Disclaimer: I'm not a sci-fi person, but I can usually find something to like in these kinds of books and push through them which is what happened with this one. I loved both of the main characters as they were witty, determined, and hoplesslessly in love with each other without realizing it. Honeslty, their relationship and their slow-burn romance were the best parts of this book.

On the other hand, my biggest problem with this was that the pacing was just so slow and towards the end I was counting down the pages until I was done because I was tired of it dragging on. I just don't think having a slow-burn romance AND slow pacing is a good combination for a book.

Overall, I'm happy that I read this and while I wish it would have been faster paced, it was an interesting read and the romance made it worth it.

Trigger Warning: Domestic Abuse, Mind Control

Playboy Prince Kiem is doing just fine thankyouverymuch. That is, until he's forced into an arranged marriage with recently widowed Count Jainan, who was previously married to Kiem's cousin, Taam. But the empire of Iskat is held together by marriage treaties, and they're going to have to make it work in order to help certify their empire to the larger galactic federation. Things aren't going to be that easy though. Because it turns out Taam was murdered, and it could be due to a cover-up for a greater scheme...
"What about sprawls of despair?" he asked. "Do we have special furniture for that? Put that on the list: source despair furniture for living room. Did I tell you I'm getting married?"

Well this went a bit differently than I was expecting, and I um, am kinda hoping it's going to be a series??

The Red, White and Royal Blue comp title is perfectly accurate, but there was not enough tea drinking for Ancillary Justice to fit. But you know what does fit? Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan series.

Definitely got shades of the Vorkosiverse reading this one, and I loved it. Was it because of the blinding charisma of Kiem, the deep levels of reserve within Jainan (the signs are there immediately), the blisteringly competent Bel, and the other secondary characters? Along with the descriptions of the space, the way the military was integrated, how Internal Security popped up, the Emperor, and a whole bunch of other things (including gender and cultural considerations), and I loved it so much!

Also, it has the following tropes, used delightfully:

-One bed
-Arranged political marriage between two kinda enemy peoples
-disaster bisexual and uptight gay
-Someone fell into a river while camping and they must now huddle together naked for warmth

Also, Kiem repeatedly puts his foot in his mouth around Jainan, and it's so painful to watch the two constantly miscommunicate.

Anywho, lots of conversations on healthy relationships, communication and more, all wrapped into a really fun military-political-and-thoroughly-queer space opera!

"I think," Jainan said slowly, "that it's very possible to spend all your energy doing the right thing but still miss something obvious. I think that doesn't make your effort meaningless."

I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review

4.5ish stars.

To categorize this as a romance novel would, I think, be doing it a disservice. It is, above all, a tightly plotted, imaginative space opera, although the central relationship does play an enjoyably significant role.

I was looking forward to reading based on pre-release advertising and hype, but I was not expecting something so exciting, fun, and polished from an unknown debut author. Maxwell has done an equally good job of building a nuanced world of intergalactic intrigue as she has of making her characters lovable and believable.

Both aspects, the politics and the relationships, are tense and page-turning. The marriage of the two main characters in particular is challenging as a reader because the POV switches from one to the other and they can never manage to get on the same page. Maxwell does a good job playing on those frustrations.

Overall, really glad I read this, and I'm excited for everyone else to have the chance when it gets officially released in a couple weeks!

TW: domestic abuse, violence, anxiety disorders, manipulation of reality /

Everina Maxwell's writing got me from the start. The characters were magnificent and besides being attached to them, I felt like each one of them got a good development throughout the story, which is something I rarely see. It is frustratingly common for me to enjoy a character, then finishing the book thinking, "ah. That could've been handled better."
I knew from the start that I was going to love this book: fake dating and arranged marriage tropes are some of my favorites and they're present in the core of the story; then SPACE GAYS! It's been years I've waited for this, as a Star Wars fan and someone whose hopes and dreams were crushed by Dreamworks' "Voltron: Legendary Defender" circa 2018. Then, there was this whole complex political scenario that's very well tangled to the plot, something that caught my attention. I love it when books, shows, etc. explore the political situations of the fictional world created. In addition to those, the romance is slow-burn and a bit of a 'stupid gays' situation, with both of them assuming the other's feelings and being 'ah, it's a shame he doesn't like me', which drives me insane every single time.
Something I have to include though, on a serious note, is this book's portrayal of abuse. The emotions, experiences, and traumas are well crafted and multifaceted, complex, dealing with the situation afterward and giving him a happy, healthy relationship. This kind of narrative isn't usual, especially when it involves queer characters, so it was refreshing to see (though I still want my boy to get a therapist).
I highly recommend this book to basically everyone, because the experience of reading it was fantastic. I was mostly caught up at the 60% progress because I just couldn't let go of it! I'm one to sleep early, about 9 pm, but yesterday I only went to bed by 1 am, because there was no way in hell I'd let go of this book before it was over.

