I’ve been vaguely aware of Megan E. O’Keefe as a person out there writing speculative fiction, but she’s never really been on my radar, let alone my TBR. After reading the first of her new series, The Devoured Worlds, I’m very interested in reading more of her stuff.

This is a science fiction story, set a few centuries in the future. Humanity’s existence is shaped by an unobtanium mineral called relkatite that both enables FTL travel, and lets people circumvent death (at least for a while). Relkatite implants allow for a person to have their consciousness uploaded to the cloud upon death, and then downloaded into a freshly printed body - assuming someone is willing and able to pay for it, of course.

The other thing that’s going on in this universe is the “shroud.” This is a fungus that destroys ecosystems on a planetary scale. Once the shroud appears on a planet, it’s only a matter of time until the shroud is the only living thing left. Which brings us to our two protagonists. Tarquin Mercator is the son of the man who leads the conglomerate that has a monopoly on relkatite mining. Naira Sharp was formerly Tarquin’s dad’s bodyguard, but told the world that the shroud was a byproduct of relkatite mining, and that the Mercators were covering it up. This was publicly refuted (largely based on Tarquin’s expert testimony), Sharp was stripped of her rights, and her consciousness was uploaded and locked away.

The story is set on a new world the Mercators have just discovered, and are preparing for relkatite extraction and initial colonization. The mission goes wrong, and Tarquin and Naira (who isn’t sure how she ended up being printed into a new body) are both stranded on the surface - which is already nothing but the shroud, despite mining not having begun yet.

This is one part survival story, one part romance, and probably 3 parts mystery as Tarquin and Naira come to know and rely upon each other, gradually find out just how much they don’t understand, and the scope of what is going on and what the stakes are.

I devoured this (with a few pauses along the way because I was dreading reading the next chapter due to what I was afraid was about to happen) and am pretty much desperate for book 2.

I loved almost everything about this! The story itself was so unique and interesting. I loved Megan E. O'Keefe's writing style and the fact that this story was told through multiple POV's. Tarquin was such an endearing character that I found myself constantly worrying about his wellbeing. Naira was a fantastic lead. I loved how strong she was and how unapologetical she was in her fight for justice. The relationship between the two was fun to follow.

My only real complaint was the pacing of the story. It felt like it was building up to a big finale at a few points and than there was so much still left to happen that the plot slowed right back down. It just made it feel like a super long read, even though it wasn't that long of a book.

Other than that though, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I cannot wait for the second installment to come out!

Thank you to Netgalley and Orbit for an arc of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

This story had a little bit of everything that added up to a fantastic read.

The science fiction was interesting and original but reader friendly. I typically struggle a bit with this genre. Getting lost in trying to understand the world building but this was done so seamlessly that I had no trouble keeping up.

There was political intrigue and philosophy plus lots of present day hot topics dropped into the story. Definitely more show than tell so not clunky at all.

The characters were well developed and left me wanting to read more. The sequel is set up nicely. I’m invested.

I’ve always loved Orbit’s covers for their books. I’m not sure who in charge of this over there, but whoever they are, they’ve been knocking it out of the park for years now. I always feel as if I can quickly glance at a cover of one of their books and already know exactly the sort of story I’m going to be getting. So, too, with this one. One glance…yep, gotta check that one out!

I read a lot more fantasy than I do science fiction, but there is one thing that both genres share that I think makes them unique to most other genres: that is the fact that you are often plopped down into worlds and environments that are completely unique, populated with new species, described with new language, embroiled in new conflicts. Often, the reader is left to accept a hefty dose of uncertainty early in the story with the promise that all will become clear with time. I think this willingness to simply not understand for a decent chunk of a story is a trait fairly unique to SFF readers. And it is a trait that will definitely be needed here! Right off the bat, O’Keefe begins throwing around terms and technologies that are completely unfamiliar to readers. It probably took a good 30 or so pages for me to even begin piecing together how some of these things worked.

