TBR Pile Review: Winter’s Orbit, by Everina Maxwell

Blurb

While the Iskat Empire has long dominated the system through treaties and political alliances, several planets, including Thea, have begun to chafe under Iskat’s rule. When tragedy befalls Imperial Prince Taam, his Thean widower, Jainan, is rushed into an arranged marriage with Taam’s cousin, the disreputable Kiem, in a bid to keep the rising hostilities between the two worlds under control.

But when it comes to light that Prince Taam’s death may not have been an accident, and that Jainan himself may be a suspect, the unlikely pair must overcome their misgivings and learn to trust one another as they navigate the perils of the Iskat court, try to solve a murder, and prevent an interplanetary war… all while dealing with their growing feelings for each other.

My Review

I think I got this book when it was published and I’ve been meaning to read it for about 18 months, but I’ve been busy. Last night I decided to go through some of the books on my TBR sci fi and fantasy pile. I started reading a short story collection, Spirits Abroad by Zen Cho, but then I decided to read some sci fi. I am slowly making my way through the TBR pile, and this is the next one on the list. I have so many series to read as well, and all my hardbacks from Goldsboro Books.

Did I like this book? Yes, I found it entertaining. I actually managed to sit still for almost six hours and stay up too late to read this book.

Did I like the characters? Yes, I though Jainen and Kiem were complex, well-rounded characters. Jainen’s PTSD and domestic abuse survivor status is revealed slowly. Kiem’s developing understanding of himself and his partner is a journey he has to go through. The amount of misunderstanding and confusion between the two men is funny and frustrating at times. Due to the abuse Jainen has suffered he really can’t differentiate between Kiem checking he’s well and a criticism of his behaviour. Like many survivors, he has been conditioned to blame himself for everything and minimise his own needs. The trip through the winter mountains breaks through some of their communication difficulties and is the turning point in the novel, in both their personal lives and in the investigation into Taam’s death and his criminal actions. I love the fact that they can see the best in each other and are willing to tell each other not to put themselves down.

Bel, Professor Audel and Gairad are my favourite minor characters. They’re so much fun, and save their lives/freedom multiple times. Gairad is so cool, I hope she gets her own book at some point.

What did I think of the worldbuilding? Really cool, especially the slowly revealed truth that Iskat is a backwater in a much wider Universe, and their internal squabbles are a mere nuisance to the Resolution. I liked that the gender classifications vary across the planets in the system, and the different symbols they use are simple, and that people accept that sometimes presentation or bodies isn’t always an obvious indication of gender. There’s an incident where someone is misgendered, but when corrected Kiem accepts it and uses the correct gender immediately and they just move on.

Did I enjoy the mystery of who killed Taam and why? Yes, it was gripping. The convoluted layers of criminal actions and war crimes, the struggle to get through the many layers of military obfuscation, the final confrontation between Aren and Kiem to save Jainen, I couldn’t put it down.

Did I enjoy the romance element of this novel? Surprisingly, yes. I am not good at the lovey-dovey stuff, so I was quite happy to find the focus of their romance is really about their path to understanding each other, in a subtle way. I liked the fact that it’s queer love.

Any other thoughts? I can easily read both Kiem and Jainen as neurodivergent, either innate or induced. PTSD changes how the brain and sensory system functions, and Jainen seems like he’s Autistic: he hyperfocuses, he doesn’t understand a lot of social conventions, he describes eye contact as painful and the noise and lights of an event are a fog, and he’s vulnerable to exploitation. Kiem strikes me as an ADHDer, especially his impulsiveness and distractibility. It makes him good at diplomacy and dealing with so many different people, but his inability to settle in education has made him believe he’s unintelligent. I was reminded of ADHD people I know, who struggled at school, behaved impulsively as a young person and then once they find their niche they flourish.

Professor Audel is definitely autistic, I’m sorry, she just is. I wouldn’t normally ‘diagnose’ a fictional character unless the author had canonically said the character is neurodivergent, but as a neurodivergent reader it is wonderful to find mirrors of myself in characters. It makes me wonder if the author is neurodivergent in some way.

Also, there were dinosaurs. Lots of dinosaurs. I loved the bit where Kiem and Jainen disagreed over what a bear is.

In sum, I really enjoyed this book.