Tin Star (Tin Star, #1)

by Cecil Castellucci

[Angie]

Aliens! Cover ups! And revenge! Oh my! Tin Star was quite awesome. Tula is working for Brother Blue on the latest colonization mission, but she notices something isn't right. She approaches her boss, thinking she's helping, but he beats her and leaves her for dead. The ship takes off, but the aliens on the docking station find her and take her to the medic. Once Tula is healed, she learns that the ship carrying her family and many other humans exploded on its way to the new planet. Now Tula is stranded on a space station that is rarely visited with no friends, no family, and no money until Heckleck, an alien, takes her under his wing. It's three years before Tula sees another human again.

The plot of Tin Star is full of twists and turns! Brother Blue is admired by humanity for all that he's done for their colonization effort. In this future, a species' worth is based on how many colonies they have, and humans are severely lagging. Brother Blue has supposedly assisted with five new colonies for the humans, so why sabotage this one? It takes a long time, but Tula eventually gets the information she's been dying for and now she's out for revenge.

My favorite part of Tin Star was, of course, the world building! There is a ton of amazing world building thanks mostly to Tula being stranded away from humanity. The space station she's on is a mix of many alien species, and she has to deal with them on a daily basis as she barters for goods and favors. They each have their own customs and signs of respect in addition to their differing appearances. I also enjoyed how the species relate to each other, both personally and politically. Humans are seen as the lowest of the low, so Tula does have a hard time in her new living situation. However, it was interesting to me how as time passed she became more alien than human, so much so, that when she is faced with humans, it's really awkward for her.

There's no real romance in Tin Star. Tula does start a kind of fling with one of the human boys that gets stranded, but it's just two teenagers making out. No one's declaring undying love or talking about forever. They're just looking for comfort and connection in the loneliness of space. But there is a twist at the end, which I never saw coming! It made me giddy with excitement! That probably makes me kind of a freak, because it is weird, but I'd love to see something come from this!

I adored Tin Star. It has definitely cemented my new found love of the Science Fiction genre and for all things alien. It's not a particularly fast paced or action packed story, but it's full of conspiracies and betrayals! I cannot wait for the sequel!

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.