But herein lies the other side of this particular coin: SFF readers know that if they wait it out, the end result will typically be a wildly creative and unique perspective on life and people. And so, too, do we see here. One of the main technologies explored in this book is the ability to “map” oneself into copies of the body. But this technology, that on its face seems like a massive win for society, also comes with complications and dangers. We see people mapped into the wrong bodies. We see these “maps” breaking when they are placed in a new body. We even see people’s “maps” split into several different bodies. There’s a lot of incredibly interesting applications of this technology, and I loved getting to explore and understand how it all worked.

The book also does a good job of using not only this technology but the state of the society in which it exists to explore a wide host of various themes, including environmental concerns as well as wealth and access to technology. I was pleased to see how organically these themes were woven throughout the story, with the author managing to avoid any large chunks of exposition or “preaching” styles of writing. Instead, these concerns played well within the larger plot of the story and alongside the various characters with whom we experience the book.

Speaking of characters, I really liked the ones we meet here. I was especially pleased to find that the banter and dialogue made for a very fun read. As I continued to read, these humorous aspects to the characters were incredibly necessary as a balance to some of the darker turns the story took. There was a particular event towards the end of the book that really surprised me, and I’m still not really sure how I feel about it. Which, all in all, is probably a good thing since, at the very least, I’ll be thinking about this one for a while as I wait for the sequel.

I haven’t read any other books by this author, but this was definitely an excellent introduction. I would recommend this to all space opera fans, especially those who enjoy a nice balance of humor and depth.

Rating 8: Exploring themes of environmentalism and societal privilege, this book manages to be both laugh-out-loud funny at times and heart-breaking at others. A roller-coater of emotions!

Link will go live 06/23/23

*arc provided by netgalley*

as a fan of o’keefe’s protectorate trilogy, i jumped at the chance to get an arc of the blighted stars, and i’m very happy to report that i wasn’t disappointed

this book had everything i love in sci-fi - an alien planet, complex politics, unknown enemies, and just enough horror to keep you on edge. while reading i kept thinking that it’s the perfect blend of altered carbon - where people are just artificially printed bodies and their minds are stored data - and the last of us-esque fungal horror. throw in a questionable AI and an alien planet and it’s a perfect mix. the characters are fleshed out and have their own clear goals, and it was interesting to see them struggle with accepting the truth of what’s really going on.

as for negatives, the science-y bits did feel clunky at times, even for someone like me who enjoys some hard science in sci-fi. the romance did feel a little rushed, but the emotional buildup was definitely there, so it might’ve just been me.

i can’t wait to see more of the leading families in future books and see where naira and tarquin will go from here. highly recommend!

I spent about the first 40% of this book not sure that this was the right book for me and almost DNF'ed, but I turned back to it later when I was in a different mood because I couldn't stop thinking about the characters. I decided my problem was my expectations. I was thinking this would be like The Expanse with a romantic subplot and it was really more of a romance set in space. The political intrigue and the romance were incredibly slow burn and made more sense by the time the book ended as well as I am sure over the course of the series.

"The Blighted Stars" is set in a future in which Earth does not exist any more and corporate families like the Mercators control body-printing through mining for precious metals needed to genetically enhance the bodies that are connected to some sort of original neural map. I didn't really understand the science of how printing works and I wondered why anyone would sign up for such a thing unless they were absolutely desperate or enslaved, something I wanted more background on. If humans could die over and over again, why would you see them as people anymore? The book only briefly touched on this in the second half, but I wanted to understand the ethical quandaries a little better; I thought that was an interesting part that didn't get explored in depth.

However, I understood why there were so many unanswered questions about body-printing at the beginning, because the way that body-printing works is tied to major spoilers.

Set against this backdrop, Naira Sharp, a former bodyguard of the leader of Mercator turned revolutionary, is trapped on a dying world after something went terribly wrong on a mining expedition with the Mercator's son and an expeditionary crew. Only she was printed in the body of the Mercator's actual bodyguard and no one knows she's really the rebel whom Tarquin Mercator testified against at her trial that put her mind on ice.

