I tried, I honestly tried to get through this book, but I think it just wasn't for me. I have a rule I give every book at least a third of the way to grab me, and this one just didn't. From the start the characterization and dialogue just felt really cringy to me - not to mention inconsistent (going from wanting all the attention and dancing on a bar to wanting everyone to ignore you?) and just weird - like how she turned completely round on her contact in one of the first scenes. She distrusts her excessively in the first few sentences, but halfway through a very incoherent conversation they are suddenly best of friends? That combined with the romance that progressed excessively quickly - I would have enjoyed it a lot more if it was a true enemies-to-lovers over time rather than such a such a quick turn around to her fancying him - only 30% in! This just wasn't for me, maybe I went into it expecting something different but I just can't justify spending more time on something I am not enjoying.

Well, it was interesting book. I like this type of space adventure with a little (or a lot) mystery in it. As for characters I liked Mate and Zach the most of course, especially Mate. Toni was ok but Dan was typical the bad attractive boy. I`ve seen them so much that I just can`t seem to care for anyone like that. Despite that I liked this book. It was not perfect but it had some good moments. If there will be another installment i'll definitely read it too.

Well, I am sorry I took so long to review this book but I started it over three times...
I thought that maybe this is one of those books I have to be in the mood for. But while I liked Mate, the robo dog, well enough I just couldn't connect with anything else.
I can't point my finger on it but there's something missing in the writing, something essential that would make me care about the characters. And the constant use of a made-up curse word that's never really translated or explained where it's coming from is frustrating. I get the meaning behind this word, but what language is it coming from etc. Maybe it is explained later on but sadly I just didn't care enough to finish the story.

I am a stickler for strong sentences and clear imagery in my space opera. This book consistently disappointed. Toni came across to me as a teenager, not someone with the experience to be doing what she is doing. In addition, I couldn't figure out why Mate was a doggie robot – no opposable thumb and all that. So this might be ok for YAs but not for more experienced readers.

I honestly can't put my finger on a good reason why but I just didn't connect with this book. It's also split into parts and when it switched to two years later I couldn't convince myself to keep going for no other reason than I just wasn't invested. DNF @35%

Well, this was a little different to what I was expecting. And in a good way, I hasten to add. I am a relative newbie to the genre so some of what I read did need a couple attempts to get my head round, but on the whole, it flowed very well and left me mostly satisfied.
Agent Toni Delle, ably assisted by robot dog Mate and shipboard computer Zach, is on the trail of some smugglers. When we first meet her she has just completed one hairy mission and is about to accept her new one; to find and stop the manufacture of a new weapon and find its designer who has disappeared. As well as needing the money the mission will (probably) earn her, she lives for the excitement and thrill of the chase. Good job too as this mission will test her mettle as she flits between locations with much danger behind every corner. Teaming up with shady characters in her quest also comes with snags along the way as she endeavours to complete her mission and get her dues. And then there's Dan to contend with...
Once I got into the author's style of writing and the story started to flow better for me, I whizzed through the rest of the book. The story itself was well plotted, if at times a little disjointed, and very fast paced. I definitely had to have my wits about me with all the goings on! Toni has trust issues which, as things unfold, you do get to understand being as she isn't always the best judge of character. But she does seem to learn along the way, if a little slowly. Some of her personal observations on her own shortcomings did have me giggling along the way and also lent credence to her personality and realism. She's also quite resourceful which helped, even if it didn't always go quite according to plan, with sometimes funny and often action-packed consequences.
Mate and Zach are worthy sidekicks, both have their obvious limitations and vulnerabilities but together, the three of them work well and have a special bond. Nemesis Dan has his attraction and that in itself leaves Toni quite vulnerable but there's definitely something about him that makes their paths cross time after time and adds a bit of spice into the mix. Not that Toni really needs more excitement in her life... who'm I kidding, of course she does!
All in all, a deliciously bonkers space romp that kept my attention nicely throughout and left me hanging for more of the same. Roll on book two...
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

THIS WAS SO GOOD!

From the first few pages, I was hooked with a space battle that was so perfectly depicted that I couldn't put it down. Toni is the female gender bent version of Captain Mal Reynolds from Firefly and I couldn't get enough.

Mate was equal parts entertainment and perfect sidekick. I kept comparing him to every heroine-driven-sidekick film or book I've read, though. I wished he had a bit more uniqueness to him, other than being a robotic dog, which who doesn't love that? He was endearing anyway.

For world-building, I found myself wanting a bit more in terms of explanation of how things worked. It is the future and space, after all. We don't all know what certain dialects and flux fields are. An included map also would have been awesome. Overall, super excited for this book... I do hope it's a series.

Thank you!

So the main reason I requested this space opera was Mate, the robo-dog and he didn't disappoint. For me everything else pales in comparison to Mate's awesomeness but all in all a very entertaining read and one I'll definitely go back to.
I'll be on the lookout for more by this author.

I enjoyed this space opera adventure and the character of Toni. I especially liked, Mate, the robo-dog, but I like dogs, so that could be a reason! The storyline kept my interest, and it was reasonably fast-paced. Anyone who enjoys good space-opera Sci-Fi may find this book entertaining. I will check out more stories/books by this author.

I requested this book because I thought it would be more detectivesque... as in genre Noir but with steampunk-ish touches. Don't ask me why, but that was the idea I got via the summary. And when I began it I found a space opera. Which I like, but wasn't what I was expexting. As I wasn't expecting the dog, Mate, of being able to talk, bot or not bot, or running part of the ship. I expected him to be more like a dog. Robotic, but dog.
All in all I keep on reading, but felt like I had just being thrown in a middle of something without prior explanation and wasn't very attracted to it. And I have to be honest here and say I stopped reading as my attention wasn't piqued and I didn't seem to bond with any of the characters :(