The First Sister by Linden A. Lewis

Disclaimer: I received a free ARC for this book. This in no way influences my review.

This Own Voices novel focuses on three perspectives in the same distant future universe. Lito’s beliefs are challenged upon receiving a voice recording from his now traitorous partner, Hiro. Hiro goes AWOL, leaving a complicated trail of allies and enemies behind him. The First Sister struggles with choosing between reciprocating love or betrayal for immense personal gain. 

Lewis masterfully crafts a space opera using unique perspectives spanning across the solar system. Besides the fact that this represents groups nor often present in literature, this is simply great science fiction. Characters are given proper development and care while relationships neither get thrown to the wayside in favor of action, nor do they become the focus of this work. 

Then, of course, there is the representation of wlw relationships and nonbinary people. There is care to treat them as any other character in any other work of fiction. On top of LGBT representation, there is research done to treat other Earth cultures that make it to space with care as well. There are characters with disabilities in positions of power. Women and men are sprinkled into this narrative seamlessly. Overall, there is actually tons of representation of all sorts of people here. However, you could go the whole book without consciously recognizing how much there is because there is no big show of these people being special. In this world, they are people first. 

By the end of the book, I was sad it ended. I am sad it will be a minute before I can enter this world again with another book. This is an author to watch for and read more of. 

Overall Rating: ★★★★★