In Tarquin, however, she finds a sheltered, good-hearted kid who has a pet robot named Pliny, a scientist who just wants to do the right thing and doesn't understand the full truth of his family's underlying darkness. I found their relationship to be the most compelling of the book and if you don't like their relationship you probably wouldn't like this book since it's such a large part of it. The first half of the book focuses on their relationship as they're stranded on this strange planet and discover that the fungal infection they think is the problem isn't what it seems; the second half of the book focuses on the political intrigue.

I wish we'd gotten more back story to these characters; I wanted to hear more about Tarquin's childhood, in one brief scene it's mentioned that he's trans and his father had his preferred body printed for him, and it's also mentioned that he has illicit pathways to give him added strength and agility, but other than that it's barely touched on. I suppose this is refreshing because if people can get new bodies whenever they want, they just inhabit their preferred form, but I wanted a bit more character development.

However, I loved these two characters, and enemies-to-lovers is so often poorly executed but I liked the rhythms of their arc. I completely fell in love with Tarquin. More nerds in space, please!

I'd buy this book and read more in this series. I am intrigued enough to want to know what happens next.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

4.5/5
Thanks to Orbit Books and Netgalley for the ARC.

Put me firmly in the camp of Megan O'Keefe fans. I loved the Protectorate series so I was super excited to get the first book in her new series, and it doesn't disappoint!! Megan's stories have it all: an intriguing plot, terrific world building, and multi-layered characters you immediately feel connected to.

In the future, Earth is mainly uninhabitable so the search is always on for new cradle worlds. A group of powerful, wealthy families headed by the Mercators are locating these worlds not only as future homes for humanity, but also to mine an incredibly important substance, relkatite. Only one problem, the mining process is somehow killing these cradle worlds, and Naira Sharp is out to prove it's the fault of the Mercators. Enter Tarquin Mercator, the youngest and mainly forgotten son who is determined to prove the family's innocence and find the real culprit. Throw in a rebel faction, spies, betrayal, political posturing and you've got the groundwork for a compelling story.

So many things I loved here, the world building being top of the list. The ability and technology to store a copy of your neural map and then reprint you when you die is phenomenal. The implications of this on society and what happens when there are issues....so interesting!! Also tops is the character work and it pulls you into the story so quickly while giving you all facets of their personalities. Naira and Tarquin are bright, driven, loyal, tenacious and enemies who find they have everything to fight for together. But nothing is ever simple, and the ups and downs of their relationship is beautifully written. And as always the LGBTQ rep is flawless. Spies, battles, secrets, revelations and oh so very very creepy misprint copies of people make this book hard to put down and leaves you wanting more!!

I am so extremely thankful that I was given an ARC of The Blighted Stars. I got about halfway through it and promptly pulled it up on my local bookstore's website and preordered it. I am in love. What I thought was an anti-imperialist stick-it-to-the-man vengeance space opera turned into a desperate battle against a fungal nightmare while still being an anti-imperialist stick-it-to-the-man vengeance space opera. I'm not kidding, as the mystery of the plot unfolds you slowly start to realize there is a lot more horror to this story and it is the most fascinating part of the book. Don't get me wrong, the character relationships are wonderful and the interplay between the two main characters is a strength of the novel and there are some truly cool science fiction concepts represented; it's the fungus among us that is really the crux of what excites me about this book. This series. Megan E O'Keefe is officially on my radar. I'll be recommending this to all my science-fiction loving friends.

I requested a digital copy in order to sample the prose on my phone (since I don't have a eReader) before requesting a physical copy for review. My review will be based on the physical ARC I read (if I qualify)

Review copy provided by the publisher.

Where's the line between space opera and planetary adventure? "We have a whole bunch of spaceships and vast interstellar organizations and stuff but we're gonna crash land on a dead planet and have to survive with people about whom we feel terribly conflicted and discover that we were wrong about our worldview": I think that's both, right? I think that's both, but also it's definitely The Blighted Stars by Megan E. O'Keefe.

