Gr 7 Up--This futuristic retelling of Jane Austen's Persuasion follows Princess Leonie "Leo" Kolburg as she participates in the Valg Season, a ritual for young nobles from around the galaxy to find spouses. Leo's family has a title and a spaceship, but financial problems have put them at risk of losing both. Leo hopes to save her family with profits from her water filtration system design, but her father insists she find a wealthy husband. Leo's younger sister Carina and cousin Klara are more willing participants in the Valg. To earn money, the Kolburgs have rented out their spaceship to tourists, including Leo's ex-fiancé, Elliot, who left after she broke off the engagement due to her family's disapproval of his low status. Elliot has since become wealthy, and he becomes an object of affection for both Carina and Klara. Cue the flirting, scheming, bickering, secrets, misunderstandings, breakups, and makeups. Though romantic intrigue will keep readers turning pages, important plotlines involving a starving lower class are left unresolved. The ending is rushed and lacking. Feminists intrigued by Leo's scientific aspirations will be disappointed to find that her happy ending is, ultimately, marriage. Romance is primarily limited to flirting, dancing, and kissing. Teen characters frequently drink alcohol, which is accepted in their faux pre-Victorian high society. There is queer representation among secondary characters, including one asexual teen. VERDICT This soapy, slightly problematic romance is Jane Austen meets The Bachelor, told in space. A general purchase recommended for fans of Kiera Cass.--Liz Overberg, Zionsville Community High School, IN

For the second time in her life, Leo must choose between her family and true love.Nineteen-year-old Princess Leonie Kolburg's royal family is bankrupt. In order to salvage the fortune they accrued before humans fled the frozen Earth 170 years ago, Leonie's father is forcing her to participate in the Valg Season, an elaborate set of matchmaking events held to facilitate the marriages of rich and royal teens. Leo grudgingly joins in even though she has other ideas: She's invented a water filtration system that, if patented, could provide a steady incomethat is if Leo's calculating Aunt Freja, the Captain of the ship hosting the festivities, stops blocking her at every turn. Just as Leo is about to give up hope, her long-lost love, Elliot, suddenly appears onboard three years after Leo's family forced her to break off their engagement. Donne (Brightly Burning, 2018) returns to space, this time examining the fascinatingly twisted world of the rich and famous. Leo and her peers are nuanced, deeply felt, and diverse in terms of sexuality but not race, which may be a function of the realities of wealth and power. The plot is fast paced although somewhat uneven: Most of the action resolves in the last quarter of the book, which makes the resolutions to drawn-out conflicts feel rushed.A thrilling romance that could use more even pacing. (Science fiction. 16-adult) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.