I love a good sci-fi space opera and I especially like finding new authors in the genre. With These Burning Stars, the first in a planned trilogy, I have found both.
The Hand, the governing body of the Kindom consists of three branches: Clerics, Secretaries, and Cloaks When Esek Nightfoot, a prominent Cleric and member of a powerful First Family, discovers two students at a school, she ends up mentoring one, Chono, and challenging the other, Six, to "...do something extraordinary". Little does Esek know what she has unleashed on the Kindom with her challenge.
Meanwhile, con artist Jun Ironway has come into possession of evidence that threatens the very existence of The Hand and the Nightfoot family empire. As Esek and Chono search for Jun, Six is playing her own game of cat-and-mouse with them--always one step ahead and taunting Esek.
This is a complex world-building novel with subplots and twists that form a tapestry of a star system fraught with political intrigue. The characters are well-developed with excellent writing and pacing that moves the story forward. However, I had a problem with the gender-neutral pronouns used for Six. It was confusing when the word "they" would be used for both Six and multiple characters in the same sentence. I understand why the author chose this for the character, it was just hard to follow sometimes. This is an excellent debut novel from Bethany Jacobs and I look forward to the next installment in the series. 4 stars.
Thank you, NetGalley and Orbit Books for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The publication date is October 17, 2023.
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