Bonds of Brass

November 4, 2019
Skrutskie (Hullmetal Girls) draws from classic adventure tales to create an action-packed space opera, the first in the Bloodright trilogy. When the Umber Empire conquers the Archon Empire, 10 year old Archonian Ettian is left a disenfranchised orphan. Seven years later, Ettian is a student pilot in the Umber Imperial Academy and nursing a crush on his roommate, Gal. The boys are inseparable, dancing on the edge of something more than friendship even after shocking truths about Gal’s past come to light: he is heir to the Umber throne. When Gal is targeted by their fellow classmates for his royal Umber blood, Ettian and Gal flee together. As the friends strike out on their own, Ettian must contend with conflicting loyalties, torn between Gal, his heritage, and a strange young woman named Wen who joins the adventure. Despite an out-of-the-blue twist at the end, Skrutskie’s sympathetic characters, perfectly-tuned pop-culture references, and harsh glimpses into the realities of empire and war keep the pages turning. This inspired tale will please fantasy fans and has cross-over YA appeal. Agent: Thao Le, Sandra Dijkstra Literary.

February 1, 2020

Gr 9 Up-How much would you sacrifice for love? Umber Imperial Academy cadet Ettain Nassun has spent the past seven years putting his life back together after his homeland was destroyed. Now the only thing that truly matters is his friendship with his roommate, the frustratingly enticing Gal Veres. So when their fellow classmates stage a coup and attempt to assassinate Gal-the secret heir to the Umber Empire-Ettain makes a life-altering decision. The first in an adult/YA crossover trilogy, this book is a departure for Skrutskie, who typically writes kick-butt female leads. But fans will recognize her signature sci-fi world-building and find much to love in Wen, a "junker princess" living on the street, whose story gets tangled up in Ettain's and Gal's. And a twist ending, slyly hinted at throughout the story in M. Night Shyamalan-esque fashion, will take even the most clever readers by surprise. Main characters appear to be people of color, though very few descriptors are given-Ettain's skin is "several shades darker" than that of his fellow Archon classmates, while Gal is described as "golden." VERDICT A Rhoda Belleza-style space opera meets a devastating queer romance à la Adam Silvera. Recommended.-Kaitlin Frick, Darien Library, CT

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2020
Ettian Nassun and Gal Veres are best friends, and maybe more, who are attending the Umber Empire's system-spanning military academy, but when Gal is outed as heir to the Empire that killed Ettian's parents and conquered his people, Ettian must choose whether to follow his heart and keep Gal alive or follow the drumbeat of his people as they attempt to restore their empire. Ettian, an Archon war orphan, and Gal, who appears to be the well-off son of Umber-born parents, look out for one another at the Umber military academy. Ettian shines as a pilot and officer--his way of ensuring that he's never hungry or homeless again--while peace-loving Gal spends more time goofing off and finding ways to subvert the Empire's warmongering ways. All that changes when other Archon war orphans at the academy learn that Gal's the Umber heir and try to kill him. Despite the revelation, Ettian risks his life to save Gal. Then, when Umber politicians try to use the prince's vulnerability to their own advantage, Ettian is the only one Gal can trust to keep him safe. They escape to the neutral Corinthian system, where Ettian discovers the Archon people are not done fighting for their homes and families. He's torn between his love for Gal--and his hope the prince can forge a lasting peace--and his love for the Archon people he thought lost forever. Together with Wen, a sharp-witted girl running from the Corinthian mob, the boys' loyalties, love, and mettle will be tested as their secrets and sacrifices are forced into the light. Fans of Pierce Brown's Red Rising series will find a fantastic home in Skrutskie's (Hullmetal Girls, 2018, etc.) rich, diverse, and multilayered world. Her thoughtful SF portrayal of children navigating war, displacement, and PTSD while finding love and friendship in unimaginable circumstances is very much worth the read. An impeccably paced, character-driven SF novel--the first in a trilogy--aimed at both adults and teens.

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March 1, 2020
The latest novel from Skrutskie (Hullmetal Girls, 2018) presents a space opera world divided between three massive empires. After the destruction of the Archon Empire by Umber, the various Archon worlds have been absorbed into the fold, and survivors of the war, like Ettian Nassun, are now trained at Umber military academies. When his best friend and crush Gal is almost killed by a group of Archon students on a flying drill, Ettian has to try and process the fact that Gal is actually the Umber heir and the child of his conquerors. Divided between loyalty to Gal and to his defeated home world, Ettian must try to keep them both alive as they flee into the slightly more democratic Corinth Empire's space and plot their eventual return. Mobsters, liberation movements, and Ettian's own secrets are all possible obstacles in their way as both boys come to terms with their feelings for one another. With a brisk plot and emphasis on action, this novel should keep fans of Skrutskie's earlier YA work and adult space opera fans alike entertained.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)