behind the cryst-born is shaky at best, so just don't overthink that bit.
Faven ends up tangling with a pirate captain who has a strange ship and secrets of her own, and the two of them have a lovely love story with flirty banter, minimal angst, "touch her and die" protectiveness and no betrayals! Finally! I thought those two were swoon worthy. The worldbuilding also blew me away - that is one of O'Keefe's talents, her rich imagination.
This was basically one fun romp from start to finish and I loved every minute.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
June 11, 2025
Space pirates. I’m not a big fan of pirates when they’re historical and on Earth in the water, but space pirates? I friggin’ love me some space pirates.
Space pirates in a space opera with a sapphic romance: That’s a recipe that almost always works for me. The Two Lies of Faven Sythe was good soup.
From the engaging and intriguing beginning chapters all the way through to the cinematic scenes that make up the kaleidoscopic climax of this story, Megan O’Keefe has written a completely enrapturing story that I gladly let swallow me whole and carry me away. 5⭐️
I was provided a copy of this title by the author and publisher via Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.
File Under: 5 Star Review/Action Adventure/LGBTQ Sci-Fi/LGBTQ Fiction/Sapphic Romance/Sci-Fi/Space Opera/Standalone Novel
Space pirates in a space opera with a sapphic romance: That’s a recipe that almost always works for me. The Two Lies of Faven Sythe was good soup.
From the engaging and intriguing beginning chapters all the way through to the cinematic scenes that make up the kaleidoscopic climax of this story, Megan O’Keefe has written a completely enrapturing story that I gladly let swallow me whole and carry me away. 5⭐️
I was provided a copy of this title by the author and publisher via Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.
File Under: 5 Star Review/Action Adventure/LGBTQ Sci-Fi/LGBTQ Fiction/Sapphic Romance/Sci-Fi/Space Opera/Standalone Novel
August 15, 2025
This is an extremely 3.5 star book, rounding up to 4. Characters are fun, world is interesting, I called the major plot twists early on but still felt satisfied with reveals. Solid science fantasy that delivers on its premise (and you can’t go wrong with Sapphic space pirates) but some of the ideas felt a little underdeveloped and the ending was a little rushed.
June 17, 2025
Before we chat about this book, can we please take a moment to love on the cover? So pretty, she is! One of my favorites of the year, frankly. And the book was good too! I am going to tell you what I did not like first, because you will encounter this first: I did not understand, especially in the beginning, what the heck was going on with Faven and the whole "being made from sacred cryst" business. Didn't get it, felt confused, tried to pretend it didn't exist. By the end, I had decided it was sort of like those guys in The 100 (Season 7, akin to the Judge, maybe with some Bardoans mixed in, iykyk) which is to say I either understood, or imagined I did enough to make it make sense. Either way, the problem was solved.
The story itself I liked, aside from that bit of worldbuilding complaint. Faven is a very sympathetic character, and I really enjoyed her interaction with Bitter Amandine and her pirate crew. There were a ton of twists I did not see coming, and the ending was pretty satisfactory (though it did leave some room for a potential return to the world, it was still a solid finish to the story). I liked learning the backstories of both main characters, too. It made them feel quite developed, and definitely like people you'd want to root for (even though they both absolutely have their flaws and a ton of gray morality). The story also moved along at a good pace, and felt like just the right length- long enough that we were invested, but not too long that things were draggy.
Bottom Line: Overall, a really solid sci-fi with unique concepts and a lot of exciting twists!
You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
The story itself I liked, aside from that bit of worldbuilding complaint. Faven is a very sympathetic character, and I really enjoyed her interaction with Bitter Amandine and her pirate crew. There were a ton of twists I did not see coming, and the ending was pretty satisfactory (though it did leave some room for a potential return to the world, it was still a solid finish to the story). I liked learning the backstories of both main characters, too. It made them feel quite developed, and definitely like people you'd want to root for (even though they both absolutely have their flaws and a ton of gray morality). The story also moved along at a good pace, and felt like just the right length- long enough that we were invested, but not too long that things were draggy.
Bottom Line: Overall, a really solid sci-fi with unique concepts and a lot of exciting twists!
You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
August 18, 2025
3ish stars. This book was okay!! Honestly it was a perfect pallet cleanser. Simple plot, simple characters, simple world but still fun!
July 26, 2025
3.5*
review to come!
review to come!
August 28, 2025
3.5⭐️ Amdine’s character was probably the best part of this book
May 4, 2025
I was absolutely caught off guard by how obsessed I was with The Two Lies of Faven Sythe. This was my first Megan E. O’Keefe book and it won’t be my last.
Pick this book up for space pirates, alien species, mostly female and non-binary cast, space adventures, daring rescues, skin that grows colored glass cryst-scale, alien navigators, firefly and farscape vibes, a few wild fight scenes, and light touch of sapphic romance.
The plot pacing was incredible. As soon as you thought you might be hitting a lull something wild would happen. It’s so nice to read a book you didn’t feel could have been shorter. Honestly, my only complaint is that there is so much action and world building packed in here, that some parts got confusing.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advance reader copy. All opinions are straight from my own brain.
Pick this book up for space pirates, alien species, mostly female and non-binary cast, space adventures, daring rescues, skin that grows colored glass cryst-scale, alien navigators, firefly and farscape vibes, a few wild fight scenes, and light touch of sapphic romance.
