Jessie Mihalik has created another fantastic space opera romance. And she somehow made it cozy? I could have lived on the ship along with the crew and ate all the lasagna and snickerdoodle cookies Tavi felt like making for us. Also Luna was an adorable mascot. I really loved the found family aspect of this book and the tension between Tavi and Tarron was perfection. Definitely looking forward to Book 2.

ive been craving a fun and easy going sci-fi read and this
totally hit the spot.
it reminded me a lot of 'aurora rising,' just with adult
characters instead of teens -theres a mission in space
and a crew forced to work together that becomes a
found family. my only critique is the first half of the book
is pretty slow paced and primarily exposition. the actual
plot itself doesnt pick up until after the 50% mark. but
the characters are enjoyable to read about and i liked the
world-building/set up.

A little bit of steam in this non stop action adventure set in space. Tavi and Torran are enemies. Tavi is human and Torran is an alien royal. This was enemies to lovers at it finest. While the action and romance was the front runner the alien pet Alina stole the show and my heart.

I've re-read this book at least a half dozen times since it was first released. It's such a comfort read for me. If you like Kaleb (Nalini Singh's Psy-Changeling series) and Mad Rogan (Ilona Andrews' Hidden Legacy series), Torran completes the trifecta of telekinetic main characters that you want to know.

Humanity has discovered interstellar travel, and very early on they encountered the valoffs. Valoffs are anthropomorthic with the added bonus of psychic powers. Everything from telepathy and telekinesis to healing. As could almost be expected, these two similar societies go to war for the usual reasons - access to the gates that make interstellar travel possible.

A couple of years into the uneasy truce between the humans and the valoffs is where Hunt the Stars starts. Captain Octavia "Tavi" Zarola, formerly a lieutenant for the FHP (Federated Human Planets), now takes bounties with most of what's left of her squad, trying to stay off the radar of both FHP and Valoff commands.

She's mostly succeeding. Until former valoff General, Torran Fletcher arrives with a job offer. It's too good to pass up, but comes with a whole load of risks and close contact living with the valoffs that were their sworn enemies until the job's completion.

I love a good enemies-to-lovers story. This one definitely delivers. The mutual contempt and respect that both Torran and Tavi feel for each other in the beginning, which slowly thaws and develops into an actual relationship, is beautifully done. Slowly, through each encounter they have, they get to know each other, respect and care growing.

Hunt the Stars has a good mix of character and plot development, with the search for Torran's missing item always spurring them along. The constantly increasing stakes really pulled me along. But the wide cast of characters, the found family aspect of the teams, and the interpersonal relationships were what I really loved.

Jessie Mihalik has been delivering eminently satisfying sci-fi romance books since I first read Polaris Rising, book one in her Consortium Rebellion series. And while I love that series, especially book two, with my whole heart; I love this one even more.

Enjoyed the scifi, action, and romance. Felt some threads were mentioned but never followed through or simply got retconned. Good chemistry between the characters and sets up things well. The "twists" and reveals were okay. Overall enjoyed it!

I freaking LOVED this book. Jessie Mihalik continues to be one of my favorite space opera romance writers. Amazing world-building, excellent found family trope, and a delightful romance make this book one not to be missed.

Enemies to lovers AND sci-if? Of course I’m in and of course I loved it.
The story was interesting and fun from the very beginning and I enjoyed it the whole way through.
The chemistry was there, it kept me wanting more, and the ending was satisfying in the right ways.
Definitely give it a read!

'Hunt the Stars' by Jessie Mihalik is a novel about former enemies who may end up something completely different.

Octavia 'Tavi' Zarola and her tight-knit crew have survived a war in spite of their leaders. When Torran Fletcher, a leader from the opposition, shows up with a job, Tavi is understandably suspicious, but the money is too good. Understandably things are tense and there are things hidden, but Tavi will find herself attracted to Torran.

Romance is not a usual genre for me, and this falls squarely in that genre. While the underlying story was pretty good, I found the romance tropes repetitive and tedious. I suspect if you like romance novels, you might really like this one.

