Light from Uncommon Stars

eBook, 384 pages

English language

Published Aug. 28, 2021 by Doherty Associates, LLC, Tom.

ISBN:
978-1-250-78907-5
Copied ISBN!
Goodreads:
56269476

View on OpenLibrary

4 stars (7 reviews)

An adventure set in California's San Gabriel Valley, with cursed violins, Faustian bargains, and queer alien courtship over fresh-made donuts.

Shizuka Satomi made a deal with the devil: to escape damnation, she must entice seven other violin prodigies to trade their souls for success. She has already delivered six.

When Katrina Nguyen, a young transgender runaway, catches Shizuka's ear with her wild talent, Shizuka can almost feel the curse lifting. She's found her final candidate.

But in a donut shop off a bustling highway in the San Gabriel Valley, Shizuka meets Lan Tran, retired starship captain, interstellar refugee, and mother of four. Shizuka doesn't have time for crushes or coffee dates, what with her very soul on the line, but Lan's kind smile and eyes like stars might just redefine a soul's worth. And maybe something as small as a warm donut is powerful enough to break a curse as …

3 editions

"You’re a selfish little thing, aren’t you?”

3 stars

Content warning Very poor ending; selling souls to hell does pay!

Magical surrealism at its best

5 stars

In a way this reminds me of Charlie Jane Anders’ All The Birds In The Sky. It’s not often you get a book that manages to tie in not only a lot of LGBT issues but also refugees from outer space and demons with contracts for people’s souls and yet make it all seem like a relaxed and natural world to be in. Obviously it’s a book all about the characters and the choices they make and have made. Very enjoyable and enlightening to ride along with a very foreign perspective from my default one for a while.

a fun mess, with some touching moments

4 stars

Content warning mild spoiler about ending