The plot pacing was incredible. As soon as you thought you might be hitting a lull something wild would happen. It’s so nice to read a book you didn’t feel could have been shorter. Honestly, my only complaint is that there is so much action and world building packed in here, that some parts got confusing.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advance reader copy. All opinions are straight from my own brain.
November 3, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️.25
May 21, 2025
El final te rompe la cabeza. Muy lovecraftiano, con una especie alienígena muy interesante y fascinante. Más especulativo de lo que pensaba para una novela de aventuras.
June 3, 2025
3.5 stars
This book does well as a standalone sci-fi, though I can’t help but feel it would have benefited from a bit more length. Most of my critiques stem from one overarching issue: it just needed more time. More time to develop its world, its characters, and its plot threads.
Both Faven and Amandine were excellent POV characters. Amandine is your classic badass space pirate with a mysterious, difficult past and a surprising amount of heart. Faven, on the other hand, begins the story as a more reserved and sheltered character stepping into the wider galaxy for the first time. I was pleasantly surprised by her quiet strength and determination. She doesn’t let much get in her way once she sets her mind to something. The dynamic between these two was a real highlight. Their chemistry, especially during shared scenes, was electric. Their banter was sharp, fun, and kept me glued to the page.
I’ve seen this described as "lesbian space pirates" and honestly, that’s pretty accurate. There's a strong focus on that specific representation throughout the book, with the majority of characters identifying somewhere on the LGBTQ+ spectrum. A couple characters also use they/them pronouns, which was great to see in a sci-fi setting.
The alternating POVs were well-balanced, with both Faven and Amandine getting solid development. The pacing was generally good, with a nice rhythm between action scenes and plot progression. However, the side characters felt underdeveloped. I found it hard to connect with anyone outside of the main duo, and a few character arcs seemed to just end abruptly.
The cryst-born were one of the more intriguing aspects of the story, but sadly, I felt they didn’t get the attention they deserved. Their distinct physiology and the haunting concept of their slow, crystallizing deaths offered so much potential, but their culture and abilities seemed a bit surface level, leaving me wanting more.
The ending, unfortunately, felt rushed. A lot of new information and revelations were thrown at the reader in rapid succession, with little time to fully process or explore them. It made the conclusion feel abrupt and left several threads unresolved or hastily wrapped up.
There were also two points in the book where transitions between chapters felt disjointed. In both instances, a plan would be made at the end of one chapter, only to be seemingly abandoned or completely changed in the next. It left me wondering if I had missed a chapter.
One final (non-critical) observation: there are very few male characters in this book. Only four come to mind and they were either dead from the start, not important, or not portrayed in the best of light. It’s not something that impacted my enjoyment but I thought that it was worth noting.
In conclusion, I enjoyed reading this. It's a solid standalone that could serve as a great entry point for readers new to sci-fi. While it had some development issues, the core characters and representation were definite strengths. I continue to recommend this author. Her Devoured Worlds series is one of the reasons I started to get into sci-fi in the first place. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing what she writes next.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and Orbit in exchange for an honest review.
This book does well as a standalone sci-fi, though I can’t help but feel it would have benefited from a bit more length. Most of my critiques stem from one overarching issue: it just needed more time. More time to develop its world, its characters, and its plot threads.
Both Faven and Amandine were excellent POV characters. Amandine is your classic badass space pirate with a mysterious, difficult past and a surprising amount of heart. Faven, on the other hand, begins the story as a more reserved and sheltered character stepping into the wider galaxy for the first time. I was pleasantly surprised by her quiet strength and determination. She doesn’t let much get in her way once she sets her mind to something. The dynamic between these two was a real highlight. Their chemistry, especially during shared scenes, was electric. Their banter was sharp, fun, and kept me glued to the page.
I’ve seen this described as "lesbian space pirates" and honestly, that’s pretty accurate. There's a strong focus on that specific representation throughout the book, with the majority of characters identifying somewhere on the LGBTQ+ spectrum. A couple characters also use they/them pronouns, which was great to see in a sci-fi setting.
The alternating POVs were well-balanced, with both Faven and Amandine getting solid development. The pacing was generally good, with a nice rhythm between action scenes and plot progression. However, the side characters felt underdeveloped. I found it hard to connect with anyone outside of the main duo, and a few character arcs seemed to just end abruptly.
The cryst-born were one of the more intriguing aspects of the story, but sadly, I felt they didn’t get the attention they deserved. Their distinct physiology and the haunting concept of their slow, crystallizing deaths offered so much potential, but their culture and abilities seemed a bit surface level, leaving me wanting more.
The ending, unfortunately, felt rushed. A lot of new information and revelations were thrown at the reader in rapid succession, with little time to fully process or explore them. It made the conclusion feel abrupt and left several threads unresolved or hastily wrapped up.
There were also two points in the book where transitions between chapters felt disjointed. In both instances, a plan would be made at the end of one chapter, only to be seemingly abandoned or completely changed in the next. It left me wondering if I had missed a chapter.
One final (non-critical) observation: there are very few male characters in this book. Only four come to mind and they were either dead from the start, not important, or not portrayed in the best of light. It’s not something that impacted my enjoyment but I thought that it was worth noting.
In conclusion, I enjoyed reading this. It's a solid standalone that could serve as a great entry point for readers new to sci-fi. While it had some development issues, the core characters and representation were definite strengths. I continue to recommend this author. Her Devoured Worlds series is one of the reasons I started to get into sci-fi in the first place. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing what she writes next.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and Orbit in exchange for an honest review.
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