Publishers Weekly
05/02/2022
Capt. Eva Innocente returns in Valdes’s quirky, high-stakes third Chilling Effect space opera (after Prime Deceptions). Eva and her crew were hoping for a holiday, but they’re thrown right back into the thick of things when mysterious monoliths appear across the universe demanding the surrender of all occupied systems. Skillful characterization of humans and aliens alike and offbeat worldbuilding details paint a vivid picture of this near-future society as its bureaucrats scramble to make sense of the monoliths’ threat. Eva receives a strange message offering to meet and exchange information and a weapon that could defeat whatever’s behind the monoliths. On arriving, Eva is reunited with a onetime ally and finds herself facing off against her former boss, mercenary Tito Santiago, in a race to secure a trio of ancient mechs that should be able to stop the coming invasion. Valdes seamlessly incorporates backstory throughout, making this installment friendly to newcomers looking for an adventure reminiscent of Transformers and Voltron. Returning readers will be delighted to reunite with the crew as Eva, her psychic cats, and her found family are pushed to confront ever-greater dangers in the lead-up to a thrilling climax. It’s as unconventional, tongue-in-cheek, and rip-roaring as fans expect. Agent: Quressa Robinson, Folio Literary Management. (Aug.)
From the Publisher
This is a wild and imaginative adventure that captures the importance of one’s chosen family.” — BookPage on Prime Deceptions
“Eva’s personal growth and the found family aboard La Sirena Negra—including the crew’s psychic cats—will draw readers in and delight series fans.” — Publishers Weekly on Prime Deceptions
“Jam-packed with weird aliens, mysterious artifacts, and lovable characters... Eva and her family are Latinx and often include un-italicized Spanish in their dialogue, a rare find in a genre that usually uses whiteness as the default. A tremendous good time and an impressive debut.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review) on Chilling Effect
“Featuring memorable Cuban-descended characters, this engaging space opera debut delivers a story that dances between hilarity and seriousness, with all the joy and frustration psychic cats can bring to the mix.” — Library Journal (starred review) on Chilling Effect
“Imagine if Firefly and Mass Effect got together and had a baby, and that baby were delivered by Guillermo del Toro. This book is that baby. ¡Esto fue un triunfo!” — Curtis C. Chen, author of the Locus Award finalist Waypoint Kangaroo, on Chilling Effect
Curtis C. Chen
Imagine if Firefly and Mass Effect got together and had a baby, and that baby were delivered by Guillermo del Toro. This book is that baby. ¡Esto fue un triunfo!
BookPage on Prime Deceptions
This is a wild and imaginative adventure that captures the importance of one’s chosen family.
Library Journal
07/01/2022
The third book in Valdes's Clarke Award—shortlisted, LJ Best—Booked "Captain Eva Innocente" series (following Prime Deceptions) finds Eva entering the Grand Melee in order to earn money to keep her ship going and her crew safe. It's during this fight that an intergalactic phenomenon occurs, changing everything: monoliths have appeared at each of the space gates and are transmitting a message, surrender or die. An alien named Antimatter informs Eva that the Artificers sent the monoliths. Antimatter is a member of a species called the Proarkhe, a group with whom the Artificers have been warring with for eons. Antimatter's story is enough to send Eva, her psychic cats, and the crew of La Sirena Negra on a thrilling treasure hunt to find three hidden mechs that can be used to save not only her crew but the universe as well. VERDICT An unusual combination of National Treasure and Star Trek in which a space crew races across a universe filled with an array of different beings.—Victoria Kollar
Kirkus Reviews
2022-05-25
Capt. Eva Innocente and her ragtag crew of misfits aboard La Sirena Negra are back to save the universe.
Eva and her crew need a vacation. When the opportunity arises for Eva to compete in a goofy “competitive combat” reality show, she enters hoping to win the grand prize: a luxury vacation at a high-end resort. But during the middle of the show, suddenly everything shuts down. Enormous monoliths have appeared spontaneously throughout the galaxy. The monoliths are transmitting one simple message: “Surrender or be exterminated.” But surrender to whom? And be exterminated when? When Eva gets back aboard her ship, she receives a message from old friend Antimatter, a member of an ancient alien race called the Proarkhe. Antimatter explains to Eva that the monoliths came from her species’ powerful enemies, the Artificers. The only hope of stopping them is to collect three "mechs," huge robotic weapons that can be piloted by a single human. According to Antimatter, if Eva and her team can find the three mechs and connect them together, they’ll form a weapon powerful enough to send the Artificers packing and save the universe. But Eva better hurry, because the Artificer's ominous message is still ringing around the galaxy, and she's not the only one after the mechs. So begins the third of Valdes’ novels starring Eva and company (following Prime Deceptions, 2020), in which there are big, exciting alien battles but also delightful psychic cats who prowl around La Sirena Negra. Valdes hits the perfect comedic tone, giving Eva equal parts snark and heart and filling the ship with fun supporting characters. The quest for the mechs provides lots of great action sequences with SF weaponry on strange planets.
A comedic SF adventure that delivers on all three fronts.