Tavi and her crew are just trying to get by in life as bounty hunters after a rough life in the military in a post war world. Being hired by an enemy general to find something stolen from him is not something she wants to do. But the money is too good to ignore even though it means allowing the non-human telepathic Varloffs onto her ship and traveling into enemy territory. Getting far too attached to the general and finding that she’s been thoroughly deceived. Much more is at stake than a stolen item and a conspiracy seems to be brewing that could lead to reigniting war. So it’s a race against time to solve a mystery and maybe save a life while trying not to get killed or captured in the process.

I really enjoyed Jessie Mihalik’s Consortium Rebellion series, so I was excited to read the first novel in her Starlight’s Shadow series. While this novel was less complicated than previous books, it was a fun, escapist read. Bounty hunter, sworn enemies, secret missions, and forbidden romance. If you want a space opera, this is an excellent choice. I can’t wait to read the next one! 4 stars.

An enemies-to-lovers space opera!?! Sign me up!

It's been a while since I've ventured into space, so this was a refreshing change of pace. Being on opposite sides of a war made Tavi and Torran more societal enemies than personal. They both knew of each other from their roles in the war, and how each was portrayed for battle prowess and wartime events. I thought it was a really interesting pairing.

Despite having amazing technology at their fingertips on some kickass space ships, everything was not smooth sailing for our main characters. While Tavi's hormones can't quite deny an attraction to the stoic general, she can't quite trust him or his motivations. Torran, on the other hand, has been put in an impossible situation by his empress and wasn't expecting to be drawn in by out spitfire captain. After navigating a few personal wormholes, I enjoyed watching the couple rely on the trust they had in one another even when it appeared betrayal was afoot.

Jessie Mihalik has a great imagination. I'm sure her background as a software engineer is beneficial when it comes to world-building in her futuristic societies. I love all of the technology, but I also really enjoy the political aspects of her stories. So creative!

This book was really good. It feels more like the Rogue Queen series than the Consortium Rebellion series, both of which are good.

Ship captain Octavia Zarola fought in the war against the alien Valoffs with her squad, Eli, Kee and Lexi. With an unsteady peace agreement between the Federated Human Planets(FHP) and the Valovian empire, Tavi and her crew are bounty hunters. When she is offered a lucrative job to retrieve a stolen item by a Valoff General Torran Fletcher, Tavi is reluctant to take it, but with a crew to feed and ship to repair she agrees. But nothing about this job is what it seems and the chemistry between her and Torran is not helping. Stuck in unfriendly territory, Tavi is going to have to think fast to get her crew and possibly her heart, out alive.

I really enjoyed this book. Tavi is a character that takes responsibility and wants to get everyone home. She is also super tough and takes no crap. I enjoyed watching her and Torran try the navigate a working relationship and the coils of possible romance and deal with what happened during the war. The side characters were also interesting so I'm hoping for more.

I look forward to the next book in this series.

I chugged this book down like lemonade on a hot day. It was exactly the cool wash that I needed, and cool and refreshing. I am very demanding of SF romance--I need the adventure the carry the story, and I have limited tolerance for pining.

The romance was perfect--attractive, competent people who have circumstantial reasons not to like each other work together for plot reasons (which are maybe thin but okay) and develop grudging respect and also pantsfeelings and continue to work together and become friends and have adventures and solve problems and become lovers. There are circumstances that make them unlikely, but nothing to keep them apart.

There is a TON of caretaking here--the number of cooking scenes is almost ridiculous, but also warm and fuzzy. Everyone likes to hang out in the garden. Everyone is just lovely, and also very good at being mercenaries.

It reminded me of the feel of Ilona Andrews, especially the Innkeeper book about Maud (Sweep of the Blade), to the point where I had to keep reminding myself that the Valoff characters are not blonde space vampires in fiddly vampire armor.

To be clear, this is an enormous compliment. I loved this book very much.

I received a free copy from the publisher through Netgalley and voluntarily reviewed it

I really enjoyed Jessie Mihalik's books so far and was excited to start this new series. I really enjoyed Hunt the Stars. It has an awesome slow burn romance, a solid plot and great characters. The story grabbed me from the start and I stayed invested and engaged for the whole book. Now I finished the book I am sad I finished it already and wish the next book was here already.

