Fortuna

Merbeth’s gritty debut, which launches a space opera trilogy, sets the stage for a promising series. Scorpia Kaiser has been trying to get out from under the shadow of her brother, Corvus, for years. Since he left for war, she’s taken over her mother’s interplanetary smuggling business aboard the aging cargo ship Fortuna, which is not as easy as she was expecting. Things get even more difficult when Corvus returns just in time for a smuggling deal to go deadly. Scorpia’s plans to become captain are derailed, and business takes a catastrophic turn. The Kaiser siblings have to work together to make a choice: take responsibility for their family’s involvement in a massacre, or focus on keeping themselves alive until the political fallout blows over. Merbeth’s multiple narrators and plotlines converge beautifully into a suspenseful tale of family. The characters are distinct and grounded, and each interaction is filled with purpose and emotion that brings all of them, regardless of differences, into the fray together. SF fans who have been waiting for a crime family spin on space opera will find nothing but joy in this whirlwind story. (Nov.)