Distantly Falling Stars, by Berengaria Di Rossi

Distantly Falling Stars by Berengaria Di Rossi My rating: 5 of 5 stars How do I review the novella of a (Goodreads) friend? “Never again” or “very, very carefully” immediately came to my mind when I pondered reading Berengaria Di Rossi's “Distantly Falling Stars”. Especially since Berengaria with a down-to-earth attitude, sensible reviews and interesting reads as well as - obviously - an impeccable taste in (Goodreads) friends, has long earned my respect. So it was with a healthy portion of trepidation that I started reading this - and quickly started breathing freely because, thankfully, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with this short novella. Seti, a “puny scribe” from ancient Egypt is forced on an expedition to recover some “distantly falling stars” in a race against (or possibly negotiating with) the Babylonians. There are some supernatural aspects which I usually don’t like but these made sense in the setting of the novella and weren’t too intrusive. The story itself was short and suspenseful - I wouldn't label it as a thriller, contrary to the blurb's description but it definitely quickly captured my interest and never lost it. This is made even easier by Berengaria’s clear, concise, and unadorned writing style and a very clear idea of the intended direction of the story. I was also a bit worried about the “Bronze punk” part of the blurb but that was also completely unfounded: I found amusement in the inclusion of ships with turbines in ancient Egypt but since all of these devices felt like natural parts of the story and not - as they often do elsewhere - like forced extensions in order to make a story appeal more to modern readers, I wasn’t bothered at all but rather entertained. Since this can be read for free on Wattpad, there’s no reason not to give it a read! Five out of five stars for an unblemished delight of a story.

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