Adrift in Starlight

Adrift in Starlight
Mindi Briar, 2002

Premise: Tai is a good enough courtesan that they can be somewhat discriminating with their clients. However, a famous actor's money is too much to turn down, even though the request - seduce the man's standoffish fiance - seems shady. For better or worse, professorial Aisha checks boxes Tai didn't know they had. And that's before they end up fleeing the planet together. 

Aww, this was adorable. A gender-neutral courtesan flirts with an asexual xeno-archeologist/historian in a universe out of some brightly-colored sci-fi fever dream. Add in a scattering of other fun characters, telepathic alien creatures of a few different types, and multiple unexpected settings, and you've got a super fun romp.

Both Tai and Aisha were great to get to know, and I empathized easily with both their problems and hesitations about each other and the solutions. (Because there are solutions. This is a romance, and Aisha is asexual, not aromantic. Also, for a book establishing a thriving culture of sex work on page one, this is relatively wholesome and even PG-rated.)

The adventure plot about them fleeing the planet (after inadvertently resurrecting a fossilized alien) was fun and exciting. The twists felt plausible, not too outlandish or too easily solved. Each of our protagonists is willing to sacrifice their own comfort, their careers, or their futures for their morals, for their friends, for each other, and of course it all works out (if only at the last minute). 

I thought this was sweet and funny and an enjoyable read.

4 Stars - A Very Good Book