In Between the Stars is the debut novel of A. A. Ripley. It is an adventurous Space Opera, written from the point of view of a nonhuman character.
What is alien and what is normal? To Inan, she’s just a girl on her homeworld, yet she dreams of travelling to the stars and experiencing all the adventures they promise. Dream is all she can do, as her people’s customs forbid girls to face dangers - especially amongst the stars. Instead of adventures, they are expected to serve their families as leaders and never take personal risks. But that is about to change as Inan’s life takes a sudden turn.
A series of events lead to her being lost in space, shipwrecked and kidnapped by soldiers-turned-pirates, a remnant from the war fought many, many years ago. With only an alien being to keep her company, she is forced to use her wits to stay alive. As she struggles, she befriends Alan, a human boy who is little more than a captive himself. Yet things go from bad to worse after a failed escape attempt when Inan comes into contact with an unknown ancient artefact which ultimately will decide the fate of the whole galaxy.
This book provides examples of:
- Apologises a Lot: Though not to the point she's apologizing very frequently, Inan often apologizes to Matriarch Salraan when she's said or done something that displeases the Matriarch; she also tends to apologize to others when she's made some other mistake.
- Arranged Marriage: Inan was originally supposed to leave her home planet to marry a member of the Aldass House which also makes Marriageof Convenience count as Inan was arranged to be married for profit and because the Aldass House doesn't have an heir.
- Alien Gender Confusion: Inan mistakes Hijinks for a male because of her voice, her smoking habit, and her occupation.
- Cheerful A.I..: Gloria is an A.I. who's shown to be cheerful during her appearance in the book. She's also Fun Personified as her cheerful demeanor makes her misunderstand dire situations as moments of other characters playing games with each other.
- Greed: Ure Ambrus will do anything to get money off of others because that's all he cares about he even demands payment from Cochrane for his services with a container filled with a good amount money.
- Lizard Folk: The Izara (Inan's race) are this. There are even occasions in which Inan is called a "lizard".
- Parasitic Horror: Just when Ure Ambrus is needed, Inan and her friends discover that he's being used as a host for the offspring of two proud vamess parents. The sight of a dead man being used as a host for this purpose disturbed Inan so much that she lost interest in exploring Zelhir and mingling with the vamess.
- Smoking Is Cool: There are a few occasions of Hijinks smoking.
- Space Pirates: Inan winds up stranded in space, and then gets kidnapped by a crew of space pirates comprised of soldiers who deserted during a war fought several years before the start of the story.
- Xenofiction: This novel is from the perspective of an alien girl, who dreams about adventuring in space just like a human might.
