2 books like The Biomass Conflux

This is a fascinating story, a sci-fi tale at heart with an ace romance subplot between kindred spirits who are literally from two different worlds. Wouter and Nif find an unexpected kinship and forge a bond that neither one expects, a love that’s no less real and valid for its lack of a sexual consummation. Which is the point.

I loved the bani, the way this alien race expresses themselves through color that lends the story an additional level of meaning. As bani and human start to figure each other out, it’s also a joy to see the humans though these aliens’ eyes. Humans who live in “boxes” and travel in other boxes, who rub some kind of sticky substance on their bodies and clothing, and who have many different kinds of smiles and hand squeezes, each one conveying a different emotion.

I also loved the side characters – especially… show more.

There are nail-biting space walk scenes, terrifying battles, and some good-old-fashioned negotiating with the person they left for dead on a previous mission, from who they now need for supplies. The whole story exudes a Firefly (or Star Wars) vibe.

A story with older characters shouldn’t seem so daring. It’s refreshing seeing these women, whom society wants to relegate to the sideines, rediscover who they are and kick some ass. Just goes to show that you don’t have to be a hopped up, macho space marine to clean someone’s clock.

A fantastic read, a thoroughly delightful romp through space with an all-female main cast that blends crazy action scenes with deep reflection on what it means to grow older. This isn’t your parents’ Golden Girls.

I just hope they come back again for more.