I have been so excited for Everina Maxwell’s next book and it was as amazing as I’d hoped!
Title: Ocean’s Echo
Author: Everina Maxwell
Genres: Science Fiction, LGBTQ+
Pub Date: November 3, 2022 (UK), November 1, 2022 (US)
Publisher: Orbit Books (UK), Tor Books (US)
Content Warnings: Mind-Control, Coercion, Drug Abuse, Mental Health Issues, Human Experimentation
Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books UK for the review copy.
★★★★★
Ocean’s Echo is a stand-alone, romantic space adventure, set in the same universe as Everina Maxwell’s hit debut, Winter’s Orbit.
When Tennal – a rich socialite, inveterate flirt, and walking disaster – is caught using his telepathic powers for illegal activities, the military decides to bind his mind to someone whose coercive powers are strong enough to control him.
Enter Lieutenant Surit, the child of a disgraced general. Out of a desperate need to restore a pension to his other parent, Lieutenant Surit agrees to be bound to Tennal and keep him conscripted in the army, a task that seems impossible even for someone with Surit’s ability to control minds.
Tennal just wants to escape, but Surit isn’t all that he seems. And their bond may just be the key to their freedom.
We’ve returned to the same world as Maxwell’s amazing debut, Winter’s Orbit, but in this new standalone we’re in a different part of the literal universe. I loved seeing more of Maxwell’s world as before we were on a single planet but here we do some traveling and get more of an idea of how all the systems are linked and balanced in relation to the overall governing body in the universe.
And along with the new planetary systems, we have new characters and new politics, and even new dynamics. Ocean’s Echo features characters who are the children of people who had undergone neuro-modification: readers and architects. Readers are essentially people who can feel and read other’s emotions/thoughts and architects can control and influence minds, and many are partnered up, temporarily or permanently, with the architect being in control of the reader. Some parts of the dynamics and social expectations reminded me of sentinel/guide dynamics from fandom, which was a plus for me. I am all for fandom mechanics and styles making its way into trad pub by people from and who know and appreciate fandom authentically. (If you didn’t know, Winter’s Orbit started out as original fiction on AO3!)
Tennal I can see being a difficult character to like initially. But I really liked him and especially liked how he grew and developed. Definitely a greatly flawed character and I would have liked some more backstory but was happy with what we do get. And I adored Surit. He’s got a strong moral compass and the way that works at odds with the military I thought was well done. The two seem to be almost complete opposites, and while they are with Tennal’s open chaos and self-destructive recklessness and Surit’s strict order, they are both trouble. I also loved side characters we get to know. Tennal’s sister is a gem and I loved one of the people Tennal starts at odds with from the crew he has to join.
The romance in this one is less prominent than in Winter’s Orbit, but as a subplot to the main SF arc as this is a romantic SF adventure and not a SF Romance, I was happy. I loved their relationship from start to end and going forward. The slow burn, the yearning, the disagreements, the way they learned to work and fit around one another.
The political intrigue in this was military politics. I found it to be a bit more serious and complex than the political intrigue in Winter’s Orbit, the plot also has much more going on with various subplots and plot points. It also leaned more into SF outside of just the setting with space ships and travel, the history, and the readers and architects. Lots of mindfucky elements, literally. Some of it was quite vague and if you like having all your parameters and details clearly explained, this might fall a bit short. I, however, enjoyed the surreal elements and descriptions.
I can’t wait for Maxwell’s next book. Hopefully we get to explore another sector of this universe but I’d also be glad for anything else by them.
escapistlit 