“Everything about the physical world around them was miraculous–so what was the point of expecting something impossible, when the possible was enough?”

Frontier is a collection of seemingly disconnected stories, which eventually tie together. The link between them all is an anonymous traveller who’s searching for someone she’s lost.
I found it difficult to get into at first - a story of this nature can be difficult to connect to. You don’t get enough time to love a character or their purpose. But suddenly it seemed to click and I didn’t want it to finish.
Thinking back, it was interesting to see a stranger from so many point of views, it allowed the reader to put together their own version of them. We also got to see a wider world as they interacted with all the new people.
I liked the setting - Earth destroyed by climate change - and thought it was interesting to see it on the shoulder of its first visitor in hundreds of years. It’s always fun to see these kind of stories have treasures like books/comics.

"Frontier" by Grace Curtis is a compelling fusion of science fiction and Western genres, offering a fresh narrative that keeps readers engaged from start to finish. Curtis masterfully constructs a vivid world where the remnants of a dystopian society blend with the raw, untamed essence of a frontier landscape. The novel's protagonist navigates this harsh environment, encountering diverse characters and facing numerous challenges that test their resilience and moral compass. Curtis's storytelling is marked by rich descriptions and a fast-paced plot, making "Frontier" a thrilling and thought-provoking read. It's an excellent pick for fans of genre-blending fiction and those who appreciate a strong, character-driven tale.

In the distant future, Earth has been reduced to a wasteland and when a stranger crashes to earth she must navigate this landscape of saints and sinners, lawmakers and sheriffs, travellers and gunslingers to find who she is looking for.

This was a bit of a shame because it had a lot of potential, but was really let down by its structure, it really made it difficult to feel any sort of connection to its characters, or crucially, its main character. I understood the intention of these almost episodic-type missions she must go through to reach her destination. Each with a new location and set of characters, but the POV changes just felt sporadic and not all that clear.
And while I enjoyed the action on the ground while she made her way towards her destination, and could see why her identity and history was being withheld, I think the story overall would have benefitted from having more of the journey on the ship introduced earlier, not even necessarily from our protagonist’s perspective. Because ultimately, there was just very little pay-off for the reveal when we did get it.
The world building was really cool, and what kept me invested where the character work didn’t. The religious aspect was really interesting in this sort of dystopian world, I really enjoyed the exploration of that.

Overall, it just struggled to keep momentum by throwing the reader into all these different characters’ heads, rather than keeping close to our protagonist. But the idea and writing style were enjoyable so I’ll definitely be interested in picking up more from Grace Curtis in the future.

Thank you NetGalley and Hodderscape for my e-arc of this title, received in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the sound of this one but just sadly could not get into it. I'm not sure if I'm in the wrong headspace so I might try to pick it up when I'm in more of a sci-fi mood.

A quirky and fun sci-fi, for fans of Becky Chambers and Stark Holborn. Definitely slow to start, but once it gets into the swing of things it’s a pretty enjoyable read.

3.5 STARS
This book just didn't quite grip me the way I wanted it to, I didn't quite connect with our MC and I found the structure to be bit mid for the story it was trying to tell. :(

I liked Frontier but didn’t love it. It took me a long time to get into it, and I found myself losing interest.

However the overall premise was great and I enjoyed the writing style. I would recommend this book, it just wasn’t for me

Please note that this book is not for me - I have read the book, However I had to DNF and because i do not like to give negative reviews I will not review this book fully - there is no specific reason for not liking this book. I found it a struggle to read and did not enjoy trying to force myself to read this book.

Apologies for any inconvenience caused and thank you for the opportunity to read this book

This is a lovely story following a mysterious character whose name changes throughout the story (The Stranger, The Guest etc) on a quest to find their missing girlfriend. Part of the joy of the story is the slow reveal of information and background which we gradually discover. The world building was great and I would enjoy reading more stories set in this world.

I enjoyed the book so much I've gone and bought a copy of it to support the author even further.

Thanks to and Netgalley for this review copy.

Ok, if Love, Loss, and Laser guns hasn't already got you on board: let me explain further. A sapphic sci-fi novel in a desolate, climate change-ravaged Earth. People are as diverse and divided as they've ever been - except in their shared suspicions when a stranger comes to town. Until one day - a new person arrives: scared and looking for someone.
This book was wonderous: funny and hit an emotional punch all in one swoop. I loved it :)

Honestly I just thought this was okay. I had really high hopes but it was just a little lacklustre for me.

The world building was absolutely fantastic, it made me feel like I was really there in the story and immersed and I loved the characters.

However, I found the plot to be a little meh. It was imaginative but I feel like the delivery wasn’t great and I was confused quite a lot and it just didn’t quite get there for me.

Overall, immaculate vibes, poor delivery

Personally, Grace Curtis writing style isn't for me, but I know this book is going to be LOVED by many

Quirky, fast paced and entertaining. A recommended purchase for collections where offbeat SF is popular.

I think the concept was a lot more promising than what the book delivered. I found it hard to stay interested even though it should have been something i found really cool (queer, western vibes, mystery). it swtiched up too much, and got through complications too quickly.

i also didn't feel attached to anyone and therefore and no skin in the game as it were.

when the earth finally reaches the end this books plot begins as some of its inhabitants travel to the moon and beyond to find another life.
The plot of this book was an easy one to follow and had a natural flow to it was i was happy with. the characters are nicely written and as the story moves forwards you see they growth and this make the book one of those rare finds which keep hold of you even after you have finished it

This was more of a Dystopian western.

The characters were varied and well developed.

Each chapter was an individual short story, which made the story a bit disjointed at times.

Overall though a good read.

The world building in this was very good, but the story structure was not for me. I didn't find that I was able to connect with the MC at all.

This story follows a traveller, a soldier that has landed on a hostile Earth, looking for the woman she loves. The Earth has been ravaged by climate change, and it has hardened not just the planet, but its people, who have grown distrusting of strangers. As the story unfolds we learn more about this stranger, her history, feelings and motivations, as well as what has befallen the planet. It's a wonderful mix of SF, love story and western.
I felt that the story slowed down and meandered a little in the middle, but otherwise the pacing was good and it certainly picked up again as it moved towards a satisfying ending. I'm grateful to have been given a copy of this by the publisher and NetGalley, and I look forward to seeing what Grace Curtis has in store for us in the future.

I'd heard a lot about this book and was keen to dive in and see what the fuss was about. A sci-fi western with an intriguing heroine - just my thing!

Sadly, I couldn't get on with it.

Said heroine was interesting, but seemed confused and lost more than she perhaps should have. The setting wasn't well realised, and characters appeared and disappeared (by leaving or dying) so quickly, I wasn't sure who I was supposed to remember!

Sadly this was a DNF for me. Perhaps it was the style of writing, but I was sorry I couldn't see it through.

I loved the world building in this book. It captured exactly the vibe and energy of a frontier town and there was a wild range of characters. However, I found the story confusing, rambling- rally hard to see what was going on. It was an imaginative and original story but the delivery failed. Many thanks to Netgalley for an arc of this book.