Light From Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki

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Being a reader, I try my best to expand my reading in not only the genre of the books but also who it’s written by (although I have to admit, I don’t really read books by white men anymore) and also their writing style. Ryka Aoki definitely goes above and beyond in all ways. Here is the synopsis of a book that has touched me incredibly deeply:

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.

First off: the writing.

Having not read any of Aoki’s previous works, I did not know what the writing style would be like. That being said, I surprisingly enjoyed it (despite being slightly confused sometimes as to what was going on exactly but then it remedied itself). I really like how Aoki sort of went in between characters within the chapter and didn’t force us to wait until the next chapter to switch POV. I really enjoyed Katrina’s POV (it is all told in the third person) because it really showed that no matter how good Katrina was with playing violin, there would still be people who believed she was not a woman. It was disheartening to see but it also serves as a reminder that Queer people exist and are very much valid and that there will always be people who don’t like you. I also really enjoyed the story with Lucià Matias because it shows the sexism and rooted misogyny in many so-called “traditional families” because they did not let Lucià help with repairing the violins.

The most interesting part, I think, was the just subtle aliens on planet Earth. It was interesting to see how Lan and her family grew and while I was a bit confused as to who exactly Shirley was, it definitely explains later on and all the puzzle pieces clicked one by one.

This was such a fantastic read, I'm not sure how much time had passed since I started and finished but I think the total amount of days it would have taken me to read the whole book (if I wasn't a full-time student with loads of homework) would be 2 days. It's a fairly fast read, coming in at 500+ pages on my Kobo but I do believe it's just a bit over 350 pages in the physical copy.

I mean, if you think about it, a good book will not only be interesting and keep you engaged (that is, make you want to finish it as quickly as possible) but also be written well and make you ponder (or hey, if you’re just looking for something fast, that's okay too lol)

I think, as a musician (a pianist, not a violinist), this book was really fantastic.

It does for sure have me wanting donuts!

Rating: 5/5 stars

Love,

Mila

P.S. I did receive an Audiobook ARC (an a-ARC?) and while I did listen to it, once in a while, I do realize I don't have the attention span sometimes for listening to audiobooks. That being said, thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an advanced audiobook in exchange for an honest review!