💰 Hammajang Luck • Makana Yamatoto 💰
★★★★

Read if you enjoy:
💰 Cyberpunk sci-fi
💰 Queer romance
💰 One last heist
💰 Ocean’s 8
💰 A diverse crew that commits crimes against the rich
💰 Hawaiian Pidgin language
💰 A non-binary MC

Edie has done their time in prison, and now they’re going straight. They have a pregnant sister to look after, a nephew who refuses to speak, and a niece with cancer. Except no one will hire somebody with a criminal record. So when Angel offers one last job, for the biggest jackpot they’ve ever scored, Edie cannot resist. Even though Angel was the one that got them sent to prison in the first place.

This was such an epic book! I was constantly on the edge of my seat reading this. Loved the heist, the inclusivity, the cyberpunk vibes, the pidgin dialogue, and the dynamics between literally ALL of the characters. This is written so so well. So well in fact, that I want to know MORE. I wanna read more about how people are robotically modified (modded) and how social stratification perseveres throughout the galaxy. This is such a cool world to pass the time in. My only gripe is the romance, I was getting toxic relationship vibes im sorry 🤣🤣. Edie and Angel needed to become friends again first before any… extras. Hammajang means messed up, but this story is a success.

‘Who needs respectability when you’re rich?’

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. I must admit I usually dread heist books somewhat, as I have read several where the character make stupid decisions and the plan is so implausible that it physically hurts to try and immerse yourself into the story. However, if you are looking for a GOOD heist book where the planning is meticulous and the changes to plans felt real, then THIS is the book for you. I loved the side characters, I loved the world building and I was sad when it ended. Highly recommended.

8 years after their last job went wrong and their partner betrayed them, Edie unexpectedly gets out of prison on good behaviour. Edie is going straight. Except nobody will hire Edie after they've been blacklisted - so one last job it is. They just need a little bit of luck to pull it off in this cyberpunkm queer space heist novel.

I'm struggling to decide on a rating for this one. Aspects of it were really, really well done, and I can't point to anything that I actively disliked. There are, however, a few things I really needed a bit more of to fully flesh out and inform the story. Overall I thought it was a promising debut and I had a good time reading it, so we're rounding it up to 4 stars.

First, the worldbuilding. The physical worldbuilding was very sparse, and I didn't get much of a sense for Kepler, where it takes place. I was really impressed, however, by the 'cultural worldbuilding'. The way Edie and family's Hawaiian roots were interwoven throughout the novel- especially through the use of Hawaiian pidgin in dialogue - was really impressive. The queer rep was also very well done.

Second, the plot. The main plot was a fairly standard heist story. Well-executed, nothing too shocking. The more interesting aspects of it were definitely in how the plot was informed by the characters' backstories, but these never got fleshed out as much as I wanted them to be. I often get frustrated when authors overexplain all the background details - here, surprisingly, I felt they were underexplained at times.

Third, the characters. Edie and their family were absolutely the highlights. The relationships between them were strong and interesting. The rest of the cast was very interesting, but felt a bit stereotypical at times. Angel and Atlas in particular were too one-dimensional for me considering their roles in the story and I didn't really care much about the romantic dynamic with angel as a result of this.

I think this one might disappoint a bit if your expectations are set too high: Gideon the Ninth and Six of Crows are very high bars to clear for a debut novel. It is a good time, though, and I'll happily recommend it to anyone looking for a diverse & queer space heist. The author has promise, and I'm excited to see what they'll write next!


Many thanks to Netgalley & Gollancz for providing me with an ARC.

I saw the description for this pop up on Instagram I think and I thought it sounded like something I would really enjoy. Sadly it didn’t work for me, which was annoying because I really wanted to love it. I couldn’t connect with the characters and I found it hard to keep interested in the story if I’m honest.