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Starfang: Rise of the Clan
Is a clan captain going to sacrifice everything for her clan? Tasked to kill Yeung Leung by her parents, powerful rival clan leader of the Amber Eyes, Captain Francesca Min Yue sets out across the galaxy to hunt her prey, only to be thrown into a web of political intrigue spreading across the stars. Is Yeung Leung collaborating with the reptilian shishini and playing a bigger game with the galaxy as a price? Is Francesca’s clan at stake? Welcome to Rise of the Clan, where merchants and starship captains are also wolves.
“Wolves should not be in space, but here we were, a clan of wolves and merchants. Instead of the preserved forests of New Earth and Noah’s Ark, we were in ships of steel and armor, reading data scans and commanding officers on the bridge. Wolves within the uniform of merchants and mercenaries, human seeming, claws and teeth sheathed.”
– Captain Francesca Ming Yue, of the warship Starfang.
Welcome to Starfang, a space opera with werewolves, politics and intrigue.
“Wolves should not be in space, but here we were, a clan of wolves and merchants. Instead of the preserved forests of New Earth and Noah’s Ark, we were in ships of steel and armor, reading data scans and commanding officers on the bridge. Wolves within the uniform of merchants and mercenaries, human seeming, claws and teeth sheathed.”
– Captain Francesca Ming Yue, of the warship Starfang.
Welcome to Starfang, a space opera with werewolves, politics and intrigue.
94 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2014
2 people are currently reading
130 people want to read
About the author
Joyce Chng
100 books83 followersJoyce Chng (also spelled Ch’ng) lives in Singapore. They write science fiction and fantasy as well as YA and MG. Their short stories have appeared in The Apex Book of World SF II, The Future Fire and Multispecies Cities. Dragon Dancer (Lantana Publishing) is Joyce’s first picture book, celebrating dragon dancing and Lunar New Year; it was followed by Oyster Girl (Pepper Dog Press), a tribute to their grandmother and the hawker heritage in Singapore. For YA readers, Fire Heart is a fantasy book about swords and coming-of-age. They also write books for adults as J. Chng and urban fantasy as J. Damask. You can find Joyce at their website, or on X and Bluesky at @jolantru.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
May 28, 2017
If you daydream of combining werewolves and space opera, STARFANG is exactly the kind of story you want to dive in. This fast-paced tale is written in a crisp, efficient, and ultimately captivating style that will snatch you and string you along.
I loved how quickly Joyce Chng can paint a character, and how despite that they surprise you. In particular, I love Francesca's shifts between unrelenting and even brutal, how intensely she cares (about her crew, her mission, those she chooses to love and protect, those she chooses to hate). Francesca is the kind of character you just want to stand by and cheer on through bad mistakes and difficult times. She's awesome (and, bonus, queer!).
Another thing of note: I do not usually read werewolf stories because they tend to have huge allonormative undertones. Y'know, sex as a bestial need that exists in everyone, big emphasis on mating, that sort of shitty acephobic thing. STARFANG does not have that. It felt amazingly refreshing and safe in that regards, even if it doesn't have an ace character. That was really great. ^^
Two notes: first, if discussion of addiction and drugs trigger you in any way, I don't recommend STARFANG. Drug usage, abuse, and traffic are heavily involved in the plot. Second, there are aliens with genderfluidity, and one has a fairly important role. The narrative always uses 'it' pronouns for members of that species. It doesn't discuss the fluidity as something weird or disgusting that I can recall, but I know 'it' can be triggering for many, so please read with care for this too.
With all of that said, this is a wonderful story, and I absolutely want more. In the meantime, I guess I'll have to pick up other books by the author! ;)
I loved how quickly Joyce Chng can paint a character, and how despite that they surprise you. In particular, I love Francesca's shifts between unrelenting and even brutal, how intensely she cares (about her crew, her mission, those she chooses to love and protect, those she chooses to hate). Francesca is the kind of character you just want to stand by and cheer on through bad mistakes and difficult times. She's awesome (and, bonus, queer!).
