Starsight (The Skyward Series)

4.5 Am I Alive Stars

“I will sing to you,” I whispered. “As your ship burns and your soul flees, I will sing. To the contest we had.”

What happened is what always happens when I read a Sanderson novel. I devour it in a day or two and then I can’t think of how to write something that does it justice. So here it is weeks later and I’m finally getting to a review for it. The short of it…

******** SO GOOD *********

But the long of it is that Sanderson does sequels great. He takes the foundation of what he has already established in the prior books and expands on it. I never have word building complaints or think his characters are one dimensional because they are always complex with both good and bad traits just like real people.

I thought that I might get a little bored hanging out on Detritus with the crew fighting the Krell but Sanderson made she that wasn’t going to happen by introducing new characters from across the galaxy and opening up the story to see inside the other side.

***“Cobb,” I said, stepping closer. “Those aren’t bloodthirsty monsters out there; they’re just people. Normal people, with lives, and loves, and families.” “And what did you think we’ve been fighting against all these years?” Cobb asked. “I…” I didn’t know. Red-eyed, faceless creatures. Relentless destroyers. Not far from how they saw humans. “That’s what war is,” Cobb told me. “A bunch of sorry, desperate fools on both sides, just trying to stay alive. That’s the part that those stories you love leave out, isn’t it? It’s always more convenient when you can fight a dragon. Something you don’t have to worry you’ll start caring about.” ***

I don’t want to give away too much because the magic is in the story itself but M-bot, Spensa and Doomslug go on an epic adventure and we learn more about them along the way as they travel in space and meet the enemy.

***A hero…does not choose…her trials, Spensa… “Gran-Gran?” I asked, trying to pinpoint the location of the words. She steps…into the darkness, the voice said, fading. Then she faces what comes next… ***

M-bot is truly a favorite character of mine. I mean a sentient ship with an uncompromising love of mushrooms how could you not adore him. Plus he is great banter for our Spensa and sometimes her reality check.

This is a true Sanderson story where we get glimpses of other complex cultures and how they live. In true Sanderson fashion there are great small details that just give a lot of life to the story. Like thinking about how a culture would live and reproduce and how that could form an entire culture.

***“Some are crimson, others blue,” I said. “Is that like humans, with our skin tones?” “Not exactly,” M-Bot said. “It’s kind of like a gender distinction.” “The blues are boys, the reds girls?” “No, their biology is very different from yours. They have neither sex nor gender until they breed for the first time, whereupon they form a kind of cocoon with another individual. It’s really quite fascinating; as part of the breeding process, they merge for a time into a separate third individual. Regardless, after breeding, they become red or blue, depending. They can initiate a change in other ways, if they wish to be considered unavailable for some reason—while the dark purple color is the skin tone of one who has not mated, or who has broken their pair bond and is seeking another mate.” ***

Truly fascinating how Sanderson’s imagination works.

Even though we didn’t get a lot of time with the gang from the first book I saw them just enough that I was satisfied with the developments there. I like that Jerkface has his own mission and isn’t just a pretty face in the story.

I’m already desperate for the next book as Starsight left off at a precarious place for Spensa, M-bot and Doomslug. Plus Jorgan is doing something very interesting too and I’m excited to see how his quest goes.

Just one more book to look forward to in 2021 I guess since Stormlight 4 is scheduled for 2020. I totally accept this because STORMLIGHT 4!!!!!

“A hero doesn’t choose her trials.”

It’s been six months since young Spensa and her spaceship-fighter pilot teammates have beaten back the alien Krell attempt to bomb the human prison planet of Detritus into oblivion. The end of book one (Skyward) saw the discovery that the aliens were actually a conglomeration of a number of different species, apparently ruled by something called the “Superiority”. Now, the humans have started to beef up their own defenses and would like nothing better than to take the fight to the enemy and try to regain their freedom. The one problem preventing this is the lack of a hyperdrive capability and so they begin plans to try and infiltrate the enemy and steal the technology so they can build their own. However, a fighter craft from a completely different humanoid alien species crash lands on Detritus, presenting an opportunity. Since it was trying to reach the enemy space station, Starsight, Spensa convinces her commander to let her take that alien’s place (disguised via hologram), fly to the space station, steal the hyperdrive tech and return.

