Best of All Possible Worlds
If classic Star Trek fanfic sounds appealing to you then I have good news - this book reads like a Vulcan/Human love story. Lord has managed to write a regency romance masquerading as a sci-fi, and that has its own pros and cons. The structure is episodic as you follow the team on what read like away missions, each chapter taking the form of a vignette. It's a gentle read with very little action or peril, more like a day to day examination of these people and their lives. I don't mind character driven stories, but unfortunately I found most of the cast fairly one-dimensional. I didn't really manage to latch onto these people, which in turn meant I never fully engaged with the book. I will say I quite liked Lian, and was very glad the author didn't fall into any of the pitfalls I've come to dread when authors introduce gender neutral characters.
All in all this book failed to spark much emotion in me. I didn't hate it like the bulk of my book club, but I didn't really enjoy it either. I felt like there were a lot of interesting ideas thrown in, but none of them really get explored (that isn't really the focus of the book, which I get). The romance aspect never really sparked for me, but I know there are people who found it satisfying. All in all if you want a light regency-esque romance set in a sci-fi setting this might delight you. I was left somewhat cold. Your mileage may vary.