Winter's Orbit attracted me right away with its beautiful cover art and billing as a space Opera meets RW&RB, the premise and the character descriptions were a big draw for me. The first 25% of this book is amazing. I was sucked right in and really excited to watch things unfold.

Things I liked about this book:

The characters of Kiem and Jainan were well written and developed.

Clever and empowered female side characters.

Really unique sci-fi elements such as shards of crazy space metal that make people hallucinate and space ships that can blackout all light and color.

Things that didn't work as well for me:

I am not a fan of romances that are mostly miscommunication followed by quick resolution and fast "love".

The world building is very light. Other than mentioning the names of places in the galaxy, I didn't really understand where we were.

The middle 50% of this book lay down a fairly complicated (in description) set of political rules and networks that ultimately stay quite shallow and unexplained.

All mechanics of romance are sanitized and behind closed doors. Awkward.

In the end, I read an amazing Space Opera featuring political intrigue and excellent LGBTQIA characters that also released this month called Persephone Station. I loved that book and maybe it was the comparison that made me not enjoy this book as much.

Thank you so much to Tor and NetGalley for a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Tor Books and Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Winter’s Orbit is a queer Sci-fi/Space Opera (or soft Sci-fi). What initially drew me to this book is the arranged marriage trope, which is one of my personal favourites.

Winter’s Orbit is a very character-driven story. It was mentioned in other Goodreads reviews that the novel used to be up on Archiveofourown (AO3) as a piece of fanfiction. I used to be a massive fan of fanfiction for that very reason – it gave me all the juicy character moments that I craved, with a simpler plotline that was easy to follow as the story was uploaded over time (often weekly, bi-weekly or even monthly). To me, Winter’s Orbit did resemble fanfiction in many ways, but I don’t think someone unfamiliar with the genre would notice.

“He didn’t know where his duty lay, and that was the most terrifying thing of all.”

I really enjoyed the cast of characters. Kiem is a prince – but he is very much so the Emperor’s biggest disappointment. He has a very easy-going nature, loves to socialize (and does it very well!) and cares about people, but his reputation as a party-goer, skirt-chaser and royal fuckup overshadows his political assets. Then there’s Count Jainan, who’s a quiet and serious academic, perhaps even stoic, and everything Kiem is not. This unlikely match suddenly finds themselves married, which is what sets the grounds for this novel’s plot.

However, the main plot is the revelation that the death of Jainan’s last partner – Kiem’s cousin – Taam, might not have been an accident. This spins the story into a race against time, as the couple has to solve the murder case to stop the break-out of an interplanetary war. For me, this is where the “fanfiction” aspect came in: there was so much focus on Kiem and Jainan’s relationship that the real plot didn’t get a chance to fully come into action until the book was halfway done.

Their romance is, of course, a big aspect of the plot too, but it is very slow-burning. The first half of the book is more so reserved for world-building, politics and character introductions. I’m not very familiar with science fiction, so I have to admit that I occasionally struggled with the worldbuilding and the technological aspects of the plot, and I think that comes down to me being an inexperienced sci-fi reader. There’s also many different planets, clans, military groups and politics which ties into the story, and I struggled to keep up with it all. I did sometimes find myself having to read paragraphs twice, or deciding to move along even though I didn’t fully understand a concept or something that occurred.

“People were many things, but by and large they weren’t masterminds. They always wanted something. They always had a reason for what they did.”

