My Cultural Diet

I checked this out from the library without knowing that it’s actually the second novella in a planned trilogy, but that didn’t hinder my reading at all. To Beth Revis’ credit, How to Steal a Galaxy is pretty self-contained, with enough details about what apparently transpired in its predecessor (Full Speed to a Crash Landing) that I never felt lost. Based on the title and jacket copy, it was basically what I expected: a light-hearted heist romp with a dash of romance. It’s also quite clear that Revis is no fan of Elon Musk; the novella’s villain is a thinly veiled caricature of the world’s richest man, and through her smart-ass protagonist, Revis is not shy in expressing her distaste for him. Though I agree with Revis in principle — I quite dislike Musk myself — her parody is pretty on-the-nose, and often serves only to make her protagonist nigh-insufferable. Many will no doubt find this novella breezy and engaging — you can easily finish it in a single sitting — but I found it smug as much as anything else.

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