Ahoy there me mateys! Aye, this novella has nuns in space. But it also has so much more. It is a fantastic character study about a group of women who have secrets and what happens when Rome and the Earth’s government try to involve them in a conspiracy.
Well the first thing I have to squee about is the living ship that is a kinda slug that the nuns live in. I love me some spaceships. I love me some living spaceships where ye get to hear about the realities of what living in one is like. These ships were fascinating and I loved the details about them like genetic studies and how ye raise them. This ship is even more complicated because it has hit maturity way too early and wants to breed!
The nuns themselves were pretty awesome. There are 10 in the ship and ye get to know five of them pretty well. Sister Faustina was me favourite with Sister Gemma a close second. I enjoyed the idea of a priest from Rome coming onboard to get them caught up with church doctrine and policy. I loved it even more that the nuns manage to have faith and adapt to both space and progress.
The only major problem I had was that the climax and ending were abrupt and I guessed some of the bad guy plot twists. That said, this was fun and I am so glad I finally got to read it. Arrr!
Goodreads has this to say about the novella:
Years ago, Old Earth sent forth sisters and brothers into the vast dark of the prodigal colonies armed only with crucifixes and iron faith. Now, the sisters of the Order of Saint Rita are on an interstellar mission of mercy aboard Our Lady of Impossible Constellations, a living, breathing ship which seems determined to develop a will of its own.
When the order receives a distress call from a newly-formed colony, the sisters discover that the bodies and souls in their care—and that of the galactic diaspora—are in danger. And not from void beyond, but from the nascent Central Governance and the Church itself.
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I really liked this one too! I just wish it had been a full-length novel. I loved the ship!
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It seems like most crew members would like more set in this world. I sure would!
x The Captain
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I thoroughly loved this story and hoped to get more – to the point I wonder if the author will not decide to write some more stories in this universe. I will be delighted to read them all… 🙂
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I haven’t looked up what else this author has written but I need to. (brb). Apparently she has a short story online that I will add to me list. I certainly want more set in the novella’s world. More nuns. More ships. More.
x The Captain
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Sounds like an interesting one, I might have to pick it up! Always on the lookout for new novellas. 🙂
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This one was super fun. I was able to get a copy from a local library so that rocks.
x The Captain
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One of my favorite novellas😁 Glad you enjoyed it, i was surprised how much I loved it!
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I think about this one randomly quite a bit. I could seriously read an entire book that dealt with the ship farms and raising baby ships!
x The Captain
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Yes! That’s one of many reasons I loved this novella – there’s so many parts of the world I’d love to explore further.
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I hope she does. Though I don’t see any evidence of that yet. Keep yer eyes out!
x The Captain
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