FIRSTLY, a big thank you to NetGalley and to Angry Robot for giving me this ARC.

after a month of trudging through this novel, i have finally finished! overall, i enjoyed it.
here are the 4 things i liked about this story, and the 2 things i did not:

<u> what i liked about <i> bluebird </i> </u>

<b> the world-building </b>
i loved the world that this novel introduced me to. while the story did drag at times, i never felt as though the author was trying to info-dump in order to explain the world to me. i was, as a reader, able to follow along and gain a deep understanding of the factions and the different characters that existed in the world.

<b> the interludes </b>
i found the interludes to be the most interesting parts of the story. the history of Seven and X-74 was beautifully written and i was so captivated by their story.

<b> Ginka </b>
although not the protagonist of this story, Ginka remains my favourite character. i much preferred her over Rig. i found her story so much more interesting and i thought that her character was so much more likeable. her character growth was a pleasure to read.

<b> the last 30% of the story (including the ending) </b>
the action and plot of the last section of this story was what i had been hoping for throughout the first 70%. although it took a while for me to be truly interested in the plot, the last 30% did not disappoint me.

<b> the romances </b>
while cringy and immature at times, i did think that the romance between Rig and her librarian girlfriend, June, was cute and mostly well-written.


<u> what i did not like about <i> bluebird </i> </u>

<b> the humour attempts </b>
at times in this book, Rig cracked jokes that i found to be immature. some of her jokes read as though she was in middle-school, which was quite upsetting as i thought that her character was written well enough to be the comedic relief of her own story.

<b> the length and first half of the plot </b>
i did find this book to be longer than it needed to.
while the first half of the book was indeed action-packed, i didn’t find that it was always necessary for the plot and felt that it dragged at times.


overall, i am glad that i read this, there were just some points that made me unable to rate this book higher. thank you so much for this ARC, i’m very appreciative.

Since I've been reading SFF for longer than I care to think about, one of the things I'm always looking for is a book that's going to knock my socks off, taking me somewhere I've not been before, but sadly Bluebird is just not that book.

The basic premise is that it's set in a universe divided between three factions, each with their own way of doing things and each resolutely convinced that their way is The Right Way. Our protagonist, Rig, is a former scientist and member of a minority group who'd been doing research for one of those factions, only to realise that this particular research makes for an ideal targetted weapon since it can be used on groups of people with specific DNA (like, for example, the group she's a part of).

Understandably, she decides to go on the run and while doing so, we meet both her librarian girlfriend and a mysterious woman with deadly prostheses who calls herself Ginka. Since the book is interspersed with short chapters about an assassin working for a different faction, it doesn't take much figuring out that Ginka's original mission was to retrieve Rig (or, more importantly, her research) and deliver it to the faction to which she belongs.

Bluebird is an entertaining enough book but somehow for me it lacks that certain something that takes a book from 'solidly good' to 'great'. The overall world-building is nicely done, the characterisation is pretty solid most of the time, it just never quite manages to take that final step - there are no reveals I didn't see coming and in the end I was left feeling a little underwhelmed by the whole experience.

While it had some deep thoughts on issues of colonialism, not to mention significant themes of race, class, and religion, Bluebird never felt weighed down by its ideas. What Ciel Pierlot has crafted is a sci-fi novel that's equal parts pulp adventure, high-stakes heist, and long-distance romance. It's a fun read with some interesting characters and well-choreographed fight scenes, and even if it dragged in places, it held my interest through to the end.

Rig is a likable rogue, a young woman caught between her ideas, her love for her librarian girlfriend, her duty to her sister, and her passion for the lost history of her race. She's got a lot going on, but somehow she manages to juggle it all with flair and panache. Ginka is something of an enigma, a cold, superpowered woman with secrets she keeps close to her chest. I had my struggles with her early on, but as we learn more of her story I actually found her the more interesting of the two.

The world-building here is fantastic, with the warring factions of the universe pursuing a brutal war of conquest and extermination, all in the name of their take on a shared mythology. The technology behind it all is interesting, and I appreciated that Pierlot never info-dumped a bunch of scientific jargon, trusting the reader to understand and accept it all. Plot-wise, I felt it struggled at times, trying to do too much with the individual stories of Rig and Ginka, but it all comes together - with some genuinely shocking twists along the way - making for an entirely satisfactory climax.

