A trans violinist, a demon, and an alien all walk into a donut shop… no, this is not a joke. This is the set up for one of the most unusual and engaging books that I have read this year. Light From Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki took me for a wild ride and I was not mad about it.
The Plot
Katrina Nguyen, a young trans woman, runs away from home. She is bruised and broken, and takes only a bag of clothes and her beloved violin with her.
Shizuka Satomi sold her soul to the devil for fame and fortune 48 years ago. But the deal fell through and now she is required to find seven replacement violinist souls in exchange for her own. She has one soul and one year left to find it in.
Lan Tran crossed galaxies in order to find a world safe from the war she was escaping. She has dragged her Aunt and 4 children with her, and together they run a donut shop in the San Gabriel Valley.
The lives of these three women twist together in a wonderful way. Their influences on each other changes all of their lives in unforeseen ways.
Thoughts
I loved it! The other Noonas and the members of my book club can attest that when I first started reading the story my brain was exploding a little bit. I hadn’t read anything about the book. I just liked the cover and the title so I requested the ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) from Netgalley when it came up.
When I started reading the story of a scared, hurt young trans teenager escaping her abusive home in the middle of the night, I thought “oh, so this is gonna be a sad story”. Then the next chapter was about a famous violin mentor who was looking for the last violinist who’s soul she could reap to pay off the devil and I thought, “OHHHHH. THIS is the story that we’re doing here, okay.” And then the next chapter started telling me about the family of aliens who had bought a donut store and were turning the giant donut on the roof into a stargate for interstellar travel and I thought “what the heck am I reading here?!?” 🤣
I have since seen the book compared to books by Becky Chambers. I have to say that is an apt comparison. I read most of her Wayfarers series last year an both authors create unique and inclusive universes. While both universes see an existence where LGBTQ+ people are treated the same as any other person, in Aoki’s work we see the dichotomy of a universe that is accepting while a single planet continues to mock and abuse. Individual characters in Katrina’s life see her as a girl and treat her as such, but the world around her is not always as kind. I really enjoyed seeing the way that finding acceptance and support helped Katrina to grow as a character.
Ultimately I will say that I don’t think this book is going to be everyone’s cup of tea. It is a sci-fi fantasy novel that does not explain away the devil with science. Nor does it fantasy up a world where everyone is magically kind and inclusive in their language and ideas. The book tackles some very hard issues in some very interesting ways, while also maintaining a fun and interesting story. All the wildly different threads come together beautifully. If you’re up for something a little bit different I suggest you give it a try.
Check out some of my other book reviews here:
The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker
Strange Beasts of China by Yan Ge