A multilayered and romantic entry in this captivating fantasy/SF series.
In Castillo’s fantasy/SF novel, a demigod tries to stop her former mentor and lover from starting a war while navigating a relationship with her newly bonded mate.
Renna Strongborn, the 27-year-old half-siren demigod daughter of Am-Re, the God of Darkness, Chaos, and Ruin, faces her latest challenge: Her former mentor, friend, lover, and manipulator, Sethos, is hellbent on attacking the dimension of Taria and killing the gods who reside there to avenge his mother’s death and the destruction of his homeland. Renna knows that Sethos’ motivations and duplicitous actions are heavily influenced by the abuse she suffered at Am-Re’s hands, as well as the dark powers Sethos absorbed when he killed him. Renna is desperate to find Sethos; if she can get him to see reason and help him break away from Am-Re’s shadow, she can prevent the devastating war that Sethos will start. But she’s not the only one who wants to find Sethos—her former flame Khellios, the God of the Moon and Stars, means to kill him. Aeroth, the King of the Astral, has also been recruited by the Galactic Federation to hunt him down. Aeroth, a member of the blood-drinking Naaviri fae race, also happens to be Renna’s destined mate. A chance meeting activates their bond and starts a yearlong period called the Settling, during which physical separation causes pain. As Aeroth puts it, “fate [has] a cruel sense of humor” in pairing the two together. To keep the peace, Aeroth agrees to help Renna find and save Sethos. This third installment of Castillo’s Daughters of Chaos series is an expertly crafted fantasy supported by sharp, detailed prose, excellent worldbuilding, and compelling dialogue. The story is conveyed via the perspectives of Renna, Aeroth, Sethos, Khellios, and others, bringing even more complexity to the already well-developed characters. The relationship between Renna and Aeroth is engaging and simmers with sexual tension; fans of vampire romance will be especially pleased. While readers may find the chapters from Khellios’ point of view disruptive and less satisfying than the rest, they will appreciate the emphasis on consent and Renna’s agency and autonomy throughout the story.
A multilayered and romantic entry in this captivating fantasy/SF series.Pub Date: May 26, 2026
ISBN: 9798991248273
Page Count: 514
Publisher: Delphinus Star Publishing
Review Posted Online: July 7, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A cleverly titled, cozy SF romance that marks Thorne as a writer to watch.
After purchasing a dilapidated, century-old starship called the Destitute, Torian Razner discovers that the moss covering it is, in fact, a deeply sarcastic sentient computer with abandonment issues.
Torian’s sister, Celise, is dying. Determined to save her life by getting her to a distant planet with air she can breathe, Torian ignores her former captain Amelia Perrosk’s warning that it’s an impossible task (along with any romantic feelings she might have for Amelia). Using the only ionite bars she has to her name, Torian purchases an ancient, moss-covered alien starship that appears to be on its last legs, so to speak. She hardly expected the moss to be a sentient computer or for it to hold a century-old grudge against its former alien captain. Moss quickly proves itself to be acerbic, intelligent, and rightly angry after being having been left behind for 100 years by its former captain. The two form a reluctant and surprising alliance, Torian proving to Moss that not all captains are “dog-turd fungus,” and they both gradually evolve into the best versions of themselves, human or otherwise. It’s obvious from the early pages that Thorne has crafted a story tailored to fans of Becky Chambers’ Monk & Robot series and Martha Wells’ Murderbot Diaries. Falling somewhere between the two, this is a delightful mashup of romance, found family, and a touch of violence as Moss grapples with its feelings about its former captain and the unexpected kindness that Torian shows. Sweet without being overly saccharine, it’s a book for readers who want the adventure that comes with the vastness of outer space without its harsher realities.
A cleverly titled, cozy SF romance that marks Thorne as a writer to watch.Pub Date: July 7, 2026
ISBN: 9781250414144
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Bramble Books
Review Posted Online: April 20, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.
On the orders of her mother, a woman goes to dragon-riding school.
Even though her mother is a general in Navarre’s army, 20-year-old Violet Sorrengail was raised by her father to follow his path as a scribe. After his death, though, Violet's mother shocks her by forcing her to enter the elite and deadly dragon rider academy at Basgiath War College. Most students die at the War College: during training sessions, at the hands of their classmates, or by the very dragons they hope to one day be paired with. From Day One, Violet is targeted by her classmates, some because they hate her mother, others because they think she’s too physically frail to succeed. She must survive a daily gauntlet of physical challenges and the deadly attacks of classmates, which she does with the help of secret knowledge handed down by her two older siblings, who'd been students there before her. Violet is at the mercy of the plot rather than being in charge of it, hurtling through one obstacle after another. As a result, the story is action-packed and fast-paced, but Violet is a strange mix of pure competence and total passivity, always managing to come out on the winning side. The book is categorized as romantasy, with Violet pulled between the comforting love she feels from her childhood best friend, Dain Aetos, and the incendiary attraction she feels for family enemy Xaden Riorson. However, the way Dain constantly undermines Violet's abilities and his lack of character development make this an unconvincing storyline. The plots and subplots aren’t well-integrated, with the first half purely focused on Violet’s training, followed by a brief detour for romance, and then a final focus on outside threats.
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374042
Page Count: 528
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2024
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
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