Chilling Effect

Really, the cats should have gotten much more air time.

I will say the relationships were quite well-written. The plot got a bit ridiculous. I mostly ended up wanting to find out when Eva was going to have it out with her father and sister, but she never quite did that. Perhaps it's coming in the sequel? I do plan on reading it. I feel like the book suffered from a lack of focus. Valdes' book "Where Peace is Lost" all took place on one planet, and it benefited from having a limited scope that nonetheless gave readers a window onto a larger galaxy with interplanetary wars, empires, and so on.

The Spanish was fun. I didn't understand most of it but I really enjoyed reading (listening to) sci-fi that reminded me of hanging around with Puerto Rican friends.

Slightly absurd space comedy which feels lower stakes than it is as a rather chaotic captain is on the run from both an organised crime syndicate and an emperor who wants to add her to his harem. Also, there are psychic cats which oddly have less bearing on the plot than you’d imagine, but are fun nonetheless. 

Gave up after the heroine's sister enters the picture. The characters all felt cardboard, and the story felt as if the main character was ping-ponging from event-to-event, without much agency.

DNF'd at 40%

I wanted to love this one. I really did. It started off so strong: a brilliant premise, flawed but loveable characters, a healthy dash of humour, and a stunning cover.

Alas, it was not for me. I found myself procrastinating FROM reading instating procrastinating from real life BY reading.

Two things prevented me from enjoying this a lot more than I did.
1. The structure. Instead of a traditional plot of a obstacle that must be overcome, this featured an endless series of tasks to be completed.
2. The language. Adding a few words of a different language here and there is more than fine. But having a main character who repeatedly drops in whole sentences in a language I don't speak really pulls me out of the story.

If you enjoy episodic fiction and speak at least a smattering of Spanish, then maybe this book is …