Luxury spaceliner
Icarus suddenly plummets from hyperspace into the nearest planet. Lilac
LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen survive -- alone. Lilac is the daughter of
the richest man in the universe. Tarver comes from nothing, a cynical
war hero. Both journey across the eerie deserted terrain for help.
Everything changes when they uncover the truth. (Goodreads)
Reviewed by Valette M.
One look at that gorgeous cover and I was sold. And a few hours later, I'm happy to report that this story totally lives up to that dress.
From the get-go we have two dynamic characters (The only two characters for the majority of the book) that are completely opposite: Lilac, the society darling dripping with money and the necessary arrogance to keep fortune-hunters away, and Tarver, a man for rugged terrains and a recently returned war hero. I found Lilac very sympathetically and sweetly portrayed. Instead of loathing the rich girl with daddy issues, I loved her. She tried to get better, and recognized when it was better to bow to authority or dig in her heels all the way. She was level-headed, courageous, and blessedly whine-free. The authors took no short cuts with her character, and Tarver was no different. Unfortunately, so many young adult authors simply paste down a generic hunk for the love interest and call it good ('Can't you see the figure we just described for you? No wonder she falls in love with him!') playing off the tropes of YA to let the reader fill in the gaps.That may be fine for a fairytale, but the romance can never reach those desperately beautiful heights that make us squeal and nibble our nails. Thankfully, that was not this book. Tarver had his own detailed past, his own clear motives for choices and he did not exist solely through his feelings for Lilac. There was poetry and hunting and hiking through the woods. And there was plenty of squealing and nail nibbling. It was nice.
I never knew crossing fields and forests and mountains could be so exciting! (Let's be honest. There are some parts of Lord of the Rings that are just...meh.) But mix with that the bite in Lilac and Tarver's interactions, Lilac's character arc as she experiences a world she never dreamed existed, and -- to top it all off -- ghostly apparitions that may be telling the future. Or maybe Lilac's just going mad. Science fiction smashed into romance, creating an intricate whirl-wind of a tale.
I haven't had the pleasure of reading anything by Meagan Spooner and can only looking forward to reading more from Amie Kaufman, but THESE BROKEN STARS was a satisfying read with a solid difference in the styles between to the two point-of-views. It was easy to tell what character was narrating, and the present tense was a good fit.
Market: Young Adult
Reviewed by Valette M.
One look at that gorgeous cover and I was sold. And a few hours later, I'm happy to report that this story totally lives up to that dress.
From the get-go we have two dynamic characters (The only two characters for the majority of the book) that are completely opposite: Lilac, the society darling dripping with money and the necessary arrogance to keep fortune-hunters away, and Tarver, a man for rugged terrains and a recently returned war hero. I found Lilac very sympathetically and sweetly portrayed. Instead of loathing the rich girl with daddy issues, I loved her. She tried to get better, and recognized when it was better to bow to authority or dig in her heels all the way. She was level-headed, courageous, and blessedly whine-free. The authors took no short cuts with her character, and Tarver was no different. Unfortunately, so many young adult authors simply paste down a generic hunk for the love interest and call it good ('Can't you see the figure we just described for you? No wonder she falls in love with him!') playing off the tropes of YA to let the reader fill in the gaps.That may be fine for a fairytale, but the romance can never reach those desperately beautiful heights that make us squeal and nibble our nails. Thankfully, that was not this book. Tarver had his own detailed past, his own clear motives for choices and he did not exist solely through his feelings for Lilac. There was poetry and hunting and hiking through the woods. And there was plenty of squealing and nail nibbling. It was nice.
I never knew crossing fields and forests and mountains could be so exciting! (Let's be honest. There are some parts of Lord of the Rings that are just...meh.) But mix with that the bite in Lilac and Tarver's interactions, Lilac's character arc as she experiences a world she never dreamed existed, and -- to top it all off -- ghostly apparitions that may be telling the future. Or maybe Lilac's just going mad. Science fiction smashed into romance, creating an intricate whirl-wind of a tale.
I haven't had the pleasure of reading anything by Meagan Spooner and can only looking forward to reading more from Amie Kaufman, but THESE BROKEN STARS was a satisfying read with a solid difference in the styles between to the two point-of-views. It was easy to tell what character was narrating, and the present tense was a good fit.
Market: Young Adult
Language: Mild
Sensuality:
Mild to Moderate
Violence:
Mild
Mature Themes: None
No comments:
Post a Comment