December 17, 2012

Across the Universe by Beth Revis {Review}


Publisher: Razorbill
Publish Date: January 11, 2011
Source: Bought/Own
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 o 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 have never seen coming.

GAH! That ending! It was perfect in the way that it wrapped things up, but it just left me with such a bittersweet feeling.

So here’s the deal: Across the Universe is brilliant. So all those people that have been telling you to read it? They weren’t lying.

If I had to pick out one thing about the story that was my favorite, it’s that there’s not really any romance. When I saw that (gorgeous) almost-kissing cover I just knew Amy and Elder were going to get it on. It just so happens that I was wrong, though. Oh sure, there’s a spark there, but the story isn’t about the romance and I loved that. The non-romance means I can go around waving this book in everyone’s faces without having to worry if they’re romance haters or not.

Which leads me to what the story is about: secrets. Lots and lots of secrets. And mysteries galore! Sure, I knew about the whole “Godspeed is a ship built on lies” tagline, but I didn’t fathom just how many lies Revis was going to manage to shove into it. Every time I thought I had something figured out I was faced with another plot-twist or mini-mystery. I admit that for a while towards the beginning I was like “MORE secrets?! When do I get some answers?!” but I assure you that they’ll come and in the meantime there’s plenty of crazy stuff to keep you occupied.

I’m really hoping we get to see more of the science behind Godspeed in book two. It didn’t really have a place in Across the Universe because of everything else that was going on, but I still love learning about (fictional) science.

And can I just say that the Season seriously creeped me out? Because it really, really did.
The Nutshell: Across the Universe is a fantastic read. If you’re looking for something with minimal romance, fantastic characters, and a great story full of mystery then you’ll definite find it in AtU.
Pages: 398
Series: Across the Universe #1
Rating: Direct Hit

3 comments:

  1. YES. You pretty much nailed it. There was enough romance in it for me, huge fan of romance, but not too much that I couldn't recommend it to my friends and family who aren't as big of fans. Its the perfect blend. It sort of teases you with it. AND I LOVED THE SECRETS. I have no idea how Beth Revis managed to keep everything straight. She must have some epic outlines or something. :]

    Great review!

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  2. Hi! I was a little bit iffy on this one, but now I'm just totally going to go read it. So thanks, you rock. Also, I nominated you for the Super Sweet Blog Award! Because I LOVE this blog! http://refutingtheintolerablystupid.wordpress.com/2012/12/22/the-super-sweet-blog-award/

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  3. Thanks for the great review! I'm actually reading this book right now. :)

    Glad you enjoyed.

    Marlene Detierro (Search Engine Optimization San Antonio)

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I adore all the comments you write. They totally make my day :]