Space Unicorn Blues by TJ BerrySpace Unicorn Blues by TJ Berry is a snarky science fantasy complete with spaceships, faeries, aliens, poignant social commentary, and of course, Unicorns!

I feel the same about Science Fantasy as I do about peanut butter and chocolate. They are delicious and tantalizing on their own, but when you combine them, you get a whole new level of amazing. This book is a case in point.

After rendering the Earth pretty much uninhabitable, humanity packed up what they could and limped out into the universe to try and make a go of it elsewhere. Floundering in space, they encountered the Bala; aliens that resembled the creatures of humanity’s fairy tales and legends. They tried to help the humans out however, the Bala had different characteristics that happened to be quite useful. So, in typical human fashion, it was decided they were more valuable as resources than allies and thus began the 100-year war.

However, not all humans wanted to enslave the Bala and Gary’s mother was one of those people. Gary is half human, half unicorn royalty who used to have his own stone ship. That is until his former ship mates turned on him and he eventually ended up in prison for murder. He has just finished his 10-year sentence and needs to get his ship back and get the heck away from the Reason before anyone discovers his true identity.

Unfortunately, his ship was purchased by nefarious bar owner Ricky Tang, and in trying to get it back, he ends up running into his old crew. The unlikely group find themselves reunited for one more mission that unbeknownst to them, has implications for the future of the entire universe.

The Characters

I’m not sure I can say I liked most of the characters. I found Gary and Ricky Tang to be the most conventionally likeable, but I don’t know if you’d want to invite most of them to dinner. What they are though is interesting and disturbingly real (If you ignore the half unicorn or talking tree bits…).

Gary Cobalt is an asexual half human, half UNICORN, former captain of the Jaggery. Due to tragic circumstances he went from captain – to tortured ‘resource’ – to prisoner. He was kept in a cage while his former friends scraped out every bit of horn that grew to fuel the faster than light (FTL) ship and then spent 10 years in prison for murder. Even after all of that, he is so even keel and forgiving.

Ricky Tang is a trans woman bar owner of The Bitter Blossom. She an entrepreneur doing the best she can to survive in the beat up, impoverished world she lives in. She may not always be on the up and up when it comes to gambling and the bar, but desperate times call for innovative economic strategies. Her attitude is infectious, and I love her sense of humour. She definitely stole the show.

Jenny Perata is a past hero of the Reason and probably represents the best character arc I have read in a long time. She has incredible failings and it is easy to dislike her for them, but she also has incredible virtues. She lost the use of her legs years ago while saving her fellow soldiers in a battle with the Bala. It didn’t slow her down, but it did result in an unceremonious phasing out from the Reason forces. She went from killing every Bala in sight to falling in love with Kaila, a Dryad woman. She did horrible things to Gary, but she recognizes that and tries to make amends. She is a complex character to say the least and thus my favourite, even though I don’t actually like her.

And then there’s Cowboy Jim. Justifiably cranky over what happened to his wife, however entirely unlikeable in so, so many ways. I felt a miniscule amount of pity for him at times, but he represents the worst of our species for the most part and I have strong feelings of dislike for him.

They have every reason to not be able to stand each other. But they somehow manage to work together and their hatred of one another is based on actions and personalities rather than their inherent differences. It’s a hell of a dynamic.

The Writing Style

The pacing is perfect if you don’t have any plans for a while. I couldn’t put the book down as each new page either brought more action, humour, intense dialogue and conflict, or revealed some other engaging tidbit of information.

The world building is just…WOW. Not only are the different species, planets, and creatures incredibly creative and downright fantastical out but the detail surrounding them all are completely amazeballs. I think I want to visit Ricky Tang’s bar more than Mos Eisley cantina… and that is saying something!

My Favourite Parts

Masquerade! – disguises and the…uh…interesting ways you can change your appearance in this world.

Singularity Pie – Bet you can’t eat one piece! Also, the different drinks in the story sound like a mixologist’s dream and I would love to try a glass of Gravitas.

