This book is a mixture (to me) of so many things. Firefly and Mass Effect, for sure, and it really is, overall, wonderfully written, although I am bothered by a few things. 
 The book itself, though is written as a novel, at times almost feels like a collection of interconnected short stories, or even serial episodes of a television show where the season's main arc can be seen in the distance, but isn't really very present until the end. 
 At times, some things felt too... easy for the characters? At least until the last 100 pages. 
 Identity trouble? Solved in a couple of pages. Love interest out of left field? Another few pages. It often seemed as though certain plot points may have been there to just to develop the character (which is not in itself a problem, but continue reading and you'll see my concern). 
 Within these, and between, though, Becky Chambers has created a world (or Universe, I should say) that is organic, believable and exciting. That's what pushes the rating to a 4 for me. 
 My main concern is that I saw an interview with her where she mentioned that the next book she's writing does not follow the main characters of this book, but two others that were introduced as a pair near the end. While I'm excited to revisit the Universe, it's a tad disappointing to me that it won't be with the crew of the Wayfarer, who, to paraphrase one of the characters, are finally exactly where they're supposed to be.