What truly kept me intrigued was the characters and the romance. Everina did an excellent job with her cast of characters. There’s a lot of different faces and names that appear throughout the story, and many of them have a big enough presence to label them as side characters. Bel was one of my favourites, and she truly elevated the story for me at times both due to her being an interesting addition to the story, but also because she added some much-needed humour. She works as Kiem’s aide, which is a kind of personal assistant. It is her task to keep track of Kiem’s life, and their relationship is a very nice balance of mother/son, employee/boss and unexpected friends. What impressed me the most about the cast is that Everina managed to separate them well. They are different enough to make sure the reader remembers them as their own, valuable personalities.

The romance was very PG. A big part of Kiem and Jainan’s relationship revolves around Jainan’s struggles to open up, as well as misunderstandings provoked by their vast differences. I still found it very satisfying though, as I was constantly involved in their progression and yelling at them whenever they misunderstood each other. There were so many cases of “one step forward and three steps back” where I sat there with my fists in the air like whYyyYyYYY !! just kiss already !!!!

“‘I think,’ Jainan said slowly, ‘that it’s very possible to spend all your energy doing the right thing but still miss something obvious. I think that doesn’t make your effort meaningless. Does that make sense?'”

Because a big part of the plot revolves around a murder mystery, I think it’s worth talking a little bit about that. I thoroughly enjoyed how the story kept me guessing – both in regards to Jainan’s involvement with Taam, as well as the other suspects. At one point or another, I felt like nearly every character could have killed Taam, which gave me that classic murder mystery feeling where you’re constantly on edge wondering who you can or cannot trust. Even though I didn’t find the plot predictable, I was only fully taken aback a couple of times during the latter part (revelation of the mystery).

Finally, I want to mention that Everina Maxwell nailed the queer representation in this novel. In her world, everyone is a “they” unless they clearly state their gender using specific materials in their attire – featured on a headband, wristband, a pin or on their collar etc. We meet characters with a wide range of representation that I think a lot of readers will appreciate and be able to relate to. I am not queer myself, so I only hope that those who are finds this novel accurate in its representations.

After a lot of back and forth, I finally managed to decide on my rating for Winter’s Orbit:

4 stars!

Although it took me a while to get into the story, I really enjoyed it. The last 50% of the book truly made up for the slow beginning. It has an exciting plot that keeps you guessing, but it’s the characters that elevated the experience and made this into a 4-star read. If it weren’t for the characters, I would probably have rated the book 3 stars, but after some back and forth, I realized that I’d love to read this again sometime to revisit Kiem, Jainan and Bel. Because it’s so character-driven, I think I’d enjoy Winter’s Orbit even more the second time around, when I’m already invested in their lives and know more of their backstory.

I’ll definitely be recommending this book to people looking for sci-fi, romance or queer representation, and I can’t wait to see what others will think about Winter’s Orbit when it releases on February 2nd!

While I would still recommend this book to the right teen reader it is a disappointment if you have ever read Becky Chambers or A Memory Called Empire or another really great sci-fi book. There are some things I did love but they did not out weight all of the problems. Also, the characters are varying shades of pretty boring humans. Just go read Becky Chambers.

What a brilliant combination of political intrigue, arranged marriage, SciFi, and queer romance!

Content warnings include: depictions of past intimate partner violence and abuse (not between main couple), vehicle crash, character gets arrested, war crimes, death of spouse, mind altering tech, arranged marriage, alcohol consumption, sex off-page, getting stuck in wilderness and animal attack, mentions of murder and blackmail.

If there’s one trope I absolutely love in all its shapes and forms it’s arranged marriage. Now make it queer and combine it with political intrigue and set it in space and you’ll have the perfect combination to make me want it DESPERATELY. (Really, the only thing that could have possibly made this better was if one (or both) of the protagonists had been alien.)

The execution of the arranged marriage and subsequent romance was great. The setup of charming party prince and stiff scholarly diplomat was already promising, and it didn’t disappoint. There was definitely a slow burn element, completely with unexpected circumstances leading to forced proximity, and lots of building of trust and breaking expectations, and it was just wonderful.