Hunt the Stars follows the point of view of Octavia, she's the leader of a small bounty hunting crew. There is peace now in the galaxy, but she used to fight in the war that just ended. When an alien from the other faction asks for her ask she wants to say no, but the money he offers is something she can really use. So she grudgingly agrees. The two crews have to work and live together and slowly they starts to feel more like friends than enemies. I liked the bounty hunting plot as they have to find a stolen ring. And the way the plot got more complex the further we got. There are some interesting reveals and I liked seeing how it all played out.

I liked Octavia as a main character. She was capable and smart and cared a lot about her crew. I also liked her crew and seeing them all interact. Everyone had their own personality and it was easy to remember who was who. Even when the group grows bigger as the alien crew also joins them. I really liked the way they are such a close knit crew and how slowly the alien crew also becomes part of that. The way they have each other's back was great to read about. There also is a cool alien animal that lives aboard their ship who was fun to read about.

The romance is quite the slow burn and I thought the slow progression was done well. Octavia basically sees Torran as the enemy and slowly she grows closer to him. I liked seeing how this took time and also how their initial hostility made sense as they fought on opposites sites of the war. And even later in the book there are sometimes still moments when those nasty memories from the war raise their head. I really liked Octovaia and Torran together. There is some clear mutual attraction as well as deeper feelings that slowly progress.

Another thing I really liked about this book was the world building and the way the culture of the alien Valoffs was established. I liked the way their different cultural habits made them feel like a different species and made sense too. From the way their social obligations and oath work to the way they apologize. It was interesting to read about and it gave them their unique culture and feel. I thought it was done really well and with just a few of those things they already feel like an entirely different species. Then there are their slightly different looks and telepathic powers as well.

To summarize: I really enjoyed Hunt the Stars. It had a solid set up and I liked seeing how the plot progressed. There are some interesting reveals later on and I was excited to see how it all played out. This book kept me engaged the whole time and I wanted to keep reading. I really enjoyed the romance and seeing Octavia and Torran slowly grow closer. They slowly forge a deep connection and there's plenty of attraction too. I like how the romance progressed slowly and also how their initial hostility made sense. I liked reading about the crew and how close knit they are. Everyone had their own personality and it was easy to remember who was who. I liked the way the author established the world building and the culture of the Valoffs. I want to spend more time reading about these characters and look forward to book 2!

I received a copy of this work from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Jessie Mihalik's Hunt the Stars is a true genre blending experience. This 1st novel in her new trilogy is a Sci-fi/Romance/Space Opera/Political thriller that satisfies on all fronts. Good character development, decent plotline with some very clever bits, quality relationship arc, and excellent pacing make this one of the best novels I've read in a long time. 10 out of 10.

Note: I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Beware of SPOILERS.
I do not normally read "space opera," but something about the way Jessie Mihalik weaves a story gets me. I've been a fan since her Consortium Rebellion trilogy. You can imagine how excited I was to read this book. The first thing that caught my attention was the backstory and worldbuilding. The book starts after an intergalactic war between the Valovians (humanoid beings with telepathic abilities) and the Federated Human Planets (a mix of normal humans and enhanced humans). Given the vastness of space, traveling from one end to the other end is made easier by wormhole-like gates that are highly prized. Captain Octavia Zarola (aka Tavi) and her team are working as bounty hunters after leaving the FHP military. Unfortunately, bounty hunting was not as lucrative as one might think. In need of cash, Tavi and her team are approached by the former general of the Valovian army, Torran Fletcher, with a job opportunity. Torran needs Tavi and her crew to locate a heirloom that was stolen from Fletcher's home. While the circumstances of the job are not ideal and peace between the two races is tenuous at best, Tavi and her crew agree to the job for the promised payout.

During this job, the human crew and the Valovian crew get to know each other and build grudging respect for each group. The prejudices and opinions of each other's races slowly dissipates. Subtle and some not so subtle hints of romances make themselves known. The romance between Torran and Tavi is more of a moving subplot to keep the story interesting. The main plot is about the alleged theft and subsequent retrieval with a big-ish plot twist near the end. I'm not a fan of the insta-love trope. The attraction between the two is obvious, but each are strong-willed characters with their priorities in check. I did appreciate that their relationship was a slow burn that was built of mutual respect. The character development for Tavi and insight into her military career provides readers with a better picture into who she is as a person. While she is a tough-as-nails captain, she's also smart, kind, generous, protective, and stubborn. The end of the book leaves much room for the secondary characters to continue the story. I look forward to it.

