With only one week I didn't have time to get through the whole book. The story seemed interesting and unique but I think it just may have attempted to include a bit too much. I connected with the characters but there was just so much going on in the beginning that I didn't see a lot of connections between certain scenes and the rest of what I read.

Did not finish. Too much simplistic exposition. Did not care for characters. Felt like hours of reading took me to 22% of total. Life is too short...move on.

Pretty good, some military/small unit action, diverse cast of characters, and some interesting aliens. It didn't seem to be set up for a sequel but I'd probably read one.

Oh my goodness was this dull and trite, and no amount of cute literary or pop culture jokes (like a character name Jeremy Brett and so many more) was going to help it. What we have here is a space opera that includes every trope and character type including the kitchen sink all packed into what I think the author wanted to be a fast and catchy romp. But it's dragged down by all of the extraneous references and stock characters, and there's not enough originality to get it off the ground.

Persephone Station is the upcoming science fiction novel by multi-award-nominated sci-fi and fantasy author Stina Leicht (The Fay and the Fallen, The Malorum Gates). The novel tells the story of a band of mercenaries hired by a friend to a protect an indigenous village from the greedy interplanetary Serrao-Orlov Corporation. Serrao-Orlov has just purchased the planet Persephone on the outskirts of the United Republic of Worlds and seeks to profit from a secret scientific development that could change human life forever with dire consequences for everyone except the richest humans. But the secret is known only to the indigenes, the Emissaries in Ogenth, Persephone’s perilous frontier. Serrao-Orlov will destroy everything to exploit this secret. Angel and her band of misfit mercenaries must stop them.

Persephone StationAngel’s friend Rosie is the owner of Monk’s Bar, a seedy hangout for mercenaries and other lowlifes in the corporate-run town of West Brynner on Persephone. Rosie has a special tie to the planet’s indigenous people—they saved her when she was a small child of Catholic missionaries who were trying to convert the indigenous population to their religion. When Rosie finds out that Serrao-Orlov is determined to exploit the Emissaries at any cost, she hires Angel and her band to protect Ogenth. Angel has fallen on hard times since her career as a space marine ended. And because she has just been framed for the assassination of a powerful corporate leader and needs to get out of town quick, she gathers her team of assassins and oddballs and heads out to Ogenth in her spaceship, Kurosawa.

Like many excellent novels, and like Stephen King recommends in his book On Writing, the fight to save Ogenth from Serrao-Orlov is smashed together with another main plot—the emergence of artificial intelligence in human bodies. Artificial intelligence of at least two kinds is already widely employed in the United Republic of World, including in the spaceship Kurosawa and in Angel’s combat assistant, a function of her battle suit that enhances her ability to produce adrenaline and whatnot. But transferring artificial intelligence to humans could present extraordinary challenges to human life. After she is framed for the assassination, Angel runs into mysterious off-world stranger, Kennedy Liu, who just might hold the key to stopping the proliferation of this dangerous technology. Ultimately, the two plots converge on Persephone Station, a floating space station above the planet.

Persephone Station has everything a grimdark fan could want in a science fiction novel. The characters are outcasts, heavily armed and highly flawed. They face a powerful force on a suicide mission against all odds. Though the main characters are undoubtedly on the side of good in this novel, they are assassins and mercenaries who take the job for the money and for their friend. They fight with spaceships and mech suits and rail guns and pulse rifles and bombs and all kinds of good stuff. People get injured and killed. The settings are grim and perilous. The action is tense and fast, extremely interesting, logical, and vivid.

The one thing Persephone Station doesn’t have, though, is men. Similar to Kameron Hurley’s fantastic Bel Dame Apocrypha trilogy, all the main characters in Persephone Station are women, and the novel is billed as feminist science fiction. Hold on, dudes, don’t go anywhere. For me, an old man (and a feminist—women should be treated as equals), this did not lessen my enjoyment of the novel at all. These women kick ass. And unlike Hurley’s excellent novels in which there is a clear reason why there are no men around—they are conscripted to battle for life essentially—there is no such clear explanation here. These are just some tough assassins and mercs. Angel is an ex-marine who has purchased Kurosawa with money she made as a merc. Her would-be lover best friend, Sukyi, is from Earth, Nigeria specifically, which has fallen victim to a plague that Sukyi carries around with her, knowing she does not have long to live. She likes to blow things up. Lou is the adrenalin-addicted pilot of the Kurosawa. She cannot get enough of the fight, and surprisingly, she has a boyfriend. Enid is a dry, taciturn, top-notch assassin. All these characters have secrets that will out, and Leicht handles them and their relationships beautifully, creating an emotionally gripping backdrop to the furiously fast-paced adventure.

