The Blighted Stars

The Devoured Worlds #1

by Megan E. O'Keefe

When a spy is stranded on a dead planet with her mortal enemy, she must first figure out how to survive before she can uncover the conspiracy that landed them both there in the first place.

She’s a revolutionary. Humanity is running out of options. Habitable planets are being destroyed as quickly as they’re found and Naira Sharp knows the reason why. The all-powerful Mercator family has been controlling the exploration of the universe for decades, and exploiting any materials they find along the way under the guise of helping humanity’s expansion. But Naira knows the truth, and she plans to bring the whole family down from the inside.

He’s the heir to the dynasty. Tarquin Mercator never wanted to run a galaxy-spanning business empire. He just wanted to study rocks and read books. But Tarquin’s father has tasked him with monitoring the mining of a new planet, and he doesn’t really have a choice in the matter.

Disguised as Tarquin’s new bodyguard, Naira plans to destroy his ship before it lands. But neither of them expects to end up stranded on a dead planet. To survive and keep her secret, Naira will have to join forces with the man she’s sworn to hate. And together they will uncover a plot that’s bigger than both of them.

Genres: Science Fiction, Romance, Fantasy, Space Opera, Fiction, Adult, Space

491 pages, Paperback

First published May 23, 2023

About the author

Megan 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.

Reviews

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

it’s giving: i will fall in love with every iteration of you and find you in every universe

also i love the whole “she’s not the real enemy you can trust her she was literally just checking out your ass” being a turning point in their relationship. 10/10

“I’d follow you anywhere,” he said without hesitation“ “Then you’d better keep up”

Bookstagram | Blog

[Jasmine · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Blighted Stars is an action-packed, character-driven space opera that hooked me from the first page.

Tarquin Mercator is the son of one of the most powerful families involved in space exploration. Tarquin has never been interested in ruling the family empire; he would much rather read and pursue studying geology. However, his father has assigned him to monitor the mining of a new planet.

Before they even land on the planet, things go sideways, leaving everyone stranded on this dying planet, scrambling to find a way to start communications and get the shuttle working again.

Naira is among those stuck with Tarquin. She’s a convicted spy disguised as Tarquin’s bodyguard and is prepared to keep him safe, at least, until she can free herself.

I’ve been meaning to read more sci-fi, but I find most of the genre intimidating. When I found out that this space opera was character-driven, I decided to give it a go. And I’m happy I did. Tarquin and Naira are the most fully fleshed-out characters, as they should be. I loved their easy banter with each other.

On the subject of banter, there is a budding romance in this first instalment. It doesn’t overpower the story, but it is there. At times, it is cute, and at others, a bit cheesy, but fun nevertheless.

The sci-fi itself was fairly accessible. In this universe, people can extend their lifespans simply by printing into different bodies.

This book is action-packed right from the first chapter and, for the most part, keeps a consistent pace all the way through.

I believe that the author has already written the entire trilogy, so hopefully, there’s not too long of a wait for the next book.

If, like me, you want to dip your toes into sci-fi, I’d say this is a great place to start. If you’re a seasoned sci-fi reader who enjoys a sprinkle of romance, you might also enjoy this novel.

Thank you to Orbit for the physical and digital copies in exchange for an honest review.

https://booksandwheels.com

[Maddie Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

RATING BREAKDOWN
Characters: 3⭐️
Setting: 5⭐️
Plot: 4⭐️
Themes: 3⭐️
Emotional Impact: 4⭐️
Personal Enjoyment: 5⭐️
Total Rounded Average: 4⭐️

I loved the setting and premise of The Blighted Stars! It's an explosive beginning with an immediate hook and mystery. The plot stays consistently gripping and twisty, while the setting continues to expand and get more complex.

Characters and themes are more expected and serviceable than brilliant or original, but I still felt connected to and invested in the characters, and as their back stories get revealed throughout the series, I can see myself loving them even more. The themes center around truth, identity, and moral ambiguity. Because the plot is largely political and deals with the freedom of the human race, those themes pack a punch, but you've probably encountered them before.

Overall, this is just a brilliantly good time. An adventure, a mystery, and a little romance on the side. It's a well-executed popcorn flick in page form, and I had a great time!

[The Speculative Shelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I was initially drawn in by the incredible cover art, I was pleased to find that the book itself is terrific too!

The main plot centers on the mining of earth-like worlds for a precious mineral named relkatite. Unfortunately, the unintended aftereffect of the mining process is a devastating fungal blight that effectively destroys the planet. Not ideal!

We’ve also got 3D printers capable of spitting out human bodies with a neural map/mind in tow. Well, that’s how it’s supposed to work. Sometimes the body misprints. Sometimes the mind cracks after you’ve been printed out too many times, or – gasp! – your mind is printed into two bodies at once.

O’Keefe dives into the unintended consequences of technological progress and humanity’s insatiable push to over-consume our planetary resources as we move throughout the cosmos.

I’m often overwhelmed with sprawling space operas, but the limited narrative scope of The Blighted Stars allows a few central characters and their motivations to stay top of mind. The character development is well-done and the swift pacing kept me on the edge of my seat throughout.

Overall, The Blighted Stars is an exciting start to a promising new series. If the cover art stays cool and the story stays compelling, I’ll certainly be along for the ride.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf and follow @specshelf on Twitter.

[Rachel (TheShadesofOrange) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars
Video Review: https://youtu.be/RTOeOkkD68s

This is an engaging start to a new science fiction series. I read the author's debut novel so I was intrigued to see her newer work. I was pleased to see that her storytelling and writing has grown so that this one plays less on a gimmick.

As for the story, this one is very accessible. It's the kind of story I would have absolutely loved as a sci fi newbie. It plays the aesthetics of science fiction in a way that was easy to understand without getting too lost in the technical details. As I have read more science fiction, I have grown a preference for meatier stories yet I still much appreciate these kind of books that help to bridge new users into the genre.

Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

[Allison E · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a confession. I’ve been biding my time. Patiently waiting, watching, holding my breath for the perfect time to drop a raving review of this book. What’s funny about this is that I’ve been wanting to read more scifi written by women, then I read this and my first instinct is to just nod my head sagely and quietly whisper to anyone who will listen: “Yes, this is how scifi is done.”

Let me start by just saying The Blighted Stars was insane from start to finish and I’m not exaggerating when I say the ending of this felt like the “mmm whatcha say” gun skit from SNL.

Megan O’Keefe the woman that you are for creating this story. What kind of brain fuckery was that? How dare you create a darkly mysterious scifi setting filled with politics and high stakes and forbidden romance and then add FUNGAL HORROR. That shit was so good.

Let me tell you what this is about bc I’m getting a little too excited. I’m typing so aggressively my fingers hurt. SO:

We’ve got a mainly dual POV story (you do get occasional glimpses from characters descending into insanity and newly sentient space ships but that’s neither here nor there) and the POVS are perfectly and deliciously crafted.