Tarquin Mercator is the scion of one of the five wealthy families who control the known worlds. He's more interested in geology than in politics and power, and he has named his little robot Pliny the Metal. (It is theoretically possible that you will not love Pliny the Metal, but...this does not seem to me very likely, it's like not loving a tachikoma. Except Pliny the Metal doesn't talk, so no one will be annoyed by its voice.) Naira Sharp is a revolutionary whose mind has been printed into someone else's body, and she has to figure out why and what to do about it. Because yeah, this is a world where the map of your consciousness is saved and downloaded, repeatedly, into new bodies. Which sounds great, but gets much worse the more you think about it, and the book thinks about it a lot.

Also, humanity has basically trashed several ecosystems, so...is this trashed ecosystem humanity's fault? the fault of some very specific humans related to Tarquin Mercator? a cosmic accident? What is going on with the fungus that is the only life-form covering the planet that was supposed to be full of life forms? And can two such different people as Tarquin and Naira manage to work together when they each have pieces of this puzzle?

This is the beginning of a new series, so some of these questions are not fully answered--and the ones that are only lead to more questions. But if you're looking for planetary adventure that does not let up, this is very much in that mode.

I could not put this book down. Every minute I had available I was reading another paragraph, another sentence, another word of this world. Late into the night, waking up early in the morning, during breaks at work, it consumed my thoughts.

The relationship dynamic between Naira and Tarquin reminded me a lot of the Necromancer/Cavalier dynamics within Tamsyn Muir’s The Locked Tomb series. Their relationship specifically reminded me of Camilla and Palamedes, if Camilla hated Palamedes.

I’ve never read a book that was so easy for me to get through either. I usually have to go back and reread some of a book, but the flow and cadence of O’Keefe’s writing hit a sweet spot for me that only two other authors have managed to do, and in her own way unique to them as well.

I was left devastated by the ending, not because it was sad or dissatisfying (it was categorically neither of those things), but because I’m desperately craving more to the story. I need the next book as soon as I can possibly get it.

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Orbit Books for an advanced copy of the first book in The Devoured Worlds series, a science novel about revolution, the end of humanity, and love after death.

Sometime in the future, death has well not been defeated but cheated in a way. Humans live in space on vast stations, ruled by corporate families that control trade, growth, the way one lives, and that life after death. Something however is wrong. Humans live on stations, because the planets around them are dying. There are many theories why. The rich think its just a minor problem. Another group blame the rich families destroying habitable worlds to keep humanity under their thumb. This group has decided that destruction and revolution are the only solution. And a recently discovered habitable world has become a second front in their war, but one that will change two people forever. The Blighted Stars is the first in The Devoured Worlds series by Megan E. O'Keefe, a science fiction book with a bit of survival adventure, a dose of spies, romance, body horror, and a whole lot more.

Tarquin Mercator is the son of one of the most powerful humans in the galaxy, but has always been more comfortable learning rather than engaging in the ruthless world of business. As an expert in geology Tarquin is sent to oversee a new colony on a recently found world that is perfect for both living and exploiting. On arrival two things go wrong. The planet is already dying, and their ship is targeted by their sister ship, trapping the crew on a suddenly dying world. Tarquin is helped by his bodyguard who is far more capable than he had been lead to believe. The bodyguard is really Naira Sharp, a rebel who has promised to bring down the Mercator family and had planned to before the ship was destroyed without her knowing. Slowing Tarquin and Naira must survive a suddenly deadly planet, and fight not only their feelings for each other, but a hidden enemy at the heart of humanity's woes.

A big, bold space adventure that really hits everything and never misses. Planetary building, action, romance, deception, lies within lies, family drama, body horror, zombies, invaders, Artifical Intelligence going rogue, life after death. All mixed together, never getting in the way of the story, and never making the narrative wander. I really am in awe in how O'Keefe kept this from just going in a thousand different ways. The characters are all different, with clear motivations, and enough grey to make them better than black or white. Even the enemies make sense. Readers get a sense of why things are the way they are. The universe is big, with a lot to explore, and many places to go in the next books in the series. A lot of fun, with a very different plot and many great ideas.

