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Read if you like stories featuring Ultras from [a:Alastair Reynolds|51204|Alastair Reynolds|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1521740247p2/51204.jpg]' [b:Revelation Space|89187|Revelation Space (Revelation Space, #1)|Alastair Reynolds|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1405532042l/89187.SY75.jpg|219037] series.

Good:
rich Gothic atmosphere
masterful world-building
creative updates to the English language
blend of hard-core sci-fi & a pirate adventure

Bad:
disjointed story structure
no clear antagonist / sense of progression
supporting characters feel flat & interchangeable
ending feels like a setup for the next book in the series

Reminded me simultaneously of gothic elements of [a:Alastair Reynolds|51204|Alastair Reynolds|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1521740247p2/51204.jpg] novels and [b:Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire|6|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter, #4)|J.K. Rowling|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1554006152l/6.SX50.jpg|3046572].

Good:
atmospheric mix of gothic horror & sci-fi setting
authentic 19 year-old POV character
compelling complete-the-challenges turns murder-mystery plot
gripping action sequences
satisfying ending & overall story structure

Bad:
exaggerated hate between Gideon & Harrowhark with predictable progression of their relationship

Read if you're waiting for the next book in The Band series by [a:Nicholas Eames|15388346|Nicholas Eames|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1468878466p2/15388346.jpg].

Good:
made me laugh out loud; enjoyable language based misunderstandings
likeable main character, despite reluctant hero trope
ending packs a punch (and ax / sword swings, fireballs, arrows, kicks, ...)

Bad:
aggressive salesmen Orcs motif is underutilized & feels like a wasted opportunity
predictable story developments
trope galore

Contrasts interestingly with:
[b:Aurora|23197269|Aurora|Kim Stanley Robinson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1436300570l/23197269.SX50.jpg|42742263] by [a:Kim Stanley Robinson|1858|Kim Stanley Robinson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1376955089p2/1858.jpg]

Good:
thoughtful characters with warm, caring relationships ([a:Becky Chambers|8389735|Becky Chambers|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1562580587p2/8389735.jpg] writes those really well!)
creative exoplanets
creative astronaut adaptations
concise format

Bad:
I'm bored with "utopian space explorers juxtaposed with dystopian ecologically destroyed Earth" trope
* "scientific finding" at the end should have been foreshadowed

Reminded me of:
Mars trilogy by [a:Kim Stanley Robinson|1858|Kim Stanley Robinson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1376955089p2/1858.jpg]
[b:Children of Time|25499718|Children of Time (Children of Time #1)|Adrian Tchaikovsky|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1431014197l/25499718.SY75.jpg|45276208]

Good:
world-building
themes of alien world colonization / colony politics / first contact
changing POV characters to jump in time to the most interesting plot points
balance of hard-code SF vs story progression

Bad:
changing POV characters make for a less cathartic ending
some problems are glossed over, like setting up a sustainable colony or communicating with aliens