FIASCO by Constance Fay – Review

I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Fiasco by Constance Fay
Series: Uncharted Hearts #2
Published by Bramble on June 4 2024
Genres: Adult, Romance, Science fiction
Pages: 352
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Snappy dialog and plenty of action (and yes, romance) make Fiasco an excellent sequel that’s tons of fun.

“My mother has a blaster taped to her thigh under her skirt and a knife in her bra. I didn’t even give her the knife. She just carries one there. And because she has voluminous breasts that she selfishly did not pass down to me, the hilt of the blade is obscured. I have so much to learn.”

Don’t you love it when a sequel is just as good as the first book in the series? I sure do, and I’m happy to report that Fiasco is a perfect follow-up to last year’s Calamity. Constance Fay’s stories revolve around a survey ship called Calamity and its crew, and each book in the series focuses on a different romantic pairing. This book was so funny, and I cannot tell you how often I found myself laughing out loud. Fay’s dialog is hysterical, and I’ll talk more about some of my favorite characters below. It’s also an action-packed story with lots of fun twists, and of course there’s a romance element that worked really well for me. Throw in a fascinating world, lots of emotional moments, a cute winged lizard named Vuur and pitch perfect writing, and you have a well-rounded story that isn’t just for romance lovers (seriously, the romance is a very small part of the book).

We met Cyn Khaw in Calamity, but at the time she was posing as a woman named Generosity, under cover so she could infiltrate a dangerous cult. Now she’s back to her real name, except it isn’t exactly her real name, lol. Cyn is a bounty hunter with tragedy in her past, and she’s still trying to come to terms with it. Her cousin Aymbe was kidnapped when she was ten by the infamous Abyssal Abductor, so named because he snatches children from rich families and demands high ransoms for their return. If the family can’t pay, he drops them into the ocean to die. Aymbe died at the hands of the Abductor, and it shattered Cyn’s family. Since then, she’s secretly been hunting for him in order to avenge her cousin.

One day she gets a visit from Estella Escajeda, whose daughter Boreal has been taken by the Abyssal Abductor, and Estella wants Cyn to rescue her. Cyn agrees to help, even though she has to rejoin the crew of the Calamity in order to do so. Although she’s changed her name and appearance since she was Generosity, she’s nervous about going back, especially since Micah Arora will be there, the muscular and very hot ship’s medic. To make matters even more complicated, Cyn has found herself on the bad side of Carmichael Pierce, from one of the top powerful Families, and he’s blackmailed her into taking a bounty on, you guessed it, Micah Arora. Now she has to locate the Abductor, rescue Boreal, get over her complicated feelings for Micah and turn him in, and face her family, who she hasn’t seen in years. Cyn’s smart and talented, but even she has her limits.

Just like Calamity, Fiasco is a fast paced, upbeat sci-fi story, and all the elements are so well balanced. Constance Fay has a knack for creating interesting characters with plenty of depth, and a few stood out for me. I was intrigued by Cyn’s character in the last book, and it was nice to see her come into her own in this book. Cyn has distanced herself from her family after the fiasco with Aymbe’s death, which she feels responsible for, but she also misses them and wants to mend bridges. At first, her family—mother, father, aunt and grandparents—are simply awful to her, criticizing all her choices, blaming her outright for what happened to Aymbe. I couldn’t believe she would put up with their behavior. But later in the story, some of my favorite scenes revolved around them, as they begin to grudgingly appreciate Cyn’s skills and her fierce dedication to finding the Abyssal Abductor. The interactions among them were laugh-out-loud funny, and I made so many “LOL” notes in my book as I was reading. There’s a running joke with a fortune teller who is predicting how many babies Cyn will end up having, and the comedic timing was simply perfect!

The other character I loved was Madrigal, an older woman with a shady past who is stuck in a “home” across from Cyn’s apartment, and through proximity they’ve befriended each other over the years. Madrigal is hiding a bunch of stuff, including her association with a dangerous gang, and I absolutely loved her (and I secretly hope she appears in future books!). When Cyn leaves to join the Calamity and hunt for Boreal, she continues to communicate with Madrigal, who ends up helping them later in the story. Their friendship had some very sweet moments, despite the fact that both women have been hardened by life.  Most of the characters in the story surprised me at one time or another—you think they are one thing and they turn out to be something else completely, and I enjoyed these twists immensely.

Fay also expands on her worldbuilding in this book. We get to visit Cyn’s home planet, which is known for it’s algae harvesting. Algae is needed for space travel (I won’t get into the details, but it’s fascinating), and here is where some of the political elements come into the story. I do love the way the worldbuilding is handled, since the author doesn’t spend too much time on it—there are just too many other elements to focus on—and yet I never felt confused. If anything, the details we do get only whetted my appetite for more.

And of course, I have to quickly mention the romance between Cyn and Micah. I loved that they didn’t play the usual games with each other and actually acted like adults, what a concept for a romance! Fay hits a lot of expected romance beats in her story, but the added humorous dialog between the characters made it feel fresh. Expect a couple of spicy scenes, but honestly, they were pretty tame, in my opinion, and didn’t overwhelm the other amazing elements in this story.

The last few chapters were bat-shit crazy, and I loved every single moment. I had a big smile on my face as I read the last page, and honestly, is there anything better than that? The next book has already been announced—Chaos—and focuses on the Calamity’s engineer Caro. To say I’m excited is an understatement! Readers looking for an extremely fun, smart series need look no further.

Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.