Tarquin is the son of a very powerful family - one responsible for the mining process crucial to humanity’s ability to REPRINT BODIES. You heard me, you store your lil brain map somewhere nice and safe, you die, you get reprinted no problem (hopefully, in theory, sometimes). Importantly, Tarquin is a nerd, he hates the role he has to play bc it doesn’t fit him right :( and he just wants to look at rocks. He is loyal though, and he wants to prove that his family’s mining practices aren’t responsible for the Blight that is devouring entire planets and threatening humanity’s survival. To prove this he joins a (doomed) planetary expedition to Sixth Cradle.

Enter Naira mf Sharp. Naira is a rebel, revolutionary and former EX (essentially military grade bodyguard). She used to be Tarquin’s dad’s legendary EX before she said “hell nah you’re evil bye”. Unfortunately she got captured in her rebellious pursuits. You meet her when she’s getting reprinted. The catch? Her neural map was supposed to be on ice. She’s hasn’t even been reprinted in her normal body. She’s on the ship hosting Tarquin’s planetary expedition. In the body of his family’s bodyguard. Oh, and the ship is crashing.

What happens when Tarquin, Naira and crew have to survive and escape the planet they crash land on? Because Sixth Cradle is already dead… and it has horrors waiting in dead trees and nightmares crawling into unsuspecting minds. As the mystery of this story unfolds I promise you one thing, you won’t be able to look away.

Taking my pitch voice off to say a few other things:
- [ ] The way this book fucks with you? No ones intentions are clear… it’s ingeniously done
- [ ] THE LIL ROMANCE SUGAR COOKIE? I was warned the romance subplot was unmatched but my god I loved it.
- [ ] Naira HATESSSSS Tarquin and all Tarquin does is be a naive cinnamon roll and try his best. Naira verbally eviscerates his entire ego at one point and he’s just like “that was awesome :3”
- [ ] I loved BOTH of their personalities but I feel like I have to give a shout out to Naira, nop notch bad ass and not in the annoying way.
- [ ] The plot twists in this? You could have given me 100 chances and I would have neverrrrr guessed where this was going. Thoroughly bamboozeled by the end.


Ugh wow. I’ll continue with this series for sure. I’m super interested to see if O’Keefe can pull off the mad scifi explosion she left us with. I’ll let y’all know.


Blighted Stars? Probably. Five stars? Most definitely.

[Samantha (ladybug.books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

The Blighted Stars is an action-packed SciFi adventure with an incredibly compelling romance subplot and truly unnerving horror elements. This book single-handedly restored my faith in SciFi new releases.

I was immediately hooked by the unique worldbuilding and technology of this world. There is a concept in this book that involves printing bodies. A person’s self is, therefore, the neural map, stored in databases, that can be uploaded into new prints of bodies. As a result, the concepts of death and loss are very, very different in this world. The Blighted Stars does an incredible job of exploring how this technology would change a world and the moral implications of it. I am so excited to get to know more of the world in the next books.

Though I would not call this a horror book, there are some horror elements in this book that genuinely freaked me out. I will keep it vague in this review because the slow reveal that something is very, very wrong is what makes the horror elements so effective. The implications of the threat introduced in this book are incredibly stressful and O’Keefe does an excellent job building the sense of urgency and doom throughout the story. I particularly loved the sentient ship interlude chapters.

Tarquin and Naira are compelling main characters. Both characters experience a lot of growth while trapped on the dead planet and I loved how they played off each other. The banter is top tier and I am incredibly invested in the romance. I love the badass woman x slightly pathetic (but he’s working on it) man relationship dynamic.

I do think the book unravels a bit towards the end. The story becomes clunky and repetitive with multiple scenes that achieve the same point for the story or character development. It started to feel like I was getting hit over the head with the point of the book.

I almost wish this book had ended 50 pages earlier than it did. There was definitely a natural stopping point before the official end of the book—though it would have led to a slight cliffhanger. We could have then had the final action scenes of this book at the beginning of the second book. The ending was chaotic with some very big moments happening at the last second. These developments then felt a bit messy and rushed which was a disappointing end to a fascinating story.

The Devoured Worlds trilogy has the potential to become one of my new favorite SciFi series. I am both excited and scared to see what awaits these characters in the next two books.

Links to my TikTok | Instagram

[laurel [the suspected bibliophile] · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's hard to put into words quite why this book and I didn't jive as much as I wanted it to. I should have DNF'd, but I kept hoping it would get better, and it really didn't.

There were a lot of moving plotpoints and backstory, and while I felt a lot were done well, I just wanted a little more exploration of what being about to store a mind map and print bodies on command would do to humanity as a whole. Same with the shroud and world collapse. I felt that the things that were explored in depth (Tarquin and Naira's chemistry, eating the shroud, etc) was not what I wanted more of, while other things (immortality, succession, world-building) was not developed nearly as much as I would have liked.

The rationale leading to everything was iffy and I just wasn't able to suspend my disbelief. Additionally, in this world of perfect bodies, the first view of "misprints" felt very ableist. I know they were a zombie-analogy, but again, this is a world where humans are born (??), and if they are privileged their minds are mapped and then reprinted into perfect, flawless bodies, with enhancements built in to make them better. I dunno. Maybe I'm reading too much into this, but it is one of the things that I wanted explored a bit more.

There was a lovely note about Tarquin being trans and being able to print into a correct body, but then another comment that it was actually hard to do (?) and expensive, so he had a foundation for it. But after that mention that he used some of his privilege for good, that was dropped. There was much discussion of his privilege throughout the book, but the point of it seemed rather muddled and changed a couple times throughout the book.

A small thing in addition to this was that when Naira is running through the shroud, fighting misprints and escaping at last, this high-speed, low-drag operator believes she could be facing her last moments. So, to make sure that she does not die being ripped apart and eaten alive, this jaw-droppingly intelligent and capable person removes a bullet from her magazine for a last ditch suicide effort. Where does she keep it? Not a pocket, because this is the future and apparently women's apparel is as bereft of pockets as today, but tucked into her mouth like a chipmunk. Then she runs around the jungle with a literal bullet in her mouth, and I dunno about you but I wouldn't want to go into life-threatening battle situations while injured and starved with a cough-drop sized choking hazard anywhere near my throat. But that's just me.

And the relationship between Tarquin and Naira was...cringe-worthy at best.

I received an ARC from NetGalley for an honest review

[Krysta ꕤ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ☆

i’ve been meaning to start this series for a while now and im so happy that i finally did cause this was such a action packed scifi story that grabbed me from page 1. the way everyone’s neural map is kept in order to be reprinted into new bodies to keep them from dying was so interesting and kinda reminded me of another version of clones (which i love). the two main characters Tarquin and Naira are on opposing sides of this war but somehow managed to find level ground and slim beginnings of romance— i honestly felt like they had great chemistry and the romance didn’t overtake their more pressing responsibilities thankfully. i’m just so curious to see what’ll happen as they try to resolve the issues with their dying planet. the only reason it’s not a full 5 star is because the author just throws you into everything and it took me a minute to get adjusted, but other than that this was an amazing start to the series!

