Engagement season is in the air. Eighteen-year-old Princess Leonie “Leo” Kolburg, heir to a faded European spaceship, has only one thing on her mind: which lucky bachelor can save her family from financial ruin? But when Leo’s childhood friend and first love, Elliot, returns as the captain of a successful whiskey ship, everything changes. Elliot was the one who got away, the boy Leo’s family … the boy Leo’s family deemed to be unsuitable for marriage. Now he’s the biggest catch of the season and he seems determined to make Leo’s life miserable. But old habits die hard, and as Leo navigates the glittering balls of the Valg Season, she finds herself falling for her first love in a game of love, lies, and past regrets.
Fans of Katharine McGee and Kiera Cass will be dazzled by this world of lost love and royal intrigue.
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This was a really fun read!
This novel is reminiscent of Persuasion, The Great Gatsby and Wuthering Heights, where the scorned lover leaves and returns with a vast fortune.
The story offers much political upheaval, using the return of the scorned lover to evaluate social standing. In space, matchmaking it done for politics, power, and financial security. Princess Leo, who hates the princess title, is forced to participate in the quadrennial matchmaking ceremony for financial security since her family is going broke. It is a far cry from what she wants, to marry the boy she let walk away and prove herself as an inventor. It speaks to the inconsequential and archaic use of titles, on how little they matter.
This novel also works well on criticizing the class standing and the unfairness of it as well as the result: rich getting richer off the back of the middle and lower class who continue to get poorer and suffer. It makes for a relevant read as it analyzes class status, ripping and exposing the flaws that are detrimental to society.
Having a protagonist who is also curvy and inventive is also a nice break from the traditional narrative. Leo has such a great personality. Elliot, on the other hand, lacks the charisma For the first half of the novel. It is understandable for him to be angry and hateful but he is not even a little likable so the reader has a hard time connecting to him.
Overall, characterization aside, it is a compelling novel with a strong female protagonist.
This was an exciting YA science fiction novel that totally delighted me! This novel is a retelling of Jane Austin’s Persuasion, though it can still be enjoyed by someone (like me, gasp!) that has never read Persuasion.
These characters won me over fairly quickly. Leo especially was a character that I was drawn to. She was such a relatable character and I found myself rooting for her instantly. This book has a really great cast of characters that will make you feel a gamut of emotions. Some characters evolve over time and come to mean something more to the story than the reader originally thought. I loved all the evolutions of these characters. Many characters had excellent character growth. I really love how each character was important to the story.
I enjoyed the writing style of the story. I was immediately drawn into the story and it kept my attention well. The story had a great flow throughout.
The world-building was adequate for the story being told. Science fiction is kind of tricky because it is very involved. On the other hand, this is a YA novel and so the world-building is not as intense as it would be in an adult novel. At least for the fantasy and science fiction genres. There are definitely things in the story that I would have loved to have more insight on but, again, the lack of those things does not impede the story being told. Some of the things that crossed my mind were: Where do the ships get their food and water? What powers their spaceships? I would have also loved to know more about Earth.
I really loved all the elements in the plot of the story. The story touches upon the class differences in the social structure, though I wish that the story had more resolution where this angle was concerned. The story arc was well crafted and I honestly couldn’t pull myself away from the book. There are twists and turns in the story that keep you on the edge of your seat. The only thing that I felt was lacking was the end of the story. It felt like there were too many loose ends that weren’t tied up at the end. I guess I was looking for more resolution.
Overall, I was so pleased with this story! I really loved the premise and the execution of the story. This is an author that I can’t wait to read more from!
I received an eARC of this book via the Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.
Jane Austen in space….yes please! The Stars We Steal by Alexa Donne is a modern-day, futuristic retelling of Jane Austen’s Persuasion. While the year isn’t specifically stated, you can assume it’s been a few hundred years since the people of Earth took off in their spaceships they now call home. That’s a long time in space, and that’s a long time for ships to begin to breakdown, and for society to reevaluate itself which is precisely what is happening here. The Stars We Steal is a story of romance, deception, and class division that will appeal to all audiences.
Leonie Kolburg, or Leo, is a princess of a nearly defunct ship. She hates her title. Because of it, she lost the one person that made her feel normal. The title is little more than a status symbol anyways. Leo’s family, along with many others, are near destitute. Years in space with no form of income and lots of expenses is finally taking its toll. With the Valg Season upon them, Leo’s father is forcing her to marry, not for love but money. She must find a wealthy husband to secure her family’s financial freedom. Otherwise their ship (and titles) will be gone.
While attending the Valg Season, Leo talks her father into staying in the Royal chambers aboard the Scandinavian, the ship hosting this year and her mother’s home ship. In doing this, they can rent out their ship and make a little money. What Leo doesn’t count on is her former fiance and his new friends renting it. Elliot is now a wealthy, successful captain of a whiskey ship, and like Leo, is entering the Valg Season. But Elliot’s motives aren’t entirely pure.
What is the Valg Season? It’s like a coming out party (think Victorian England) for society. The bloodlines on the ships are running a little too thin. If you don’t want to marry a cousin or other relative, you enter the Valg Season which lasts a few weeks. Glittering balls, speed dating, dinners and dancing, among many other events fill up the weeks so the eligible candidates have a chance to mingle, meet and choose a spouse.
I’ll be honest, this aspect of the book while seeming to be the main plot (at least from the blurb) actually doesn’t take up as much as one would think. I expected more from it and had hoped to learn more about why they’re in space. In truth, it could have been set on Earth or another planet and the storyline not changed. The plot really focuses on the romance and the mystery surrounding Elliot’s return.
While I really liked Leo, the other characters fell flat for me, even Elliot. There were many times I had to check to see who Leo was interacting with because there was no depth. There is however plenty of representation from race to sexuality. It was as if the author had a list she could that she was checking off….lesbian check, asian check, mocha skin color check. Maybe it was just me, but it felt off and forced, and honestly the characters could have been any skin color or sexual orientation and it wouldn’t have impacted their story.
Overall I’m torn. I really enjoyed some aspects of The Stars We Steal. I loved Leo, her tenacity and forward thinking (because for this to be set so many years in the future, I felt as if I’d stepped back in time). I enjoyed how Donne weaved her own tale through Austen’s Persuasion. There is enough of the original story that it made me smile. However, if like me you are looking for a space opera, or at least a science fiction, this isn’t it. Yes, they are on a ship in space, but that’s the extent of it. The Stars We Steal is a unique take on social status and inequality set in the beautiful expanse of space. If you enjoy light science fiction with a little romance, I recommend it.
What an interesting story! At first I thought it was like long ago but then it wasn’t it was more like in the future but then things changed again. Leo and her sister have to attend a pairing to find a husband but in Leo’s case she is only going to please her father, because if her ideas for a water filtration system come to fruition she will have money to save her family. When the attendees arrive there is Elliott the boy she wanted to marry till her family told her it was beneath her. A lot of things go on and you keep hoping Elliot and Leo get back together but you get disappointed at every turn. I enjoyed reading how the future could be mixing with the past.
Reviewed on behalf of Once upon an Alpha
I flew through this book in a few sittings, immediately intrigued by the premise and stakes (and that STUNNING cover), and it did not disappoint. The Stars We Steal will be a joy to read for fans of The Bachelorette and Persuasion alike, with a whip-smart heroin, gorgeous world-building, and a romance that’s sure to steal hearts.
(And can we get a Daniel spin-off PLEASE?)
Thank you to HMH and Netgalley for the early review copy!