Dysfunctional crew shenanigan’s – I’m a sucker for a dysfunctional crew and this book takes that trope to the extreme in a heartwarming/train wreck sort of way.

The Pymmie – Did you ever wonder if you part of some grand intergalactic experiment? If it’s true, the Pymmie are the aliens that are studying you like only immortal, omnipotent scientists could.

Heads Up

Along with the hilarity there are profound, uncomfortable and heavy moments, interspersed throughout the novel dealing with topics like slavery, war, racism and other undesirable traits of humanity. There is also some very visceral imagery. The juxtaposition with the more humourous tones creates an unforgettable experience.

The Conclusion

Michelle's Favourite BooksAs opposed to staring into the eyes of the Sixian parrot, you won’t want to peel your gaze away from this wild science fantasy ride. This book is absurd in all the best ways and I can’t recommend it strongly enough.

Excerpt from Space Unicorn Blues by TJ Berry

Reasoners didn’t have much of a sense of humor about their flag.

Nor did they care for even the gentlest ribbing about polluting their planet until became a hot, uninhabitable marble in space. Humans were touchy about being forced to flee their home world en masse in hastily constructed generation ships. And the people left here on Earth – people deemed too sick or too poor for a chance at a new life – were the angriest of all. Gary didn’t blame them one bit. Mostly, he kept his head down and tried not to attract any notice, but today he needed to navigate the labyrinth of human rage.

“I need to see Ricky about my stoneship.” Gary kept his voice low and slow. He’d been a free man for less than an hour, but it wouldn’t be difficult for a CO on break in the Blossom to find a reason to throw him back into the Quag. Or worse, they’d declare him a natural resource and he’d find himself on the business end of a bone saw. “I was told he bought it at auction –“

The bartender slammed a silver bowl onto the counter to cut him off. Liquid sloshed over the edge and sizzled onto the bar’s high-gloss varnish. His eyes went right down to Gary’s hooves.

If you mean Miss Tang, then she’s hosting the game table,” said the bartender, lighting the bowl on fire with an ember perched on a golden fork. The flaming drink smelled like crushed limes and wax crayons gone soft in the sun.

“I’m sorry. I have apparently misspoken,” said Gary. “The last time I was here, Ricky was a – “

“A charming host who you will find at the game table,” finished the bartender firmly. “Miss Tang will be happy to see you again.”

The sharply dressed Reason officer studied their conversation over his second glass of Gravitas. Gary dropped his face toward the floor, but there was no hiding the line of his powerful jaw; strong enough to crush bones into powder. His stomach rumbled. It had been a long time since he’d crunched through a bone bigger than a rat’s femur. Unicorns in the wild primarily ate trisicles – palm-sized chitinous beetles that thrived in the cold vacuum of space – but he could eat any type of bone or exoskeleton in a pinch.

The officer opened his mouth to speak and Gary turned quickly toward the game table. He had to make this fast. Whatever that man came to do, it wouldn’t be good for Gary to be here when he did it. If they found out he was part unicorn, his magical body parts would be portioned off throughout the Reason. Best-case scenario, they’d take him at his word that he was a faun and he’d end up playing the flute in some wealthy family’s summer home.

Gary had learned never to underestimate a human being’s capacity for cruelty. He’d been a toddler when the Reason Coalition formed, but his mother had been on the first generation ship to meet alien life on their way to a new planet. It didn’t matter that the alien Bala had familiar shapes known to humans through centuries of myth and legend; unicorns, fairies and elves. Or that they offered to use their magic to help the colonists survive in their new home. The humans fired the opening shots in what would become a hundred years of war between the humans and the Bala. Growing up, Gary watched a ragtag collection of starving humans become a highly efficient colonizing machine. War galvanized them and gave them the will to live. Humans were never more persistent than when they were in the wrong.

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Series

The Reason series

Space Unicorn Blues (Reason #1)

Five Unicorn Flush (Reason #2)

Bits and Bobs

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Note: I received a free review copy of Space Unicorn Blues by TJ Berry. No money was exchanged for this review. When you use our links to buy we get a small commission which supports the running of this site