[Reggie Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5⭐️ HOLY SMOKES!! Didn’t think I was going to love this as much as I did. I’m obsessed. Why aren’t more people talking about this book? I am already racing to the next one.

If you love romance & sci-fi, this is the perfect book for you. Also a great start if you’re new to sci-fi. You need to be patient with it, but it’s worth it. The plot is wild, the characters are so interesting, & it is very well done. This whole book felt very refreshing. I loved the multiple POV. Kept me guessing the entire book.

TARQUIN!!! I love him. He’s not your typical MMC. He’s a nerd! He’s strong! Underestimated.

NAIRA! Her character is so complex. The last line in the book? Stop it right now. I can’t wait to see where things go with her as I continue on.

This was almost 5 stars & would have been if I had sat down & given myself more time to fully immerse myself. There were also some elements to this story that were super confusing for awhile & I still need to wrap my head around this reprinting concept.

Overall, a very fantastic read. Highly recommend 🫡

“For it matters not how small the beginning may seem to be: What is once well done is done forever.”

[Mikayla Noel · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75⭐️

I did this a book a disservice and I’m mad at myself for it. I really enjoyed the concept and loved how unique of a setting and plot line it was! Some parts I did find boring and repetitive but I think the rest of it was pretty solid

There were a ton of parts that were confusing and I may have to look some things up to understand them for the next book lol

Very excited to read the next book and see where things go with this chaos

Thanks Reggie for the rec😉

[⋆˙sanyae˙⋆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3★★★
getting through this book felt like trudging through quick sand. i was confused most of the time with the world building and had to reread multiple passages. but i enjoyed the plot and romance. the audiobook is really good too.

👩🏾‍🚀 mysteries in space
🚀1st book in trilogy
⚔️ fmc body guard × prince

the characters:
✎ naira is a strong and intelligent. she's an incredible fighter and has, quite literally, fought for everything she has.
✎ tarquin is a prince, who is also a geologist // scholar. he is completely different than naira. (tarquin is trans but it's not really discussed at alllll. )
overall, i really enjoyed their banter + this take on the bodyguard trope. it was entertaining.

my favorite part of this book was the ship, the einkorn. *cries *

quotes i like:
➵“I’d follow you anywhere,” he said without hesitation.
“Then you’d better keep up.”

➵“I can start picking them off, but ten against one aren’t odds I like the look of.”
“Ten against two.”
She cupped his cheek in her hand.
“You’re sweet. But they’ll destroy you.”
“I know.” He gave her a lopsided smile. “But it sounded rather brave, didn’t it?”

➵It is the dark between the stars that lets them shine.

[Queralt✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has made it to my Top 3 favorite books of all time.

If The Last of Us and The Expanse had a baby and you’d sprinkle it with hi.la.ri.ous banter, this would be it.

I don’t know how to begin this review. Mass Effect introduced me to sci-fi - space operas, specifically - in a new way and The Expanse series by James S.A. Corey quickly took over my personality only to leave a big hole in my life when it was all gone. No more books, no more TV shows. Megan E. O’Keefe’s The Protectorate series was a blessing for me and I’ve been looking forward to reading her again since I finished that. To be quite honest, I’ve been checking NetGalley weekly to see if the book was up or not.

This review will be very unstructured and wordy because I’m a mess but it’s like 1) the premise; 2) general feelings; 3) is this better than The Protectorate; and 4) a very wordy ‘what I liked’ because I’m writing this for my own fangirl pleasure (but no spoilers).

The Blighted Starsis set in a world where humans can ‘snap pictures’ of their neural map and, when they die, their maps can be reprinted in prints (empty bodies printed to match how their original bodies were like). Prints have enhancements (pathways) made with a mineral that is extracted by one of the richest families in the galaxy, the Mercators.

The book starts with a punch - you’re on board a Mercator ship. The head of the family, Acaelus, is there; his son, Tarquin, is there too. They’re going to the Sixth Cradle, a planet that has Earth-like qualities. The Cradles have been dying and, other than Sixth, there are only two others left. Earth is dead. And, as they approach the Cradle, their ship is fired upon. And, to make matters worse, the printers they have on board are starting to print misprints - prints that are disfigured and have no maps inside. They are violent and have a bit of a cannibalistic side to them.

Someone else is printed while this is happening, someone who can take care of the situation. Ex. Lockhart. Only that… while her print is Lockhart, the map inside isn’t, it’s Ex. Naira Sharp - the woman who tried to destroy the Mercators and ended up being tortured (by Acaelus) because of Tarquin.

Ok, so this is the premise. It’s a bit long but I think I didn’t read the synopsis before I jumped in and man, the first 25 pages were SO confusing. I didn’t know what prints were, I didn’t get what an ansile (?) was, or how Sharp was inside of Lockhart, or what an E-X was. I couldn’t tell left from right. And, somehow, it all clicked on page 26, and then the story just kept going and getting better and better.

General thoughts before I start fangirling and rambling
It’s a very complex story told in a very simple way. As always, O’Keefe has an arsenal of twists and turns that will have you hooked. And, in case you’re like me, there’s incredibly fun banter in here and very, very, amazingly developed characters. She could’ve written a dialogue without stating who was talking, and I’d be able to tell in a heartbeat, I felt they were so fleshed out.

This book has romance and fun banter, but it’s a very dark book. It gets very sad, very dark at different points. It doesn’t shy away from violence or just very awful things, so do with the info what you may.

Is this better than The Protectorate?
I think so. I felt The Protectorate was very tangled and it lost me at times. The story was very complex and I just couldn’t see the path moving forward. This? Is complex, dark, and awful, but it’s so well structured. There are no plot-holes, nothing is convenient. There are real risks in every step and sacrifices are made; yet it still has a lot of funny scenes and a lot of light-hearted moments.
I thought this was perfect. It’s not as space-opera-ish as Sanda’s journey (at least atm), but every single issue I had with The Protectorate has been fixed here. I don’t have a single complaint, not one (other than Tomas not being in it, I need my Nazca).

