These Burning Stars

An empire controlled by a religious body called the Kindom. Corporations controlled by powerful families, such as the Nightfoots, who have a monopoly on sevite, the material needed for interplanetary travel. A mysterious figure out for revenge, aiming to reveal the bloody truth behind this house of cards, threatening to bring everything crashing down.

I think I would categorize this book more as space opera than hard sci-fi, but that's not a bad thing. It's a complex world with characters that are not necessarily likeable, morally ambiguous, but forces to be reckoned with. Chono, the stoic noviate was a good foil for Esek, who comes across as just completely and utterly unstable and chaotic. Then there's Jun, the hacker who's just trying to stay alive.

I love the world building and I am a HUGE FAN of the explosion of queer stories within the sci-fi and fantasy genres. This is an excellent addition to the slate, and I love to see more and more of them.

I feel almost like I should have seen the twist at the end coming, and yet, it took me completely by surprise, just like it did the other characters. If Goodreads allowed partial ratings, I'd give this one a 3.75. It's not QUITE a 4 for me, but it's close. And I'll definitely be reading the rest of the series.