The Disasters by M. K. England

Title: The Disasters

Author: M. K. England

Publisher: HarperCollins

Published Date: December 18th 2018

Length:  352 pages

Genre: Fiction, Science Fiction, Space, LGBT, Young Adult, YA

Rating: 4 /5

Hotshot pilot Nax Hall has a history of making poor life choices. So it’s not exactly a surprise when he’s kicked out of the elite Ellis Station Academy in less than twenty-four hours.

But Nax’s one-way trip back to Earth is cut short when a terrorist group attacks the Academy. Nax and three other washouts escape—barely—but they’re also the sole witnesses to the biggest crime in the history of space colonization. And the perfect scapegoats.

On the run and framed for atrocities they didn’t commit, Nax and his fellow failures execute a dangerous heist to spread the truth about what happened at the Academy.

They may not be “Academy material,” and they may not get along, but they’re the only ones left to step up and fight.

+++++

When I picked up this one, I was hoping for one thing and one thing only. For me to forget what was happening out in the world. I also started this book on the day before a proper curfew started in my country. So, yeah. This was the perfect book for that time.

Space operas are something I have always wanted more of but unfortunately, I just haven’t gotten around to as many. So, I was glad I finally picked it up. Right from the beginning, the action is set in space and we follow a ragtag group who were rejected from the space academy.

“Every cell of my body says, ‘Oh god yes! Crime? I can do some crime!’ I want this ship like I’ve never wanted anything in my life. I had a poster of the first-ever Breakbolt model on my bedroom wall when I was nine. It’s like a manifestation of every dream I’ve ever had, everything I’ve ever wanted for myself: a piloting license, a beautiful ship under me, and stars out the viewport. Child Nax says, ‘Do it, do the crime!”

These four characters meet when they are about to go back to Earth but before that can happen, the space station is taken over by figures in dark clothes and they sort of steal the shuttle before they can be killed. Yeah. That’s the start of the book and it hooked me right from the start. I think one of the reasons was the character of Nax Hall. He’s very easy to relate to while he’s hyperventilating over the situation. Before he can make any sense of anything, he has to blend well with the other three people who are in the same boat as him. (Boat. Space shuttle. Same difference.)

Nax is a reject pilot who might or might not even be of legal age, then there’s Case (Cassandra) who’s a super genius but also an academy washout due to reasons, Zee who’s this athlete/ medic who was rejected and doesn’t really want to go back to Earth and Rion who’s father might have tried to force him into politics had he not run away from home to space. I love the fact that Case and Nax both salivate over this ship that’s like their dream ship and that, Nax might even have a term for the attraction to the ship. Aerosexual. Yeah. That’s a thing because he thought it into existence. It’s great.

“Nothing wrong with eggs for dinner at ten o’clock at night when you’re about to commit a crime.”

Basically, they are all disasters in their own way and them getting together and uncovering this conspiracy about the colonies and different opinions of people about colonies was absolutely a mad-dash of an adventure. It does not make sense but you know what? I didn’t really come to this book for some great understanding. Sometimes you just enjoy the ride for the sake of it. There’s great representation, there’s some super quirky characters, some pretty good banter and everybody has their own set of issues that sometimes come out at the worst time but hey, I really enjoyed it.