The fangirl
As I did with The Protectorate series, I’m just going to talk about my favorite things:
- The characters. I won’t say who shows up because it can be a spoiler, but let’s just say that Tarquin is an idiot, but he’s a kind of idiot. Naira can step on me any time she wants, same with Paison. And that one friend Naira reminds me of Tomas from Velocity Weapon and I am in love with him.
- The twists and the explanations. This is such a complex story yet it is very easy to follow. However, Tarquin has two PhDs and he is the one coming up with a lot of explanations. I often understand like three words of what he says, but that’s when Naira comes and “dumbs it down” for dumb readers and it just was such a smart decision from O’Keefe to ‘chew down’ the information for us. I also felt that, as we learn more about the world, it feels like there are a lot of plot holes, and she has addressed every single question that I had while reading (every single one except how people shower and brush their teeth, but oh well).
- LGBTQIA+. Something I love about O’Keefe is how she represents so many LGBTIA+ communities and yet it doesn’t feel like she’s pushing it. One of the main characters is trans and that’s that. One is bisexual, and that’s that. I feel sci-fi has grown a lot with The Expanse showing how ethnicity becomes irrelevant once we ‘conquer the stars’ and while James S.A. Corey did include LGBTQIA+, there was nothing to chew in there. O’Keefe presents being transgender as a normal thing, but emphasizes how in a galaxy that is so unfair, treatment is expensive. And I think that point of normalizing but addressing how that fits into that reality was such a cool thing, it added a lot of depth. (Oh wow, is this me saying someone did better than The Expanse did? never thought i'd lived to see the day).
- The banter. Look, I’m a sucker for the found family trope, and you add banter and people being little hoes to each other? I’m here. I was LAUGHING at like 2AM because of silly shit these kids would say and I just adored it.
- The discussions. I’m not one to look for politics in my books, but The Blighted Stars makes a strong point about environmental sustainability, capitalism, and privilege. I thought it was very well put, and very well articulated in a way that was “all show” and not fed to the reader. It made me think of that line from The Expanse TV show about how Earthers look beyond “their blue skies. They see the stars and they think mine.” It really does make you think about how we’ve destroyed Earth, and how many worlds can we destroy if we get out there.
- The badass women. Like honestly, Tarquin’s a little shit. But Naira? Paison? The other ladies we meet as the story progresses? Everyone but Vake gets to step on me. That’s all I’ll say. (I had such a crush on Paison the first 20% of the book honestly and gosh, iykyk).
- The ‘villain.’ Look, there are a lot of villains in here. I won’t talk about them all, but just Acaelus. He seems like such a one-dimensional ass at the beginning. Little did I know that he’d end up being this fleshed-out character. A manipulative little bitch, sure, but damn, like I understood him to a degree.
- Just O’Keefe things. I mean, I’ve only read the Protectorate so I can’t say how much of that were easter eggs or just things she does, but we have an AI who “doesn’t want to cease” (I miss Bero every single day); a little robot that is not sentient but just a tiny helper (that’s got to be Grippy 2.0 if you ask me); a sexy dude that makes me crack up (Naira’s friend reminds me of Tomas what can I say); and let’s just say that Naira has an issue with her left leg at some point (the leg Sanda loses in the very first chapter of The Protectorate series); and yes, yes, the boner thing, I feel there’s always like a scene where someone notices someone has a boner?
- The ending. I felt like the book would end after “X” happened. And it didn’t, and I was a bit confused. But then I thought about it and I think it’d make for a better start for Book 2? More organic? This being said, what happened around 120 pages before the actual end of the book was just heartbreaking. And again, death isn’t death in this book. But still it was just too much for me. A lot of the scenes were very sad and it was just tough to read.

*I received this ARC for free via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, which is what you got. Any bias you may smell coming off from my review comes from me being a fangirl.

[Niharika · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ll let you in on a secret: despite my status as the insufferable science nerd among my extended friend circle and family members, I’m not too keen on utilising my meagre ration of usable neurones into cracking open the mysteries of a far-future world while reading badly described scifi books. I’m a lazy, vanilla litfic lover at heart. If it’s not entirely spelt out in front of me in a believable manner, I ain’t reading it. Sure, I love Dune and its crazily intricate world building; every sane Timothee Chalamet-loving person should, anyway, but that’s about as far as my fondness for scifi, especially space operas, go. The only reason I picked up this book, which I’d never heard of before, by the way, is because a booktuber I like watching gushed about it on one of her videos. The idea of reading another high-stakes, enemies-to-lovers romance churned out a faint interest in my heart, and I thought, What the hell, let’s add this book on top of the five other books I’ve already been reading, and so I did.

And would you believe it, I actually had a good time reading it, for approximately the first thirty-nine percent of the book. So let me tell you what went wrong after that.

But first, the synopsis. In a far future, when the earth as we know it has become absolutely inhospitable because of some unspecified reason, but quite possibly the arsehole species that goes by the moniker Homo sapiens, the scarce remainder of the human population is living inside a multitude of spaceships and stations, and are ultimately ruled by five oligarchical families, the MERIT, as they call themselves. Like in Dune, the space navigation and subsequent habilitation research here are completely dependent upon a particular mineral, which is mined by the M of the MERIT, the Mercators. Now, everything would be fine and dandy with the Mercators and their little space expeditions in search of this special mineral, had the personal bodyguard of the head of the Mercator family, Naira Sharp, not blown the whistle about the reality of these expeditions, and revealed how the key component of the mining process had been simultaneously killing all the flora and fauna of the planets they’d mined over, destroying the chance of finding a habitable substitute for earth by every second. So now, this ex-bodyguard is the postergirl of the revolutionaries, and is currently being held a prisoner inside the metaphorical dungeons of the Mercator patriarch.

I say metaphorical, because somehow, in the last couple centuries, people have made such technological advancements that they can easily upload their minds on some sort of database,or cloud, and then conveniently print that brain matter onto medically and anatomically perfect bodies of their choice. They can’t die, unless they inexplicably do. Believe me, I’m doing my best to make it sound plausible, but the author is infuriatingly vague about this aspect of the world, like many other things. Anyway, our story begins when our rebel girl Naira accidentally wakes up in the body of the personal bodyguard of the prince of the Mercator family, inside a spaceshuttle that’s about to crash into a prospective mining planet. She barely has any time to celebrate the fact that she managed to escape from the mindprison slash harddrive thingy, because, of course, she’s stranded on a barren planet with her mortal enemy and is dutybound to protect him. But that planet might have secrets of its own, and in typical ya romantasy manner, her “mortal enemy” might not be so horrible a charge after all.

Like I said, at first I was delighted to see how the enemies-to-lovers arc was going, but after a while, I realised that I’d already read over seventy percent of the book, with questions piling up inside my mind about everything about this fantasy world, and the romance hadn’t even gone the way it was supposed to. I like slow-burn romance; don’t get me wrong, but seventy percent and still no first kiss in sight? Come on. And then, once they did go for the big smooch, it all accelerated so early that the whole buildup crumbled down. I don’t know what it tells you about me, but once the realisation that the romance was pretty shit hit, I became convinced that all this time, I’d merely been trying to force myself into enjoying this book, when in reality, I wasn’t having a good time, really.

