Pax Novis

by Erica Cameron

[shannonmiz]

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight

4.5*

Oh, how I love a space adventure! Even better? A high stakes space adventure, which is exactly what we have here! I am going to get the one thing that I struggled with out of the way so we can move on to the awesome: The world is really interesting, really well-built, but it did take me a little bit to fully grasp what was going on. Luckily, the characters gripped me from the start so my interest level was high enough that I was eager to learn about the world. And when I did, I was super glad because it's really fascinating! I'm going to break down the stuff I loved in three separate groups: Characters, world, and plot!

The Characters:

It's a dual POV story, interwoven with some really great mixed media excerpts that give the reader just enough information about what's happening/did happen outside Pax Novis to get the gist of things. Most of our time is focused on main characters Cira and Riston. Let's start with Cira. She's lived on Pax Novis since forever, and she's the daughter of two very high-ranking officials. This is important for a few reasons, one of which is that Cira puts a lot of pressure on herself to make her moms proud. And proud they are! I loved the relationships Cira had with both of her mothers (each was individually fleshed out really well), and just the family dynamics in general. Often in a fast-paced novel as this, especially with the parent(s) being important themselves, the relationships are pushed to the back burner, but not so here. Cira must grapple with her decision to let Riston and the others onto the ship, especially when the shit hits the fan.

Riston has basically lost everyone and everything ze'd ever loved. Ze is now a (super illegal) stowaway, and faces death if caught. Not only that, but Riston has formed zir own little family with the other stowaways that Cira rescued. Riston is also completely in love with Cira, and would do just about anything to keep her safe, too. Basically, Riston will put zir own life on the line to save any of zir loved ones.

Both characters are extremely likable, flawed in their own ways, and so very easy to root for. The side characters are awesome too- I really grew to care for them, and the author made me understand exactly why these people were so beloved by Cira and/or Riston. They're a diverse group of genuinely decent folks who are just trying to save their home and their loved ones. Who wouldn't cheer for them?

The World:

Ooooh child, this world is bananas, in the best way! See, it's pretty far in the future, which I actually like because it makes it believable that so many different space entities/planetary dwellings exist. But as is always the case with human beings, we don't play nice. Someone is always at war, and someone always thinks they have the ultimate solution. Who's right? Is anyone, actually?

We all know I love a gray morality, and this book has it in spades. There are so many questions that we as the reader need to ask for ourselves: Should Cira have allowed the stowaways? Should Pax be so strict with their rules? Who is actually helping who in this world? And that's just the tip of the iceberg...

The Plot:

Okay, holy high stakes! I mean when ships start full-blown vanishing, you know it's getting bad. And when some sketchy things start happening on the ship that our characters are on... well, get ready to be on the edge of your seat! For so long, our characters' main goal has just been to stay under the radar, to remain undetected until they can plan for the future. But when that goes out the window, what will everyone involved do? Not only that, but it involves lots of other ships and lots of other worlds full of people. So again, the stakes just keep escalating, and I love it!

The ending of the book is quite possibly my favorite part, too. I'll spoil nothing of course, but just know that I have not needed a sequel so desperately in quite some time! Where the author chooses to leave the story... well, it's pretty brilliant.

Bottom Line: Once I got a hang of the world, I was so fully invested in this story that I couldn't stop reading. And when I got to the end, all I craved was more of these fabulous characters in this truly intricate world!