Starlight Hodgens, the young protagonist of the novel Starlight, has been a popular young adult female character among my SF readers for a long time now. Since she burst into the books, breaking hearts as a very young girl watching her mother die at the start of “Starlight,” this girl has fought every challenge to come her way with the tenacity and determination she learned from her parents. As she grows, Starlight overcomes enormous adversity to become a strong and respected pilot in her own right, continuing her mother’s legacy with dignity and a powerful sense of justice.
Having grown into a proud young woman, Starlight leads her team into adventure again in her second novel, Armada’s Disciple, narrowly averting a certain war between humanity and the remaining members of the FSC. Her tenacious attitude and undying confidence bely the humble roots of the orphanages she once lived in, and this girl spreads her reputation across the galaxy with her actions.
And now, we await the eventual release of “Blues of Deception,” the third book in what will become the Starlight Trilogy. Now taking her team back to the refurbished colony vessel which was discovered in Armada’s Disciple, Starlight and her team must solve the mystery surrounding a strange illness sweeping through the population, before it is too late and humanity loses it’s one chance to stand on the junction of human space and a wild new frontier. Though each book is a standalone, Starlight ties them together, bringing a solidarity to the team as she faces every trial with all she has.