YES, I loved this! Do I now love romance novels, have I always, did I just need spaceships to make me love them? Regardless, this book was a total delight.

This book is SciFi with strong romantic elements, with a mystery in it as well. And it was WONDERFUL. I couldn't put it down. I really hope that Maxwell writes more books set in this galaxy. I am intrigued by the world building, how the empires & planets relate to each other, and would be really interested in other books that continue to explore this. I am also really interested in some of the side characters. I really hope Maxwell writes a book about Kiem's assistant. I would love if they could fill in her background more, as well as explore where she goes in the future. I would also really enjoy if she continued to tell stories about what happens with Kiem and Jainan. I just want MORE. So, I hope everyone reads this book.

The focus is very much on the romance with intergalactic politics playing a secondary role. It’s sweet and fun with grittier aspects and good pacing. I enjoyed it but as is often the case, I remain indifferent to the romance. I am a difficult person to get to ship characters however, and I did enjoy reading the two MCs interactions. I would definitely like to see more books of this type out there.

I am a big fan of any Space Opera with a side of romance, and Winter's Orbit was perfect for that. The blend between space politics and romantic intrigue is great and I enjoyed seeing all the familiar favourite tropes.
It was refreshing to see the diversity within the gender and sexuality of characters.
The writing style is easy to follow and you will soon get sucked into the worldbuilding.
I will definitely be picking up a physical copy of this book!

The Iskan Empire has ruled its star system for generations on life extended generations, largely through alliances and treaties, their vassal planets always having a representative married into the imperial family to better secure everything. Family disappointment Kiem knows this, has known it all his life, even as he never expected it to effect him in any way. So it comes as a shock when he is called into the Emperor’s offices and told that he will be marrying his cousin Imperial Prince Jaan’s widower, the Thean representative, Jainan. The Thean representative is closed off, afraid of making mistakes in his position and reflecting poorly on Thea or his deceased husband. So when it comes to light that Prince Taam’s death might not have been the accident it appeared to be, the safety of Iskat and the system itself is at risk. Kiem and Jainan will have to work together to face everything from Iskan bureaucracy to a home grown conspiracy that might spark an interplanetary war.

Everina Maxwell’s Winter’s Orbit is a book that I enjoyed greatly and I know I enjoyed it, but I find myself having something of a hard time putting words to why I enjoyed it. What parts exactly worked for me and why, and what parts I might have liked to see a bit less of. The blurb sells it as a story about two people needing to come together and learn to trust each other in order to solve a murder and prevent a terrible war that threatens the entire systems. And it is that, but it also really is not that at all.

Kiem trusts Jainan from the word go. He wants to give him room to grieve before doing anything with their marriage, to be open with this gorgeous closed off man who has suddenly been thrust into his life, and to understand why he cannot seem to communicate with Jainan without seeming to mess up, much less talk to him. Kiem is warm and optimistic and far smarter than he lets on, though his is largely social intelligence. He is the kind of character you want to take gently by the face and tell him he is being an idiot, while also having moments of legitimate cleverness and being more than willing to help where and how he can. This all makes the fact that he never quite seems as out of his depth as it feels like he should be fit, because Kiem knows that he is digging further in than he should but he also has the confidence to pull off any number of bluffs and knows how to ask the right questions to get people talking. It works really well and makes the fact that all of this falls apart when it comes to Jainan that much more interesting. It winds up being down right charming how much Kiem wants to understand Jainan and earn his trust because it feels like that is the place where all his social knowledge stops working and he has to be just Kiem. It makes his position at the end of the book both feel like it fits him well as well as making it feel earned.

Meanwhile, it becomes difficult to talk about Jainan with out spoiling aspects of the later plot. I am going to go ahead and warn for those spoilers here, because I feel like that is an important part of the story and it ties into everything later on. This also serves as something of a content warning. It is hinted at early on and then revealed over the course of the story that Jainan’s previous husband, the deceased Prince Taam, was abusive towards him. This abuse from his previous husband colors all of Jainan’s interactions with and expectations of Kiem for a huge chunk of the book as well as driving reveals about Taam’s character and the mystery surrounding his murder. It makes the frustrating moments early on, where it feels like Jainan should just listen to what Kiem is saying and relax some, hit like a truck later with the realization that it is not just Jainan being high strung but him trying to keep himself safe. It did not make for comfortable reading, but it was well done and well worked into the greater story as well as the building relationship between Jainan and Kiem.

