#the first sister

[aroaessidhe]

Sci-fi books where a queer woman has the ghost of an annoying dead guy in her head

*Misery is nonbinary (she/they) and who’s in her head is not dead or a guy but I’m counting it, okay

[wondereads]

Achillean Book Recs for Pride 2024

The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater

Young Adult, magical realism, 4.12 star average (my rating: 5 stars)

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Young Adult, high fantasy, 4.52 star average (my rating: 5 stars)

Ace of Spades by Faridah Abike-Iyimide

Young Adult, mystery thriller, 4.27 star average (my rating: 5 stars)

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

Young Adult, contemporary fantasy, 4.34 star average (my rating: 4.5 stars)

Winter's Orbit by Everina Maxwell

Adult, space opera, 4.07 star average (my rating: 4.5 stars)

Scum Villain's Self-Saving System by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

Adult, fantasy romance, 4.29 star average (my rating: 4.87 stars)

Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

Adult, fantasy romance, 4.44 star average (my rating: 4.7 stars)

Heaven Official's Blessing by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

Adult, fantasy romance, 4.5 star average (my rating: 4.67 stars)

Blood Debts by Terry J. Benton-Walker

Young Adult, contemporary fantasy, 3.88 star average (my rating: 4 stars)

The Buried and the Bound by Rochelle Hassan

Young Adult, contemporary fantasy, 4.07 star average (my rating: 4 stars)

So This Is Ever After by F. T. Lukens

Young Adult, fantasy romance, 3.93 star average (my rating: 4 stars)

The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black

Young Adult, contemporary fantasy, 3.87 star average (my rating: 4 stars)

The Foxhole Court by Nora Sakavic

New Adult, sports/thriller, 3.85 star average (my rating: 3 stars)

The City of Dusk by Tara Sim

Adult, high fantasy, 3.72 star average

The First Sister by Linden A. Lewis

Adult, space opera, 3.93 star average

Lord of Eternal Night by Ben Alderson

Adult, fantasy romance, 3.43 star average

The Husky and His White Cat Shizun by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou

Adult, fantasy romance, 4.37 star average

A Dowry of Blood by S. T. Gibson

Adult, gothic fantasy, 4.12 star average

Darker by Four by June CL Tan

Young Adult, contemporary fantasy, 4.11 star average

Once & Future by Cory McCarthy and A. R. Capetta

Young Adult, sci-fantasy, 3.57 star average

Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White

Young Adult, post-apocalyptic horror, 4.2 star average

[dylanobrienisbatman]

For fans of The Expanse, I highly recommend The First Sister by Linden A. Lewis.

It has a similar world building of a near-future space opera where humans have colonized space (including venus and mercury), where we follow three primary political factions (the geans of earth and mars, the icarii of venus and mercury, and the asters of the asteroid belt) in a political thriller in the midst of an ongoing war and inter-factional conflict. Gripping plot, entrancing characters, and stellar plot twists, I can't recommend this book enough and I can't wait to read the rest of the trilogy.

[haveyoureadthisscifibook]

vote yes if you have finished the entire book.

vote no if you have not finished the entire book.

(faq · submit a book)

[lgbtqreads]

Fave Five: Queer Adult Space Opera Series, Part I

The Farian War by K.B. Wagers Winter’s Orbit by Everina Maxwell The Salvagers and The Starmetal Symphony by Alex White The First Sister by Linden A. Lewis Teixcalaan by Arkady Martine

[haveyoureadthistransbook]

The First Sister by Linden A. Lewis

goodreads

First Sister has no name and no voice. As a priestess of the Sisterhood, she travels the stars alongside the soldiers of Earth and Mars—the same ones who own the rights to her body and soul. When her former captain abandons her, First Sister’s hopes for freedom are dashed when she is forced to stay on her ship with no friends, no power, and a new captain—Saito Ren—whom she knows nothing about. She is commanded to spy on Captain Ren by the Sisterhood, but soon discovers that working for the war effort is so much harder to do when you’re falling in love. Lito val Lucius climbed his way out of the slums to become an elite soldier of Venus, but was defeated in combat by none other than Saito Ren, resulting in the disappearance of his partner, Hiro. When Lito learns that Hiro is both alive and a traitor to the cause, he now has a shot at redemption: track down and kill his former partner. But when he discovers recordings that Hiro secretly made, Lito’s own allegiances are put to the test. Ultimately, he must decide between following orders and following his heart.

Mod opinion: I hadn't heard of this one before, but it sounds interesting.

[wizardnaturalist]

I hate souji val akira so much it's unreal. "oh I cant stop now, it would disrespect shinyas sacrifice" shut the FUCK up, shinya didnt sacrifice shit. YOU sacrificed HIM

[hokulazuli]

Friends, booknerds, fandom, lend me your ears eyes! My first ever real post on here shall be shouting out my favorite books that I read in 2022!

