Ardulum: First Don is the first book in a space opera series that features a rag tag group of cargo carriers/explorers caught amid interplanetary war with a young alien goddess at it’s centre. We have a badass female pilot- who was kicked off her PLANET because she tried to start a revolution (YES QUEEN)- found family elements, and the slight beginning of a slow burn f/f romance. In other words what more could I want??

Well…..

(As it turns out quite a few things)

I was surprised by how much I liked this in the end. Especially because for most of the book I had no clue what was happening, it was very much vibes. Okay that’s a little unfair, I enjoyed Neek (our badass pilot) and Emn’s (our alien goddess) chapters very much. Their found family and the chapters focused on the crew and aboard the ship were my favourite parts.

However, when we got the other character’s chapters everything went fuzzy. The politics, the world building, and the plot all went OVER my head. Now that could be because I don’t read sci-fi that often and let’s be real re reading The Murderbot Diaries ten times does not make me a sci-fi reader. As much as I wish it did, and I genuinely think that reason is the heart of my issues with this book.

Someone who loves sci-fi and reads it consistently is probably going to love this. Nonetheless I am curious enough to continue with the next book. Neek, Emn and the crew pulled on my heartstrings and I do want to see how their story ends.

Ardulum: First Don has been on my TBR for... a while... (The series is complete and I had an ARC, that's all I'm saying). I'm not sure why I held off -- Because sci-fi is definitely a moodread for me, perhaps? -- but I was pleasantly surprised and glad I finally gave it a go.

The book has a fantastic, dramatic opening but then shifts focus and, for me, takes a while to really get going again. That's because there's a LOT of world-building going on: people and planets and cultures and galaxy politics. It took time and focus to get a handle on all the species, individuals and how they were connected. AND it has a pretty complicated story, with intergalactic war. That being said, there's so much happening, that once you get immersed the book becomes really intriguing. This might be because I don't read too much science fiction, a sci-fi fan might get a handle on things much faster.

I thought Neek was an incredbily interesting protagonist. She's from a planet called Neek (yup) but has been exiled for speaking out against her planets isolation and religious fervour.

Ardulum: First Don is a difficult book to describe -- I enjoyed it, but I'm not sure I could tell you the exact reasons why -- but I think it'll be a big hit for reader looking for complex space operas. It's marketed as a lesbian romance and, while I know from looking it up that there will be a romance as the series progresses, I'd actually say that this once has incredibly little to none. Not a bad thing, but something to know if you're considering it for that reason.

Loads of potential here, and I'm interested in what happens next, so hopefully I get around to the sequel soon, but I think it's one I have to be in the right mood for.

A surprising read you need to try for yourself.

*thank you to Netgalley and NineStar Press, LLC for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

2 stars.

This should have been a perfect match for me. Ya, Space, Aliens. But unfortunately I had such a hard time getting into it. It had parts that I enjoyed but they were short and few. I can see why others really enjoyed this, but either I was in the wrong frame of mind for it or it just wasn't for me. It was written really well, so its not that that isnthe issue. If I give this another chance at some stage, I'll update my review. But for now, it's just an OK read.

*~~*ARC kindly provided to me for an honest review *~~*

- Review to come

Review originally posted on my blog with added content on Mikku-chan / A world full of words

Actual rating is 3.5, but I bumped up my star rating

Almost Exclusively Plot

Neek makes a living piloting a claptrap transport ship, the Mercy’s Pledge, smuggling not so legal good, across peaceful systems. Barely making ends meet she is burdened with a strange child that reminds her of the traveler planet, Ardulum. The Ardulans visited her home world long ago gifting Neek’s people with technology, art and agriculture. When they mysteriously disappeared, her people began to worship them as gods. Neek doesn’t believe the people of Ardulum are gods, so her people kicked her off the planet as a heretic.

Neek’s planet is pretty cool. It’s called Neek, and so is every single adult on the planet. Why? Because her people believe that everyone is and should be treated the same. No one is better, and no one is worse. So Neek getting kicked off her planet is a big deal and everyone who meets her knows she must have REALLY messed up.

What I found really interesting is the gender-less pronouns used in this book. I know some English teachers that would have a heart attack looking at this book. Lol This used on the aliens is perfect. After all, surely not all life is gendered.

LGBTQ+ was pretty light in this book, which is perfect for slipping it pass someone who may still be a little uncomfortable with the idea of LGBTQ+ featuring within books. It’s a nice introductory.

Be warned, there is some interplanetary politics going on in this book, but I enjoyed it so it’s obviously not that heavy on the politics.

In Conclusion

This was an interesting, pretty original science fiction read. I would recommend this to select people I think would enjoy it..

This was an interesting book with beautifully described new species, characters and worlds. However, the story itself was a bit of a letdown for me. I’m not a big sci-fi fan and there was a lot about aliens and characters that just all of a sudden are grown up, which was kind of strange. Another thing was that there wasn’t really anything “”lesbian” in this book - I think it will be in the next one maybe...

In exile for defying belief in the lost gods of her planet and what that belief has done to her people, Neek becomes the conduit to reach them.
Part space opera, part organic sci-fi, with a few too many cantina-ish alien races: Ardulum: First Don follows two young women through their own types of growths and transitions and the impacts of each on them and through the systems.
The third person pronouns: binary, non-binary, alien and planetary, take some time to get used to but are manageable. The interaction and dialogue between the main characters works, but those same between the sub characters and sub plots seem forced and in many cases throw off the flow of the story.