"Piracy is a game. How much are you worth?
Since she was a little girl, everyone - from her father to the Great Creator himself - told Lyssa Peate the same thing: she's worthless. But when she becomes the pirate bounty hunter Razia, she can see the price tag on her own head. Employed by one of the four pirate syndicates, she uses bank transactions and her considerable wits to capture rival members. At least, she would be if Razia's boss ever gave her a chance. It's a man’s world, and all she’s allowed to hunt are purse snatchers while she languishes on probation.
To pay the bills, she's stuck in her old life as Lyssa, discovering and analyzing distant planets and selling them for cash. She's doing just enough to stay out of trouble, pretending to be continuing her father's mysterious research while away for long periods of time. Her slimy boss is always asking questions and even assigns one of her younger brothers, Vel, to intern with her. Already struggling to keep the balance between her double lives, she tries everything to rid herself of the kid...
...until the universal police mistake Lyssa’s intern for Razia's hostage."
NetGalley! Thanks for the copy.
My feelings on books based in space is neutral. I hate some. I like some. I love some. (Must I give examples?). But I think that Double Life is more in the "I like some" area. It isn't bad, and it is good at some parts, but there is still a lot of room for improvement.
Want to dig with me? Let's get started.
Lyssa and Razia is the same person. Lyssa is a boring doctor who discovers planets and sells them to rich people who want to do whatever they want to those planets. Razia is the more... exotic pirate who pretty much does what she wants... Or maybe not. Razia is still on probation, and Razia is the equivalent of a petty thief. And Lyssa is on the brink of getting broke.
And Lyssa has a lot of issues. A lot of issues. Shall we start with the beginning? She was abused as a child, she was neglected, and she was easily forgotten. She has like twenty-four siblings or something like that, and she is barely remembered. And if she is remembered, her mother would curse her name like the devil is chasing her mother's heel.
The piracy game is pretty easy enough to understand. It is like a video game. If you can ignore the fact that Lyssa can be executed, of course. So fun stuff. And that space thing makes it even more interesting (though I'm very curious by how fast Lyssa's space ship could fly).
There are some parts of the plot that goes a bit weird, and some events are not executed properly, but Double Life isn't terribly bad. Though it is slow in the beginning. Annoyingly slow.
I also have to mention Lyssa and Vel's relationship. It both amuses and delights me. Seriously, I just like it so much. Brother/sister relationship. Gosh. Lyssa has to make up for years of disappearance. And some parts of their relationship gets... really funny.
Overall, I think that Double Life is a very interesting book. There is still room for more editing and changes (especially in smoothness of plot). The characters are great, and I'm glad Double Life isn't centered around a romance. Thank goodness.
Rating: Three out of Five
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