But the book wasn’t all romance, and those other parts were great too. The political intrigue kept me on my toes constantly, as did the mystery element. There were so many suspects and different players, and it wasn’t always easy to keep a view over everyone’s goals and motivations – but I found that only added to the atmosphere, as both Jainan and Kiem are thrown into it very unexpectedly and are scrambling to keep track themselves.

The worldbuilding wasn't extensive, but just enough to paint a believeable picture of this SciFi setting. I loved the little touches like the dangerous avian wildlife, the extensive reach of the universe, and the casual queerness in particular.

The book was extremely readable. It wasn’t fast paced, but it was such a joy to read that I was always looking forward to picking it up again. I loved seeing the events unfold, learning all the secrets that were sprinkled and hinted at throughout the plot, and I wasn’t disappointed by a single development.

Overall, Winter’s Orbit delighted me on all fronts. I love this particular mash of genres that isn’t all romance, but isn’t all SciFi mystery either. It was the perfect balance of twisted political intrigue, high stakes and overall wholesomeness and managed to hit just the right spot for me.

I definitely recommend this one, and I’ll be on the lookout for more from this author.

An arranged romance between two royals? Check. A gay relationship? Check. Another planet as the major setting? Check. Winter's Orbit seems to have everything my geeky heart would want in a sci-fi romance book. But unfortunately, I was disappointed in this one. I think I was simply expecting something different.

Winter's Orbit has been compared to Red, White, and Royal Blue, one of the best new adult romance books to release in the past couple of years, which meant I had the (possibly unfair) expectation that Winter's Orbit would be a light-hearted romance with a small dosing of political backdrop. Alas, this book was more of a political sci-fi thriller with a bit of a romance. I typically expect more kissing-feelings-angstiness from my arranged marriage stories, especially ones that are advertised with a one-bed trope and cinnamon roll protagonists.

The book's arranged marriage took place between our two main characters, Kiem, the Iskat Emperor's grandson, and Jainan, the representative from Thean who was married to Kiem's late cousin. Kiem definitely fit the cinnamon roll description. He was cute and funny and kind of a mess at times. I easily fell for his charm. Sadly, Jainan was a little bland. His chapter POVs often read like articles discussing the political state of the planets. He barely had any emotions for the first half of the book. I understand Jainan's history contributed to this, but some sort of emotional connection between the reader and his character just seemed to be missing for far too much of the story. Romantic tension was missing somewhere as well, perhaps in the lack of physical cues between the leads. That last main-character nitpick brings me to the additional characters. The diversity in Winter's Orbit is fantastic. However, it's easy to forget who is who because of the name-dropping, so some of that diversity may be lost in the first read-through.

Now, as for the actual plot of the book, it was an interesting story. The first half was a lot of political discussion, while the second half had a bit more action. Not a crazy amount, but there was some action. There was quite a bit of info-dumping at first, however. It was really difficult to get the names and places straight in my head. I'm still not 100% sure what a remnant is or what it does or what exactly everyone's jobs are. Perhaps a re-read would help and provide me with more enjoyment now that I know the world better. Despite this initial confusion, the final half did get more entertaining. The two characters are put into situations where they're forced to be alone and not talk politics 24/7, though it's still not enough to satisfy me, someone who was anticipating angst and pining.

All in all, if you are looking for a romance book that simply takes place in space, Winter's Orbit might not be for you. On the other hand, if you're looking for a political sci-fi with a smidge of romance and a cast of diverse characters, you'll probably like this one. And who knows, I may have liked it more had my expectations not been set on reading what I anticipated to be more of a romance book.

3.5 stars

*Note: I received a copy of this book from the publisher to review via NetGalley. This in no way affected my opinion/review.