Easy peasy.

The second book in the “Skyward” trilogy significantly advances the plot as well as the entire scope of the setting. Spensa’s adventures are no longer confined to just the human planet Detritus where all they can think about is how to survive for a few more weeks. Most of the novel takes place on the alien space station, Starsight among a host of alien species. Spensa has no spy training but must rapidly learn how to live among these strange beings and gain their trust. Along the way, she learns a great deal about her perspectives of others and that first impressions (even when backed by 80 years of history) aren’t always correct.

Sanderson, as expected, brings a great deal of world building to his story telling but uses it to enhance the experience rather than act as mere window dressing. Sanderson fans will recognize his imaginative touch as he paints these alien species, their cultures, their biology with the same sort of logic that he uses in his magic systems. It really is wondrous. The plot is anything but predictable as Sanderson throws in a number of curve balls, keeping readers on their toes. The stakes are enormously higher as Spensa steps up her leadership skills, hones her fighter pilot capabilities, and even becomes embroiled in galactic political machinations. But, still, in the end, it’s the characters that turn a good story into a great one. Again, Sanderson does not disappoint as Spensa has grown into one of my favorite characters, truly memorable and one that I genuinely care about.

A word of warning: this book does end on a cliff hanger. While the major events of this middle volume are largely dealt with and resolved (and there is a LOT that is revealed along the way), Spensa, in a move that is completely appropriate to her personality, makes a quick but brave choice and thus…a cliffhanger.

The third book should be a doozy.

This review comes from a re-read right before I dive into the third one.

I have read plenty of book series and lately I have had difficulty finishing anything. I would either stop on the 2nd book of a trilogy or finish it after a couple of months only to be able to start something new. In any case, I was rarely truly satisfied.

This one I finished in 3 days and frankly the last day I read 40% of the book, I just couldn’t stop. Any book that captivates me so much that I can’t stop reading deserves extra points for me.

Why would I give five stars though? Well, this book is amazing! First of all, you understand everything going on. You can picture descriptions, understand the politics and any terminology, even the weird species and their appearance or customs make sense. At the same time, any descriptions are no longer than they need to be, they don’t get tiring.

The story is good, with constant development and twists in a perfect mix. The mysteries slowly get unraveled while at the same time new issues plague our protagonist. It’s amazing how stuff have been planted from the very first book only to make sense now..

There are also emotional moments, epic moments, stressful moments, all so well done.

There is also a lot of deeper meanings and topics for discussion through the book series. The whole take on aggression and isolation of species, the Dione reproductive method and implications, all add to the depth of the book.

The characters are unique enough and the biggest shortcoming to me is the fact that we don’t spend real time with the previous crew. Still, there is a fresh cast, with their own distinctive personalities and motives, very well implemented.

If you have read the first book of this series, I can’t imagine you have doubts about reading this. If you haven’t read any because maybe you don’t like the space setting or you haven’t read much of Sanderson, well, I urge you to read this gem, you won’t be disappointed

Spensa was thrown in a completely new setting though, as a reader, it felt like we were crawling through, blind in the dark, for what was happening. It feels like a story with so much going on but the majority of the story is so localized that it can be frustrating trying to figure out what exactly is happening and answers to larger questions.

The story is still captivating though with interesting chracters. The kitsune were probably my favorite. Something about their size really made them fun to read. And really, all things said, this book was a fast and fun read. I'm excited to have most of our answers in the third book.

I am especially curious if Sanderson decides to create more stories in this universe since it seems like there are a ton of material/events that is and will be left unexplored by the end of this trilogy.