I've struggled with science fiction over the past few years, finding it straying too far from the genre tropes and themes I enjoy, but Bluebird managed to be something familiar and new at the same time. Very enjoyable.

genuinely one of the best books I've read recently. really fun world building and GREAT characters. the main focus is on building community and choosing friendship over hatred and it's great!!! kinda gives me Gideon the ninth vibes but like star trek instead of gothic horror.

Thoroughly satisfying space opera adventure, featuring a renegade ex-member of one of three religious factions which dominate the galaxy. Rig is a character with history and depth, who grows throughout the book. Her interactions with the mysterious woman Ginka, who saves her from potential captors and becomes very more embedded in Rig’s life, are entertaining. Glinka’ s emerging backstory is part of a well structured plot-line, which proceeds with furious pace and culminates in a completely enjoyable conclusion. Well done.

If you’re looking for romance there is some but not a lot. If you’re looking for hot sex there isn’t any. But action filled from the start. Rig has been on the run from her government for some years. The government (and now others) want what she “stole”. They use her sister to try and get her back. She wants to rescue her sister. Found this a great read. Kept my attention throughout.

I really enjoyed this. There’s an earlier review on Goodreads that’s much more critical of some things that I accepted as growing pains: the characters are fine, just a bit “first novel,” if that makes sense. Nothing wrong with that! It just means there’s room to grow. And the writing in the rest of the book definitely gives me hope that the author will learn and grow and smooth out the rough edges in future books. A great, fun sci-fi story and an excellent introduction to an author I’m definitely going to keep an eye out for in the future.

Bluebird has hints of identity work, some nice steps toward characterization, and the creativity possible in the science fiction genre. Recommended for readers of this genre.

I’m the first to write a proper review for this book. I wish I liked it more. I wish there was more to like in it for me. But gotta work with what there is.
This book got a killer tagline. Lesbian gunslingers in space fighting spies. I mean, wow and wow, right? Well, first off, there’s really one lesbian gunslinger and her straight gunfighting cohort. Secondly…well…underwhelming.
Why is it that certain publishers set certain book length standards for themselves? It seems weird and restricting. Angry Robot books tend to be exactly 400 pages, which is my opinion is quite long/too long. Maybe that’s why the robot is angry. In any case, 400 was way too many pages for me with this book.
I’ve been reading such excellent science fiction graphic novels, it made me want to read a proper genre novel. This one, though, however many trends it can put a checkmark next to, didn’t do the trick. It isn’t entirely the book’s fault. Maybe not of it is the book’s fault. Maybe it was just one of those reader/book incompatibilities.
Technically the book is accomplished, especially for a debut. It’s very much in line with what one might think of when one thinks of a rollicking space adventure of a space operatic variety. It has a spunky protagonist, unlikely friendship, intergalactic politicking, warring factions, a romance, and so on. Lesbians, aliens of color, various creeds…a swooning amount of diversity. What a properly modern book written for its time. And yet…
And yet…for me it left a lot to be desired. When analyzed, the fault seems to lie primarily with the characters, who just did not engage. At all. Rig, the main one, a factionless outlaw, who defied her planet’s expectations/orders of her, is some sort of a genius, who invented some radical nanotech and promptly absconded with it. Ginka, is a much more obedient servant of a different world, but also finds herself on the outs with it, and so the two team up. No sparks – Rig has a beloved girlfriend, a practical librarian lady, who Rig cheesily and distantly adores, because Rig doesn’t think she deserves her or some such trite crap and Ginka is actually secretly married in a very clandestine manner to her military supervisor. Just two very different individuals out to kick space butt and teach each other valuable life lessons.
The thing is, though their ages are never specified, both characters, especially Rig, read very, very young. Young in a way that more reflects the age of the author than the age of the characters. Rig’s main descriptor is that she’s sassy, which translates into clumsy sexish puns, but overall, she comes across angsty and spunky like a brash youngster, not a brazen space adventurer. Ginka is kind of a brainwashed tough soldier who occasionally (as in slowly and sporadically) gets hip to the way of things. Neither seem especially bright, both are very reactionary, and, of course, both are very good at fighting, shooting, etc. for that girl power oomph.
Tried as I might (400 pages worth) I just never cared about any of them. It was the kind of book I’d walk away from at any time without thinking twice about it, but for being a completist. And so, I finished it. It read long. It wasn’t for me. It’s hip, flash, action-driven, but all the thrills are pretty superficial. Presumably, this is what sells, this kind of shiny box-checking noise. And I’m sure it’ll entertain plenty of science fiction fans, it just didn’t work for this one. Thanks Netgalley.