Stunning, incredibly visually pleasing imagery and a complex, diverse cast of characters made this story one of my absolute favorites!

Persephone Station has such an interesting premise and puts a cool twist on the criminals in space trope.

No strong feelings about this book, good or bad. Very middle-of-the-road overall for sci-fi. Quite a bit of a action, but minimal world-building. Nice to see a diverse, primarily-female, cast of characters. Might have been better as a trilogy, to allow more space for world-building and character development.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I enjoyed the first 25% of this that I read that I waited to pick up a physical copy! I will be reading and reviewing the rest of this once I finish!

Thank you Gallery Books/ Saga Press for an E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Space opera filled with a vast array of characters? High Stakes? Criminals and a crew with such a good history with one another? Everything I adore already rolled into one.

The Story was a by far much more than I expected, between the 'alien race' and also the other plot that contained Kennedy's storyline. It ended up being a much higher octane story of action than I originally expected, but that definitely doesn't mar it in anyway shape or form.

The crew itself was my favorite thing. The banter between Lou and anyone else, the aspects of Sukyi's illness and her relationship with Angel, and Angel herself. I absolutely loved the dynamic of everyone with one another. Rosie was by far such a nice touch, being able to see a non-binary character in a role that was so mysterious and left you unsure if they were actually trustworthy or not.

Overall, I loved the story, though I feel like it could have been better if it was much more spread out over two books rather than one.

This was a terrific, fast-paced adventure, full to the brim with characters that you can't help but love (and a few that are very fun to hate). I don't like to throw the word "trope" around too much because it sounds negative. However, anyone that can use well-worn techniques and signposts effectively has done something really great—sometimes, making the old feel new can be harder than attempting absolute originality (if such a thing really exists). Persephone Station has a lot of elements that are so well-worn that they likely have their own entries on TV Tropes, but Leicht makes them so engaging and sincere that they feel like old friends come for a visit rather than sci-fi clichés. Found family, honor-among-thieves, gruff gunners, adrenaline-junky pilots, mysterious grifters, interstellar corporate conspiracies—all here, all great. This was exactly the sort of story I needed right now, one that is light in tone but still invested in the emotional realities of the characters and has genuine stakes.

My only complaint (and it is exceptionally minor) is that the book is a little imbalanced in terms of how long we spend with our intrepid crew vs. how long we are immersed in the climactic conflict; I would have liked a little more time to get to know everyone before the shit really hit the fan. There is also a minor plot hole—or at least something that feels like a plot hole—that could have used just a bit more clarity. Despite these little things, I still loved the characters and the central story kept me guessing for quite a while before I pieced its mystery together. I'm excited to read more of Leicht's work in the future.

I’m so bummed because this book sounded like it had a great premise but the writing just didn’t do it for me. Reading the word “said” over and over, and having no other descriptors was pretty annoying. I’ve also just kept getting lost on what was happening in the story.

I wanted to love this story. The characters: Awesome. The Setting: Awesome. The Plot: Interesting. But somehow the first half of the book felt disjointed and the last 10% felt like too much was missing? This should have been the best sci-fi of 2021 but it just felt like it was only half polished.

There are lots of great things about this book as I stated. The characters are complex and interesting. The setting clear enough to see in your minds eye. The Tech digestible and feasible. It just felt like something was missing to truly bring it all together into a cohesive story. If she writes another story in this universe I will 100% read it.

A very cool premise underlies this novel: A lone corporate town on a planet that appears to be hostile to human life, but it’s all a hoax, a smoke screen designed to protect the native race from the rapacity of the dominant corporation. Throw in a crew of mercenaries, an AI in human guise, local politics, and desperate missions against impossible odds, and the result is a complex and innovative tale. Ambitious as the premise is, it’s also a balancing act for any novel to encompass such a multi-level plot along with character development and backstory. And as much as I wanted to love this book, and as many places as it drew me in, ultimately the proliferation of elements and fragmented pace kept losing my attention. I gave up 2/3 through the book, at a point when the dramatic tension of the oncoming conflict should have kept me glued to my seat but in fact I found myself falling asleep or looking for something else to read.