Jessie Mihalik's Hunt the Stars was lots of fun and I'm looking forward to the next one in the series. I went back to read Mihalik's previous series (starting with Polaris Rising) and I liked it too, but I think the writing has improved in this one. It's sci-fi romance that holds its own as a space opera adventure and as a romance, which is rare. I really appreciate the ways Mihalik's "feminine" lens informs the space opera aspect, with attention paid to food, interior design, clothing, gardening, etc, which adds dimension to the story and has obviously been undervalued in sci-fi traditionally. There is a psychic alien pet creature on board and that was a highlight for me too!

Hunt the Stars needs to be the next big sci Fi with a touch of romance and adventure. The book was a medium paced read for the first 30% and then was a can't put it down or stop thinking about it book. The characters are so well developed and their interactions with each other really drove the story forward. The element of found family was an added bonus. Truly enjoyed reading this story and I cannot wait to find out more. 5 stars

A delightful book full of adventure, action, and thrills. Fun to read, engrossing world building, and very descriptive imagery made it feel like it was cinematic. It's hard to resist the story as it drives forward. Would recommend.

Brought to you by OBS reviewer Omar

Hunt the Stars is the first book in the Starlight’s Shadow series by author Jessie Mihalik. It tells the story of Captain Octavia Zarola, or Tavi to her friends, of the Starlight’s Shadow ship and a group of bounty hunters that are just trying to get by in the vast universe. The inhabitants of this universe have entered a recent time of peace, as the major war between the humans and the Valoffs has ended, and a treaty has been set. Valoffs are similar to humans but with eyes, hair, and skin a bit brighter, and with mental abilities to read minds and control objects. But some wounds are still fresh, and the peace is still fragile, one wrong incident and the war can start again.

Tavi meets Torran Fletcher, a diplomate of the Valovian Empire in a space station on the outside of the FED – Federated Human Planets. Torran with his diplomatic immunity has been interviewing bounty hunter groups in the station for a job he has for them. Once they arrive at Tavi’s ship, they clash at first for being war enemies, but also both Torran and Tavi have high bounties over their heads by other nations.

After a long negotiation and a high price set for the job, Tavi agrees to try to find a ring stolen from Torran’s house in Valovia by some humans. But there is a condition, Torran’s team will be traveling with them to Valovia to safeguard their passage, and Tavi is not yet comfortable with Valoffs that close to them. After some convincing by her team and the need to finance the repairs of the ship, they accept the conditions. Tavi’s crew is made up of Eli and Kee but knowing that they will be having four Valoffs in their ship for the two weeks of travel, Tavi hires Anja, a mechanic, and Lexi, another bounty hunter, and friend of the ship.

As the teams travel through space, they get to know one other a bit. Tavi wants to learn more about the Valoffs and their abilities in case this is a trap and more about the mission. But as time flies by, some secrets are revealed. Among them is the truth about the robbery and the value of the ring.

I liked Hunt the Stars, it was a good space opera story, and the characters were interesting to follow along on their travels. Tavi and Torran make a nice couple, both of them have baggage from their time in the military and the distrust they have on the other species. But still, they manage to get past those prejudices and learn more about one another. Apart from Tavi, her crew is made up of Eli Bruck the first officer, and Kee Ildez the system engineer and navigator, they are later joined by Lexi Bowen that was part of Tavi’s squad, and Anja Harbon a mechanical engineer that is trying to leave the space station on which Tavi accepts the Valoffs job offered.

Compared to other space opera series from author Jessie Mihalik, this new series has added the element of mental powers to some of their characters. I liked that the Valoffs have abilities that humans feared and want to also learn. It was great how the reader and the human crew got to learn together that the Valoffs have more abilities that they hide during the war and will be great for the humans to know about.

While the romance storyline is centered around Tavi and Torran, as the narrative progresses, we can see other relationships flourishing while the mission is happening, and I can’t wait to read how they end.

This story was a fast-paced read, perfect for a weekend. A good recommendation if you are looking for a new read this spring.

If you are a fan of author Jessie Mihalik, I recommend Hunt the Stars. It starts as a high-profile job for the crew of the Starlight’s Shadow but then becomes even more dangerous with the Valoffs on the ships because they can protect their minds but not their hearts.