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    Light From Uncommon Stars
    Light From Uncommon Stars
    Light From Uncommon Stars
    Audiobook13 hours

    Light From Uncommon Stars

    Written by Ryka Aoki

    Narrated by Cindy Kay

    4.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    "Cindy Kay masterfully narrates this unique audiobook, which combines a variety of genres to tell a moving story of self-acceptance and finding safety even in the bleakest of times." - AudioFile Magazine, Earphones Award review

    Good Omens     meets The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet in Ryka Aoki's Light From Uncommon Stars, a defiantly joyful adventure set in California's San Gabriel Valley, with cursed violins, Faustian bargains, and queer alien courtship over fresh-made donuts.

    Hugo Award Finalist
    A National Bestseller
    Indie Next Pick
    New York Public Library Top 10 Book of 2021
    A Kirkus Best Book of 2021
    A Barnes & Noble Best Science Fiction Book of 2021
    2022 Alex Award Winner
    2022 Stonewall Book Award Winner

    Shizuka Satomi made a deal with the devil: to escape damnation, she must entice seven other violin prodigies to trade their souls for success. She has already delivered six.

    When Katrina Nguyen, a young transgender runaway, catches Shizuka's ear with her wild talent, Shizuka can almost feel the curse lifting. She's found her final candidate.

    But in a donut shop off a bustling highway in the San Gabriel Valley, Shizuka meets Lan Tran, retired starship captain, interstellar refugee, and mother of four. Shizuka doesn't have time for crushes or coffee dates, what with her very soul on the line, but Lan's kind smile and eyes like stars might just redefine a soul's worth. And maybe something as small as a warm donut is powerful enough to break a curse as vast as the California coastline.

    As the lives of these three women become entangled by chance and fate, a story of magic, identity, curses, and hope begins, and a family worth crossing the universe for is found.

    A Macmillan Audio production from Tor Books.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Audio
    Release dateSep 28, 2021
    ISBN9781250824479
    Author

    Ryka Aoki

    RYKA AOKI (she/her) is a poet, composer, teacher, and novelist. Her latest novel, Light From Uncommon Stars, was an Alex, SCKA, and Otherwise Award winner, and was also a finalist for the Hugo, Locus, and Ignyte Awards. Ryka is a two-time Lambda Literary Award finalist for her collections Seasonal Velocities, and Why Dust Shall Never Settle Upon This Soul, and her first novel, He Mele a Hilo, was callled one of the "10 Best Books Set in Hawaii" by Bookriot. She has been recognized by the California State Senate for “extraordinary commitment to the visibility and well-being of Transgender people,” and her work has appeared or been recognized in publications including Vogue, Elle, Bustle, Autostraddle, PopSugar, and Buzzfeed, as well as the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center. She was also honored to work with the American Association of Hiroshima Nagasaki A-Bomb Survivors, where two of her compositions were adopted as the organization’s “songs of peace.” She has an MFA in creative writing from Cornell University, and is currently a professor of English at Santa Monica College.

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    Reviews for Light From Uncommon Stars

    4.5/5

    271 ratings17 reviews

    What our readers think

    Readers find this title to be one of the most unexpected and joyful stories they've read. It is delightful, heartfelt, and sometimes painful, but always with a touch of whimsy. The characters are compelling, flawed, and interesting. The drama and suspense are intense, keeping readers hooked. The book is beautiful, moving, inspiring, and heartfelt, with important social commentary. It is also filled with humor, a fun cast of characters, and sumptuous descriptions of food. Overall, it is a gorgeous, uplifting, and hopeful story that leaves readers in tears.

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      The sci Fi parts and identity themes were wonderful, the supernatural and romance were week.
    • 5/5
      Wonderful prose, interesting and beautifully chaotic story of what gives life meaning
    • 5/5
      Excellent audio production. The story itself dips in and out of extreme depth and levity. A beautifully woven and unexpected tale where every element that seems not to belong, belongs perfectly. Strange and delightful and heartwrenching.
    • 5/5
      Absolutely stunning. So heartfelt and hopeful despite being devastating at times. Fantastical yet mundane, and beautiful all the way throufh
    • 5/5
      What a beautiful journey. I loved every part of it
    • 5/5
      A stunning masterclass of worldbuilding, characters that are imperfect and realised in their peculiarities and a plot that keeps you wondering how can it all be alright in the end?
      Marvellous.

      Love is love
      Trans rights are human rights
      This too, will pass


      ~Abi
    • 5/5
      This book was one of the best books I've enjoyed so far this year. The characters were all compelling, flawed and interesting. The drama and suspense was intense and the story had me absolutely hooked.

      If you enjoyed Becky Chambers or Neil Gaimen, you'll definitely like this book that feels like a collaboration between those two amazing authors.
    • 5/5
      Just gorgeous. Really uplifting and hopeful while still acknowledging the hurt we all face in our lives.
    • 5/5
      This was one of the most unexpected and joyful stories I've read this year - it was delightful, heartfelt, sometimes painful but always with a touch of whimsy. The characters and the writing will stay with me for a long time. Could not recommend this more highly!
    • 5/5
      Beautiful. I loved this and the narrator was perfect
    • 5/5
      Absolutely beautiful. I have no words other than that. I'm in tears.
    • 5/5
      all I want is doughnuts now. please provide some :)
    • 5/5
      Beautiful, moving, inspiring and heartfelt as well as really important social commentary. This is a fantastic book and is read perfectly.
    • 5/5
      I was surprised at how much humor that was in this book. Really fun cast of characters and sumptuous descriptions of food
    • 5/5
      Loved this book, it is a beautiful, moving, uplifting story.
    • 5/5
      Really beautiful and just something else; great writing. I’ll be buying the physical book!
    • 5/5
      Moving, funny, dreamy, and so rich with characters you feel you know like family by the end