Cities of Smoke and Starlight

Gate Chronicles, Book 1

By: Alli Earnest

Narrated by: Magnus Carlssen

Perfect for fans of Dune, Pride & Prejudice, and anyone who believed Rogue One needed a romantic subplot.

Two tortured souls. One world on the brink of war.

Kase Shackley is an embittered hover pilot still reeling from the night his sister died in his arms. He's a screw up in every sense, so when a pilot nearly dies on his watch, he faces serious charges. Seeking to clear his name, he flies a ragtag crew to a lost and dangerous land from which they might never return. If only he didn't have to work with the infuriating bookshop girl who insulted him with Shakespeare

Hallie Walker, top scholar at the University, is jaded by the glittering society shed always dreamed of joining. Raised in the mountains, she fled to the city to forget her painful past. When she loses her bookshop job and the promise of school tuition, she agrees to a top-secret government mission if only for the promised substantial sum upon her return. Now if she could just ignore the ungrateful, arrogant prat of a pilot

In a world of hoverships and crumbling First Earth artifacts, it's up to Hallie and Kase to accomplish the impossible: secure an alliance with an elusive, mystical race to help defend against a kingdom with dangerous technology and ancient magic. If they fail, the war will be lost before it even begins.

Cities of Smoke & Starlight is a heart-wrenching, character-driven steampunk novel featuring a clean, slow burn enemies-to-lovers romance.

©2022 Dragon Page Entertainment (P)2023 Dragon Page Entertainment

Real characters and plot twists!

I love how well this author set up the whole story! The progression of meeting the cast of characters and getting to know them better throughout the story. The VERY Pride and Prejudice-esque enemies to rivals to friends to lovers romantic subplot. *chef’s kiss*

The worldbuilding is phenomenal! Steampunk with a touch of fantasy. Sooooooo well done and original!

The emotions are SKY HIGH at times, and TW:character deaths on-page as well as recollections of character deaths from before the story starts.

Overly dramatic

The narrator was awesome but the story was lacking. The story took for ever to get any where. The characters are all very one dimensional. No redemption, no growth of character just same temper/ irrational/ stubborn responses. Seemed like it tried to be Firefly/Serenity space cowboys but fell really short.

Exciting and heart wrenching

Strong female lead, but one who feels her emotions. She’s not a robot always in control. Male lead is flawed but good at heart. Also, SPACE ELVES!!

I fell in love with this book!

This book was written beautifully, captivating my interest on every page. The reader was also magnificent.

Predictable

Much of this story was predictable, nearly all of the plot points were easy to guess. I kept reading because it reminded me of the cartoon movie Atlantis. It was a nice read but I'm hoping it becomes more intriguing in the next books.