Junker Seven is a fast-paced futuristic queer sci-fi romance that mirrors our current world all too well. It’s got grief & rage, but also community & hope.

We follow Castor, a physically disabled & autistic junker making ends meet by scavenging and selling spare parts. They stay away from the escalating transphobia and galactic revolution led by activist Juno Marcus.

That is – until they get a job offer for an unbelievable amount of money. They’ve just got to safely transport Juno across the galaxy first, and keep her safe from the Intergalactic Police Force (IPF) and the folks that support a violent political leader. 

Castor is determined to view this job as simply a job, but Juno draws everyone into her orbit. As they start to fall from her, they also can’t help but become swept into her cause … and maybe change the galaxy for the better.

I loved both main characters here. Castor has a great arc from hesitant outsider to embracing revolutionary change, and it’s hard not to root for them. They’ve got some internalized ableism and believe that being autistic means they have no choice but to be a loner, and it was nice to watch them unpack that. I thought the depictions of being autistic & physically disabled in space were thoughtful and really well written (especially moments with sensory issues). I also loved their relationship with their goldfish & the memories of their little brother they hold close.

Juno is determined and fierce, and though she’s not our narrator, we do get to see glimpses of the world through her eyes. I actually would have loved to see more of a shift from her - more compassion towards the Castors of the world. She gets there, but doesn’t totally unpack the privilege she does have and the impossible choices everyone in her world has to make.

The romance was a bit quick, but very charming! Castor and Juno balance each other well, challenge each other in the best ways, and truly care for each other. And overall, I really enjoyed the slice-of-life moments we got in between the action.

I thought the writing was solid. It didn’t blow me away (and there were a few stumbles and awkward phrasings), but it was effective. The pacing kept everything in flow for me, too. 

The politics and the world are more or less a copy and paste of our own (there are stand-ins for Trump, Fox News, Amazon, and so on). At times, it felt like space was a colorful backdrop rather than a meaningful part of the story. There are spaceships and mentions of a dead Earth, but I would have loved to see a more futuristic spin on everything. What would it mean for trans people to have higher tech available to shift their bodies? How would racism and xenophobia morph if galaxies were colonized? What does it mean for Castor to be disabled in this world - it seems like it’s not mentioned much? 

And since things were so close to our world, the ripple effects were sort of assumed. My brain just filled in things to flesh out the villain, Marwood, but we actually don’t learn much of anything about his tactics, speeches, or policies. Abortion rights are overturned during the story, and that just seemed to be Roe v. Wade but in hundreds of years (without any futuristic differences in healthcare or policy, etc.). 

The book closes on a bit of a standstill (potential legal triumphs), which was a bummer because it felt like it was building up to a true revolution. But this was definitely just one step of the story, and I feel like bigger changes are in store during the next saga.

But overall, I enjoyed the hopeful tone and the charmingly eclectic cast of queer characters. I’m curious about what comes next!

CW: death (child), transphobia, misgendering, censored deadnaming, police brutality, gun violence, mass shooting, ableism, grief, spaceship accident

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