Waiting on Wednesday (July 20)

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine. This weekly meme shares the upcoming books that I'm most excited about.

*I'm not sure this is the final cover. Since it hasn't been added the author's site, consider it temporary. 

A Million Suns (Across the Universe 2) by Beth Revis

It’s been three months since Elder unplugged Amy, tearing her from her family and the life she always knew. Now, Eldest is dead and Orion awaits judgment for his murder as a frozen. Elder is finally free to enact his vision for the ship’s population—no more Phydus, no more lies.
But when Elder learns harrowing news about the ship, he and Amy are sent on a race to discover the truth behind life on Godspeed. They must work together to unlock a puzzle that was set in motion hundreds of years earlier, all the while dealing with the romance that’s growing between them and the chaos that threatens to tear them apart.
Beth Revis wows us again with a brilliantly crafted mystery filled with action, suspense, romance, and deep philosophical questions. And this time it all boils down to one mind-bending conclusion: They have to get off this ship.

Published by Razorbill

Release Date: January 10, 2012

Book Review: Across the Universe by Beth Revis

A love out of time. A spaceship built of secrets and murder.

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. (From Goodreads)

When I started Across the Universe, I wasn't really sure what I was going to find. I'd been hearing tons of positive buzz, but I still expected it to be heavy on the romance, with only a bit of sci-fi, mystery, and suspense. Saying that I was wrong would be a huge understatement. This book was packed with mystery, sabotage, and crazy twists!

I thought that the characters were well developed, and believable. I really felt for Amy, especially as she began to realize that she was trapped aboard the Godspeed. With her bright hair, and pale skin, she was an outcast. Elder was also an outcast of sorts, the only person on board his age, and was preparing to take over the role of leader. He had a few friends, but he didn't really fit in with majority of the people on the Feeder level (the agricultural hub of the ship). The book alternated between Amy and Elder's point of view. She managed to pull off switching these viewpoints between chapters without making the transitions jarring. I never felt pulled from the story, and I thought that this actually helped me better connect with both characters. Had the entire book been from Amy's perspective, I would have been a lot more suspicious about who exactly Elder was.

As for the pace of the book, I think it says quite a bit about Revis that she was able to fit all that she did into 400 pages, and still maintain a steady flow. Things didn't drag at the start, or feel rushed toward the end. I imagine that this is due to the fact that she has two more books to completely wrap up the story. I also thought she did a good job with the ethical side of things. It was an interesting take on what actions are acceptable in terms of continuing a race of people. I don't want to spoil this for anyone who hasn't read the book, so I'll refrain from saying any more about the subject.

Overall, this is one of my favorites of 2011 so far. The multifaceted plot, and well developed characters left me extremely satisfied as a reader. This is rather rare, but I really had no criticisms when I had finished reading. I happily let myself digest, and began looking forward to the sequel.

Across the Universe
By Beth Revis
Published by Razorbill
398 Pages
Purchased
Rating: A

Teaser Tuesday (March 29)

What is teaser tuesday?
It's a meme hosted by Should Be Reading and here are the rules:
Grab your current read...
Open to a random page
Share two teaser sentences from somewhere on the page
Don't include spoilers.

"Those people's apathy wasn't normal...but neither is this woman's. In fact, all the women I saw in the hallway were a bit off."

-Across the Universe, page 252, by Beth Revis

This week I decided to use another teaser from Across the Universe. I'm not technically reading it at the moment, but I am working on the review.

Teaser Tuesday (March 8)

What is teaser tuesday?
It's a meme hosted by Should Be Reading and here are the rules:
Grab your current read...
Open to a random page
Share two teaser sentences from somewhere on the page
Don't include spoilers.

"Do this: Go to your bedroom. Your nice, safe, warm bedroom that is not a glass coffin behind a morgue door."

-Across the Universe, page 32, by Beth Revis

In My Mailbox (February 20)

In My Mailbox was created by Kristi of The Story Siren, who was inspired by Alea of Pop Culture Junkie. All of the synopses you see below were found on Goodreads. Here are the books I got this week...

For Review:

Betrayal (Haunting Emma 2) by Lee Nichols

Emma Vaile is the most powerful ghostkeeper in centuries. Which is great when she's battling the wraith-master Neos, but terrible when she's flirting with fellow ghostkeeper (and soul mate) Bennett. When ghostkeepers fall in love, the weaker one loses all power, and that's not something Bennett can handle. Heartbroken and alone, Emma tries to lose herself in school with fellow ghostkeeper, Natalie. When a new team of ghostkeepers arrive—one a snarky teen boy, the other a British scholar—Emma finds solace in training for the battle against Neos. But as the team grows stronger, they are threatened by an unknown force. One they thought was good.
As chilling and page-turning as Deception, this sequel will grab readers and hold them to the last page. No one is safe from suspicion as Emma closes in on the traitor.

Published by Bloomsbury USA
Release Date: March 1, 2010

Purchased:

Across the Universe by Beth Revis
A love out of time. A spaceship built of secrets and murder.

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.

Waiting On Wednesday (November 24)

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine. This weekly meme shares the upcoming books that I'm most excited about.

Across the Universe by Beth Revis

A love out of time. A spaceship built of secrets and murder.

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.

Published by Razorbill
Release Date: January 11, 2011

I'm pretty sure that everyone is excited about this one! I also just noticed the release date is 1/11/11 :)