Reminding a bit of Guardians of the Galaxy, these pages are packed with action, humor and more than a little heart.

Cora is the daughter of the most renowned crime family in the universe, but her life isn't what anyone probably suspects, especially since she can't seem to live up to her mother's expectations. When the latest heist...um, job...ends up in disaster thanks to Cora's supposed mistakes, she decides to prove herself once and for all. Which lands her in prison. Her two cell-roomies are more than irritating, but when one comes up with a plan to escape, Cora's in. Of course, it doesn't go as planned. Instead, the prison director breaks a deal—steal a treasure (which borders on myth), and they can go free. Not only do they have to find said treasure, but it's a deadly quest. Add the director's own lies and schemes, and Cora knows she's in over her head. But that doesn't mean she has any other choice.

When I saw the cover, I'll admit that I wasn't sure this read was going to be as fun as I'd hoped, but I was pleasantly proved wrong. This story is simply a fun, entertaining read with explosions, near escapes, odd aliens, evil plots, twisted characters, snarky humor, true friendship, lots of food, and tons of heart. Oh, and some quirky romance, too. The pages fly by with ease and created more than one or two smiles along the way.

Cora is a great character to pull this type of story together. She's snarky, she's tough...and yet, she's neither of these. The first chapter already made her more than likable as she tries to live up to her name, almost makes it, and desperately fails. But there's so much fire in her, and she's a piece of gold in her own way. I loved her friendship with her robot, but then, that robot was impossible not to like. The idea of friendship and trust and family are what centers this tale. Not that everyone can be trusted. There are characters to love, characters to hate, and those that are very hard to see what their true intentions might be. As to the romance...well, that one fits the rest of the story nicely.

In other words, anyone who loves a bit of hair-brained fun with heart and spacey adventure will want to pick this one up. I received a complimentary copy through Netgalley and enjoyed this one more than I thought I would. ( )

The Good for Nothings is an entertaining space adventure that throws the reader straight into the action. The protagonist, Cora Saros, is the member of a family whose "business" is intergalactic smuggling. She bungles a family operation -- which is not surprising, since her mother / criminal ringleader assigned Cora a task that played against her strengths, instead of allowing Cora to make use of her actual (considerable) abilities. Cora finds herself and her robot best friend in a prison cell with two other misfits and, next thing they know, the group is blackmailed by the warden to recover a long-lost treasure. There are plenty of important stakes among the members of this ragtag group, and I especially liked the book's message about loyalty and just who your "family" really is. Told from Cora's point-of-view, the story makes for an engaging read with a distinctive "voice."

I received a digital ARC of this book through NetGalley