I really enjoyed all the books in this series. Even though they’re a bit too similar in plot that I’d want to binge-read them, I thought they were great fun to pick up now and then as an entertaining comfort read. I appreciate the distinct brand of silliness Valdes brings to her romantic space opera universe, not to mention all the Spanglish and the psychic cats! If you like Becky Chambers, Jessie Mihalik, or Everina Maxwell, I’d especially recommend checking out this series. Would be delighted to see more from this author in the future!

Fault Tolerance is one of those books that I stalked. I jumped on the Chilling Effect space opera train in 2019. Fast forward a couple years, I was desperate for the final book in the trilogy since finishing my ARC for Prime Deceptions ages ago. I rabidly jumped on the chance to read more about La Sirena Negra and her crew! I can’t stress enough how much I enjoy this world that Valdes has crafted! I loved the nods to favorites like Mass Effect, Pokemon, Gundam, Transformers, and more.

The strength of my feelings for the characters, particularly towards Mari, took me by surprise. Seriously, my internal little sister was completely unfair to Mari at times. I love all the side characters and the complex relationships that have been built over the series. I have a soft spot for Pink.

I adore Eva and Vakar and I really hoped for more moments with them. I’m also a sucker for Vakar. I’m almost as far gone for him as I am Garrus Vakarian… Though no one will be able to oust my darling Archangel.

But on that note, I started to get frustrated early on with the repeated terrible decisions by Eva. I can understand the urge to check in on a lover, but all the signs and this reader were screaming DON’T DO IT! It felt like we had back to back awful decisions and I really was on Pink’s side with the exasperation. It made it hard to stay engaged as the story continued.

The Chilling Effect series has been so much fun, and while I’m bummed I didn’t enjoy the finale as much as I had hoped, I will absolutely be recommending this in the future!

*I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I very much appreciate being gifted this copy of Fault Tolerance by Valerie Valdes, and the opportunity to read & review it. Thanks to the publisher.

Confession time. I primarily kept reading because I adore Vakar. Eva has her moments, and the rest of the crew is good, but Vakar is an unexpected delight. This was fun, although I think it helped that I can't understand most Spanish and so ignored all the potty humor/cussing Eva does. This one wraps up the trilogy satisfactorily, but I found it a bit slow. While I enjoyed all these books, I liked the middle one best. The romance and the cats were the best parts.

Fantastic, wild ride of a conclusion to a very fun series. This series is the "everything AND the kitchen sink" of sci-fi adventure. Just about everything one can imagine is in here. Romance, great friendships, found family, crew dynamics, family drama, world threatening events, chases, escapes, and to top it off, psychic cats. While the cats play a small role (ahem, until the end) they are always in the background, sometimes silently judging and sometimes helping.

Fans of a certain epic sci-fi video game series will certainly find a lot to love about the story beats and relationships. At times I did wish the references were more of the "wink and a nod" type and less LOOK THIS IS OBVIOUSLY LIKE THAT THING IN THE GAME, it was still such a fun series that I wasn't bothered too much.

Despite the zany adventure there are still many serious topics explored - PTSD seems to have been given the most page time, but also familiar ties and how they shape one's identity, forgiveness, and trust issues.

Highly recommend to fans of that game franchise, fans of space opera, and adventure in general. Oh, and maybe for people who like a monster boyfriend.

This series has been such a delight! It's a fun space adventure filled with an interesting cast of characters and humor and nods to a wide array of other SFF properties and lots of Spanglish.

A big chunk of the plot of this book (and arguably the whole series) relies on Eva making dumb decisions and while that can be kind of annoying it does track with her character. That being said, Eva's growth throughout the series has been really great to follow and I liked that we got to see her relationships with her family, both biological and found, grow as the series progressed. I especially loved the relationship between her and Vakar.

Also, for anyone who was disappointed by the lack of cats in the first book, they really pulled through here and it was fantastic.

I think this series is great for anyone looking for a quick fun space adventure! The plots get big but the humor and heart keeps the series feeling light and I think each book in the series improved upon the previous.

While this book wrapped up the trilogy well, Valdes did seem to leave room if she wants to return to the world and I would absolutely read it if she did, but I'd also be very interested to see what else she can come up with.

I love this series and think Eva Innocente is a wonderful character. Lots of action, lots of humor, and a whole lot of fun to be had in this third book in the series. I think it's the best of the bunch. Excellent world building and a story that moves along at a great pace. It's an easy and fun read. Recommended!

I love this series so much. I was a bit worried going into book 3 and having not a great memory — I know there were some space fights and some gates, but I was thrown right back into the chaotic world of La Sirena Negra with no real trouble. I mean they were in trouble (as per usual), but for me, it was easy to reacquaint myself with what was going on. The overarching storyline from the previous two books comes to a head here and it was a lot of fun to see that resolved, though I like that the door was left open a crack for future adventures too. Found. Family. Space. Operas!

