Aliens are one of the things I love about science fiction. Seeing the varied lifeforms that different authors imagine makes me happy. Star Trek’s human-like species have always been a let down for me. Star Wars had a bit more diversity amongst species. Babylon 5 upped the game, but no show or movie has ever topped the variety and imagination of Farscape. The variety of aliens, including the living ship, attracted me to the show; the way the writers used that variety made it one of my favorite SFF properties of all time. If a book’s blurb compares it to Farscape, I’m gonna give it at least a look. When reading that Cat Rambo’s novel You Sexy Thing was compared with the show, I knew it’d be the book for me. Rambo did not disappoint. You Sexy Thing is full of interesting aliens that are more than just humans with pointy ears. Along with an excellent cast, Rambo created a book about found family and what it means to be part of one when the situation is dire.
Disclaimer: The publisher provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Any and all opinions that follow are mine alone.
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TL;DR
You Sexy Thing is excellent space opera. Cat Rambo has created a joyful, hopeful tale of found family. Come for the characters; stay for the fun. Highly recommended.
From the Publisher
Farscape meets The Great British Bake Off in this fantastic space opera You Sexy Thing from former SFWA President, Cat Rambo.
Just when they thought they were out…
TwiceFar station is at the edge of the known universe, and that’s just how Niko Larson, former Admiral in the Grand Military of the Hive Mind, likes it.
Retired and finally free of the continual war of conquest, Niko and the remnants of her former unit are content to spend the rest of their days working at the restaurant they built together, The Last Chance.
But, some wars can’t ever be escaped, and unlike the Hive Mind, some enemies aren’t content to let old soldiers go. Niko and her crew are forced onto a sentient ship convinced that it is being stolen and must survive the machinations of a sadistic pirate king if they even hope to keep the dream of The Last Chance alive.
Review: You Sexy Thing by Cat Rambo
Niko Larson, owner and manager of the Last Chance restaurant, used a loophole to escape the Hive Mind, and she took her former military crew with her. She claimed to be an artist with her preferred medium as cooking. Her first officer, a mystic, two were-lions, her communications officer, and others work in the restaurant to escape a lifetime military service obligation. On the eve of an important critic coming to review the restaurant, Niko receives an unexpected package with a person in stasis inside, and an admiral from the Hive Mind has brought their officers to the restaurant. The officer is using the reservation as cover to talk to Niko, privately. As Niko and crew begins to serve the critic, a rich racing pilot shows up wanting to meet the critic. Niko needs the critic to love the food and award the restaurant a Nikkelin Orb. This award would make the restaurant a desirable destination and solve their financial woes. So, when she tries to fend off the racing pilot, he offers Niko a sum she can’t turn down to just sit at a table near the critic. With the pilot’s incentive payment, Niko can buy a ship and set out on her long held, secret plans. The future looks bright for Niko and crew until an incomprehensible alien species, called the Arranti, blow up the space station home to the Last Chance. They escape aboard the sentient bioship, You Sexy Thing, only to be captured by pirates.
You Sexy Thing is a space opera told in an omniscient viewpoint. This means the reader has access to everyone’s thoughts, including those of the sentient bioship. Aliens and pirates, advanced technology and magic, Niko’s universe is a full one and a hopeful one. There are a lot of characters for an omniscient novel, but Rambo spends most of the time in Niko’s head, which is excellent. Niko, the focus of the adventures, carries the story. She’s an excellent leader, and while the reader learns about her background, it seems like there’s much more that could be explored. You Sexy Thing reads like an opening chapter in a bigger story without sacrificing completeness.
The Characters
The thing I loved about Farscape is exactly the thing I love about You Sexy Thing, the characters. Each member of Niko’s crew feels whole and unique. Rambo wrote them so that they feel like real people, and while they do have an alien-ness about them, they’re not defined by it. Skiddoo is a great example. She’s similar to a squid but, also, more than just a squid. She stood out to me, not because of her squid-like characteristics, but because she’s very tactile. A lot of Niko’s crew stayed with me long after I closed the book. There’s a scene where Dabry, the four-armed first officer, has to wear a shirt made for people with two arms. He cradles one set against his abdomen giving the impression of a beer belly. How fantastic is that?
Grouped by the Military, Family by Choice
In addition to the lovely characters, their interactions with each other is the core of the book. While there exists a hierarchy that began in the military, it’s clear that the group has fallen into natural roles. There is no strife with anyone in the group feeling out of place. In fact, the group dynamic is extremely healthy, and part of that is the after effects of their time in the Hive Mind’s military. But a bigger part is that they actually care for each other with Niko acting as head of the family. These people are together because they want to be together. When Niko escaped the Hive Mind, she could have peaced out, but she took her crew with her. Once free, that crew could have sought their own path, but they stayed with Niko. The crew of the Last Chance are together by choice, and this is their strength.
Politics of Rambo's Universe
We do catch glimpses of politics in You Sexy Thing but not much. Capitalism is very much the dominant mode of trade, and class divisions are quite real. The Hive-Mind acts like a collective but an authoritarian one, and IIRC they trap individuals in military service much like corporations used to make workers debtors of the company store. In addition, there exists a hippie or libertarian community called the Free Traders. The pirates seem to have been a libertarian group that’s slid fully into a dictatorship. We also learn that monarchies still exist. Again, we don’t get much of the political nature of Rambo’s universe, but like all other aspects of it, there’s plenty of options to explore.
Critiques
I loved this book. Still, no work of art is perfect. I felt that the ending was a bit rushed and not as clear as I’d like. The main plot point is solved pretty easily after all the buildup and torture that took place. Final ownership of the sentient bioship felt more like a plot device than a natural extension of the situation and characters. None of this took away from my enjoyment of the book, and I think most readers will find these minor quibbles.
Conclusion
Cat Rambo’s You Sexy Thing is a fun, hope filled space opera. The cast of characters is fantastic, and I think a lot of people will come to love them as much as I do. If this is the first book in a series, sign me up for book two. I want more adventures of Niko and the crew of You Sexy Thing.
You Sexy Thing by Cat Rambo is available from Tor Books on November 11th, 2021.
© PrimmLife.com 2021