Persephone Station is a bit of mashup of grimdark fighting fiction, space opera, and cyberpunk. It has just enough science to bring it to life without distracting from the characters and their relationships and is loaded with many interesting subplots that come together to create a very entertaining story with depth and complexity even if it is not mind-blowingly original. Leicht’s prose is crystal clear and unpretentious. And although the pace of the novel is almost recklessly fast, the book is long enough at 512 pages to be truly immersive. Fans of gritty, grimdark space opera and science fiction should enjoy it. Fans of female-centred (feminist, if you insist) SFF should definitely give it a read. Though there are many, many more female protagonists and antagonists in SFF now (as you can see from Grimdark Magazine’s top fantasy novels of 2019 list) than there were when I started reading the genre, it is still male-dominated, especially on the sci-fi side. Give this one a go for a fun read.

Persephone Station is scheduled to be released by Saga Press on 5 January 2021.

A really tremendously good book. All the best parts of Leverage, Firefly, and the Mandalorian, but more queer than all of them combined. I also really appreciate a book confident enough to be a standalone. Series can be great, trilogies can be great, but not every story needs to be ongoing (and too many authors use it as an excuse to tell half a story). This book is *whole,* and that's rare enough to be worth commenting on. I'll definitely read a follow up if one arrives, but barring that, I'm adding this author directly to my "sight unseen" reading list. Whatever she writes next, I'm there for it.

This was a fun science-fiction read. From the creative alien races, the western/noir-esque intrigue, and the mech and spaceship battles, this book has it all for anyone who enjoys a classic-feeling science fiction adventure!
Persephone Station was a fantastic read. Described as a space opera for fans of The Mandalorian and Cowboy Beebop, Stina Leicht does a great job in creating characters who are so different mentally and physically from each other but each have their strengths, their fears, their traits that make them who they are as people/beings.

This is such a cool book. I’m so glad I picked it up off of Netgalley. I’d really been in the mood for a space epic and this book totally delivered. The plot was interesting and intense, the worldbuilding was complex and intriguing, and the characters were well created. It’s also a super queer story. There are lots of queer characters—gay, lesbian, bisexual, non-binary rep. Rosie was my favorite because they were so badass and cool. The alien characters were well thought out and had a believable culture. This book just ticked a lot of boxes for me and I’d highly suggest it.

A little bit about me: my cat is named Persephone. That probably tells you enough to guess why I picked up this book. I have always enjoyed Greek mythology, and fairy tale/mythological retellings are one of my absolute favorite sub genres. This book isn’t what I expected from the title (should have read the blurb!) but that is ok! Because, you know what? It is amazing all on its own.

If you like space operas (I do), this book is for you.

If you like stories that feature diverse characters of all gene sets and sexualities (I do), this book is for you.

If you like creative, in-depth worldbuilding (I do), this book is for you.

This was a fun science-fiction read. From the creative alien races, the western/noir-esque intrigue, and the mech and spaceship battles, this book has it all for anyone who enjoys a classic-feeling science fiction adventure! The story was good, the pacing and character depth was adequate, but overall I am glad I read this book!

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
This book was damn cool, you guys. My eye was initially drawn to its cover, and then my heart was stolen by the description, and then my brain and body were stolen by the words inside of it. The worldbuilding was INSANE AND DOPE AS HELL. The representation and diversity of the characters was brilliant! I had *so many feelings the whole time.*
If anything, I wished at times that it could’ve been a bit shorter, and I’m really honestly sad that it’s a stand-alone novel, but as far as everything else goes, this is a completely badass space opera that makes you care about EVERYONE. And that’s that on that.

I had a good time with this book! It was decently paced for the most part, though there were some slower sections in the beginning. Of course, there were also some action packed, exciting ship/mecha battles, so we do get more intense moments. I enjoyed the overall plot and can definitely see the comparison to The Mandalorian in that people are (perhaps reluctantly) trying to do the honorable thing and protect others. There were some fantastic plot threats with AI that I really liked. I could have used even more time spent on this! I do feel pretty satisfied overall with this story being a standalone.

The characters are great here! We have lots of badass women and non-binary characters. Everyone felt pretty distinct to me. I loved learning more about Rosie's background! Angel and her crew are fabulous. Some, if not all, are former marines, so we do learn about some (essentially) resurrection technology that exists. I thought the presumable strain of going through this process was reflected in our characters. I also liked that even though there's not necessarily a guarantee of coming back, they still fight for what's right.

We have some very intriguing alien races here that communicate through scent. I thought this was awesome, and I really liked some of the animals we get to see on the planet! As I mentioned above, we also have AI. This AI has feelings, so there was some fabulous plot threads here. I feel like these elements make you think about what it really means to be "human."

I received a copy of this for review from the publisher via NetGalley - thank you! All opinions are my own.

My video review can be seen on my channel (around minutes 20:53-23:56 of this video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AsFLmyEgmo

If you love science fiction, Persephone Station is for you! The writing and the world building were exactly what I needed without knowing it! I really enjoyed the characters and their group through the book. Eagerly awaiting for from Stina Leicht

This book was definitely very interesting. The writing was good and I loved reading about the characters, the setting itself was interesting to read about as well. It's a book that I wish there was more of.

I quite enjoyed this! Overall, thought it could be a bit shorter but enjoyed it nonetheless. Really appreciated a future that had a lot of gender diversity as well. Plus, that cover! *heart eyes* A riveting standalone sci-fi adventure with a feminist bent. Excited to see what Leicht does next.