There are these big chunks of expositions inside the book that don’t make any sense whatsoever, and we never get any explanation for that, because the author spends the whole time focusing on trivial matters. For example, after finishing the book in one day, I still haven’t a clue about how the human bodies can be so easily cloned and their brain downloaded into binary operating system, or how the earth-adjacent planets are even found, or how the lichen species that is so integral to the survival of humanity as a whole can remain in the clutches of a handful members of one of several uber-powerful families of the universe, because we’re all too busy learning about a bunch of geological jargon rambled on to us by Tarquin Mercator the sexy geology nerd/ the princeling of the Big Bad mafia clan, or getting caught up in the myriad of mortifyingly cringy flirting moment between Naira and the said geography nerd. I stand by what I said about not wanting to think too hard about the technicalities of a made-up world, but because I expect that the author would do a suitable job of spoon-feeding us the basics, not because they would just shove us some tiny morsels of world-building and that would be it. My INTP brain can’t handle unresolved questions well, you see, so a whole lot of this book not making sense to me puts it in a rather awkward position.

Then there are moments where the author made certain stylistic choices that honestly feel a bit icky in retrospect. Like how the romance didn’t even set up until a third party, who suspiciously reads like The Gay Bestfriend to the FMC™, had to repeatedly mention how the fmc couldn’t stop checking out the mmc’s butt all the time. And also, the fact that Tarquin is trans gets a one-sentence fleeting mention; there’s practically zero introspection on this matter for the rest of this more than 500-page book. Naira, the fmc, inhabits another person’s body for approximately 90% of the book, so does that mean all this time, Tarquin the geology nerd, has been lusting after another person’s physical features? Both of the protagonists are conveniently described as being ethnically ambiguous brown people, and that’s an antic so early 2000s dated that its resurgence in a post-Covid book feels as ominous as the rise of low-waist skinny jeans.

Finally, the thing I’ve been trying to let off my chest for eternity: I fucking hate geography; any iteration of the subject makes me nauseous. And because Tarquin the sexy geology nerd (if you think I’m being repetitive, I’m not; it’s what the author wants you to absolutely know from your heart.) is such a huge rock lover (not talking about music tastes here, unfortunately) that it almost inadvertently made me overtly critical of him as a character. I think his blissful ignorance about the horrors his family forces upon innocent civilians stinks of naivety that’s unbecoming for a 35-year-old. I was also not happy with the apparent ease with which he shrugged off years of familial bias and privilege to side with the so-called terrorists. Indoctrination is a real thing; it always makes me raise my eyebrows when our self-righteous “nice guy” protagonists defect from their lifelong positions to side with the morally good; it makes them shallow caricatures instead of real human beings. But also, geography sucks and anyone who willingly puts themselves through the agony of studying rocks and soil patterns for a living gets my stinkeye by default.

All this to say, I’m probably not reading the second book of the series.

[vee · Rating 4 out of 5]

“It is the little causes, long continued, which are considered as bringing about the greatest changes of the earth.”

4.25 ⭐️

one of my most anticipated reads of this year and happy to report it did not disappoint! The Blighted Stars was highly reminiscent of A Memory Called Empire and Red Rising where the politics was just as high stakes as the sci-fi elements.

THE PLOT
there were several different subplots going on along with the main story that was told from multiple POVs, including that of a sentient ship (!!!!) which is something i couldn’t have anticipated from this, or any sci-fi book for that matter. it took me by surprise and i was amazed at the ingenuity. i only wished there were more chapters from the ship’s perspective because they weren’t nearly enough to sate my curiosity.

the earlier chapters were pretty info dump-y but not super confusing and gets easier to follow as you read.

loved the creepy horror elements which didn’t seem scary in the beginning but terrified me in one chapter. the pacing was medium but there are many components in the story that it doesn’t feel dragged or stagnant. the technicalities behind the science-y stuff was so intricate and fascinating that i had to reread some paragraphs because i didn’t wanna miss out on anything.

THE CHARACTERS
naira’s sarcasm was so entertaining. her distrust of tarquin and the captain kept the story tense with anticipation. she was righteous about her beliefs and what her mission pertained her to do. torn between being forced to protect tarquin in her disguise and seeking revenge as herself, her narrative was nothing short of interesting. i liked how she read other people’s intentions and studied their actions. she wasn’t afraid to speak out her mind and call tarquin out on his privilege. she kept him on his toes and i loved their dynamic. the tension between them just made their interactions all the more exciting. i also adored her friendship with kav and the easy rapport they had. i’m always a sucker for well developed platonic pairings.

tarquin started off by trying hard to fit into his father’s shoes but often found them too big to fill as he grappled with steering his subordinates in the right direction in an unknown planet. a mercator at heart, he struggled to be the leader his people expected him to be vs gaining their respect by leading them based on his own terms. naira challenged tarquin’s outlook on his family’s methods of mining and the dangers it posed not just to the ecosystem of planets but also his father’s selfish nature in asserting control over those under him. the more he learned about his father’s cruelty, the more he was revolted by it and it was compelling to witness his respect for his father finally turn to ash, replaced by contempt instead. tarquin was quite the ‘golden retriever bf’ while naira was the ‘attack dog gf’ and i delighted in their cute moments. i wanted there to be more angst between them which is why i can’t properly call this an “enemies to lovers” arc.

acaelus himself was a very complex character. i wouldn’t exactly call him the villain but he’s far from being one of the protagonists. he’s an anti-hero grieving over his wife’s death and finding whatever means necessary to cure that pain, even resorting to drastic measures that result in negative consequences on those around him. he’s selfish in a way that you can empathise with and i disliked most of who he was but i couldn’t bring myself to hate him. i appreciated the nuance added to his character and his chapters were engaging.

the world building is so expansive and every detail was very well thought out. the reason why i couldn’t give this full stars is because the story was restricted to only one location and there wasn’t much exploration being done outside of the planet they were stranded on but i suppose that’s to be expected from survival stories.

FINAL THOUGHTS
overall, the world building was expansive and every detail was very well thought out. the reason why i couldn’t give this full stars is because the story was restricted to only one location and there wasn’t much exploration being done outside of the planet they were stranded on but i suppose that’s to be expected from survival stories. i do think this book could’ve been shorter but i enjoyed every chapter so there’s not much to complain there. i look forward to diving into the sequel and hope it’ll end up being a 5 star read after all 🤞🏼.

[Booksblabbering || Cait❣️ · Rating 4 out of 5]

The perfect science fiction for both beginners and seasoned lovers! I have actually finished the trilogy and it’s a new favourite!

Stranded on a dead planet in the wrong body acting as bodyguard to the son of her mortal enemy, Naria Sharp may be over head. She was only there to stop the ship. To keep Mercator lies from destroying yet another viable planet for living.

Tarquin Mercator, skipped over and a recluse, is second in line to the most powerful position in the universe. He is used to leading geologic surveys, not survival situations with the potential threat of a saboteur or malfunctioning Al looming above. Not to mention, a large, mysterious animal which seems to be tracking them.

