Junkyard Cats by Faith Hunter

Junkyard Cats (Junkyard Cats, #1)

by Faith Hunter

From the author of the best-selling Jane Yellowrock and Soulwood series comes a tough new heroine who is far more than she seems. Junkyard Cats is the first in a new novella series.

After the Final War, after the appearance of the Bug aliens and their enforced peace, Shining Smith is still alive, still doing business from the old scrapyard bequeathed to her by her father. But Shining is now something more than human. And the scrapyard is no longer just a scrapyard, but a place full of secrets that she has guarded for years.

This life she has built, while empty, is predictable and safe. Until the only friend left from her previous life shows up, dead, in the back of a scrapped Tesla warplane. Clutched in her cold fingers is a note to Shining—warning her of a coming attack.

With dread, Shining realizes: Someone knows who she is. Someone knows what she is guarding. Will she be able to protect the scrapyard? Will she even survive? Or will Shining have to destroy everything she loves to keep her secrets out of the wrong hands?

Reviewed by kimbacaffeinate on

4 of 5 stars

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I thoroughly enjoyed this science fiction tale set in future West Virginia and cannot wait for another installment in this series.

The audio is approximately five hours and does a stellar job of introducing the world and giving us history regarding the Final War and life for Shining and her companions at the scrapyard. Secrets, unusual cats, and creepy bots added to the tale.

I loved the AI, the cats…and the story as it unfolded. Hunter didn’t do a lot of info dumping, rather she shared as things became relevant, allowing the pace to remain intense and constant.

When one of her only friends shows up dead, and a lone enforcer rides in on a motorcycle, Shining knows someone knows she is alive, but do they know what she has? Will she survive? The tale that unfolds pulled me in with intense action scenes, unusual sci-fi tech and a heroine I need more of.

Narrator Khristine Hvam did a fantastic job capturing the personality of our heroine, Shining Smith. I have a complaint about the audiobook itself. The story is one chapter. One five hour chapter. This sucked! I often set a timer at bedtime when listening and it made stopping, starting and finding where I left off painful. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Reviewer

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 22 February, 2020: Finished reading
  • 22 February, 2020: Reviewed