As both a reader and a fellow writer, I see a number of lessons here. Every piece of this book is well done – the prose is strong, the dialog snappy and true to each character, and those characters interesting and complex, the world itself and its alien inhabitants are well drawn, the mystery and the corporate danger both nicely handled. I’m sure that some readers will dive into the book and find it satisfying. For me, the attention paid to each element – for example, the backstory and relationships of each character – interrupted the forward momentum of the action and my ability to stay engaged with all the different parts that were eventually to come together. For long stretches, every time I connected with a character or immersed myself in a plot sequence, it was interrupted and I had re-orient myself. I don’t mind multiple POVs but I do mind being frequently catapulted from one focus to another. This is undoubtedly a personal taste, which is why I encourage readers who find the concept behind Persephone Station intriguing to give the book a try.

A rollicking space western set on a deadly planet ruled by a corrupt corporation that's hiding the truth about the planet's indigenous population. Great cast of characters and interesting story. Very space western-y and rogue cowboy-y. Gets a bit bogged down in battle scenes 2/3 through and I wish the ideas explored in the ending were given more time throughout the story to really set them up. But a really fun sci-fi read nonetheless!

Persephone Station was a fantastic read; it’s rare to find an author who can coherently present and explain an alien race without requiring the reader to have ideas beyond what can be reasonably expected of a general reader. Stina Leicht’s characters are fully fleshed with their own ideas and motivations not spelled out but allowed to come forward through the story. The action scenes are well written and at no time does it feel like the ending is inevitable. All in all, I found this book to be an enjoyable relaxing giant through a potential future with no time wasted on useless prose.

I wanted to love it as it's fast paced and action packed but I found that character development and world building were a bit lacking.
I think there's a lot of potential and will read other books by this author, this one is not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This book was just alright for me. Usually when I complain of info-dumping, it's about world building. I feel like we got info-dumped about the characters instead of spending time to get to know them better, so as a character driven reader, I just wasn't that compelled or drawn in by the stakes of this novel.

The one gave me unexpected cyber punk vibes (I thought it would be more outer space), which isn’t really my jam, though I do love me a sentient AI.

I was expecting to like this more than I thought. But it just wasn't as exciting as I thought it would be.

I had high expectations of this book going into and I was not disappointed. The story and characters are nuanced, yet believable. The book has TONS of women represented and I loved that. However, per usual, most space operas are about space fights- as this one is. There is strong world building and plenty of action to keep the reader engaged. It's a strong addition to the genre and a definite recommend from me.

Compulsively readable. Interesting (and cool characters) and a novel setting. What more could you want from a sci-fic book. Oh and it's queer as heck

I liked this book, especially the first 3/4. The ending lost me a little, but I don't enjoy battle sequences and fight scenes very much in books. The ending was a little abrupt, but interesting world and characters.

Okay...see...the trouble I've had with publishing this review has been the fact that there are two books here. One, the one you've seen advertised, is a noir space opera with a lesbian/non-binary cast. That book is *fabulous* and I get all verklempt and must retire to the fainting couch when I realize just exactly how hungry I've been for this exact combination of storyteller and story told for my sixty-plus years on this planet.

Then there's a different book, a truly terrifying anti-capitalist cli-fic tocsin rung in your scatty ear, demanding that you pay attention to the simple, selfish way you're making your decisions because the planet's just about had it with you and me and the guy behind the tree. It's giving itself a fever to burn out the infection that's harming it.

I like both books, but telling you about one without mentioning the other...and I've seen plenty of reviews either miss this crucial pont or simply decide to belt up about it...despite the fact I fear you'll now think this is another eat-your-kale book with long-faced Prognostications spoken by Archetypes and ending in DOOM! or worse, ending in Savior-Rescue-Sunshine-Lollipops-and-Rainbows!

Whatever else I can say is a development of the theme "whyever is anyone surprised that women write good, solid SF that centers women as leaders and warriors and do it with panache", so here endeth the lesson. Go buy the book.

I am always excited when I see space opera written by a woman and I believe we need more. However, Persephone Station didn't quite land for me. The first 50% of the book was a bit of a slog to get through which made getting to and through the ending difficult. I was also very aware of how many times the author used the word "said". It was so much that it really took me out of the story. I liked the inclusion and diversity. While this wont be a book I want to go back and reread, I'm glad I read it.