Another thing of note: I do not usually read werewolf stories because they tend to have huge allonormative undertones. Y'know, sex as a bestial need that exists in everyone, big emphasis on mating, that sort of shitty acephobic thing. STARFANG does not have that. It felt amazingly refreshing and safe in that regards, even if it doesn't have an ace character. That was really great. ^^
Two notes: first, if discussion of addiction and drugs trigger you in any way, I don't recommend STARFANG. Drug usage, abuse, and traffic are heavily involved in the plot. Second, there are aliens with genderfluidity, and one has a fairly important role. The narrative always uses 'it' pronouns for members of that species. It doesn't discuss the fluidity as something weird or disgusting that I can recall, but I know 'it' can be triggering for many, so please read with care for this too.
With all of that said, this is a wonderful story, and I absolutely want more. In the meantime, I guess I'll have to pick up other books by the author! ;)
August 1, 2017
4.5-ish
short but action-packed and animated by complex emotions born from conflict between personal feelings and social/familial obligations and expectations. loved the exploration of what it means to be human and the value of social structures and laws.
short but action-packed and animated by complex emotions born from conflict between personal feelings and social/familial obligations and expectations. loved the exploration of what it means to be human and the value of social structures and laws.
July 9, 2021
Actual rating is a 2.5
Starfang: Rise of the Clan follows Captain Francesca Min Yue as she attempts to follow through on her parents' orders to escalate the blood feud between her clan and the rival Amber Eyes. The story blends werewolves, family, and duty to ask a lot of really interesting questions. The world of Starfang: Rise of the Clan was intriguing in a way that left me wanting more.
I didn't love the writing style of the book. It's very terse and relies on a lot of short sentences, which took me a while to get used to. By the end of Starfang: Rise of the Clan, I found the writing didn't bother me quite as much and I did finish the book curious about what happens next.
It's worth mentioning that this world includes an alien species that largely identify as non-binary. The main character refers to these aliens using the "it" pronoun, which could make some readers uncomfortable.
C/W:
Starfang: Rise of the Clan follows Captain Francesca Min Yue as she attempts to follow through on her parents' orders to escalate the blood feud between her clan and the rival Amber Eyes. The story blends werewolves, family, and duty to ask a lot of really interesting questions. The world of Starfang: Rise of the Clan was intriguing in a way that left me wanting more.
I didn't love the writing style of the book. It's very terse and relies on a lot of short sentences, which took me a while to get used to. By the end of Starfang: Rise of the Clan, I found the writing didn't bother me quite as much and I did finish the book curious about what happens next.
It's worth mentioning that this world includes an alien species that largely identify as non-binary. The main character refers to these aliens using the "it" pronoun, which could make some readers uncomfortable.
C/W:
November 11, 2017
Excellent Space Opera!
Read
April 21, 2019This was disappointing. The idea "werewolves in space" has a lot of potential, but this novel has hardly anything interesting. Neither worldbuilding, nor characters, nor plot or writing can convince. It seems like a load of cliches stacked on top of each other.
I can only explain the book's formulaicness in that the targeted age group is even below YA. That opens other problems. The author seems to underestimate their readers' capacity for complexity, which is a bad idea, even in children. In addition, I do not like the idea of children being exposed to the one dimensional (and questionable) morality regarding drugs. Also, there *is* a queer romantic relationship (yay!) which is bordering on incest (wtf?). (also, the romance is boring af. Yet another bag of cliches.)
This book is not without any redeeming qualities. I mentioned the potential of the setting, and it is a quick and easy read. And I'll happily admit that I am not the book's intended audience. Still, I am disappointed, not least because I know the author can do so much better.
I can only explain the book's formulaicness in that the targeted age group is even below YA. That opens other problems. The author seems to underestimate their readers' capacity for complexity, which is a bad idea, even in children. In addition, I do not like the idea of children being exposed to the one dimensional (and questionable) morality regarding drugs. Also, there *is* a queer romantic relationship (yay!) which is bordering on incest (wtf?). (also, the romance is boring af. Yet another bag of cliches.)
This book is not without any redeeming qualities. I mentioned the potential of the setting, and it is a quick and easy read. And I'll happily admit that I am not the book's intended audience. Still, I am disappointed, not least because I know the author can do so much better.
February 11, 2018
For being such a short book (94 pages) this book packs quite the story. Chng doesn't waste words with irrelevant details and while there are some exposition dumps, they are short lived and well blended to the main story. If anything, I wish there was more about this world to read! It's an incredible world that has humans, werewolves (homo sapiens lupus), shishini (highly intelligent velociraptor type creatures) and jukka (stereotypical big-eyed aliens) in the same galaxy. I really hope Chng is looking at writing another book in this world because it is incredibly interesting and I want to know more about it.