I read this book in a matter of days, shirking all other responsibilities because I couldn't stand to put it down. The representation we got was beautiful--Tarquin revealing he's bisexual, the they/them rep, the TMF helping trans youth print their preferred bodies--and written in such a casual way that it proved just how welcoming this world is for people of all shapes. The world-building was probably my favorite part of the book, because I loved exploring Sixth Cradle and discovering why it was dead, though that's not to say the characters weren't equally as endearing and important. The way O'Keefe managed to get us to care for people like Paison before she turned traitor (not of her own free will) was especially enjoyable. And I lovedlovedloved the way canus is written, calling back to The Last of Us in a subtle, brilliant way I'm not sure the author intended but I'm glad for anyway. And the ending was both incredibly satisfying (I loved Tarquin's battle with what he believed his family to be and what he knew it to be, and how much Acaelus clearly loves his kids) and incredibly bittersweet. (I can't wait for Naira and Tarquin to unite once again).
From start to finish, THE BLIGHTED STARS is a thrilling exploration of climate change, bodily autonomy, consent, and the intricacies of humans surviving in a world on a collision course with its end. I can't wait for the second book.

The blighted Stars is the exciting start of a sweeping interstellar space opera that incorporates hard SF space exploration, near-immortality, an existential threat to humanity, an oligarchical social structure, and a slow burn romance. In other words, it was exactly what we love.

Tarquin, the scion of one of the ruling families, and Naira, a revolutionary bent on the destruction of the social hierarchy, are stranded on a dying planet together along with a couple dozen other survivors. Due to ~circumstances~, Naira is pretending to be Tarquin's bodyguard. (She got "printed" into the other woman's body, it's a whole thing, the book is SO worth reading to actually understand it!) Her best chance of freedom lies in escaping the planet without giving herself away, which means that she's got to stick close to Tarquin like any good bodyguard would. But of course, that means that they spend lots of time together getting to know each other (in between all of the fighting, hiking, researching, and other things they have to do to survive).

The book is long, but it moves swiftly. For all you SF fans who don't care about the romance, it's a true military science fiction novel, with ruminations on humanity, freedom, identity plus, of course, plenty of space ships, hand-to-hand combat, and explosions. For romance fans, it's an enemies-to-lovers hidden identity bodyguard romance with an HFN.

Final words? Absolutely loved it.

This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the novel.

The Blighted Stars by Megan E. O'Keefe

This book was absolutely wonderful! It was just what I wanted and I can’t wait for the next one. I had never read anything by Megan E. O’Keefe before, but I had heard good things about Velocity Weapon (and I found it on my virtual TBR pile, purchased when it was on sale ages ago).

I had been longing for a good space opera. I love fantasy, but I love science fiction more, and my reading has been tilting more fantasy lately and I had been yearning for something with spaceships or robots. This book has both! (Well, the robot content is minimal but still enjoyable).

The book is set in a future where several rich families control the resources necessary to run civilization and a mineral is needed to help back up people’s brains so they can be downloaded into new bodies that are printed as needed from large biological 3-D printers.

The blurb on the back of the book promised the possibility of an opposites attract romance between the son of an oligarch and the family bodyguard who rebelled and tried to take down the unfair society. When I started reading the book, I really enjoyed the worldbuilding, but I was like “no way, this romance will never work.” I also hadn’t realized how long the book was when I first got it. In the beginning I was like “this is going to be a slog, why can’t this speed up?”

But I was wrong on both counts. The length of the book gave it time to grow, and by the time the romance began, it felt real and earned. Bravo!

This book was so good! Thanks to Orbit and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Blighted Stars is an enemies-to-lovers light space opera, but there are some heavier concepts in this book as well. Tarquin, whose family is one of five powerful families that control technology, has felt out of place his whole life. He wants his father's approval, but as he learns what his family has done to secure their power, he has to decide whether to break away or toe the line.

Planets can be terraformed, but there is a blight that grows on some, killing most life and rendering the planets unusable. Humans can be printed into new bodies, but this is only available to the elite families and their chosen employees, as most others cannot afford it.