If you love sci-fi, cats, and Spanglish this might be a book for you. Captain Eva and her crew find themselves tasked with saving the universe from an anonymous threat. Luckily for their team, the Captain receives the location of some pretty amazing space tech to help them try to win the battle for survival. There's lots of fighting (both in space and physically) and lots of expletive-filled rants that somehow manage to inspire, intimidate, and might make you laugh as a reader.

I did not realize this was the third book in the series, and I must admit it made it very difficult for me to jump in and really connect with the characters. It also did not help that the language switches from English to Spanish quite a bit, including whole sentences. While I respect that as a choice by the author, it did make me feel even more lost when trying to already figure out context clues about what I missed in the first two books. To be fair, with a bit of translating I picked up on the fact that most of the Spanish phrases seem to be curses that revolve around shit.

The plot was fast-paced and the world was well thought out and brought to life. I really enjoyed the various crew members and the bonds and banter they all shared, it did feel like being in the middle of a big family at times. I especially enjoyed the cats and their personalities. I will say Eva is a bit abrasive at times and not always the most likable character, but by the last quarter of the book I began to appreciate her more. Vakar seems really interesting, and although I'm still confused about what he is and why he smells, I thought it was a unique characteristic.

Overall this was an enjoyable sci-fi book. I would definitely start at the beginning of the trilogy, and I'll probably go back and read the other two. I feel like it's worth it even for just more psychic cat content! I received this ARC from NetGalley for my opinion.
Actual Rating 3.5 stars

This is such a fun adventure space opera series. I enjoy the humor and banter.


I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Fun series! I’m rounding this one up from the four stars this book was fun to read to five stars for this while trilogy has been a great adventure!
First if you haven’t read book one and two read those first, this is very much a book three. Though I liked that it wrapped the trilogy up really well yet left room for a future book if the author had ideas for one.
It’s a light science fiction series. There’s big schemes and big enemies but this is a story about the one plucky ship with its captain and crew sort of series. It’s not a Firefly clone but it might suit you anyway if you want that sort of energy in your science fiction. It’s a bit sillier though with some of the jokes being a little over the top. I could have seen a bit less of the “well. Actually” guy… . It’s a multi species universe that has a lot to show you and doesn’t slow down in doing so, I hope this author has more books in her!

Humorous, unpretentious, and fun sci-fi adventure. Great world-building; space but whimsical. Meaningful character relationships. I loved all the little jokes (I.e. “Her damage meter read 69%. Nice.”) MC is likeable, rough around the edges, and hilarious. Thank you for the advanced readers proof!

Fault Tolerance by Valerie Valdes (Chilling Effect #3)
Not knowing this was a third installment into Valdes’ Chilling Effect series, it was easy to pick up from book 3. I loved that the past book plots were mentioned, but in a way that a friend would say something about their past, not as an author who was trying to repeat books one and two, that you might not have read before.
Capt Eva Innocente and her motley crew of ‘misfits’ are thrown in to (another) exciting adventure to save the universe! Valdes uses bold color, interesting new technology and passion throughout the book, capturing your imagination in this space adventure. I will absolutely be heading to book one of Chilling Effect to catch up on what I missed!
Thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager Publishers for the ARC, I thoroughly enjoyed!

The Epic Conclusion

First, thank you to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for an advanced reader's copy of this spectacular book.

This is my favorite book of the series! It, of course, has everything to do with the fact that I love chaotic plot lines with solid resolution. Everything comes together here and it was done perfectly. This story doesn't take place within our reality and yet it feels more real than a lot of books I have read which are. It feels human. In between the adventure and excitement, there is emotion and thought. It is a story of love and loyalty to others and oneself that is paced well as to not be overbearing. I wasn't left with a distaste for the main character because of illogical emotional responses which none of us can relate to. Every choice felt justified and understandable in its own right. It did not feel like an adventure that was out of reach for me.

Obviously, I must once again mention the psychic cats. I adore them. They are what sold me on the series in the first place and shot my serotonin levels off the meter. I laughed. I cried. I flopped around on my bed like a fish. I loved every moment of this book and I feel no shame in being dramatic about it.

I was given access to an advanced copy from the publisher for my honest opinion.

The cover art was originally what caught my attention. The cover is beautiful and leaves the reader wanting to know more. I enjoyed the idea of the story and the book was well written, but the inclusion of full sentences in Spanish distracted from the flow of the storytelling. I also found the inclusion of swear words (in both languages) distracting. I admit to being too distracted to finish reading the book, but it is well written and well executed.

I’m going to miss this series and I REALLY hope Valdes’ publisher contracts her for more stories in this universe. I’ve loved Eva and her crew since the jump and I’ll continue to love them forever.
Beyond the engaging plots, there’s found family, LGBTQIA+ rep, interspecies relationships, people screwing up and loving one another through it, giant mechs, and psychic cats. There’s natural bilingual language flow in space, reconciliation between siblings, and people doing the best they can.
Plus there’s always lots of shooting and blowing things up and space battles.
It’s sci-fi/space opera that focuses on PEOPLE, pulling out the best of the genre at the macro and giving us something to care about at the micro, that perfect confluence that’s the best of what’s out there in genre synthesis right now.
Read it. And then join me in yelling for more.

