Romance stories aren't usually my thing but I can enjoy a good one. Not so much here. This book is really light on plot, really light on characterization, not even a whole lot of sex (though what there was, was uniquely described and interesting speculation), but much, much, much feelings. All the feelings. Romance is supposed to be about feelings, but there has to be something to hang the feelings on, and there's just not enough here. Other critics mentioned the way the mindship and the protagonist wanted to bang each other right away, the romance kind of exploded rather than developing. It's a love overcoming differences story, but the differences (pirates do bad things! They steal, kill and indenture! I got kidnapped by the pirates and given no choice! But I love the pirate leader anyway!) just get stated over and over rather than developed in any way. De Bodard has written a lot in the Xuya space and there's plenty to speculate on with mindships, but we don't see it here. A ship is just a person with a large and complex mechanical body.
This got a Locus nomination. Oof.
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