This book was so bingeable!
It has troupes I would normally side-eye: enemies-to-lovers, pining, bodyguard troupe and yet it pulled it off incredibly well!

The characters were fully realised, their internal struggle apparent and causing even more friction on a strange planet with even stranger going-ons.

Power is persuasion, and persuasion is not consent, his father had told him when he'd been fifteen and aghast to learn it was illegal for him to approach the boy he'd had a crush on first, and had to wait to be approached.

Nothing was rushed. If I had to use a word to describe it, it would be slow-burn. There is a push and pull, constant pressure which is only exacerbated by the nature of the hostile threat the come to realise they are facing (purposefully being vague).

It is the dark between the stars that lets them shine.

I definitely recommend this! It was so twisty wth emotional depth, psychological impacts, as well as thrilling action scenes, and a creeping horror.

Bookstagram

[fatma · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Blighted Stars was not without its faults, but I was just utterly charmed by this book.

The heart and soul of this novel is the relationship between its two main characters, Tarquin and Naira. Tarquin is the heir to Acaelus Mercator, the head of one of the big five galactic conglomerates (MERIT) in this world; Naira, on the other hand, is a rebel, someone who used to work for Mercator but who subsequently defected from them. The catch is that when Tarquin and Naira meet at the beginning of the book--stranded on a planet after the ship they're on crashes for mysterious reasons--Naira is in the guise of Lockhart, one of Acaelus's former bodyguards. The setup alone lays the ground for so much interesting and compelling character development, and the novel absolutely delivers on it and then some.

I loved the dynamic between Tarquin and Naira. Besides their current positions--he a prince, she an insurgent--they are also just vastly different people. Tarquin is a geologist and a scholar (I love that he's just a big nerd!!! more nerd characters in SFF please), having spent most of his time in university away from his family. In some ways he's the product of his ultra privileged upbringing, taught to adhere to decorum and to always be cognizant of the status inherent to his position. In other ways, though, he's separate from his family, having purposefully distanced himself from them by rooting his life in his academic work and, by extension, deflecting the discomfort he feels with having so much power and authority as heir. Naira, on the other hand, has led a completely different life: she's had to fend for herself since she was very young, and in the process has of course become attuned to the kind of exploitation that powers this book's world. She's a fighter in every sense of the word, having fought for everything she has and continuing to fight for this cause that she so strongly believes in.

When these two characters come together, then, there are so many ways in which their personalities and viewpoints and beliefs clash with--and then complement--each other. The Blighted Stars is 544 pages, and it really benefits from its length. O'Keefe develops the dynamic between Tarquin and Naira slowly and carefully, through scenes that gradually show us how compatible they are, despite their differences. And I am just such a big sucker for this kind of dynamic; I was moved and endeared by it in turns. Over the course of the novel, you get to see every facet that ends up forming this genuine, strong relationship between Tarquin and Naira: the suspicion, the tentative honesty, the frustration, the vulnerability, the trust, the distrust, the intimacy. And the fact that Naira cannot actually reveal who she is--the fact that she has to pretend to be this other person--adds an extra layer of tension to their dynamic that makes it all the more compelling. If an author can get me to care about their characters, then I am basically onboard for everything else in the novel. And this was absolutely the case with The Blighted Stars: I loved seeing Tarquin and Naira work together to try to answer questions that only got bigger as the novel went on. Plot and character work well in tandem here, the plot helping to bring these characters together and the characters helping to unravel the mysteries of the plot.

Could some scenes have been a bit less heavy-handed with the exposition? Sure. Could some parts of this book have been written with a bit more nuance? Yeah. But frankly I was so taken by this book's characters that I didn't really mind. The Blighted Stars won me over with its characters, and for that reason I loved it. It kept me fully engaged from start to finish--I was so absorbed reading this novel--and that's exactly what I'm looking for when I'm reading an SFF novel, and exactly why I love reading SFF in the first place.

Thank you to Orbit for providing me with an eARC of this via NetGalley!

[Evie · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars. I think this book is one of the first that I have really appreciated the difference between space operas and sci-fi cause this was a whole ass experience. This story had sci-fi, mystery, horror, romance and drama all wrapped together with a dose of space politics thrown in.

The world building in this is at times challenging. It’s very much dumping you in the deep end and asking you to pick things up as the story races along at a very rapid pace. I often found myself at times confused with what was happening but would just trust the process and would come to understand with time if I just kept reading. That being said I am not the most experienced sci fi reader so perhaps others mileage might vary.

Naira was fine as a FMC. Honestly, she was a little generic in the “strong, independent female adventure character” way, but still very enjoyable. The times when her character shone brightest was in the banter and interactions with Tarquin and her friendship with Kav.

Tarquin, naive little bisexual space prince that he is, was a bright point of this for me. Using the world view of his sheltered existence as a little space princling being shattered to show the reader the corruption present in this world worked well as a narrative. I really felt that this book really belonged to him and his character growth.

I really enjoyed the chemistry between Tarquin and Naira though, I think in part because they were actually adults (in their 30s) and they behaved as such and as much as they acknowledged their attraction they also kept their bigger responsibilities forefront. The background conversations around consent and power dynamics in intimate relationships was also surprisingly refreshing and handled well without it feeling shoe horned in. Also who doesn’t love the bodyguard trope and some good ol’ enemies to lovers.

I won’t speak too much on the villains and antagonists for this story cause it’s all a bit complicated and spoilery but I am sufficiently engaged! I think I’ll be trying book 2 as an audiobook cause I find stories of this scope lend themselves well to the experience.

Long story short! I really enjoyed my time with this one and am excited to continue.

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a bit of a hard book to rate. So much of it is SO good. I absolutely ate up the worldbuilding and many of the scifi concepts employed: in this universe, everyone's neural map is backed up and reprinted into new bodies on a semi-regular basis, allowing humans to live for an exceptionally long time. This central conceit is primed for plot holes, and yet it was actually really tightly executed - O'Keefe has thought through the implications of this technology and a society where it's the norm extremely thoroughly. How does this model of life intersect with rampant space capitalism? What happens to a printed body without anyone's neural map uploaded into it? (Space zombies. The characters have to contend with misprints, which are basically space zombies. It's really cool.) How to add any stakes or weight to character death? (Threat of a permadeath state, "cracking" which is satisfyingly logical.) It all just works, and it's a really fun ride.

In addition to the inventive and thorough worldbuilding, this novel is action-packed, relatively fast paced (although the middle does drag a bit after the initial excitement that kicks off the story) and, oh my god, the CHARACTERS. This is - in spite of the action and high science fiction concepts - a character driven story first and foremost. I'm obsessed with Naira and Tarquin's dynamic: the spoiled, sheltered nerd and his badass bodyguard who is actually an ecoterrorist in disguise and also he happens to have given the damning testimony that condemned her when she previously went to trial? It's just so juicy. It's so fun. And we really take the time to revel in it, as their relationship ends up being central to the story.

