Of Starlight and Bone

Book One in the Lost Colony Trilogy

Young Adult - Sci-Fi
303 Pages
Reviewed on 01/12/2023
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Author Biography

Emily Layne grew up a proud Army brat with an Anne Shirley-esque imagination. She loves reading, eating too much pizza, and spending time with her husband—who loves books almost as much as she does.

When not writing fantastical stories, Emily can be found playing with her curious children, exploring the great outdoors, or concocting mostly-believable excuses to avoid socializing.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Cecelia Hopkins for Readers' Favorite

Of Starlight and Bone by Emily Layne presents an intriguing science fiction mystery. Aurelia Peri is the adopted daughter of the GIC. She has finished her basic training and is on her first active mission as a DISC agent. Her first mission goes horribly wrong and Auri researches similar cases, sending her across the galaxy to the dangerous fringes. She joins a group of mysterious renegades led by Malachi Vermillion and helps them achieve a seemingly impossible mission. Malachi’s quest seems connected to her own mysterious past and the birth family Auri has forgotten. But why are the flesh-eating Bleeders going out of their way to follow her?

Of Starlight and Bone by Emily Layne is a character-driven and exciting space opera. I liked Aurelia and felt her isolation as a cyborg in a human-dominated society was a great metaphor for all sorts of differences. The companion dog, Birdie, was endearing and much more than an average pet. The action scenes were great and I longed to solve the conundrum of the murders, uncover the nature of the clanks and investigate Aurelia’s true origin. I was also fascinated by the Federation and wondered whether the establishment was good, bad, or somewhere in between. All members of the crew of the Kestrel were unique in their own way and I longed to see them succeed using their special skill sets. The adventure kept me involved from beginning to end, and my only complaint was that the story finished too soon! Of Starlight and Bone by Emily Layne introduced me to a cyber-enhanced heroine I want to follow through all her adventures in the series.