- Author: Kristyn Merbeth
- Genre: Science Fiction/ Space Opera
- Page Count: 506
- Date Started: December 15th
- Date Finished: December 22nd
- Spoilers? No
A Brief Description
Fortuna launches a new space opera trilogy that will hook you from the first crash landing.
Scorpia Kaiser has always stood in Corvus’s shadow until the day her older brother abandons their family to participate in a profitless war. However, becoming the heir to her mother’s smuggling operation is not an easy transition for the always rebellious, usually reckless, and occasionally drunk pilot of the Fortuna, an aging cargo ship and the only home Scorpia has ever known.
But when a deal turns deadly and Corvus returns from the war, Scorpia’s plans to take over the family business are interrupted, and the Kaiser siblings are forced to make a choice: take responsibility for their family’s involvement in a devastating massacre or lay low and hope it blows over.
Too bad Scorpia was never any good at staying out of a fight.
Perfect for fans of Becky Chambers and Catherynne M. Valente, Fortuna introduces a dazzling new voice in science fiction.
Fear only makes us weak if we let it stop us.
Kristyn Merbeth pg 432
A Review
This book was a story about a family who are smugglers and the trouble that they get themselves into.
The story was a dual perspective, Scorpia, a rebellious, mostly drunk pilot of Fortuna, the family ship, and her brother Corvus, who went away three years ago to fight in a profitless war on his home planet of Titan. Now Corvus is back, and this puts Scorpia in jeopardy of losing her spot as owner of the family business.
Overall I enjoyed this book. The characters were rich, and the family dynamic was amazing to read about. Each character had their own distinct voice and opinions which made it especially fun to read when those opinions clashed.
The one thing I can say for certain is that Scorpia makes some pretty bad decisions. She puts her family, herself and many others at risk for very selfish reasons and she has a mean streak at times. All of that being said, I think this was all believable for her character and the story. She is a strong character who has strong held beliefs and opinions and she will not back down from them.
Another thing I liked was that this book had some pretty good LGBT-rep. There was a female/female romance and there was also a non-binary character who was referred with their correct pronouns (they/them/their) for the entirety of the time they were mentioned in the book. Albeit, they were not a main character.
All of that being said, I enjoyed this book, and look forward to the next in the series.
Have a great day!
~Cam
Cosmic Lattes and Books 
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