It's too complimentary to compare this book to a gem like Ancillary Justice, but I think the comp to Red, White, and Royal Blue is right on the money. This book has the advantage of being set in a fictional society, which automatically makes it far less cringey than RWRB, a book I admittedly absolutely hated. The worst part of that one, for me, was the fact that Casey McQuiston used the 2016 election as a cutesy backdrop for her otherwise unremarkable romance plot. In Winter's Orbit, a convoluted mystery serves as a sort of thin pretense for the romance between Kiem and Jainan, which emerges out of the "fake marriage" trope. The main problem for me is not so much the fact that Winter's Orbit originated as a fanfic-adjacent web serial and shamelessly relies on the usual tropes therein. It's that the plot exists to prop up a romance that barely even happens. The protagonists kiss rarely and have one single fade-to-black sex scene. Even RWRB had more than that, and I criticized that book for tiptoeing around the mechanics of gay sex. I have a real problem with women writing m/m romance novels who have absolutely no interest in developing their characters as, um, men who like to have sex with men. That wouldn't fly in mainstream m/f romance. It's one thing if you establish your characters as people who aren't interested in sexual relationships, but that's absolutely not the case here. If this were more hardline sci-fi story with a romance component, that would be one thing. But the world is barely developed beyond the plot points that are important to progress the romantic storyline along, and the political elements are subject to the same thing. It's a bizarre departure from convention that's all too popular among women who think boys kissing is cute but are squicky about the rest of it. And I'm completely 100% over it.
there were sections that engrossed me--I was invested in the romance and I think plenty aspects of the narrative were done well. Maxwell isn't a bad writer. And I gave RWRB two stars, and this is definitely better than that. But between the sort of complimentary colonialism stuff and the dragged-out pacing and the rest of it, I find myself feeling ultimately disappointed.

Definitely more of a 4.5.

CW: past domestic violence

I still remember how excited I was when I first saw the cover and premise of this book and couldn’t wait to get to it. Now that I’m done, I can just say that I have a wide smile due to how much I enjoyed it.

When someone says that a book reads like fanfiction, I find that to be a compliment because fanfics have been the ones that have gotten me through the year from hell. The writing in this book does resemble that, being very easy to read and accessible. It’s a space opera but the world building isn’t too complicated, the author giving us just enough information to understand the political intrigue. There are unexpected twists and betrayals and lots of political maneuvering that makes it a very interesting read that’ll keep you engaged. We have some very beloved fanfic tropes like arranged marriage, only a single bed, the unlikely couple getting stranded and bonding over it and also lots of miscommunication and yearning because of it. And one of the most fascinating parts of this world is how normalizingly queer it is - gender is chosen by every individual and they can present themselves as whatever they want using symbols on their person, and relationships between any genders are just part of life. It’s just so lovely to read more stories like this where homophobia and gender binaries don’t exist.

But the strength of this book is definitely the characters. Kiem is kind of an insignificant Royal who is thrust into an arranged marriage in a very short notice while Jainan, who is from a vassal kingdom doesn’t have much choice either. While Kiem is kind, charming and capable of talking himself into and out of any situation despite being not at all political savvy, Jainan is more reserved, thoughtful, slightly anxious and thinks many times before even uttering a word. They are definitely opposites, which means the attraction is inevitable. While there was a lot of communication between them for a while which made me quite tense about what was gonna happen, it was also so lovely to see them slowly become reliant on each other and then able to talk about their feelings. I was literally sobbing with happiness seeing them get together and then work with each other to figure out all the mysteries. The ending was particularly very amusing and I was full of joy seeing the proceedings play out.

Even the side characters are quite interesting and each has their own arc. I especially loved Kiem’s assistant Bel who was a total badass with an interesting backstory and was such a supportive figure throughout the mystery solving. The Auditor and Agent Rakal also turned out to be fascinating despite me doubting their motivations. Gairad was a sweet addition while the Emperor was kinda subtly funny. But it was Taam, Jainan’s dead husband who felt like a constant presence despite not being alive and the author did such a great job creating and solving all the entanglements.

To conclude, I’m so happy that I got to read such a cute and lovely romance early on in the year. This is such an easy read in the space opera genre but the author balances the love story, the politics and the murder mystery perfectly - making this a very memorable book. It made me giddy and emotional and I couldn’t have asked for anything more. I highly recommend this one, especially if you like queer worlds and sweet romances.

Thank you Tor for the ARC of this book!

I know it's been said in other reviews, but this book started as fanfiction on AO3. As a fanfic writer and consumer, I can guarantee you that you'll get the exact same type of <i>burn through this 100k fic in a few days</i> feeling of satisfaction.

