V = The Vanished Birds by Simon Jimenez

“Some roads go on and on,” the Kind One said. “And some roads end before their route. But no road goes on forever.” ― Simon Jimenez, The Vanished Birds

This is perhaps one of my shortest reviews ever, written during a reviewing slump, but I read very few titles that start with V and this was the best book of the bunch.

An intergalactically famous inventor charges a ship's captain with protecting a boy. The captain's crew become a family, but her story turns to tragedy. Despite the sadness, the story ends pleasantly with hope.

This book was not what I expected. It was science-light science fiction. No long-winded explanations of tech and very little tech at all. There were no wildly fantastic space battles, just the practicality of life among the stars.

The narrative was not quick, but a slow burn as the characters drove the story from past to present and across the universe.