The character work is pretty fantastic. I found myself liking these characters and wanting to see more of them down the road. The story did not always seem to be there for them though, it could feel like there were too many threads to all tie together at the end. Though I do feel like Maxwell did an admirable job with guiding things to a satisfying conclusion, there were many dispirit parts that felt like they tied up a little too easily. That is not entirely a complaint, this is definitely a book that lives by its characters, but I would have liked to have seen a bit more of the complications given more space and impact. A lot of the greater happenings could feel like they only sort have affected Kiem and Jainan, but landed in their laps because they were the protagonists.

Which brings me to this, I really want to see what Everina Maxwell does next. I devoured Winter’s Orbit, enjoying characters and descriptions of locations and the story as it grew. I wanted to talk about this book without really knowing what I most wanted to talk about because so much of it felt worth talking about. So, it gets a five out of five from me. Definitely give it a read if you get the chance.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It reminded me of Red, White, and Royal Blue and Boyfriend Material, two of my favorite M/M adult romances, but this time set in space! It had all of the humor, banter, and swoon I love in romances with way more substance, plot, and intrigue than I was expecting. I'll read more by this author for sure.

WINTER'S ORBIT is a queernorm, 'soft' science fiction novel that manages to draw extraordinary impact from well-worn science fiction and fantasy tropes and plotlines. It features the wayward, playboy-type Prince Kiem who is unexpectedly maneuvered into a last-minute arranged marriage with Count Jainan after Jainan's previous partner was killed in a shuttlebug accident. Unfortunately for everyone involved, the 'accident' doesn't look too accidental, and it quickly falls to Jainan and Kiem to save the treaty between their planets by figuring out what actually happened and why.

Although the plot sounds simplistic, the characterization fills it out well. Jainan and Kiem are both incredibly nuanced with realistic strengths and insecurities clearly shaped by their respective environments, which makes them a pair of protagonists it is difficult not to root for. The fact that the plot hits very familiar beats to the genre-savvy reader means that more time can be spent on the characters themselves, who grow tremendously throughout the novel. There is an abundance of strong secondary characters, each of whom could easily captain their own novella, and there is easy, natural integration of nonbinary gender identities throughout. Overall, although Maxwell does not spend very much time worldbuilding at the beginning of the novel, but does reveal enough pieces that as the novel wears on, it becomes clear that the world is as well-developed as the characters in it.

This is an excellent book for adult readers unfamiliar with science fiction who want to explore the genre, and for those who love a good character-driven adventure. It is likely not a novel with very much teen appeal.

An amazing fast-paced, engrossing, political sci-fi with fun and lovable characters whilst still having a plot you can follow and be invested in.

I cannot believe how much I loved this! If you liked the main couple in Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall, you'll love these two. I've also seen it comp'd to Red, White and Royal Blue which makes TOTAL sense! Love me some political sci‑fi but when you mix in slow‑burn romance (arranged marriage to actual love), partners that respect boundaries, and the importance of acknowledging power imbalances and abuse of power... You have me.

Everina Maxwell's Winter's Orbit absolutely blew me away with its intricate world-building, complex political structure, layered characters, and twists and turns. I adore Sci-Fi as a genre, and this story slots right in with some of my all-time favourites!

Winter's Orbit begins with the revelation that our protagonist, Prince Kiem, has been promised to widower Jainan in an arranged political marriage to maintain relations between worlds in the grand Iskat Empire. Kiem, an unlikely choice for a diplomatic position due to his frivolous lifestyle, struggles to come to terms with the drastic shift in his circumstances and to connect with his closed-off new husband. But when it becomes clear that Jainan's late partner, Prince Taam, was the victim of a murder of which Jainan himself is suspected, Kiem and Jainan must find a way to trust each other and to protect the security of their respective worlds and the entire Iskat Empire.

I loved the inclusion of various gender identities in this novel and the clever ways gender was identified between cultures. The gender inclusivity of this story, as well as the central relationship between two men, created a solid foundation of much-needed LGBTQIA+ representation in the Sci-Fi genre.

Maxwell put a lot of thought into how the various worlds in the Empire function and relate to each other, and that detail added so much nuance to this story. Traditional dress was referenced throughout and painted a vivid picture of this vast and culturally diverse empire of planets.