Prince Kiem is a charmer. He's easy-going and a social charmer. He's genuinely kind and happy. Count Jainan is contained. He's more comfortable with numbers and research than he is with people, and he has a strict devotion to what he perceives as duty. When Jainan's partner and Kiem's cousin, Taam, is suddenly killed in an accident, they find themselves thrown together in an arranged marriage to try and salvage the treaty between their two planets. If they fail, war is at stake.

I liked Kiem immediately, which is what the author intended I'm sure. Janin was a harder sell, but Maxwell does a beautiful job of slowly unfurling layers of story to explain why that is. Though their physical attraction is immediate, we get to see them slowly learn to know each other through the storytelling. It's not a case of instalove and it makes sense, which I think sometimes is set aside in books in favor of getting to the climax of the story.

The setting is in space, of course, but it's not sci-fi heavy. There's not an overabundance of terms and technology that might throw some people off. It revolves more around politics and people than anything, and that's a major plus for me.

There is of course gay rep here (it's a mlm relationship, though Kiem mentions also being with women), but in this universe, gender is also explored in a unique way with people expressing their preferred pronouns via decoration that they wear so it's easily identifiable. It's part of the culture in this book, so it's never overly discussed or made note of because it's the natural thing to do here. It was a really great way to present this idea.

I'll add here a CW for abuse/spousal abuse. It's not too heavy-handed, but it's a major part of the story. I believe it was handled well, and added extra depth to the emotion embedded within.

I know this is a stand-alone, but I wouldn't mind reading a sequel to this! I can't wait to see what else we get from Maxwell!

Winter’s Orbit was one of my favorite books of 2020. But I decided to save this review because I wanted to start the year off on a good note. And I’m SO excited that the release date for Winter’s Orbit is finally coming up soon because I can’t wait for my preorder to get here.

I honestly had no idea what to expect when I started reading this one but oh my gosh, it was absolutely amazing. It’s a queer, space opera with an arranged marriage and ALL the political intrigue you could want. Plus two of the most precious cinnamon roll characters. The slow burn romance is done perfectly and, even though miscommunications usually drive me crazy, it actually worked really well here. (Content warning: there are some mentions of a previous abusive relationship)

The world-building was so interesting and I loved how developed the intergalactic politics were. I found it incredibly difficult to out this book down and am already looking forward to rereading it.

Overall, I would highly recommend Winter’s Orbit! Also, there was one completely amazing side character that I really hope gets her own book.

Space opera gay fake marriage political intrigue! With all the tropes! Fake marriage! There was only one bed! Oh no, we're stranded in the cold and must share a sleeping bag for warmth! But serious and well-written and I definitely enjoyed this and recommend it.

A solid SF political mystery with Red, White and Royal Blue vibes? Um... yes please! Kiem has been told he’s getting married tomorrow to his cousin’s widow in the hopes that their union will renew the political bonds between his and a newer vassal planet. But there’s treachery and intrigue behind his cousin’s death that will envelope Kiem and Jainan’s marriage.

***ARC Review***

This book was nothing like I expected in the best way possible. I think I just read “Red, White, & Royal Blue” and “space opera” and went in expecting a dramatic rom-com and got an awesome sci-fi world with complex politics and a unique romance. The main characters are both intriguing and easy to get attached to. They both come with their unique set of problems and strengths and being in their heads and watching their characters develop is really meaningful. Their relationship is like nothing I’ve ever read before as it happens in an almost entirely backwards order from how one would think a relationship should go and is also absolutely adorable. The level of miscommunication between Kiem and Jainan for the first 60% of the book is painful, though, but it being painful also proves my attachment to the characters, which is a good thing. The space politics in this story are so intricate and fun to read about but so much of the world building didn’t make any sense. Are there any normal people on these planets? At all? The whole plot is centered around a treaty but I don’t think we ever learned why the treaty is necessary? What is the purpose of all the power groups? What do these seemingly random people do? At some point I just went with the flow and accepted all of these things as part of the world but really, a lot more explanation was needed. Also, there was no sense of place at all. I thought they were on a planet for the entire book and in the very last sentence learned that they were on a space station. Of course, it was snowing at some point so they could not have been on a space station the entire time. This book has a lot of holes. If you just accept all of it as normal, the plot is actually great. It definitely brings the drama with so many twists and turns that I would’ve never expected, and gorgeous characters arcs. Maxwell really knows how to keep the pages turning. If you can look past the confusion and read the book for its story, it really is a great read and definitely worth picking up if you’re looking for an interesting, queer sci-fi to keep you reading into the night.

