Warning: This book review contains mild spoilers for Kitra” by Gideon Marcus. If you’re trying to avoid spoilers, you may want to read another review instead (though I did my best to not reveal major spoilers).
I’m back with another book review, and this time I’m reviewing “Kitra” by Gideon Marcus! The author himself reached out to me via Twitter and offered to give me a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. Given all that is currently going on, I accepted as I realized I required more reading material, and I’m glad I did! Here’s a summary so we know what it’s about:
Cover of “Kitra” by Gideon Marcus.“Stranded in space: no fuel, no way home…and no one coming to help. Nineteen-year-old Kitra Yilmaz dreams of traveling the galaxy like her Ambassador mother. But soaring in her glider is the closest she can get to touching the stars–until she stakes her inheritance on a salvage Navy spaceship. On its shakedown cruise, Kitra’s ship plunges into hyperspace, stranding Kitra and her crew light years away. Tensions rise between Kitra and her shipmates: the handsome programmer, Fareedh; Marta, biologist and Kitra’s ex-girlfriend; Peter, the panicking engineer, and the oddball alien navigator, Pinky. Now, running low on air and food, it’ll take all of them working together to get back home.”
Trigger warnings:
None! There are no trigger warnings for once! The book is definitely family friendly. (And for those who don’t like swearing, there’s none of it in there either!)
Worldbuilding Development: 4 out of 5 stars
The worldbuilding for this book is a little hard to get into and understand at first, especially given that the story starts in the middle of some important action for the main protagonist, Kitra, in the first two or three chapters. However, with further explanations given during the next few chapters afterwards, still early on in the story, I felt that it got easier to immerse myself into this story’s world, as a reader. Some of the worldbuilding impacts certain characters more than others in terms of their backgrounds and development, and I think it was definitely fun to see how it impacted the characters and their journey to get home after getting into hyperspace by accident.
Plot Development: 4 out of 5 stars
Character Development: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Admittedly, much of the plot development does depend heavily on the characters and their actions, and the bulk of the characters’ actions hinges on tons of decision-making in regards to what to do next. Thankfully, this ensemble of characters has their own individual traits and stand out on their own, as well as through their interactions with each other. Kitra has her own dreams, and has to learn to trust herself and earn the trust of her fellow teammates/friends, Pinky is the heart of the group through his consistent support of others while learning more about humans (Pinky is the sole alien/non-human companion), Peter is the more technical-oriented person, with Fareedh and Marta having more personal connections to Kitra out of the whole lot (I think the book was implying that Fareedh and Kitra are closer friends and currently may have some romantic interest in each other, while Marta and Kitra are established as ex-girlfriends with Marta now dating Peter). All of the characters are fun to read, and I loved how they came together as a group of friends working together, learning to trust each other and themselves throughout the story. It’s not often I read a book about that kind of concept (with similar books I’ve read resulting in friends often breaking apart, or things getting worse, etc.), so this was refreshing to read.
I can’t say much about the overall plot, or else I’ll give away major spoilers. However, I do think it was well-written and structured, save for it being a bit slow in the middle in terms of pacing.
Overall, I’m rating this book 4 out of 5 stars!
If you’re looking for a book focused on friendship, trust, and travelling in space, this is the book for you! Thank you to the author for giving me the free ebook to read and review, as well—this book was definitely a pleasure to read.
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