A Million Suns by Beth Revis

A Million Suns by Beth Revis

Publication Date: January 10th, 2012

Reviewed by: Honorary Sis Beth

Sister says: Murderous, Mysterious, and Majestic

Summary from goodreads.com

Godspeed was once fueled by lies. Now it is ruled by chaos. It’s been three months. In that time, Amy has learned to hide who she is. Elder is trying to be the leader he’s always wanted to be. But as the ship gets more and more out of control, only one thing is certain: They have to get off the ship.

***Warning: if you haven't read Across the Universe there will be spoilers ****

Beth Revis has done it again! In my opinion, it is a rarity when the second book is as good or better than the first; however, Ms. Revis not only succeeded, but completely blew me away! I'm not even sure where to start because this book is just amazing!

A Million Suns picks up 3 months after Elder has taken rule of the spaceship "Godspeed". With the entire ship off of phydus and history books and literature readily available, the passengers are starting to think for themselves; one of the results: political unrest. Leadership is questioned, especially when the food supply is running dangerously low. Elder's character is developed more and he learns who his friends and enemies are and who to trust. He tries to lead the ship with conviction and resolution while determined to get the ship to Centauri-Earth.

Amy, on the other hand, is lonelier and more hated than ever. Seriously, this girl is strong and amazingly tenancious. She does not let adversity get her down, but instead is more committed to fulfilling the mission and protecting her parents. Through a series of events, she and Elder uncover more lies and secrets Eldest was keeping from them. As she and Elder get closer to the truth, people start dying. The more people that die, the more the passengers get unsettled and on the brink of another revolution. It is a vicious circle that will keep you guessing until the very end.

Elder and Amy's friendship continues to deepen as they search ship for more clues to the truth. Usually, I am not a fan of split naratives, but in this book, it is perfect. I appreciate being able to see events from both Elder and Amy's point of view. Especially when it comes to their relationship. It is interesting to see Amy's viewpoint since she came originally from Sol-Earth and questions everything and contrast that to Elder's where the spaceship is all he has ever know.

This book is a definite must read! Beth Revis is able to intertwine, murder, mystery, romance, and political drama in 390 pages AND leave you wanting more! A Million Suns has so many twists and turns, it is impossible to put down. I highly recommend this book, but you must have read the first in the series, Across the Universe. If you haven't read or heard of it, click here to read my review.

Buy it.....Read it.....LOVE IT!!!! (I most definitely did!!!)

Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Across the Universe

by Beth Revis

Reviewed by: Honorary Sis Beth

Sister Says: Captivating, Curious, and Cosmo-tastic

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules. Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone - one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship - tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next. Now, Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming. (Summary from goodreads.com)

Over the past few months, this book kept showing up, haunting me, saying, "Read me". I was rebelling against reading it because I typically do not like science fiction and definitely do not like split narratives. But, as I kept seeing more and more people reading it on goodreads and hearing my friends talk about it, I broke down and read it. Let me just say, I am so glad that I did.

Although I am usually not a fan a split narratives, it not only works for this book, but also is definitely necessary. Throughout the book there are things that happen to Amy and Elder that can only be described in their own words. The most descriptive, difficult, and brilliant scene, in my opinion, is when Amy is being frozen. I literally felt like I was be suffocated. Also, Ms. Revis is able to so decisively articulate the differing ship-life norms for each character.

To be completely honest, I was rebelling against enjoying the book for the first 200 pages because I was bound and determine to prove to myself (and my husband) that, "I'm just not into science fiction". Although it took place in outerspace, I did not feel like it was too far out there. The final 250 pages, I read in one sitting and kept telling Matt to stop talking to me because this book is just so good.

The world will leave you thinking about how much do we trust history and our leaders and who controls all the information. The setting made me feel like I was claustrophobic and I could not help but relate to Amy wondering what in the world I would do if I was in that circumstance. The plot is utterly genius! It is a science fiction, murder mystery, romance that will keep you guessing until (literally) the last page.

The emotional roller coaster Across the Universe took me on left me grasping for the sequel. I'm so glad that I got over my prejudice and read this book. It totally opened my eyes and revamped my opinion of science fiction books.

One final thought, after reading this book, I told my husband to read it. He looked at the beautiful cover and said, "It looks like a chic book". But, after a little coaxing, he read it. He devoured it faster than I did. So, the great thing about this book is it appeals to both sexes and challenges traditional book genres. If you haven't read it yet, I would recommend putting it on your TBR list!

Buy it....Read it....Love it!!!!