Moss’d in Space
Summary:
Torian has finally saved up just enough to buy a spaceship - her ticket to a better life. If she can make it to the nearby planet and secure citizenship, maybe her sister won’t die of lung failure from the poor quality air on the space station where they currently live.
The ship Torian buys, however, is alien and covered in moss. Which shouldn’t be too much of an issue — except that the moss is sentient. And opinionated. And has abandonment issues.
Still, it’s the best chance Torian’s sister has.
So, against the better judgement of everyone in her life (including said sister), Torian sets off, only to be navigated through a wormhole, deposited on an unknown space station due to engine failure, and accused of stealing the ship by it’s previous owner.
Maybe this was a bad idea after all…
Anyone who has asked me for a book recommendation in the past few years has probably heard the name Rebecca Thorne, or the “Tomes and Tea” series. I’ve loved everything I’ve read so far by Thorne (which is almost all of her recent works) and as a sci-fi lover and fan of the “cozy” genre, I was so excited for this book.
It did not disappoint.
Moss’d in Space has all the tropes you’d expect from a “cozy sci-fi” novel in line with Martha Well’s Murderbot Diaries and Becky Chambers’s “Wayfarers” series: found family, dry humor, lovable characters, and relatively low stakes. Torian and her sister Celise have a relationship that makes them really feel like siblings. Both Torian and Moss (the sentient moss on the ship) have believable character flaws and character growth. The supporting side characters are increasingly intriguing and lovable and I can’t wait to get to know them all more in book two. (Lyric fans, anyone?)
The plot was not overly complicated, but that’s what I came to this book expecting and wanting. There are a few twists that I didn’t expect and there is real tension and stakes for the characters. If Torian doesn’t secure a way to get her sister better air regularly, she will die in a few years at most.
Despite being an “uncomplicated” plot, the pace felt right to me. It wasn’t too fast and it didn’t drag. Thorne conveniently introduces wormholes early on that Torian’s alien ship is able to auto-navigate easily, allowing for quick space travel as she and Moss bounce between a few locations. Each location added new characters into the equation, making the visit even more exciting.
The only thing I wasn’t fully sold on was the romance, surprisingly. There wasn’t much of it, and mostly came in the form of a past almost-relationship between Torian and her former ship’s captain Amelia. Though she protested throughout the book, it’s obvious Torian is still pining for Amelia and their “totally over” relationship might not be totally over. Maybe I’ll like it more in book two when they’re together more.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys sci-fi and is looking for something low stakes and easy to read.