While there was much to love about this story, not the least of which being the auditor's disquieting presence as he holds the empire's future in his fist and an intriguing murder mystery, my favourite element, without a doubt, was the slow-burn romance between Kiem and Jainan. Jainan, a reserved man and abuse survivor, is slow to trust, and Kiem, a former playboy, struggles to find the sensitivity and vulnerability required to build a bridge. The gradual development of a deep connection between them was an absolute joy to read and left my heart so full.

I cannot recommend Winter's Orbit enough to my fellow lovers of the Sci-Fi genre. I can't wait to read what Evelina Maxwell writes next!

Winters Orbit was a book I hadn’t even heard of before, but it ended up becoming one of my favorite books of 2021, and possibly one of my favorite books ever. What made this book so amazing for me were the two main characters, Kiem and Jainan. The two are forced into a marriage alliance after Kiem’s counsin, who is also Jainan’s husband dies. Kiem is such a cinnamon roll to Jainan, but you can definitely tell something is up with Jainan. You can read the signs and my heart absolutely broke for him repeatedly. I loved watching the two of them begin a friendship and Jainan slowly learn to trust Kiem. Then when the two start to fall in love….well it was everything I could want. There is a lot of political stuff happening too, but I cared less about that and more about the characters. This is a book that I plan reading over and over again. I loved it so much!

Quite liked this debut though I wouldn’t quite call it a space opera — more of a sci-fi romance. However it is very fun and creative enough to sustain the story and build a real romance.

The plot is decent but the real draw are the two main characters and their evolving relationship. TW for domestic abuse flashbacks. Heavier themes but not rooted in queer trauma. I’d be open to more books set in this universe.

When Prince Kiem is called into the Iskat Emperor's room, he isn't completely surprised by the order to marry for diplomatic reasons. He is, however, surprised to be marrying Count Jainan — a man from the foreign planet Thea, and one whose previous partner (Kiem's cousin) died just a month before — just one day later. The reason for this rush is the upcoming re-signing of the Resolution, a 20-year treaty that will guarantee peace within the sector of space in which Iskat and Thea exist. Serious and intelligent, Jainan is everything that charming Kiem isn't, and as the two ease into their marriage, they begin to realize that Jainan's first husband may have been murdered, and the man certainly wasn't who he seemed to the public.

This is a fun read that combines a love story with plenty of political intrigue, and Maxwell does justice to both parts equally, which is no mean feat. It's almost like reading a lighter version of the award-winning A Memory Called Empire (which should be taken as a compliment). Definitely recommended.

The stars coated the night sky, expanding across the galaxy and illuminating the darkness surrounding him. A light snow fell as he closed his eyes and inhaled the crisp air. Beyond him, in the uncharted territory past the mountains, other planets circled around. Each with its own aura as they floated amongst the galaxy. He felt infinitesimally small on his own planet, but could sense his ability to do something big within the galaxy.

Winter’s Orbit was a sci-fi adventure, introducing us to Jainen and Kiem, one a representative and count of his planet, the other a prince of his. Together they must unite their two empires to form a treaty to remain within the Revolution (or galaxy).

Now, when the book started off, I felt way over my head with the scientific jargon being used, but eventually I understood and got the hang of things. A murder, a secret operation, possible war? All of these things began to unravel, threatening to break the treaty apart and cause chaos to the planets.

This book has a lot of slow moving and repetitive sections, which made it hard for me to fully invest myself in the story. I was honestly bored for most of it. Plus, this book was advertised as a sci-fi romance and it definitely is just sci-fi... there is little to no romance in this one. But I really liked Jainen and Kiem (despite all the miscommunication in the beginning) and their character dynamics kept me reading.

I recommend this one if you enjoy sci-fi and want a book with LGBTQ+ representation.

TW: Murder, Physical/Emotional Abuse.

A fun romp through a science fiction world, with some twists and turns throughout. I had some trouble getting into this one, but once I'd gotten into it, I couldn't put it down. Loved the back and forth between the two mains.

5/5⭐️ to Winter’s Orbit by Everina Maxwell! Thank you so much to Tor & NetGalley for an egalley copy to review!
This book transported me to a different, amazing world just as a good sci-fi book should! The writing was beautiful, and I could totally picture all the different place we went in this world with the landscape, buildings, and of course characters! To say I adored our main characters & their relationship would be an understatement. Kiem & Jainan were so full of life and colour, and I could feel their pull together electrically. As someone who loves romance, did I wish for more of their relationship and romantic scenes? Heck yes! But I realize that this was a sci-fi where romance is not necessarily at the forefront. That being said, it was super satisfying to see them go from strangers being married in a political alliance, to an immediate connection, to love. They were so cute!!! Speaking of sci-fi, we got some amazing action scenes and court politics. We got the fun space ship chase scenes, which were so good! The court politics and scheming was *chefs kiss*. I felt the danger, I felt invested, and I wanted to figure it out! There were true stakes in this, which made the book super effective. You never quite knew who to trust, and it was such an amazing ride! Please read this book! You won’t regret it!

