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2022 Astounding Award for Best New Writer (nominee)
2022 Locus Award for Best First Novel (nominee)
A Sunday Times Bestseller!
A 2022 Alex Award Winner!
“Sparks fly” (NPR) in Everina Maxwell’s gut-wrenching and romantic space opera debut.
Prince Kiem, a famously disappointing minor royal and the Emperor's least favorite grandchild, has been called upon to be useful for once. He's commanded to fulfill an obligation of marriage to the representative of the Empire's newest and most rebellious vassal planet. His future husband, Count Jainan, is a widower and murder suspect.
Neither wants to be wed, but with a conspiracy unfolding around them and the fate of the empire at stake they will have to navigate the thorns and barbs of court intrigue, the machinations of war, and the long shadows of Jainan's past, and they'll have to do it together.
So begins a legendary love story amid the stars.
Like Ancillary Justice meets Red, White and Royal Blue, Winter’s Orbit is perfect for fans of Lois McMaster Bujold.
“High-pitched noises escaped me; I shouted, more than once, 'Now kiss!' ... in a world so relentlessly uncertain, there’s a powerfully simple pleasure in the experience of a promise kept.” —The New York Times Book Review
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Genre: Science Fiction
A 2022 Alex Award Winner!
“Sparks fly” (NPR) in Everina Maxwell’s gut-wrenching and romantic space opera debut.
Prince Kiem, a famously disappointing minor royal and the Emperor's least favorite grandchild, has been called upon to be useful for once. He's commanded to fulfill an obligation of marriage to the representative of the Empire's newest and most rebellious vassal planet. His future husband, Count Jainan, is a widower and murder suspect.
Neither wants to be wed, but with a conspiracy unfolding around them and the fate of the empire at stake they will have to navigate the thorns and barbs of court intrigue, the machinations of war, and the long shadows of Jainan's past, and they'll have to do it together.
So begins a legendary love story amid the stars.
Like Ancillary Justice meets Red, White and Royal Blue, Winter’s Orbit is perfect for fans of Lois McMaster Bujold.
“High-pitched noises escaped me; I shouted, more than once, 'Now kiss!' ... in a world so relentlessly uncertain, there’s a powerfully simple pleasure in the experience of a promise kept.” —The New York Times Book Review
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Genre: Science Fiction
Praise for this book
"A dazzling and comforting story of galactic politics, healing and romance. Its characters stayed with me long after I raced through the last chapters." - Aliette de Bodard
"Everina Maxwell's writing has everything you could ask: impossible choices, divided loyalties, dry wit, and operatic struggle with bureaucracy. I don't know how she's managed to write a book that's simultaneously an elegant comedy of manners, a charming slow-burn romance, and an adventure in space politics, but whatever her secret, I'm wildly envious." - A K Larkwood
"Delightful! Winter's Orbit is a chilling account of a dark past wrapped in the warm blanket of a promising future. It was such a pleasure to read." - Ann Leckie
"Winter's Orbit manages the incredible feat of being the slow burn 'sad spaceboys in love' romance of your dreams, while also being a gripping political thriller. Maxwell has built a deeply-layered and fascinating universe filled with alien tech, complex imperial politics, and perilous intergalactic diplomacy. I stayed up all night reading, desperately rooting for Kiem and Jainan to finally hold hands and save the day." - Lina Rather
"Everina Maxwell is brilliant at creating atmosphere and drama. Her light touch and considering eye are applied thoughtfully, warmly, and yet without mercy to the failures of an interstellar bureaucracy and the people who both make those failures happen; to the difficulties of diplomatic ties between planets that rely on personal ties between human beings; to the ways people try to get what they want from each other, and the ways they fail to understand each other. The combination of sweeping space opera backdrop and real human drama is as compelling as it comes." - Emily Tesh
"A deftly woven tale of political intrigue, all with a galactic treaty on the line. Maxwell's Winter's Orbit is a stunning new space opera debut, striking with all the skill of a master staff wielder. I hope there is more Kiem and Jainan to come!" - K B Wagers
"A captivating love story with engaging characters, wrapped around a murder mystery with high-stakes multi-world politics. Winter’s Orbit reminds me in the best way of the Vorkosigan series by Lois McMaster Bujold. I can’t wait to see what Maxwell does next!" - Martha Wells
"Everina Maxwell's writing has everything you could ask: impossible choices, divided loyalties, dry wit, and operatic struggle with bureaucracy. I don't know how she's managed to write a book that's simultaneously an elegant comedy of manners, a charming slow-burn romance, and an adventure in space politics, but whatever her secret, I'm wildly envious." - A K Larkwood
"Delightful! Winter's Orbit is a chilling account of a dark past wrapped in the warm blanket of a promising future. It was such a pleasure to read." - Ann Leckie
"Winter's Orbit manages the incredible feat of being the slow burn 'sad spaceboys in love' romance of your dreams, while also being a gripping political thriller. Maxwell has built a deeply-layered and fascinating universe filled with alien tech, complex imperial politics, and perilous intergalactic diplomacy. I stayed up all night reading, desperately rooting for Kiem and Jainan to finally hold hands and save the day." - Lina Rather
"Everina Maxwell is brilliant at creating atmosphere and drama. Her light touch and considering eye are applied thoughtfully, warmly, and yet without mercy to the failures of an interstellar bureaucracy and the people who both make those failures happen; to the difficulties of diplomatic ties between planets that rely on personal ties between human beings; to the ways people try to get what they want from each other, and the ways they fail to understand each other. The combination of sweeping space opera backdrop and real human drama is as compelling as it comes." - Emily Tesh
"A deftly woven tale of political intrigue, all with a galactic treaty on the line. Maxwell's Winter's Orbit is a stunning new space opera debut, striking with all the skill of a master staff wielder. I hope there is more Kiem and Jainan to come!" - K B Wagers
"A captivating love story with engaging characters, wrapped around a murder mystery with high-stakes multi-world politics. Winter’s Orbit reminds me in the best way of the Vorkosigan series by Lois McMaster Bujold. I can’t wait to see what Maxwell does next!" - Martha Wells
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