inkcrush: Beth Revis

Monday, December 13, 2010

Across the Universe by Beth Revis

AMY has left the life she loves for a world 300 years away

Trapped in space and frozen in time, Amy is bound for a new planet. But fifty years before she's due to arrive, she is violently woken, the victim of an attempted murder. Now Amy's lost on board and nothing makes sense - she's never felt so alone.

Yet someone is waiting for her. He wants to protect her; and more if she'll let him.

But who can she trust amidst the secrets and lies? A killer is out there – and Amy has nowhere to hide . . . (from publishers site)

I'm just going to come right out and say it: This book was BRILLIANT and I absolutely LOVED every moment of it. I devoured it all through the night and have been thinking about it ever since (3 weeks ago).

Where to begin with my ~~rave-on~~ review?

It's epic, dystopian, has an impossible romance, mystery, creativity and lots of heart and soul.

The prose: Gorgeous and evocative. For a sci-fi it was so not complicated to follow - it flowed seamlessly.

The whole concept: Mate, it's so well explored. The world building felt flawless. It's in depth but so accessible. I can only imagine the immense thought and creativity involved in producing such a book. Exceptional stuff. It was so easy to imagine myself on board the Godspeed - a beautifully painted world. I loved being a part of it.

The characters: Loved them. Particularly Amy - I really felt for her, nothing was easy for her - (Revis does not suffer from the whole being kind to your characters syndrome :). There's some genuine moments where I was so moved with compassion and emotion. Also, the villains - ahh, complex with shades of good and bad, making the moral ambiguity so conflicting to read. Really well drawn.

The plotting: WOW. There's a lot to admire. As in, HOLY COW, it's just brilliantly plotted.

Twists and turns and mysteries and conspiracies. The stakes are continually raised and then something happens that you don't see coming and they are raised again. I thought I had things figured out but then Revis would throw a new spanner in the works and I'd be all whirling about again. Which is why I read it all through the night... unputdownable kinda stuff. Plus, she juggled all the world building, flashbacks, outer space, mystery, history and multi-POV.

Recommended: Absolutely one of my favourite reads this year. I am completely in awe of it. This is a book to suck in non-readers, males, fans of any genre. It's one my dad would enjoy as well as my teen niece. Even more - I recommend SNATCHING it up as a high school text. The themes in this book would be brilliantly explored in class discussion. A first class book from a talented new author. Just wow.

*note: there are some mature themes regarding, ahh, human mating :)

Yes: there's a sequel. CANNOT wait.