Key Lime Sky

3.5 stars

3.5 stars. Unpolished, goofy and sweet sci-fi lite. Come for the UFOs, stay for the romance between the nonbinary, autistic, pie-crazy Denver and chubby cinnamon roll Ezra. Author Al Hess is trans and autistic.

I had so much fun with this book! It is such a strange and bizarre read with the cutest queer characters and while it's often described as a cozy scifi, it still has a good amount of depth, especially when it comes to our MC. Denver is non-binary and autistic and we learn what it's like for him to not only navigate his life around small town Muddy Gap but also exploring a new romance amidst an alien invasion. Overall, I enjoyed the representation, character development, and alien invasion mystery.

Thank you to Angry Robot for providing a digital copy and connecting us to Al Hess for a written interview with Shit We've Read podcast.

Thank you NetGalley and Angry Robot for this ARC.

Was this a romance? Was it a sci-fi? Was it apocalyptic? It was all of the above. Honestly I wasn't completely sure what to expect with this book but the description called to me. I'm so glad I read this, if was such a fun journey and so cute! I'm usually not a romance fan but I really loved what this added to the book. It was a great mix of heartwarming moments and action. 

The only reasons this wasn't a 5 star read were:
1. I hated Molly, detested her, and didn't feel like she added like the rest of the characters. That blip made me ready for her part to be over every time she popped in. 
2. The chapters were SO LONG. Plus my Kindle wasn't showing the time left in a chapter. So I kept having to quit mid-chapter and that always throws me off. I'm a big short chapter fan though so could just be me. 

Overall this was a great book, I loved all the characters (except Molly 😒) and would highly recommend it if you want a quirky and different romance adventure. 

Sweet and cozy, great and intersectional representation. Not really my type of story (I'm an unhinged girlie through and through) but I can see a lot of people enjoying this.

Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for the ARC

Key Lime Sky’s blend of sci-fi, mystery, and autistic representation truly made for a compelling and refreshing read. This is my favorite kind of sci-fi, soft and cozy rather than hard, easy to get into and understand. And the importance of acceptance, understanding, and self-discovery are beautifully woven throughout a story that is honestly kind of alarming at times (it is about an alien invasion, after all)!

Denver is both autistic and nonbinary (xe goes by any pronouns but mentions that xe prefers xe/xem [which I don’t see in books very often!] so I’ll use those – I’ve never used them before and I looked it up but please forgive any mistakes and feel free to correct me). Xe is such a well-crafted character. I love xyr sense of humor and I can only dream of being as good at writing reviews as xe is. Xyr autism isn’t the most important part of xem, but it’s an important aspect of Denver’s life, so it’s a big part of the book. Al Hess is autistic himself, so I know and appreciate that Denver’s autistic traits are portrayed with both accuracy and sensitivity.

As for the plot itself: hell. yeah. I love a good alien invasion and Al Hess did a fantastic job setting the scene for unique story with a resolution I absolutely did not see coming. Alien invasions are serious business and it could be quite tense at times, so the different kind of tension we get from Denver and Ezra’s budding romantic relationship is extra welcome. I also liked that Denver isn’t the only one to struggle with acceptance, as Ezra and the other townspeople also have pasts and insecurities they have to work through.

I knew I’d like Key Lime Sky when I read the blurb, but I loved it even more than I expected I would and I was really happy to read a good book with an autistic character that feels realistic, instead of just a caricature, as it’s essential to have more stories like this that showcase diverse experiences in an appropriate way and promote empathy and understanding. Just a little advice though: when you read this book, make sure you have some pie handy, because Denver is going to make you want some.