This features someone in a new relationship after suddenly losing their partner, paired with someone who's never been married before, with the fate of the empire depending on their success. Both pairings were political, and the new partner has a passing familiarly with the former one, enough to know who they were but not how they were. Part of why I love this book so much is for the way it portrays someone in a relationship after an abusive (or at least controlling) one, after being gaslit and diminished, discounted until he couldn’t trust his own thoughts and barely dared to have opinions but wouldn’t dream of voicing any. Watching him come alive and grow throughout the book was wonderful, and the way his new partner tries to get to know him and figure out what he needs was really sweet. The dynamic between the two MC’s helps further the political and mystery bits of the plot while never losing focus on their relationship as the heart of the story. It’s powerful, cathartic, and very moving.

The two MC's have very distinct voices and it was wonderful to feel them slowly falling in love with each other, to get descriptions through the other one's eyes. I especially love the parts when the POV character just switched and the new POV character is thinking about the other one as their turn to narrate begins. Going from being immersed in someone's thoughts to watching them through the eyes of someone who cares about them was really sweet.

My thoughts are a bit complicated about the gender coding in this book. I have a lot of respect for a story which explicitly includes nonbinary people in the list of genders, but also has multiple culturally-specific systems for gender coding and some comments about how the systems aren't actually as clear and useful as the people using them seem to think they are. It's a nice blend of inclusion and irreverence, and while (being agender) I would personally find a three-gender system as stifling as a two-gender one, I did appreciate it as world-building. It's also means there are several nonbinary secondary characters and at least one of them is recurring and plot-important, so that was very nice.

Speaking of world-building, I think my favorite random detail was the way animals are named in this world, it leads to a kind of an uncanny-valley feeling, where I don't always know what the creatures mentioned look like, but I know they're definitely not what my normal mental image would be.

I love the diplomatic stuff and the mystery-solving bits, the two MC's focused on different parts of it because they're very different people and were in positions to figure out different bits of what was going on. It's tense in great ways, and the rather dramatic climax of the story is really great. Some parts of the world-building are very specific and laid out because a lot of it's complicated, especially what's needed to understand the political part of the plot. One thing that kept this from overwhelming the narrative (aside from how much I love interpersonal politics and highly specific diplomatic things) was that the two MC's think about the events in different ways and understand completely different bits of what was going on, which naturally let there be space to explain important things again in new ways without it feeling redundant. It's also a long enough book that if someone were to read this over a longer period of time than I did (I read it in a day) the bit of repetition that is there is spaced out enough to feel more like reminders of small but important details rather than rehashing the story.

CW for domestic abuse, parental death (backstory), spousal death (backstory), torture, death.

This was a clever sci-fi that I really enjoyed reading! I found Kiem and Jainan to be really great characters and I loved the opportunity to switch back and forth between their perspectives. They way they both evolved through the book was absolutely fantastic and I liked them more and more as the book went on. They also had really great banter between the two of them and I loved watching their relationship grow. I also thought that the world-building was very cleverly done and I really enjoyed the thought put into this sci-fi universe. The queer rep was also super cool and I enjoyed the way it was seamlessly woven into the story, especially since there is often so little overt lgbtq+ rep in much of the sci-fi genre. The plot itself had a lot of great twists and turns which I loved and wove an increasingly intriguing story that I found to be really engaging! Overall, I really enjoyed this book!

I can see people loving this book, but it wasn't for me. For one, I never felt grounded in the world and the rules of it. Like, is this a human future or another thing altogether? Am I meant to think it's a good place to live? Why, if you are creating a whole space thing, would you have bears instead of imaginary sci fi creatures?

The bears nitpick was indicative of my overall problem with this book, which was a failure of imagination. Why is there all this (dull to read) political maneuvering when we're dealing with space monarchy? Why aren't we trying to fully overthrow a system most earth countries overthrew a hundred or more years ago? Also, does this book really think simple ornamentation is a utopic vision of gender in the future?

