4 big fat stars! You ‘OTTER’ be reading this book because it is great–Valerie Valdes has done it again!
In this space adventure with a fantasy twist, Kel Garda, is a refugee of the Pale war (Pale = very nasty, bad aliens). Kel is hiding a huge secret about her past and intends to quietly live out her life on an isolated planet in the middle of nowhere. Until her past comes back in the deadliest way: a war machine of the Pale has suddenly come back online, threatening the entire planet.
Kel is reluctantly drawn into the journey to deactivate it by a young friend eager for adventure. Danger and secrets collide as Kel finds keeping her secrets may destroy them all. I enjoyed this book very much. It is a quest type of plot with bandits and weird alien critters just waiting to pounce on our intrepid team. The slow burn terror of the war machine inching ever closer adds another level to the tension of the plot. A touch of romance (very light and well done) and world building that is, as usual with Valerie Valdes, excellent. I was given a pre-publication copy and this is my own opinion.
Where peace is lost, may we find it
Where peace is broken, may we mend it
Where we go, may peace follow
Where we fall, may peace rise