She Who Devours the Stars – Book Review
She Who Devours the Stars by Danica Odette Moureaux is a novel that doesn’t just grab you, it pulls you into its gravitational field and keeps you orbiting long after you’ve turned the final page. I was so excited to get a review copy of this book because it literally feels like it was written just for me!
Let’s get into my spoiler-free review and I will tell you why I loved it so much.
A Love Story Written in Stardust
What begins as a straightforward one-night stand swiftly develops into something far more intricate and exquisite. Our deliciously chaotic protagonist, Fern Meldin, becomes attached to Vireleth the Closure, a mythship carrying more emotional baggage than the passengers of a space station. Any sci-fi lover would be impressed by the notion alone, but Moureaux takes this idea and creates something genuinely unique.
The relationship between Fern and her mythship reads like the best kind of found family story (if your family happened to be a sentient spacecraft with abandonment issues and a flair for the dramatic). A fully developed character with dimensions comparable to any human protagonist, Vireleth is so fun to read and get to know. It’s amazing how Moureaux depicts their relationship, which is a combination of symbiosis, therapy, and cosmic destiny.
Characters That Feel Like Real People (Even the Spaceship)
Authentically flawed, truly humorous, and surprisingly resilient, Fern Meldin is the kind of “disaster lesbian” that we all need to see more of in fiction. Despite her exceptional circumstances, she is instantly approachable due to her internal monologue, which is equally witty and vulnerable.
However, once Dyris Vaelith makes an appearance, she really steals the show. She is the Director of the Accord Emergence Division and is the type of intelligent, capable lady who could “negotiate peace treaties or start wars with equal flair.”
Mythpunk Excellence
This world-building is amazing, which is just what you want from this kind of sci-fi. In the universe that Moureaux has built, technology and legend coexist harmoniously. You never doubt the logic of the concept of mythships because it is described with such assurance. Part of the magic is that it just is.
The title’s “astral mess” is more than just a clever wordplay. It captures the lovely chaos of this universe where modern politics clash with ancient powers, where love stories unfold against the backdrop of stellar collapse, and where loneliness may be the most dangerous thing in the galaxy.
Why This Book Works
The One Who Loves the Stars thrives because it recognizes that relationships have always been at the heart of the best science fiction. At its core, this is a novel about connection – between lovers, between partners, between beings who refuse to let each other confront the vacuum alone. Sure, there are ships that consume stars, political intrigues, and powers that bend reality.
The writing achieves the ideal harmony between heart and comedy. Moureaux is skilled at moments of genuine emotional resonance that will leave you pondering about the nature of love and loyalty at two in the morning, but she also has a talent for one-liners that will make you snort with laughter.
The Verdict
This book is for you if you want more stories about women loving women while reality bends around them, if Gideon the Ninth left you craving more necromantic space shenanigans, or if you’ve ever desired Mass Effect featured more queer romance.
She Who Devours the Stars is fearless, humorous, romantic, and completely one-of-a-kind. It’s the kind of debut that makes you eagerly await Book 2 and instantly put the author on your auto-buy list.
With a space opera with passion, a romance with cosmic stakes, and characters that will stay in your heart long after their journey is over, Danica Odette Moureaux has given us something truly unique. It is a most brilliant book in a galaxy full of stars.
Perfect for readers who love: Space opera, sapphic romance, sentient spacecraft, disaster queers, found family, mythological sci-fi, and tales that inspire faith in love over impossibly long distances.
Content notes: LGBTQ+ themes, mild language, some violence, existential longing (the good kind)
She Who Devours the Stars: Book 1 of The Astral Mess is available now. It’s in paperback, Kindle, and Kindle Unlimited.