+Arranged marriage trope
+Wholesome relationship
+Genuinely kind/good main characters
+Intriguing mystery-based plot

I had high hopes going into this because some trusted friends loved it, but I still didn't expect to love it this much.

While I usually like a bit more world-building in my sci-fi, the rest of this book more than made up for it. The setting was more background to the plot and character arcs, and we were only given information as we needed it, and only just enough to understand the plot. It ended up fitting the story well, since both Kiem themselves didn't know much of the world either, by choice or not. It meant we were on the same page as the characters for the story, and it ensured we saw things in a similar way they did. I am still very intrigued by the world though, as the small bits and pieces we got in this book were definitely interesting.

The strongest aspect of this story was by far the characters. I have so much love and appreciate for Kiem and Jainan, and I just loved how soft they both felt. There was miscommunication and frustration in their storyline, but these two characters are just such genuinely good people that I could never hold it against them. I loved seeing them grow as individuals and as a couple, and it was great to see such a wholesome relationship grow out of jagged remains of their backgrounds. I can definitely see myself rereading this book just to see their relationship grow again.

The plot was in perfect harmony with the character arcs. It was strong on its own yet didn't take too much away from the emotional journey the characters were both going through. It also brought in some sci-fi elements I always love, from the political intrigue across planets to weird experimental tech. The mystery itself also gripped me, yet I was a bit clueless to actually solving it (I didn't even have any theories! But honestly, I think I was distracted by Kiem and Jainan). I also really enjoyed that while this part of the book had a solid ending, it didn't take away from the romance ending well as well. There was space for both, and the balance of these two elements made the book a five-star read for me.

Overall, I highly recommend this book, and I can't wait to see what the author writes next! I heard she's writing another story in the same universe, and to say I'm excited is definitely an understatement.

Thank you so much to the lovely publicist at Tor Books for sending a copy for me to read and review!
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CW: (Past) Domestic Abuse, Interrogation, Violence, Anxiety, Manipulation
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I was so excited when I found out about this book and thought it was what fiction dreams are made of with queer arranged marriage as the main attraction for me. I have not read any book yet with this trope that is also queer, so it was such a delight to have it in publishing! And to find out that it was originally started online was an added excitement bonus.
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"Winter's Orbit", I found, was a great slow-burn romance but leans heavier on political intrigue and mystery. Everything felt raw and authentic as one of the main characters was in the process of healing from the past; a story of hope, comfort, and second chances along the way. Despite it being heavy on the politics and mystery, there was also added humor, and the romance between the characters felt natural. It was an interesting, fun, and unique read that I can see a lot of people will surely love.
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What I did not like though is that some parts of the book felt a little bit dull and dragging. The world building could have been done better, and the story could have had more moments to see the development between the main characters.
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But overall, I highly recommend it if you are in for spacial mystery and political intrigue with a queer arranged marriage trope!

This book is Not For Me, but anyone who enjoys SFF may find this very enjoyable. I downlaoded this to give it a go, I'm trying to expand my reading, but the genre still doesn't tick my boxes.

Winter's Orbit is a great recommend for any Science Fiction fan. The world created by Maxwell is fascinating and vivid. The murder mystery driving the plot and the characters forward is gripping. While the romance is more subdued, it is really nice to read about two characters slowly getting to know each other. Their relationship seemed realistic and it was pleasant to see that in a book for a change (love at first sight is fun to read about, but not realistic). This is a good recommend for readers who loved Gideon the Ninth or Aurora Rising.

This book reminds me of champagne and warm apple cider.

Content warnings: discussion of spousal abuse, both physical and emotional, and recovery from it (which I will discuss in some detail in this review); secondary character death; minor violence and injury.

God, I loved this book. These are always the hardest reviews to write – it’s so hard to distill your feelings into words when every single aspect of a book is brilliant. I’m going to try to be slightly more articulate than screaming AHHHH at you, but please know that’s really what I’d like to do. This is exactly the kind of sci-fi that I like – plenty of space flavouring and clever worldbuilding, but ultimately a novel about people being people.