2022 releases: 

Fevered Star by Rrebecca Roanhorse

Fault Tolerance by @valerievaldes

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers 

The Kindred by Alechia Dow

Bloodmarked by Tracy Deonn

Silver Under Nightfall by Rin Chupeco

This Wicked Fate by Kalynn Bayron

Ocean's Echo by @everina-maxwell-updates

Rust in the Root by Justina Ireland

Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia 

A Thousand Steps into Night by Tracy Chee 

Even Though I Knew the End by C.L. Polk   

Lakelore by Anna-Marie McLemore 

Shutter by Ramona Emerson 

The Babysitter Lives by Stephen Graham Jones (audio only) 

How to Be Perfect by Michael Schur 

Into the Riverlands by @nghivowriting

2021 or older releases: 

The First Sister by Linden A. Lewis

Gearbreakers by Zoe Hana Mikuta

We Free the Stars by @hafsahfaizal 

The Mermaid the Witch and the Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron

Darling by @kaylapocalypse

The King of Infinite Space by Lyndsay Faye

The Last Final Girl by Stephen Graham Jones 

A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine

The Second Rebel by Linden A. Lewis

Ring Shout by @pdjeliclark

Far Sector by @nkjemisin

The Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers 

Heartstopper by @aliceoseman

The Witch Boy by Molly Knox Ostertag 

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata

[jedaos]

the first sister was disappointing, actually. the worldbuilding is so strong on a conceptual level but the writing doesn't do many of the themes or plots justice, and almost all of the characters felt flat/one-dimensional except maybe hiro during their voice recordings. the "twist" wasn't well executed at all; even surprise reveals should have previous establishment and foreshadowing involved in its buildup.

[no1islost]

Nobody asked, but out of the 20 books I read this year, here are a few:

Most Favorite Book:

The First Sister Trilogy by Linden A Lewis

I’m reading the last book of the trilogy right now, but The First Sister, The Second Rebel, and The Last Hero might be my new favorite book series. A Space Opera. Two factions: Earth & Mars vs Venus & Mercury. Science & Technology vs Spirituality & Tradition. Told from various POVs that are interconnected. Hierarchy, scandal, and government coverups. 10/10 recommend. (This series has good narrators on Audible if you want an audio experience while reading like I sometimes do).

Most Difficult Book:

Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James

This book didn’t list any trigger warnings, but quite literally hit all of them. Not a book for the weak. Extremely brutal, heavy, and hard to digest topics. I so badly wanted to DNF this one, but I’m not a quitter. Very difficult to understand the way it was written, too. Had to listen to the audio book as I read along to help comprehend. But I did appreciate the difficulty and the African lore. Not sure I will read the sequel.

Most Enjoyable Book:

They Never Learn by Layne Fargo

I mean, who doesn’t love a woman professor who secretly murders male students that get away with SA with their classmates? The twist was good and I honestly didn’t make the connection until it slapped me in the face. Also wlw representation. Really highlights the fury many of us feel when boys get away with this ish.

Most Meaningful Book

The Cat Who Saved Books by Sôsuke Natsukawa

Super sweet, heartwarming read. A little bit of grief mixed in with a love of books and a dying bookstore. Saved by a magical cat and a boy.

Most Conceptually Intriguing

Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots

Commentary on how heroes actually do the most damage, but told in a fun, superhero world way. I think if anyone likes marvel or dc, they should read this. This concept was really interesting and was nice to see a “villain’s” POV. The ending irritated me, though.

I started a lot of interesting reads this year, too, but won’t have them finished in time. So here’s to some good reads in 2023!

[booksandwords]

Math, like war, should be performed with cool head.

Lito sol Lucius (The First Sister, Linden A. Lewis)

[wondereads]

Genderqueer Book Recs for Pride 2024

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire (trans)

New Adult, low fantasy, 3.89 star average (my rating: 5 stars)

Dragonfall by L. R. Lam (genderfluid)

Adult, fantasy romance, 3.68 star average (my rating: 4.5 stars)

The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang (trans)

Young Adult GN, historical fiction, 4.37 star average (my rating: 5 stars)

The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White (trans)

Young Adult, historical horror, 4.58 star average (my rating: 4.5 stars)

Spell Bound by F. T. Lukens (nonbinary)

Young Adult, contemporary fantasy, 4.2 star average (my rating: 3.5 stars)

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas (trans)

Young Adult, contemporary fantasy, 4.34 star average (my rating: 4.5 stars)

Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse (genderfluid)

Adult, high fantasy, 4.25 star average

She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker Chan (nonbinary)

Adult, historical fantasy, 4 star average

The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas (trans)

Young Adult, high fantasy, 4.4 star average

The Goddess of Nothing at All by Cat Rector (genderfluid)

Adult, high fantasy, 4.23 star average

The First Sister by Linden A. Lewis (nonbinary)

Adult, space opera, 3.93 star average

Seven Devils by L. R. Lam and Elizabeth May (trans/nonbinary)

Adult, space opera, 4.03 star average

Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White (trans)

Young Adult, postapocalyptic horror, 4.2 star average

[aroaessidhe]

2022 reads // twitter thread    

The Last Hero

end of the trilogy!

rebellion is burning across the solar system. secrets are uncovered as the war comes to a head

lots of POVs

mostly focused on platonic relationships

[aorticwhimsy]

just finished reading the first sister, this book would be so much better if it had canon lesbians. i thought i was getting something beautiful with saito ren but then my world came crumbling down in front of me. 5/5 stars tho

[chloesimaginationthings]

William Afton into the FNAF-verse

[airoarts]

yellowfang, i wish you were here. my sister is dying.

ID in alt and under cut

ID: digital painting of Cinderpelt and Brightpaw from Warriors. They are two cats curled around each other. Brightpaw, a ginger-and-white cat, is badly injured with cobwebs as bandages around her face and other injuries. She is unconscious and lying on her side in a moss nest. Cinderpelt, a gray cat, is curled around her with her tail over Brightpaw's back, looking at her with concern. They are in a shaded den surrounded by autumnal ferns, with a pool of water in the corner, and a strip of bright sunlight illuminating their faces. end ID.