Glow: The Skychasers Trilogy
Amy Kathleen Ryan
Pan Macmillan
Pub Date: 01-10-2011
What if you were bound for a new world, about to pledge your life to
someone you'd been promised to since birth, and one unexpected violent
attack made survival–not love–the issue?
A ship heading for New Earth is halfway through its incredible journey across the galaxy.
On board, sixteen year olds Waverly and Kieran are part of the first generation born in space.
They are in love.
They believe their future is written in the stars.
They have never seen a stranger before...
... until the day they are wrenched apart and suddenly find themselves fighting for their lives.
Glow is the most riveting series debut since The Hunger Games.
A ship heading for New Earth is halfway through its incredible journey across the galaxy.
On board, sixteen year olds Waverly and Kieran are part of the first generation born in space.
They are in love.
They believe their future is written in the stars.
They have never seen a stranger before...
... until the day they are wrenched apart and suddenly find themselves fighting for their lives.
Glow is the most riveting series debut since The Hunger Games.
So when Nic asked me to join her amazing blog, which of course took me an entire two seconds to consider before I said HELL YES, I knew my first review HAD to be this book.
Why? Because you will very quickly learn that I am the harshest critic in the world where YA is concerned, so when I tell you I am in-love with Glow you know this book is a winner.
Glow was just such a refreshing read. I hadn't realised how much I had been missing sci-fi until I picked this up. There are no vampires, werewolves or paranormal creatures of any kind. Not even aliens! Instead, the monsters are us—as Glow explores exactly what we are prepared to do to each other in the name of survival and love.
But the most wonderful thing about this book is its characters. Waverly is spirited, fierce and strong—traits that are so lacking in too many YA heroines. I was completely drawn into her world and struggle for survival, particularly her right to control her own body and life when others felt they had the right to exploit her. There were moments that had me utterly engrossed, revolted and furious as she and the ones she loved were subjected to all kinds of degrading violations. What happens to Waverly is unforgivable—and when those around her try to justify their actions, I think I may have ripped a few pages out of the proof in disgust.
In another refreshing twist, the love triangle has its own unique story arch. Where alot of YA sets one suitor up to be the 'soul mate' and the other is simply there to create pointless conflict because we already know which guy will get the girl, Glow had me bouncing back and forth between Kieran and Seth—and I still can’t decide which one I liked more. They are both complex and flawed—so distinctly human. So they were easy for me to care about and yet at the same time I was so goddamn mad with them for their stupidity.
There are some rough edges to this novel but when I would normally be picking them apart, in Glow I was so captivated that they just made the world feel more authentic and raw. The plot is clever. It explores issues that teenagers should be thinking about. The language is intricate and at times poetic or layered with jargon but it is in no way overwhelming or detracting from the story. It finds that difficult but perfect balance between beautiful writing and wonderful storytelling.
And I cannot wait for the sequel. I would quite happily punch a small child if it got me this book any quicker.
Why? Because you will very quickly learn that I am the harshest critic in the world where YA is concerned, so when I tell you I am in-love with Glow you know this book is a winner.
Glow was just such a refreshing read. I hadn't realised how much I had been missing sci-fi until I picked this up. There are no vampires, werewolves or paranormal creatures of any kind. Not even aliens! Instead, the monsters are us—as Glow explores exactly what we are prepared to do to each other in the name of survival and love.
But the most wonderful thing about this book is its characters. Waverly is spirited, fierce and strong—traits that are so lacking in too many YA heroines. I was completely drawn into her world and struggle for survival, particularly her right to control her own body and life when others felt they had the right to exploit her. There were moments that had me utterly engrossed, revolted and furious as she and the ones she loved were subjected to all kinds of degrading violations. What happens to Waverly is unforgivable—and when those around her try to justify their actions, I think I may have ripped a few pages out of the proof in disgust.
In another refreshing twist, the love triangle has its own unique story arch. Where alot of YA sets one suitor up to be the 'soul mate' and the other is simply there to create pointless conflict because we already know which guy will get the girl, Glow had me bouncing back and forth between Kieran and Seth—and I still can’t decide which one I liked more. They are both complex and flawed—so distinctly human. So they were easy for me to care about and yet at the same time I was so goddamn mad with them for their stupidity.
There are some rough edges to this novel but when I would normally be picking them apart, in Glow I was so captivated that they just made the world feel more authentic and raw. The plot is clever. It explores issues that teenagers should be thinking about. The language is intricate and at times poetic or layered with jargon but it is in no way overwhelming or detracting from the story. It finds that difficult but perfect balance between beautiful writing and wonderful storytelling.
And I cannot wait for the sequel. I would quite happily punch a small child if it got me this book any quicker.
1 comments:
last line (as meagan said) is GENIUS! why should just punch randomly. it would make us happier surely?
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