i enjoyed this one a lot!

there is an element of insta-love, but that usually comes with omegaverse/mpreg territory so it wasn't really a surprise, and i thought it was handled very well. this is quite a short novel, so there wasn't a massive amount of world-building, but primm has still managed to create an intriguing futuristic world.

i'm definitely going to be keeping an eye on this author!

The world building with this story was really interesting especially with the mpreg that didnt make me want to tear my hair out. The writing was great and I especially love the cover with this one

*I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks for the free book.*

The entire book reminded me hardcore of "Left Hand of Darkness" by the great and late Ursula K Le Guin - but I'll come back to that later... Kaj is sent to Ostakis, a planet with descendants of human settlers many centuries ago, in order to establish diplomatic exchange and to establish trade in the long run. Etiquette and social norms are very different from earth, especially the so-called Cursed have a problematic role in society, being discriminated against by the Church.

*SPOILERS NOW* Kaj falls in love and has sex with the Cursed son of the most important man of the most important house on the planet. Cursed persons are intersex and have a heat twice a year where they can become pregnant. Pregnant men are therefore not unseen yet in a very unsafe position in society as they are understood as sinful by the church.

Things I liked:
+ Gender/Sex and science-fiction
+ Gay love story
+ Pregnant men
+ The story was really gripping and easy to read - it felt more of a novella than a novel due to its lack of detail, which was also nice and not nice at the same time
+ Intersexuality possible for humans
+ Diplomatic missions
+ Criticism of unreflected religion
+ That humanity has moved on from inequality and

Things that I did not like:
- the story progresses so fast there is no time for real character development
- women are also discriminated against because that's just what you do, right?
- the relationship of Kaj and his former wife remains dubious and blunt, a mere plot device?
- I found this very animalistic take on sexuality as almost 'violent' mating without any reason or control problematic, also very graphic yet not really...tasteful?
- I did not find the entire diplomatic and then assassin plot convincing after the initial parts of the book
- some ideas were very reminiscent of "The Left Hand of Darkness" like: diplomatic mission, humanoid species on an alien planet that was colonized and now has different sex (or gender) modalities, heat = kemmer, love story between two men that is not acted upon (Le Guin) / that is acted upon in a very ouvert fashion (Primm) which can then again be found in Le Guin's "Coming of Age in Karhide" --- and I found that this take on the entire relationship between our two main characters was very straightforward and this unbelievable...
- Kaj from the homeplanet coming to "school" the population of this planet
- Indigenous population of the planet as origin of the intersex abilities of the "Cursed" people - introduced as a mere explanation without any deeper sense, they are portrayed as the mysterious savages whose language and reproduction was assimilated and who are now the "Unspoken" (wtf)

I know that this was a lot of criticism but I just couldn't stop myself comparing it to the utterly beautiful love story in Le Guin's novel and the very rich and detailed and confusing (yet rightly so!) exploration of a diplomat on a foreign planet with foreign rules and a different form of reproduction, sex and love.

3 - 3,5 stars - I'm not really sure right now.

A generally enjoyable book - a very "fanfiction" type feel - I definitely felt that there was a world history that I was missing but I didn't necessarily /need/ to understand the content. I liked a lot of the societal ins and outs but (as someone who is not religious) I did feel the constant hammering of /all/ religion as a negative thing was a little exhausting. I also wish there had been some type of content warning for pregnancy.

Overall I liked the book though and have recommended it to a few others!

A promising start and intriguing world-building. An excellent novel with good pacing. I would have liked the romance aspect to have been more developed and not instant, however it did not distract from the story.

Overall: 3.5/5 stars

Didn't realize that this was gay science fiction when I downloaded it. Got about thirty percent through it, but not for me.

Otsakis was engrossing, and I couldn't put it down. The characters were well developed and I appreciated the similarities between the Ostakan culture of the church and the real life, non fiction church. It was serious and dealt with issues that we face in real life, but at the same time it was a perfect sci-fi escapist page turner.

As a long-time reader of science fiction, I have mixed feelings about this book.

Ostakis is a sci-fi romance with a focus on diplomacy. Kaj, an ambassador from Earth, comes to a lost colony to bring it into a collected alliance of human planets. What he encounters is a stratified society, with certain individuals—the Cursed—held in a subjugated role based on their physical characteristics. The position of the Cursed is reinforced by a powerful church that views them as inherently sinful, a manifestation of the wickedness of their forebears. Kaj is appalled by their treatment, particularly after meeting Arlan, a Cursed who also happens to be the son of a powerful man who defies the teachings of the church. When Kaj and Arlan develop a personal relationship, the church’s leader sees attacking them as an opportunity to protect his religion in the face of possible change and to amass even more power for himself by getting rid of a powerful rival.

It’s an intriguing premise. Diplomatic sci-fi can be very interesting if done well, and the author does a good job outlining Kaj’s attempts to navigate an unfamiliar culture and the pitfalls and challenges he faces. She also includes a twist involving his mission that I didn’t see coming, always a plus in my book.

As good as that aspect of the novel is, however, the story could use more detail, both in the worldbuilding and in the development of the romance between Kaj and Arlan. There’s minimal description of Ostakis itself, and there’s one aspect of the planet that absolutely demands clearer explanation than is given. The lack of detail is a glaring omission in that particular case. (Really, really trying to avoid spoilers here.) Kaj and Arlan’s initial meeting is handled well, but after their relationship becomes physical, it doesn’t take long before they are professing their love, even though they’ve spent relatively little time together because of all the political upheaval going on around them.

In my opinion, this book would have benefited from being longer, which would have given the author more room to develop the story. I also think that stronger editorial guidance or more input from beta readers would have been helpful in terms of identifying potential weak spots in the narrative.

This is only the author’s second novel, though, and her writing shows enough potential that I’m going to keep an eye out for more of her work.

A copy of this book was provided through NetGalley for review; all opinions expressed are my own.

This is a good, quick read. I'd characterize it as a sort of psychological study since it shows how people/society react when feeling scared or threatened. Really well-written characters, and excellent, fairly complex plot kept me engaged. Another author with solid talent. Recommended.

Set far in the future, Ostakis takes us to a world that is slowly dying. With resources running out and a population in decline, the government feels the world can only be saved by joining the Human Planet Collective. Kaj, ambassador for the HPC, finds more than a dying world, he discovers prejudice, bigotry, and sexism. Now Kaj must balance his political duties with his own personal beliefs before time runs out. A well written blend of political intrigue, world-building, and steamy romance, Ostakis is fast paced and engaging.
I found this story to be both engrossing and heartbreaking. The treatment of the Cursed was archaic and horrific and the ending was very satisfying. The author did a wonderful job creating the complex political systems and showing their impact on everyday life in this new society. The ties between the church and government led to devastating treatment on marginalized peoples and the parallels with our politics was spot on.
This book was great! Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions are my own.

Ostakis by Angelica Primm is available February 18th from Nine Star Press

Beyond the story there were a lot of interesting things to think about in this book. The outsider view of our world was really well done and fascinating. I think the author probably has a lot more hope in humanity than I generally do lol. The story itself was well written and had great pacing. I like how it builds up suspicions. My one complaint would be that the part with the Unspoken seemed a bit too fast and really didn't give them any chance to redeem themselves, but perhaps that's a problem for a sequel.