Francesca was a very good character to lead this story. It's almost a stereotype that kick-ass women in books are only fighters and have to "struggle" to be anything else. Francesca seamlessly switches back and forth between being the strong fighter, the quick thinking captain, the motherly caretaker of the little girl, loving daughter and niece, and romantically interested. She is a well-rounded character who feels more real than the usual characters that are torn between any two of these roles. Like I said, Chng doesn't waste words and that really helps to strengthen Francesca as a character.
Admittedly there isn't as much direct action as I usually like in a story, but there's also no time to slow down. Every page of this novella either builds the world, builds the character or moves the story forward. Sometimes all at the same time. This is an engaging read that left me wanting more. I want to know more about the clans, more about the little girl, and more about the food. Fair warning, if you are vegan or vegetarian, you may have a problem with this book. For carnivores like me, however, you may get hungry!
I really enjoyed reading this novella. We get werewolves in space and not in a cheesy horror movie sense. This is a well developed world that has so much more I want to know about!
Francesca was a very good character to lead this story. It's almost a stereotype that kick-ass women in books are only fighters and have to "struggle" to be anything else. Francesca seamlessly switches back and forth between being the strong fighter, the quick thinking captain, the motherly caretaker of the little girl, loving daughter and niece, and romantically interested. She is a well-rounded character who feels more real than the usual characters that are torn between any two of these roles. Like I said, Chng doesn't waste words and that really helps to strengthen Francesca as a character.
Admittedly there isn't as much direct action as I usually like in a story, but there's also no time to slow down. Every page of this novella either builds the world, builds the character or moves the story forward. Sometimes all at the same time. This is an engaging read that left me wanting more. I want to know more about the clans, more about the little girl, and more about the food. Fair warning, if you are vegan or vegetarian, you may have a problem with this book. For carnivores like me, however, you may get hungry!
I really enjoyed reading this novella. We get werewolves in space and not in a cheesy horror movie sense. This is a well developed world that has so much more I want to know about!
September 23, 2023
2.25 Stars for me.
Like many other reviewers stated, this story could have been interesting, but it came across as a mess to me.
The MC is a smug wear wolf commander of a ship. She builds herself up but has terrible instincts and zero command capabilities.
During the attempt to capture a drug lord, also wear wolf from an inferior clan, she orders her ship to fire on a building, killing 1,000 or more people. She is saddened by it but it had to be done... Really? Why?
She comes across another couple of ships in space from the same 'inferior' clan which are limping along with catastrophic battle wounds and her only thought is that it must be a trap. The two left alive surrender, but she treats them horribly as it still must be a trap.
They come across more ships later on with shields up and target locked and she wonders if she should get to a high level of readiness... Again, really?
Captured at a space port, subjected to drugging, then the story ends there. Ugh
The Romance? The captain appears to be a lesbian whom is only interested in bedding her female cousin? Why make it a cousin instead of a family friend or neighbor?
The MC spends 90% of the story in her head and that is not a place for a reader to be trapped. I may try the second book but I am apprehensive. My guess is that the author has talent so it could get better.
Like many other reviewers stated, this story could have been interesting, but it came across as a mess to me.
The MC is a smug wear wolf commander of a ship. She builds herself up but has terrible instincts and zero command capabilities.
During the attempt to capture a drug lord, also wear wolf from an inferior clan, she orders her ship to fire on a building, killing 1,000 or more people. She is saddened by it but it had to be done... Really? Why?
She comes across another couple of ships in space from the same 'inferior' clan which are limping along with catastrophic battle wounds and her only thought is that it must be a trap. The two left alive surrender, but she treats them horribly as it still must be a trap.
They come across more ships later on with shields up and target locked and she wonders if she should get to a high level of readiness... Again, really?
Captured at a space port, subjected to drugging, then the story ends there. Ugh
The Romance? The captain appears to be a lesbian whom is only interested in bedding her female cousin? Why make it a cousin instead of a family friend or neighbor?
The MC spends 90% of the story in her head and that is not a place for a reader to be trapped. I may try the second book but I am apprehensive. My guess is that the author has talent so it could get better.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 9, 2024
Werewolves in space. How could I not be interested?
Unfortunately, the writing isn't that good. It's serviceable, but contains errors and inconsistencies. The story is decent, but I was not attached to any of the characters. I almost dropped it early, but I thought the mystery behind Lien was interesting enough to keep going. If it was longer, I likely still would have dropped it at some point. I was hoping this could be read as a stand-alone, but nothing is resolved by the end.