The relationship between Tarquin and Naira moved fairly quickly, and there were hints that this was due to entanglement from the printing process. The story focused more on the romance than on the science, I thought and, while it was a good story, I wanted more of the technology explained. Hopefully, this happens in the next book in the series.

4 out of 5 stars

I received an advance copy from Orbit via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

First, I want to thank Orbit and NetGalley for allowing me to get an advance reader copy of this book.

Secondly, I really enjoyed The Blighted Stars. Megan O'Keefe has done an amazing job of dropping the reader directly into a mystery of galactic scale. The story takes place in humanity's far future as we search for new homes and resources in the stars. The majority of the story takes place on Sixth Cradle, the sixth inhabitable planet deemed potentially useable as a new colony world. We the reader are dropped into the command center of one of two ships sent to start mining and colony operations.

One of the things I loved most is that in the world of The Blighted Stars humanity has solved problems of longevity and space exploration by using printable human bodies. This is an interesting spin on transhumanism and one of the brighter takes on this particular branch of speculative tech. Many of the stories that employ a body swapping or modification system where a person's brain can be backed up for future reintegration tend to take a somewhat darker view of humanity's future (see Altered Carbon). Megan O'Keefe takes a fresh approach that lends a sense of risk to every potential "death": that I really liked. I also enjoyed the scope of the world building for the Universe at large, as we learn about how corporate families currently drive the expansion and survival of mankind but a group of "terrorists" believe they are responsible for poisoning other potential colony worlds. In the midst of all of this intrigue, we are also treated to a romance carved out of survival on a hostile world.

I am a big Science Fiction fan and I really enjoyed this book and I can't wait for the rest of the series. If you like a bit of a cross between Dune, Altered Carbon, and Last of Us with a sprinkling of unlikely romance then this book will probably be a good fit for you. Thank you for your time and happy reading.

This book has absolutely everything I could ever want in a sci-fi or fantasy novel. Excellent world-building, interesting take on the classic ""humans destroy worlds"" sci-fi trope, action-packed, a little creepy. Then y'all surprised me with an enemies to lovers arc that is a fantastic SLOWWWWWW burn with *ALL* of the tension, pinning, and incredible banter. Did I mention its QUEER?! With amazing trans and nonbinary rep! Throw in some morally grey characters, friendly AIs, and hilarious side characters, and you've got one heck of a novel. Absolutely going to be one of my top reads of the year. I would even say one of my top sci-fi reads of all time. I will be recommending this book to everyone who will listen. Friends and family, prepare to be sick of me. Anxiously awaiting the next installment in this incredible trilogy!

"When a spy is stranded on a dead planet with her mortal enemy, she must first figure out how to survive before she can uncover the conspiracy that landed them there. This first book in a new epic space opera trilogy by award-winning author Megan E. O'Keefe is perfect for fans of Children of Time, Semiosis, and Ancillary Justice.

She's a revolutionary. Humanity is running out of options. Habitable planets are being destroyed as quickly as they're found and Naira Sharp thinks she knows the reason why. The all-powerful Mercator family has been controlling the exploration of the universe for decades, and exploiting any materials they find along the way under the guise of helping humanity's expansion. But Naira knows the truth, and she plans to bring the whole family down from the inside.

He's the heir to the dynasty. Tarquin Mercator never wanted to run a galaxy-spanning business empire. He just wanted to study rocks and read books. But Tarquin's father has tasked him with monitoring the settlement of a new planet, and he doesn't really have a choice in the matter.

Disguised as Tarquin's new bodyguard, Naira plans to destroy the settlement ship before they make land. But neither of them expects to end up stranded on a dead planet. To survive and keep her secret, Naira will have to join forces with the man she's sworn to hate. And together they will uncover a plot that's bigger than both of them."

What about fans of Enemy Mine?

A sci-fi book using the 'hero trapped with enemy' trope, but it was still an enjoyable read. Some parts felt familiar, but none of it was bad. Maybe not the most memorable book, but I still enjoyed my time with it.