SiriusB+ Reviews / Book Reviewsm/m fantasy / space opera/mm romance4 Comments

Rich socialite, inveterate flirt, and walking disaster Tennalhin Halkana can read minds. Tennal, like all neuromodified “readers,” is a security threat on his own. But when controlled, readers are a rare asset. Not only can they read minds, but they can navigate chaotic space, the maelstroms surrounding the gateway to the wider universe.

Conscripted into the military under dubious circumstances, Tennal is placed into the care of Lieutenant Surit Yeni, a duty-bound soldier, principled leader, and the son of a notorious traitor general. Whereas Tennal can read minds, Surit can influence them. Like all other neuromodified “architects,” he can impose his will onto others, and he’s under orders to control Tennal by merging their minds.

Surit accepted a suspicious promotion-track request out of desperation, but he refuses to go through with his illegal orders to sync and control an unconsenting Tennal. So they lie: They fake a sync bond and plan Tennal’s escape.

Their best chance arrives with a salvage-retrieval mission into chaotic space — to the very neuromodification lab that Surit’s traitor mother destroyed twenty years ago. And among the rubble is a treasure both terrible and unimaginably powerful, one that upends a decades-old power struggle, and begins a war.

Tennal and Surit can no longer abandon their unit or their world. The only way to avoid life under full military control is to complete the very sync they’ve been faking.

Can two unwilling weapons of war bring about peace?

Review,

Dear Everina Maxwell,

I had reviewed “Winter’s Orbit” here and I had some issues with it, but still ended up loving the characters and remembering the book. I think this story was executed much better than “Winter’s orbit’ and I loved the characters just as much. This story is set in the same large universe as ‘Winter’s Orbit” but otherwise deals with completely different characters and issues.

As the blurb tells you, on this planet there are some people who have the power of reading other people’s minds and some people who can impose their will on others. To be honest with you, at first I thought that author was sort of inventing the wheel where those powers are concerned. I mean there is an oldie but goodie word “telepaths’ and I actually think that word can be used for both architects and readers. Architects can force others to do things, but otherwise I was and am not sure what was the difference between the two groups where their psychic abilities were concerned. To be fair, the fact that there was not much difference between the groups was explained in the plot later in the book.  I also decided that it does not really matter how architects and readers are called, as long as their existence is an important part of the plot.

At the beginning of the book Tennal is spiraling – he is not handling his reader abilities well, his dear auntie does not quite know what to do with him, and she decides to conscript him into the army without his consent (I will not elaborate on details, you will find out what she did if you decide to read the book).

And in the army he meets Surit, a brilliant young officer and an architect who accepts a promotion track which turns out to be a sync with a reader named Tenal. Only Sunit does not know that Tenal did not consent and once Surit does know, he refuses to sync with Tennal, period, end of story.

If he only knew that their story was just beginning. That includes helping best guys  (or we should say better guys) prevail over horrible guys, but you expected it right?  This also includes a beginning of the romance.  I loved them falling in love with each other. The only thing that happens between them are some kisses, but I thought the tension that was building to that was great and since the story is also very much a space opera, we have that storyline also moving faster and faster till the climax of the story. I thought it was extremely well done, up till give or take two thirds of the story I would have happily and easily given this book an A.

Why don’t I feel like that anymore? Because eventually some things are revealed in the book which I wish would have never happened. Certain things that enhance our main characters’ powers are revealed to have a certain origin and the only reaction I have had to this revelation was ewww, gross and I am pretty sure that could not have been the reaction the author was going for.  Apparently now

and if the words would have been spoken one more time, it would have been one time too many.   Even if these things were the same things, but their origins were a tiny bit more vague, I would have been happy.

I still think it is a very good book, but cannot call it a great one anymore.

Grade B+

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