3.5 ish. Free Netgalley book for review~~I hadn’t realized this was the third book in the series. It’s quite clear from the mentions of past books that she’s gone through lots of character growth but I’m not sure I actually want to go back and read her past. I may eventually, because I did see that these books were available on my library’s hoopla…

Anyway I liked the crew and captain in this, and the fact that they work together so well as a team in general. The plot is grand in scope (it’s time to save the universe and earth everyone!) although to begin with the initial plot sounds like something out of a Doctor Who episode. Mysterious cubes appearing everywhere? Check, seen that before. But then the actual quest line starts and it’s pretty entertaining for what amounts to a collectithon. There’s plenty of action and feelings.

I will say the mcs made some pretty dumb decisions, the plot felt a little draggy in certain places, and the swearing was more than a bit much for my taste,

Overall however if you’re looking for something that doesn’t take itself too seriously, has a bit of Firefly flare to it, and a few morally gray characters, you’ll probably like this. Oh and let’s not forget the cats of course.

Our main character Eva Innocente refers to herself as a "nobody spaceship captain from a small star system in one tiny corner of an enormous universe". However, the influence that she has over her universe in never more apparent than in this book. The feisty crew of La Sirena Negra is once again saving the world, this time with the help of the Proarkhe.
My favorite physic cats have a slightly larger role this time which made me very happy. No Spoilers, but I love the little twist at the very end of the novel.
I hope that Valerie Valdes continues to write about the crews' adventures.

Fault Tolerance is an adrenaline-fueled finale to a fantastic series. It balances action, emotion, and humour to give you a story with such great characters that it’ll make your eyeballs fall off from compulsive reading.

The characters, as usual, are a lot of fun. Eva is the same person as in the first two books, but she’s wiser and more aware of her crew’s feelings. She’s had to learn to be this way and she really has grown in that regard. Her relationship with Vakar is so incredibly cute - I loved the respect and love they have for one another but also the trust. Normally I’m a “shipping a new couple” type of reader, but I was 100% on board for Eva and Vakar moments. I wanted more.

I also enjoyed the realism of how she and her sister Mari feel about one another. The love is there, but it’s buried under betrayal and clashing personalities.

There are two new characters who, like Sue and Min, don’t take up a lot of page time but are endearing nonetheless. There aren’t any characters in the novel whom I don’t like or at least find interesting. Nobody likes Miles, but he’s fun to not like.

One could say that the novel has a “small universe” problem, which is when the same people are always showing up for the major events despite the improbability of that happening, but I would disagree. The arrival of some already known characters helped propel the story along faster, as we already know (and or have issues) with these people, so we didn’t need to learn all about them. It was more of a running joke too.

Speaking of the jokes, this book is so damn funny. It's a combination of humorous moments and silly allusions to pop culture stuff that either is or isn't sci-fi related (there’s also a hilarious riff on the cliche “I let out the breath I didn't realize I was holding”.) In book 2, the main pop culture reference was clearly Pokemon and this one is Transformers with a bit of Power Rangers (or perhaps it’s something else, but those were what it felt like to me). But this doesn't mean it was relying on those concepts to tell the story - these are common sci-fi tropes and Valdes still managed to craft her own plot around them. It’s very fun.

The battle scenes are, as usual, fun, fast, and easy to picture; they utilize a mix of hand-to-hand, weaponry, evasion, spaceships, and new technology. Everything in the novel is well-described but it’s definitely not a hard sci-fi (which is a good thing).

The stakes in the novel felt real, and as much as “save the universe” plots aren’t always my favourite to read, this one worked very well as it ties into the other two novels and it also made sense why Eva was involved. She also takes the time to lament her possible death, as she’s still just a fairly normal person in unusual circumstances. Those aspects gave the story heart and an emotional core.

Overall, the only thing I’m sad about is that it’s over! I loved this trilogy to bits and will definitely be buying a physical copy. I loved it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

I want to be upfront and admit that when I started reading this book, I had no idea it was the third novel in the series. Being unaware of this marred my opinion of the book at first, but I liked the story way more as I went on reading. I ended up actually liking this book more than I thought I would! Enough so that I am going to go read books one and two when I can get my hands on them. The one thing that stood out to me in this book was the fight scenes. Those scenes were some of the most fun and engaging scenes I've read in a long while. It was super easy to picture the action in my mind's eye, and just a joy to read. However, I do also have one minor annoyance with the book. I can read some Spanish, but not enough to be able to completely understand full-length sentences. Having to stop reading to open up my translator, completely interrupting my reading flow, just so I can understand what she said, is very annoying. Let it be noted that this is just a personal annoyance and it has no bearing on the quality of the story itself! "Fault Tolerance" was a fun and colorful ride of a space opera, and I'm excited to go back and read the first two books of the trilogy!