Author: Ryka Aoki
Publisher: Tor Books
Released: September 28^th, 2021
Received: NetGalley
Warnings: Deadnaming, racism, abuse

If you pitch a book to me as being a blend of Good Omens and The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, you just know I’m going to read it, right? Enter Light From Uncommon Stars, written by Ryka Aoki.

Making a deal with the devil is a tale as old as time. For most people, this saying is a metaphor at best. For Shizuka Satomi, it is very much the literal truth. She made a bargain with the devil: her soul in exchange for seven others.

Unfortunately, the deal is a bit more particular than that. It stipulates that she might provide seven violin prodigies, a feat easier said than done. Right as Shizuka was about to finally reach her goal and seal the deal on the seventh, a distraction by the name of Lan Tran enters the scene.

“Tomorrow is tomorrow. Over there is over there. And here and now is not a bad place and time to be, especially when so much of the unknown is beautiful.”

Light From Uncommon Stars was such an atmospheric and lovely read; words almost fail to describe it. This is my first novel by Ryka Aoki, and guys – I am absolutely in love. Consider this author added my ‘auto read’ list.

This novel gets a lot of love from me, as one main character is a transgender WoC, and the other two are sapphic WoC. Plus, the story is so beautifully human, despite the obviously very alien (literally) elements.

What really put me over the edge into loving this book had to be Aoki’s writing. My goodness, it’s stunning! Every sentence was so evocative and carefully thought out; you could practically feel the words resounding in your heart. I loved every minute of it.

Thanks to Tor Books and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.