The other question is who I'm supposed to root for. I should have known better than to choose a book with a "disaster" character, because they never appeal to me as a reader, but it was especially egregious to me here. People who are allowed to still be self absorbed disasters well into adulthood are certainly riding on some kind of privilege, and I want them to experience something resembling justice before I want to see them win.

And if you are looking for the romance, it's quite a slow burn and closed door, so that will satisfy some readers and frustrate others.

Winter’s Orbit feels like the perfect mixture of science fiction, mystery, political intrigue, and, of course, romance, while simultaneously allowing the reader to get a closer look into the characters' everyday-life, which made it so easy to forge a connection with them from the very beginning. I found myself immediately drawn to the story and the characters, invested in what would happen next and scared of the consequences at the same time.

Right away, I found both Kiem and Jainan to be incredibly likeable characters, both charming in their own way. Kiem: the self-appointed “least-favourite grandson of the Emperor”, easygoing and kind, but with the unfortunate ability to put his foot in his mouth on any given occasion. Jainan: dutiful, but almost anxious. There’s something in his past (and his past marriage) the reader only sees hints of in the beginning, but it's clear that he has gone through some terrible things. I immediately got the strong urge to protect him at all costs.

I’ve heard Winter's Orbit was first posted on AO3 as an original work, and it does have that seemingly easy, effortlessly entertaining quality to it, with characters that feel familiar despite just meeting them, and a plot I was invested in from the beginning. There’s a lot of pressure resting on both Kiem’s and Jainan’s shoulders—when push comes to shove, a failed marriage between them could mean war.

Winter’s Orbit started out as an almost slice-of-like like science fiction story, filled with all the best kinds of tropes: royals, arranged marriage, forced proximity, oblivious characters—a conglomeration of misunderstandings was inevitable, which, of course, is the case for all good romances. But despite being incredibly engaging and immersive, Winter’s Orbit isn’t always lighthearted: the focus shifted quite early in the story, from political consequences, a covered-up murder and a looming war, to more personal stakes, namely Jainan’s past and his abusive relationship with Prince Taam.

That brings me to my next point, and one of my favourite things about Winter’s Orbit: despite being a sci-fi story about different alien planets and their people, this book felt so utterly, heartbreakingly human. The characters—and especially the two protagonists, Kiem and Jainan—were some of the most realistically written characters I’ve ever come across, with hopes and wishes, doubts and fears. I cared especially about Jainan, who had to live with the consequences of living with and being married to an abusive man for five years, always thinking he was the one to blame. Some of the passages made me cry, because this is the reality for too many people and Jainan’s struggles to find back to who he truly was after holding so much of himself back for years was both heart-wrenching and encouraging—because there can be so much happiness waiting for you. I loved how both Kiem and Jainan were able to see all the good things the other wasn’t able to see about himself, and I also loved how their friends were willing to fight so fiercely for their well-being.

The only thing I could complain about was the ending, which seemed a bit rushed, after so much careful development. Suddenly, everything happened very fast: both, the solving of Taam’s murder and the Kingfisher project, but also Kiem’s and Jainan’s personal struggles. I would’ve liked a few more pages, to wrap everything up more cleanly.

That said, Everina Maxwell has a rare talent: despite the comparatively high stakes, Winter’s Orbit feels almost intimate, and utterly and incredibly human, in its execution; so much so, that I’d be hard-pressed to find another book that has the same genuine feeling to it, the characters that seem so real that there’s almost a vulnerability to it. In that way, it reminded me most closely of The House in the Cerulean Sea, which was much quieter overall, though, so it’s not a perfect comparison.

Overall, Winter’s Orbit is an unforgettable debut and a truly ambitious combination of fascinating sci-fi world-building, engaging romance tropes, and political intrigue. It was one of the most immersive books I’ve read this year, with characters that seemed so utterly human that it would be impossible not to feel for them, not to wish them the very best. Despite an ending that seemed a bit rushed, Winter’s Orbit was a wonderful story and I’m very much looking forward to whatever Everina Maxwell has planned next!