(Also - this book has a trans main character! I'm not seeing that widely discussed.)

So we have SO many good bones - what makes this novel tricky to rate?

The problem is that this story thinks you, the reader, are an idiot. It's probably one of the most hand-holdey books I've ever read. I often felt like we hit the exact same emotional beat, the exact same dramatic revelation, over and over again to make sure I got it, and yeah, I got it, oh my god, continue please, you've already said this. The characters' thoughts and emotions are so painfully overexplained, obvious plot twists take an excruciating amount of time to be confirmed, and character development spins its wheels until the story makes totally 100% certain you've gotten the lay of the land at least 2-3 times over before anything changes.

Also - I hesitate to ever call leftist media "heavy handed" because the state of media literacy on average is not awesome and many people do need "intro to leftism" and that's cool and good. It is ok for things to be spelled out and not couched in metaphor. But. Oh my god. It's the circular nature of it that made it so frustrating, hitting the same points again and again with Tarquin's hard-headed liberalism and the way it necessitated other characters' repeated patient explanations that dismantling systems by complying with them from within doesn't work. It just became really grating, and made it hard for me to root for Tarquin as a character.

I'm left with probably a weak 4, realistically maybe a 3.5. But the ending was so strong and left me genuinely dying for the next book, so I have to round generously. Pick this one up for a buff, badass, gun-slinging radical, the hidden identity trope AND the bodyguard romance trope but both executed in a way that's really unique and fun, a nerdy boy who just really loves rocks, a friendly robot companion, mysteries in space, a fungal hive mind, and a good healthy dose of angst.

[Emms-hiatus(ish) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

I really enjoyed the story and the characters. The only thing that keeps this from being a 4+ star book is the worldbuilding is lacking. I couldn't "see" as I was reading. I couldn't "see" how the technology worked, how it came to be, why it came to be.

[Billie's Not So Secret Diary · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Blighted Stars
by Megan E. O'Keefe
Science Fiction Space
NetGalley ARC

Naira Sharp has no idea why she is on a mining spacecraft, but she knows her job, destroy it before its owner destroys the world it is orbiting. But when something goes wrong, Naira finds herself in a shuttle with the survivors of the mining ship after its 'sister' fires upon it. Tarquin Mercator, the son of the man killing the planets he mines, is also on the ship. Pretending to be his bodyguard, Naira and Tarquin finds out there's a bigger conspiracy than mining planets for the minerals humans need to survive in space.

This is the first book in a series that takes place in the far future, where most humans are living in space because Earth and other planets like it are dead or dying after being mined for the minerals needed to make the space stations and ships. These planet deaths and the reasoning I don't feel are explained really well. More detail is needed, both with backstory and descriptions to make it mean something, as it is, it's blah and gave me nothing to feel for.

The characters were well created, and the back and forth between the MCs was entertaining as it grew from enemies to the start of a romance. And the plot was interesting enough, but the lack of descriptive backstory about how this all came to pass made it boring because there was nothing to relate to. This also includes the technology used to create the bodies humans now downloaded their consciousness to. I feel a lot was left out about these 'prints'; the history, and all of that stuff.

And as for action, there was some, but it wasn't the type that made you strangle the book to find out what was going to happen. It just did its thing.

Nothing about this story really grabbed me enough to be on the lookout for the next in the series.

2 Stars

[Mikah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not only is this a wonderfully written sci-fi novel, it’s a wonderfully written sci-fi novel for the romantic *girlies*.

I’m still a newcomer to the genre, so I’m sure there’s more material like this out there, but The Blighted Stars is the first book I’ve read that feels like it’s written by a woman in all the best ways. The premise is compelling, the narrative is tight, the characters are complex, and the romantic subplot is GIVING.

I will be devouring this trilogy like the [redacted] devours worlds. Sprinting to my nearest bookstore as we speak!

[Clarice · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars for this entire series and definitely one of my top favorite reads of this year.

[ClaudiaTalksFilm · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually really enjoyed this even though the initial concept took me some time to understand

from what I gather, humanity found a way to expand their lifespan through printing their subconscious into new bodies made from a material called alkelite, which is mined exclusively by this family called the mercators (who as a result are very influential and rich). but, the planets that they mine alkalite from become inhabitable due to something called the shroud, a parasite of sorts that kills all life. mercators don’t care and move onto the next planet bcos the need for alkalite is more than keeping planets alive (?). group of people are against this, called the conservators. One such conservator is Naira, who used to be a bodyguard for the mercators but defected.

meet tarquin, soft boi son of the head mercator man, who studies rocks. we love tarquin. tarquin wants to prove once and for all that they are not causing these planets to die, so he joins the next exhibition to sixth cradle (planet). but he finds himself stranded there (sabotaged by one Naira), and the planet is already dead. why? and how will they get off world to report this back?

we have an excellent romance subplot between tarquin and naira. proper enemies to lovers. she is in the body of someone else allowing her to go undiscovered, but they end up finding a connection regardless. I love it. the yearning!!!!!!

overall a bit dense and sometimes convoluted, I felt a bit lost through parts, but tarquin and naira really ground you to this story. very enjoyable and will most likely read the sequel to see what’s next in store for these loverbirds

[Hank · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is essentially The Girl with All the Gifts in space. If you read blurbs that isn't really a spoiler but if you don't it could be a big one.

Everything is fine, sort of ticks all my boxes, space, other planets, AI, etc but the characters were cardboard. The romantic sub-plot was meh, the "bad guy" was at first exciting but then a bit too undefined and overwhelming and ancillary characters added nothing. I feel like most AI sci-fi I have been reading include the whole body printing, mind living forever concept, Blighted Stars had some interesting rules to go along with its version, so I liked that at least.

Not as good as her first series and I will hesitate to pick up the next one. If there weren't so many other books....

[Isabelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I mention The Protectorate as a favorite sci-fi series frequently and I’m glad to now have another book to recommend to others as well. The Blighted Stars was so much fun and exactly what I needed before I start my deep dive into lots of fantasy books again.

This book dove right into the action just the way I like it. I like my heart racing and seeing how characters handle stressful situations in a way that gets me attached to them right from the start. Then I’m ready for a bit of a slower intro to get my feel for the setting and the variety of characters that we’ll be spending time with throughout the story. While there was a bit in the first quarter that did drag just a tiny bit for me, this was quickly alleviated with the next couple of chapters that had my head spinning with so many thoughts. From then on, I was absolutely absorbed by this book until I was finished!

I really liked the two main characters that spent time planetside throughout much of the book but there were also multiple other POVs to break those up that added really interesting details to the story. While I don’t mind POVs that stay separate all throughout, it is really fun when you can see so many connections between them all in the way the author has done here. There were so many details that started to stand out more and more as you progress through the book and understand more of what is going on, and all of a sudden, you wonder how you didn’t pick up on those things before!

