JL Kaiser’s Aeon The Sands of Undal has a great main character, wonderful world-building, and lots of food for thought.

Caiia Shadi is smart, resourceful, a bit unconventional, and exceptionally loyal to her family–and to friends. I love how she makes her own path in a world that leaves no paths for her.

Caiia lives in a world of dust, wind and dark religious forces, where her people have been made slaves and are sent to retrieve dangerous treasure from the ground. They pay in sickness and misery, so that their overmasters can have access to the stars. 

It’s a beautiful, if stark, world, and I thoroughly enjoy all the layers of power and privilege (and the corruption) Caiia begins to uncover.

For a story that ends on a bit of a cliffhanger, it also has more closure than some. (But I’d still like to see more of the series–and have discovered there are no new books out yet.)

At any rate, I’d recommend this if you like science fiction or stories about strong women coming into their own. Interested in other YA science fiction? You might like Binti or Beyond.