Teaser

Levi is a con artist. The kind of guy who can talk his way out of any situation. Unfortunately he also has a habit of talking his way into worse ones. Which goes some way to explaining why half the galaxy seems to want him dead . . .

Review

Because I prefer buying cheap books to buying expensive books, I don’t read a whole lot of debut novels the year they’re released. This is good for my wallet, but less good at keeping me up-to-date with the state of modern SF. It can feel like I’m a little behind on the times. This is where audiobooks come into play. If the new book costs the same as the old book, why not take a gamble on something new? A. Zaykova’s Galaxy Grifter is a 2025 debut that I took a chance on. Happily, it’s also a book I can recommend.

This is a very pulpy space opera. If you’ve played games Mass Effect or Knights of the Old Republic, or have read books Gareth L. Powell or Drew Williams, then you’ll know what to expect. this is to say that originality is not Galaxy Grifter’s strong point. The aliens are the sort you’d see on Star Trek, there’s basically a pod racing scene, the planets are cut and paste mono-biomes, and the twists and turns of the plot are largely predictable.

Here’s the thing though. That’s fine. Zaykova pulls in every trope in the book and has fun with them. This book is an absolute riot from start to finish. It’s fast, it’s furious, and it’s honestly quite funny. Even the inevitable romance between the leads – which would usually make me roll my eyes – made me shrug and just go with it. I don’t want to call it brainless entertainment, because it takes a lot of talent to keep a book moving this quickly without loosing momentum. But this definitely isn’t a book you’ll stay up at night thinking about.

There is, however, one standout feature. The protagonist, Levi, is a scam artist and petty criminal. All too often in science fiction, these rogues are rendered as lovable ne’er-do-wells. You can blame Han Solo for that one. Levi, however, is not lovable. There’s a certain charm to him, but it’s all for show. He is utterly unrepentant, and at times downright horrible. He’s emotionally manipulative, irredeemable, and addicted to his life of crime. The only thing he really cares about is his ship. Zaykova does not make the mistake of trying to redeem this monster of a man. even showing his softer side does not undercut the danger he poses to everyone around him. As a result, Levi is one of the most compelling rogues in recent science fiction.

So, if we’re judge the state of science fiction from one debut alone (which we absolutely should not do, but oh well), then it’s in a healthy place. New ideas are few and far between, but we can still have fun with the old favourites.

Audio Stats

• Narrated by Dan Bittner
• Blackjack Interstellar (#1)
• First Published 2025
• Runtime: 9hrs 29mins