This seemed like this would a fun read after reading the description for the book. I thought about a few different sci fi movies or shows that this book seemed to draw some influences from, at least I think so. Read the book and I think you will see those on this journey. There are attempts at humor and while everything didn't hit with me there were those moments it did. The story itself is interesting in it's own way. It has action and a bit of intrigue and suspense. Some of the fights were better than others but overall, pretty decent. The characters were not the most lovable to me, but they weren't totally lame or anything. For the world building I think that it was not over done but it leaves something to discovered as you continue reading. The creatures sound very cool well at least the ones we are introduced to so far. The science seems sort of futuristic but at the same time sort of similar to some technology of our reality. There are references to alien metal but really nothing specific about the aliens themselves or other planets or whatever. It seems like a very diverse world the story takes place in though. What is described as magic seems more like psionic powers or something like that. Didn't really feel that was explored as much as I wanted to know about but then maybe in the next book. Not to sure where the story will lead to without talking about things that should be read about for yourself though. The writing wasn't overly complicated but felt easy to read. A decent read that has made me more than a little curious to read what could happen in the next book. So, thanks to netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read yet another good book. This was a 3 and half to four star read for me.

Cello’s Gate follows Grey and his crew of sky pirates as they begin to search for powerful stones that may or may not be a total myth. This story was an absolute adventure! Between the twists, mysteries, and combat, I didn’t want to put it down, constantly wanting to read one more chapter.

The way the crew work together and take care of each other was one of my favorite aspects. Strong, but vulnerable at times, badass men and women who regularly check in on one another.
This is the type of found family I adore and I would love to go on a heist with this crew!

While this story is its own and truly unique - it reminded me of a mix of Treasure Planet, Indiana Jones, and Guardians of the Galaxy. I think you will really enjoy it if you like those.

•Magic and immortals
•Sky pirates
•Sci-fi fantasy
•Dangerous quest

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for my eARC

This is my first ever Netgalley read, and boy am I glad this is the first book I requested. Pirates (on sea) have always been a topic I really enjoyed, but sky pirates might just top it now.
I love the way the book is written. The writing style makes it feel like I am not only reading the book, but I'm actually there with the Trench crew as my own person, especially as the point of view isn't solely focused on Grey, the crew's captain, but on everyone quite equally. I also absolutely love the humorous language.
This book is about a sky pirate crew who are tasked by an immortal to help to find the seven stones of Indigo for a hefty sum of 1 million credits per stone. As the crew sets out to find the first stone, they are faced with a multitude of tasks and problems. with plot twists at every corner.
I do feel like at some points the book felt a bit dragged out, but not enough to make the book any less enjoyable.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read this ARC, i can't wait for book 2

Boy am I glad I requested this from Netgalley because this book turned out to be outstanding. This really scratches my sci-fi itch because I’m always trying to get into it but I need more of a fantasy feel with light sci-fi elements like Christopher Ruocchio, and that’s exactly what this gives me!

This book is about space pirates that get a job from an “Immortal” to find 7 “stones” that are scattered all over the place. What seems to be an easy job turns out to be very difficult since they are shot down on an “abandoned” island and have to survive horrific creatures and a long lost Immortal.

That’s pretty much the sci-fi aspect of it but the fantasy element is that there are people who will come back to life after death, people who can heal wounds or manipulate fauna, etc. It’s a fun romp and I would urge anyone to read it because the characters are amazing, prose is fast and easy, and it’s full of action and adventure.

The only thing I’m worried about is this becoming a 7 book series with 1 book per stone. I think it will become redundant after a point but I had so much fun with this that I’ll read them anyway

Pirates in space! Cello's Gate is a fun action adventure scifi novel. I enjoyed going on this wild ride with the characters.

The vibes:
magic powers
pirates
secret compartments
immortals
hidden treasure
jungle island

This is a fun jaunt although I think the characters are overpowered, but then not using those powers to their fullest. It was hard to tell what the real limit of the magic was. Not sure any of them should have made it out of these escapades alive.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy! All opinions are my own.

Cello's Gate was a lot of fun, something that I've really been craving. Action packed scenes right there immediately, culminating into a thrilling adventure.

The concept of an airship crew searching for treasure sure sold me there. In this case, it has a flight crew of seven (each with different and specific roles, as pointed out in the Dramatis Personae) has a close-knit bond and high loyalty. Captain Grey leads this pack as a level-headed, balanced captain. Grey is well-described jack-of-all-trades- other than leadership, he's slightly outclassed by his crew on the specific duties, but he is flexibility in just about any situation. Most importantly though, he cares about his crew, never at all choosing to give up on anyone, no matter what type of dicey situation they are in.

The setting and plot is quite intriguing too- in this, it is a treasure hunt in a seemingly abandoned rugged island. I also do see plenty of potential of plenty of other emerging plotlines, based on the worldbuilding and the overall culture/lifestyle established from such worldbuilding. The book ends at an intriguing cliffhanger, opening up such great potential.

The writing style was a little bit different from what I am used to (present-day third-person perspective), but the prose seemed good, and it flowed quite well. Not much deadwood or tedious infodumps here, which is nice to see.

I plan on reading any subsequent books in this series. I'm appreciative of how the author marketed and advertised the book, otherwise I would not have noticed it on my own accord.

This is good - well written, well edited - but not what I was expecting. I thought I was getting steampunk fantasy; what I actually got was cyberpunk dystopia with magic, and I just don't like dystopian. It's unfortunate, because it's much better executed than most of the books I get from Netgalley, but it wasn't to my personal taste.

From the moment I started reading, I couldn't stop. I love pirates stories and this one was complete with actions, mythes and dangerous creatures. The tone of the story is set from the start as we join the team in action in the middle of a heist, which doesn't quite go as planned naturally, and from there I was hooked on the adventure to the end.

The worldbuilding is very interesting and unique with lore revolving around a mix of magical/immortal beings and mythical/militaristic knights. The mystery surrounding the stones keeps you wondering until the end about the veracity of their existence, about what is or is not hidden behind the myth, and I did not expect the twist at the end.

We have a wide variety of complex characters from whom we learn each background history throughout the story. My favorites were Grey, the captain, who wanted to be a pirate from a young age and he has no shame about it. He is a great leader and the relationship he develops with each member of the crew helps him temper the conflicts of strong personalities. And Dot, raised from a young age to become a warrior knight.

There may be something about saving the world, but the Trench crew is in it above all for the money and the thrill of adventure. They find an island, an old treasure map, dangers, traps, mazes and monsters, but that's the pirate life!

It ends on a cliffhanger with an intriguing reveal and no, I didn't want it to end! I can't wait to read about the next Hunt

Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing NetGalley for the eARC

This was a really unique and fun fantasy adventure. The world-building was really good, I liked the mythic Knights and the lore behind them, and the concept of sky pirates interested me immediately. Grey and Dot were my favourite characters because they both had a lot of emotional depth to them, which hopefully can be explored a bit more in the upcoming books. This blended the heist narrative with fantasy fantasically and it worked to create an overall really cohesive and fun read.

I do wish there was more queer representation - as all of the couples/love interests are m/f but maybe this will be explored further in the next book.