As someone who loved The Deep Sky, I knew I had to read The Stardust Grail. Even more so when it was described as a space Indiana Jones taking on colonialism. And that comparison is spot on! Keep reading this book review of The Stardust Grail for my full thoughts.
Summary
Maya Hoshimoto was once the best art thief in the galaxy. For ten years, she returned stolen artifacts to alien civilizations—until a disastrous job forced her into hiding. Now she just wants to enjoy a quiet life as a graduate student of anthropology, but she’s haunted by persistent and disturbing visions of the future.
Then an old friend comes to her with a job she can’t refuse: find a powerful object that could save an alien species from extinction. Except no one has seen it in living memory, and they aren’t the only ones hunting for it.
Maya sets out on a breakneck quest through a universe teeming with strange life and ancient ruins. But the farther she goes, the more her visions cast a dark shadow over her team of friends new and old. Someone will betray her along the way. Worse yet, in choosing to save one species, she may condemn humanity and Earth itself.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
The Stardust Grail is for anyone who loves the idea of heists, archaeology and exploring, and taking on a colonial Empire. One who thinks their survival is worth whatever the cost. Who gets stuck in these cycles of fear, aggression, defense, and offense. It’s about a researcher, student, and ‘former’ thief who knows what it is like to be seen for what we can do for the “good” the “empire”. With subtle digs at academia and the politics of it, The Stardust Grail had me fully invested.
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It tackles the ethics of museum acquisition. Of the frame of knowledge we are lacking, the inaccuracies, the spectacle. While it’s easy to become obsessed with the heists, the crew dynamic, and the archaeology, I was fascinated in the themes. In The Stardust Grail, Kitasei asks us what we would do if it’s us versus them. If there’s no way to break a cycle of aggressive defense. Of attacking out of the fear we will be attacked, or to pre-emptively protect against an attack. It’s about the marks and mistakes we make and how we atone, change, and forgive.
(I also have to add the audiobook narration allowed me to see some side characters differently. To hear their personality in Katharine Chin’s narration. I was switching between the book and audio book and it actually changed my mind on a few – no spoilers!)
Find The Stardust Grail on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop.org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.