Thank you to Saga Press for an advanced copy of this amazing book in exchange for an honest review.

Where to start? This book has everything my heart desires: LGBT+ representation, non-binary characters, badass females in leadership roles, space, Artificial Intelligence, found family, political intrigue, underdogs in a seemingly futile battle, rebellion against avarice and greed, morally grey characters and redemption! It’s a WINNER!!

Billed as a space opera for lovers of The Mandalorian and Cowboy Bebop it lives up to those. I would also add anyone who likes Firefly, fans of Imperator Furiosa of Mad Max: Fury Road fame and Ripley of the Alien moves.

Our main character, Angel, is an ex-marine and captain of the ship Kurosawa. She leads a small band of misfit pilots, assassins, snipers and washed up con-artists. Together they are for hire to the more exclusive criminal elements of the town of West Brynner, a lawless outpost that runs mainly on organized crime. Angel’s main employer is Rosie, the classy owner of Monk’s bar. Monk’s is the front for Rosie’s underworld empire. Involved in a job gone bad, Angel and her crew find themselves at the mercy of Rosie to get them safely out of town. Where they end up is not only mysterious and shocking to the crew, but also puts them in even more hot water. The outcome is a do or die mission that changes everything for our merry band of misfits and has planetary wide consequences.

In all, this story is beautifully written. Leicht has immense talent setting a tone and describing non-existent worlds and people. You feel immersed in this new, foreign world and can identify with the flawed nature of its characters.

The story was a wild ride, it had me hooked from the beginning and it emotionally invested me in the outcome. I would definitely recommend this book to science fiction fans and also anyone who likes a good underdog story.

I'll be honest: the first third or so of this book is kind of a slog. There are a lot of characters, and the character development isn't great. It's hard to figure out who's who. I wasn't particularly attached to anyone. I was bored. It was hard to figure out how the weird political assassination fit into anything else. But! But! The back half of the book is really cool. It was quintessentially space opera in a way that I loved. The Emissary characters are great. There are crazy bears, booby traps, and aerial dogfights. It has some of the most fun action sequences I've read in a book in a while. There is non-binary representation, which is nice, although occasionally it feels a little too on the nose. The overall quality in the back half was enough to redeem the first half of the book. So, like, first third, basically 2.5 stars, last half, 4.5 stars. I still would have liked to see more character development and more distinction between the characters, but the action is fun. Sort of recommended if you like space opera.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC, which I received in exchange for an honest review.

<b>*UPDATE* It’s come to my attention that I was mistaken— this is meant to be a standalone, and to that I say to Stina Leicht, “<I>whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy 😩</i>” Ugh, why go through all of that world building for one book with these lush characters?? I guess i should’ve taken the hint with the epilogue, but for some reason I was convinced that its goodreads page indicated it was a series. Super disappointing. Unfortunately, that does effect my rating, and I will be recanting my curve. Should this error turn out to be a premonition, I will adjust it back. 💔</b>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Actual rating is like <b>3.25 Stars</b>, but I honestly very much liked the writing style, prose, and characters, so gave it a round up— it was just the overarching plot, it’s stakes specifically, that I couldn’t get into. However, I did not DNF because of the aforementioned.

We have our entire cast of characters consisting of both womxn and non-binary folx. <i><u>Helllll yes</I></u>

The dialogue and character dynamics rule and kept me interested. There was just something lacking in the expository sections— and this happens with Book 1s in a series— it all felt very exhaustive, such an info-dump. And that okay!— but it lead me to start another book that was almost twice its size in length at about 40%, finished it, and came back to </I>Persephone</I>.

Because the positives really do outweigh my struggle with the stakes and overly-vast world-building, I was determined to finish it, and I’m so glad I did!

Genuinely, I will pick up Book 2–The author is very talented and I grew a fondness for the characters. I have a feeling the next installment is really going to hook me in.

<I>Thank you to NetGalley, Galley/Saga Press, and Stina Leicht for granting me a very early eARC for my honest review</I>

A regular spaghetti western told with all of the promises of the future. Fast-paced, great characters, a galaxy that feels close enough to touch, what else could you ask for?

Persephone Station is an extremely welcome addition to the ranks of sci-fi adventure tales. Within sci-fi, I particularly love space adventure books and stories set on alien planets with all the interesting and intricate world building involved. However nine times out of ten in order to enjoy books of that type I have to slog through poorly written women, misogyny, gender binarism, and homophobia (seriously folks? we're 1,000 years in the future spread out over the universe and you want me to believe we're still hung up on same sex relationships??).

This book was such a wonderful respite from all of that. Diverse identities and relationships are included without paying them extra heed - as though they are just an accepted every day part of life. The camaraderie and love between the cast of characters builds a beautiful "found family" vibe that really puts the cherry on top. I felt like this book hit the perfect balance of building out an interesting political and interpersonal world without sacrificing on adventure and fun/quirky detail. I am hoping there's a sequel coming after this because I definitely want to spend more time with Angel, Rosie, and Kennedy.