I adored both main characters. Kiem is wonderfully drawn, the emperor’s least favourite grandson and the kind of rebellious playboy who’s trying a little too hard to pretend he doesn’t care about his reputation. I loved him and his awkwardly charming voice instantly, to the point where I was a little disappointed the first time the perspective switched to Jainan. But I shouldn’t have been! I actually ended up loving Jainan even more – he’s a serious man, very loyal and with a strong sense of his duty as the face of Thea, but as you get to know him, it becomes clear there is way more going on beneath the surface. The characters are one of the best parts of this already brilliant book, and I cared so much about their development – they will stay with me for a long time. There are so many brilliant side characters too, all of whom feel like real people. This world just feels alive!

A mildly spoilery paragraph now, so skip ahead if you want to go in completely cold, or if you don’t want to read about the depiction of abuse in this book…. My spidey senses were set off early on, and it was very clear to me from the way Jainan behaved around Kiem that there was a deep trauma that had crushed a lot of his sense of self. There are such accurately observed, tiny behaviours of someone who’s spent time living under the thumb of a controlling partner, and they are acutely well-described, to the point that I found some of Jainan’s chapters far more intense and claustrophobic than the actual on-page action felt like it warranted. It’s exquisitely well done as a character study, but I would be careful going into this one if it’s a subject you find difficult. Jainan’s development is extraordinarily rewarding, so it’s well worth pushing through, but before I read the book, I saw a lot of people gushing over the cuteness of it and really neglecting to talk about the sharpness of the depiction of domestic abuse, which I think is doing a disservice both to the book and to readers; while it is, ultimately, a hopeful and comforting story, that happiness comes from building on darkness, and to ignore that would be wrong.

What I loved about this book was that blend of wholesome and dark, of quiet character work and intense politicking. If I had to describe it to two different friends, I think I’d end up highlighting totally different elements of the story, but it’s so deftly blended that it works beautifully. It’s simultaneously a really sweet tale of two idiots falling in love, and a searingly honest look at recovery from abuse and the dangers of rulership. The intrigue and political manoeuvring is just *chef’s kiss* good – it’s one of my favourite genres of fantasy, and I never thought to see it done so well in science-fiction! The dualities of the action and the character development, and the dark themes and the fluffy love story, are magnificently done, and make this book even more than the sum of its parts. Imagine if Becky Chambers wrote an outline of a novel, then handed her notebook to Elizabeth Bear to actually write the thing. It is fluffy and uplifting, but somehow simultaneously dark and intense, like a marshmallow full of emotions.

Obviously the fact that there’s an arranged marriage between two men here speaks to the queer-norm worldbuilding, but I thought that this was cleverly woven into the story through other ways. Gender isn’t binary, and the customs of Iskat reflect this beautifully, with people signalling their gender through specific use of materials in their outfits, which is clever and leads to much less ambiguity than trying to guess from appearance. However, what really elevated this to the next level for me was seeing this custom through Jainan’s eyes, as well as Kiems; as a Thean, Jainan wasn’t raised with this Iskan custom, and has to remind himself this is how it works here (though he’s no less accepting of any gender). This diversity between cultures adds so much realism to the setting, and also takes the queer-normity to another level – of course, different cultures would deal with it differently. The issue isn’t painted over as simply sorted in this world, but it’s shown to be a living, breathing part of the world. I’m only highlighting this one tiny aspect of the worldbuilding here, but this is repeated throughout lots of different aspects, and it helps to create the feeling of a really realistic and diverse empire.

Fans of Becky Chambers should immediately read this book, but I also think those who loved Ancestral Night by Elizabeth Bear (review here), or A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine will enjoy this too. It would also be a great first sci-fi for romance readers, or for those who love political fantasy like The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison or Queen of Coin and Whispers by Helen Corcoran (review here), or for those who love fun and fluffy queer arranged marriage fantasies like A Deceptive Alliance by Sydney Blackburn (review here), or Of Fire and Stars by Audrey Coulthurst. It’s kind of not really like any of these, but I think if you enjoyed any one of them you’ll find something to love here – it’s just a wonderful, wonderful mix of all the things I love in a book. I’ll be surprised if this isn’t in my top few books of the year, and even though it’s early in the year, I’m giving it ten out of five stars!