A complex story about grief and trying to find both agency in one's life and what one wants out of it, Stars and Soil has a large, diverse cast of characters - some charming, some despicable, but all complex and real. Tons of description paints vivid pictures that really draw you into the environment and the story, and the intrigue will leave you second-guessing everyone's motives as the events of the present eerily echo events of the past that refuse to let go.

~ Liz Sauco, Author of the Blades of the Goddess

Stars and Soil hits the ground running with the introduction of Caitlin, a woman coming to terms with everything that’s happened to her while simultaneously navigating her moral proclivities in a society filled with pirates, religious zealots, and the ever-shifting world mercantile business. She comes to odds with her own family, battling frustrations she buried in her heart for years, the anger and isolation of being uprooted, and the resentment towards having others direct her life. Dax has a very emotionally convincing main character, making her journey through her fantastical world all the more engaging. I look forward to seeing the rest of Caitlin’s journey.

~ Ka'ua Lara, Author of A New World For You

I loved Stars and Soil by Dax Murray. The exquisite world-building provides a smorgasbord of characters that any epic fantasy reader will adore. Dax Murray creates a convincing universe with unrivaled details of the political factions, the religious pressures, and cultural expectations, topped off with a believable need for societal change. The main character is a prosperous business manager with a huge social conscience. Traumatized by the death of her magical wife, she sees the suffering of her community and desires a fairer structure. In a world unbalanced by the greed of the rich and the power-hungry clergy, the common folk become collateral damage. Caitlin is called to stand in the gap and redress the inequalities, by becoming a friend to royalty and a spy for the poor. But she walks a dangerous tightrope, and one wrong step will take her to the gallows. Because friends might be enemies and everyone but Caitlin has an agenda.

Dax Murray paints an incredible portrait of an LGBTQ+ world, which is entirely inclusive. It is tastefully presented with love and personal choice at the heart. The novel's theme is sacrifice, based on Caitlins tendency to martyr herself for the causes of those she loves. She is pulled in every direction but her own, and her journey through the plot brings her to a place where she can pick up her mantle and advocate for her future. Written in the third person, present tense, the novel displays great emotional intelligence through Caitlins struggle and her ability to create meaningful relationships. The author creates perfect descriptions of emotional disassociation during trauma and scatters stunning wisdom throughout the beautifully crafted dialogue. My favorite line in Stars and Soil is where Caitlin says, 'I know, but the cost of a beautiful tomorrow should not be such a sorrowful today.'' This is a great novel for the socially accepting and open-minded reader.

~ K T Bowes for Readers Favorite