Across The Universe by Beth Revis

For once, this is a book which hasn't been sitting aimlessly on my shelves for year now, but is actually one I only picked up a few months ago.  I'd only heard a few things about this book series beforehand, but the premise and, I'll be honest, the beautiful spine and cover were what drew me to get it in the end.  I've really been wanting to explore the sci-fi genre a little more, and so when I saw this I thought I might as well give it a go, as I did only a few weeks ago.

The story takes place aboard a spaceship destined for a planet it will take 300 years from earth to reach.  For someone who reads alot of contemporaries and books that in some way take place on earth, this setting was a real change for me, but one that I really enjoyed.  I loved imaging this new setting and creating the different levels in my mind, especially with the descriptions which compared certain aspects to earth.

The book focuses on the story of Amy and the other people frozen on board, who are put at risk when a killer begins violently awaking them prematurely.  I really enjoyed the whole mystery of the murder loose on board and enjoyed watching as the main characters attempted to figure out who the culprit was.  I also liked many of the other aspects of the story as they unfolded and as other secrets came to light in the midst of it.  I think that the plot twists worked well, even if some were predictable, and I liked how much was hidden from the reader as well as the characters.

The entirety of the book is told through a split POV between the two main characters, Elder and Amy.  I found that this worked well and that I could easily tell the difference between the two without much trouble.  As for the rest of the characters, I did like most of them, especially the characters of Harley and Doc, as well as the whole concept of the way the society worked aboard the ship.  I have to admit though, for most of the book, my favourite was Amy as she was so reluctant to let go of her family and of earth but was still prepared to get on with life on board.

The writing style of the book was another thing that was easy to grasp, with it very quickly allowing me to fly through sections without having to linger on confusing sentences.  One thing that it did take a little longer to get used to was some of the more technical language, particularly within explanations of certain things.  There were so many things that needed explaining that some parts did feel like information dumps, but overall I found that most of the descriptions were spread evenly throughout the book, only a few sections being overly descriptive.

Finally, I am sorry to say that I wasn't the greatest fan of the ending of this book.  I just personally didn't see any need for the final twist in the tail of this one, and it just didn't sit well with me for whatever reason.  It also changed my view of Amy as her decision or the way her decision seems to be going concerning the issue is one that seems too rushed and really made me like her less.

However, overall, I would say that I enjoyed this one, despite not completely loving it.  I will be continuing on with the series and would suggest giving it a go, but I'm afraid I won't be raving to everyone about it.

Favourite:

Character(s): Amy, Harley

Scene(s): Amy and Elder talking in the garden

Quote(s): 'A leader isn't someone who forces others to make him stronger; a leader is someone willing to give his strength to others so that they may have the strength to stand on their own.'

Relate a:

Song: Control - Halsey
Friction - Imagine Dragons

Other Book: The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

Rating:

3.5/5