One of my favorite things to do in a book is theorizing. I love it when we get bits and pieces that lead my thoughts all over the place and have me seeing conspiracies everywhere. O’Keefe gave my mind plenty of opportunities to run wild in this way. I found myself throwing up my hands, shouting out loud, and frantically switching to my Discord app to post my latest theory. It was so much fun in a way that I don’t feel about many books.

The relationships between characters was another favorite for me and I don’t just mean romantic ones. While there is some of that, and I have to say I really did like that one the most, I also loved seeing the familial ties that introduced so much anxiety to the story. Loyalty plays a big role in this book and I enjoyed seeing the various facets of that as well. While yearning for other people isn’t usually my type of thing, having that mixed with the issues of family and societal expectations, loyalty, and wanting to follow your own heart really ramped things up in a way that I was eager to read about. The fun banter between some of the characters was a great way to alleviate some of the building tension as well.

The last thing I want to touch on is the unexpected creepiness of this book. O’Keefe really knows how to ramp up my apprehension and make me feel like I’m right there with her characters. I was jumping at noises while I was reading certain passages and had to shudder multiple times after some descriptions. I’m a bit of a scaredy cat but she managed exactly the right level of heart racing and anxiety that I like while reading.

If you like high stakes, political intrigue, conspiracy theories, and complicated relationships in various shapes and forms, then this is the book for you!

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been vaguely aware of Megan E. O’Keefe as a person out there writing speculative fiction, but she’s never really been on my radar, let alone my TBR. After reading the first of her new series, The Devoured Worlds, I’m very interested in reading more of her stuff.

This is a science fiction story, set a few centuries in the future. Humanity’s existence is shaped by an unobtanium mineral called relkatite that both enables FTL travel, and lets people circumvent death (at least for a while). Relkatite implants allow for a person to have their consciousness uploaded to the cloud upon death, and then downloaded into a freshly printed body - assuming someone is willing and able to pay for it, of course.

The other thing that’s going on in this universe is the “shroud.” This is a fungus that destroys ecosystems on a planetary scale. Once the shroud appears on a planet, it’s only a matter of time until the shroud is the only living thing left. Which brings us to our two protagonists. Tarquin Mercator is the son of the man who leads the conglomerate that has a monopoly on relkatite mining. Naira Sharp was formerly Tarquin’s dad’s bodyguard, but told the world that the shroud was a byproduct of relkatite mining, and that the Mercators were covering it up. This was publicly refuted (largely based on Tarquin’s expert testimony), Sharp was stripped of her rights, and her consciousness was uploaded and locked away.

The story is set on a new world the Mercators have just discovered, and are preparing for relkatite extraction and initial colonization. The mission goes wrong, and Tarquin and Naira (who isn’t sure how she ended up being printed into a new body) are both stranded on the surface - which is already nothing but the shroud, despite mining not having begun yet.

This is one part survival story, one part romance, and probably 3 parts mystery as Tarquin and Naira come to know and rely upon each other, gradually find out just how much they don’t understand, and the scope of what is going on and what the stakes are.

I devoured this (with a few pauses along the way because I was dreading reading the next chapter due to what I was afraid was about to happen) and am pretty much desperate for book 2.

My blog

[Abbys⚔️Book World · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.25 / 5

One of the most fascinating concepts I've ever come across.

📚 Disguised as Tarquin’s new bodyguard, Naira plans to destroy his ship before it lands. But neither of them expects to end up stranded on a dead planet. To survive and keep her secret, Naira will have to join forces with the man she’s sworn to hate. And together they will uncover a plot that’s bigger than both of them.

✨ Review ✨
This is an action-packed character driven sci-fi with a tense, mysterious atmosphere.

I absolutely loved this, the science of it was so interesting. In this world everyone's neutral map is backed up and they can reprint themselves into new bodies. Leading to humans living extremely long lives.This also makes death a really interesting concept as what they experience in their old body can have devastating effects on their new body. I would have liked more history behind how humans became this but either way this had me gripped.

There has a creepy horror element that I absolutely adored in this. At one point I had genuine goosebumps like it creeped me out The second half is less creepy which was a little disappointing because I was really enjoying it. Which brings me onto the prose which was stunning the imaginary and foreboding she creates in her writing was fantastic.

I loved the characters. They are perfectly flawed, and their development and growth is fantastic. I also loved the side characters. It's hard to talk about characters without spoilers because part of the mystery is figuring out who people are. But I loved the dymanics between characters and how they bounced off one another.

The one thing that didn't work for me was the romance and it's not that it's a bad romance. For me it was just the least interesting part of the story and it's like 40% romance. It has a strong romantic subplot and whenever it was at the forefront I found myself just wanting to get back to everything else.

I can't wait to pick up the next book in the series. Lama was right!!!

[Shannon Miz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was so excited for this book because let’s face it, it sounds right up my weirdass alley. And it was, nice and messy, very unique, and definitely entertaining.

Things start out hectic from the first, with our new friends finding themselves in the midst of an interstellar catastrophe. And Naira doesn’t know who she can trust, but she’s sure it’s not any member of the universal tycoon family the Mercators. Certainly not the dude she finds herself stranded with, Tarquin. Only, she doesn’t know as much as she thinks about Tarquin. And he has no idea that she’s actually Naira Sharp, former employee he betrayed, and not the random bodyguard whose body she’s wearing.

It’s very The 100 in the sense that we’ve got body snatching and planet hopping and a ton of wonderfully gray morality. These are a few of my favorite things, after all. I found the whole concept to be very fresh, and the reader has the opportunity to uncover secrets (and lies) at every turn.

My only minor complaint is that I didn’t wholly love the bits with Tarquin’s dad, in part because I hate him (which I’m meant to) and partly because I just hate those Musky types and their stories of being The Worst ™. But it IS important to the story, those bits just excited me less.

Discovering all the aspects of the planet, the ships, and the world back home was awesome. The whole business about undying was very interesting. And the characters were definitely my favorite part. They’re incredibly multifaceted, and certainly not always what, or even who the seem. Can’t wait for book two!

Bottom Line: Loved the world and the characters and this story full of secrets and excitement.

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Devoured Worlds Series #1

This book is just not holding my interest at all. I have picked it up, read a couple of pages, and set it, (very easily), aside more times than I can count. Twice I thought that maybe this was part of the problem, so I tried reading it for longer time increments. It's still a chore to read.

It may be a case of mediocre characters. There are a number of them, and I didn't feel a thing for any of them. Good characterization generally causes me to forgive major faults in a story. Unfortunately, these characters were fair at best, and I didn't feel empathy for any of them.

This may work better for science fiction readers that tend to enjoy works focusing more on the technology and science aspects than the characters.

This eARC had been provided by Netgalley and Orbit Books. I wish that things had turned out favorably.