Unfortunately, the writing isn't that good. It's serviceable, but contains errors and inconsistencies. The story is decent, but I was not attached to any of the characters. I almost dropped it early, but I thought the mystery behind Lien was interesting enough to keep going. If it was longer, I likely still would have dropped it at some point. I was hoping this could be read as a stand-alone, but nothing is resolved by the end.
June 2, 2024
Werewolves in space, except the werewolves are pretty uninteresting and are more like boring space cops. Chng doesn't seem to have anything to add to the worlds of either werewolf fantasy and space/military science fiction here, the two ideas coming together in this story about as well as oil and water.
March 13, 2020
A fun romp that becomes more serious and heartbreaking later on. I really felt for the protagonist and hope she gets her revenge in the sequels.
June 30, 2024
A lot of promise, intriguing premise, and some excellent worldbuilding, but the writing was very rough around the edges and it lacked emotional depth.
November 21, 2017
A werewolf clan in space commences a blood feud with a vicious drug gang. Original idea, fascinating lead character and a nice sense of action balanced with emotional conflict.
December 11, 2017
This novella packs a punch: https://paperwanderer.wordpress.com/2...
June 22, 2017
Read for #ownvoices diversity bingo challenge. Tags: werewolf, space opera, female warriors.
The book begins with this info dump-y passage I couldn't take seriously, it's out of place and doesn't tell me anything useful or exciting. It's before the story starts so I am not that interested in who says what rumors, I don't know what shishini or jukka are. The MC sounds superior and snooty, she thinks she's better than others because of how she was born. I don't think being smug with your species is very likable.
Turning is like orgasmic sex, but it isn't like sex, then it is like sex. This book is so prudish with swears (as heck).
The MC is queer but the only person we see her lusting for is her cousin... ew? I feel the author conflates queerness with incest.
April "smelled rich, pungent, feminine, primal" and that sounds so TERF and transphobic. How do you smell feminine?
The chapters are too short and choppy, the writing riddled with errors ("Lien's eyes looked at me," "she said, grappling another pole from the rack") and could have used more editing. I couldn't get along with Francesca, her stakes never feel real and she never develops as a person. She acts badass but comes across weak and overcompensating.
Wolves should not be in space, but here we were, a clan of wolves and merchants. Instead of the preserved forests of New Earth and Noah’s Ark, we were in ships of steel and armour, reading data scans and commanding officers on the bridge. Wolves within the uniform of merchants and mercenaries, human seeming, claws and teeth sheathed.
Our genes kept us apart from the homo sapiens race. Some merchant clans tried to spread the rumour that we were the product of genetic engineering, a pact made between the secretive flesh engineers and our clan progenitors, in exchange for sacred information we didn’t know and care about. Some rumours were more far-fetched, bordering on the mythical and mystical and the alien, alleging raptor-like shishini or grey-tinged jukka involvement.
The book begins with this info dump-y passage I couldn't take seriously, it's out of place and doesn't tell me anything useful or exciting. It's before the story starts so I am not that interested in who says what rumors, I don't know what shishini or jukka are. The MC sounds superior and snooty, she thinks she's better than others because of how she was born. I don't think being smug with your species is very likable.
I would say that the agony and pleasure would leave me panting, writhing, like sex and orgasm. But oh so subtly different. Turning was never sexual or sensual: it was ugly as heck. There were sub-groups in the clans who used turning as a fetish – but we didn’t normally talk about them.
Turning is like orgasmic sex, but it isn't like sex, then it is like sex. This book is so prudish with swears (as heck).
“Of course, I do. How long have I known you for?”
“Long enough. And you are my cousin.”
April’s face looked sad then. “I feel that we are more than cousins.”
“I know,” I said and left it at all.
The MC is queer but the only person we see her lusting for is her cousin... ew? I feel the author conflates queerness with incest.
April "smelled rich, pungent, feminine, primal" and that sounds so TERF and transphobic. How do you smell feminine?
The chapters are too short and choppy, the writing riddled with errors ("Lien's eyes looked at me," "she said, grappling another pole from the rack") and could have used more editing. I couldn't get along with Francesca, her stakes never feel real and she never develops as a person. She acts badass but comes across weak and overcompensating.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews