Review of “Skyward” by Brandon Sanderson

Review of “Skyward” by Brandon Sanderson

If “Fourth Wing” is one of the best YA fantasy novels I’ve read recently, then “Skyward” is the best YA science fiction novel I’ve read since “The Hunger Games”. While my husband is a big fan of author Brandon Sanderson, I have been a bit hesitant to read his works. I tried “The Way of Kings” and gave up halfway through. Epics are not for me. While I did overall enjoy “The Final Empire” the first in the Mistborn series, I found similar issues with his writing that I did with “The Way of Kings”. I tend to find his writing style to be too long winded, drawn out and dry. Nothing wrong with that, it’s just not for me. However, I’m pleased to say that I have found a book of his that I truly love.

“Skyward” is written with all the amazing worldbuilding and technicality that Sanderson is known for, but with a YA approach. The story focuses mainly on one character and follows her journey through flight academy. The story’s pacing flows well from scene to scene and there’s never a moment where it gets bogged down by inner monologues or exposition. The story takes place on a planet called Detritus where humans live deep underground because the atmosphere is covered in a layer of debris from old space stations. The flight academy is on the surface and the pilot fight an alien race known as the Krell.

One thing I like about this book is the story is not about the sci-fi aspects but rather about a girl, Spensa, trying to redeem her family name after her father was labeled a coward in battle when she was a little girl. There is also an interesting mystery about what really happened to her father, and it all becomes clear at the end.

Unlike most YA stories, Sanderson manages to resist the urge to give Spensa a love interest. While there is some tension between her and her flight leader Jorgen, it’s not some intense, semi-toxic, romance. It’s barely noticeable, but well developed. The dialogue is witty, and the characters have a good banter with each other.

Spensa is a fun, and brash character that makes for a good lead. I really enjoy the supporting characters as well, such as her flight instructor Cobb and her classmates, Jorgen and Kimmalyn. Each of their personalities are different and yet they all work well as an ensemble. One of the few criticisms that I have of the book, is that we don’t get to know Spensa’s mother and grandmother, as well as life in the underground caverns.

Overall, I really love this book, it’s got interesting characters, a cool sci-fi world and an interesting story about human’s vs aliens and intergalactic travel. I’m looking forward to continue reading this series.

If you like science fiction stories, check out my book, "The Chimera Prophecies and Other Short Stories". 

https://www.amazon.com/Chimera-Prophecies.../dp/B0C4QX4RZW/

"The Chimera Prophecies" consists of eight short science fiction/dark fantasy short stories. Themes of how reality and identity shape our journey and humanity.

Review of “Iron Flame” by Rebecca Yarros

 

Review of “Iron Flame” by Rebecca Yarros

Coming out of “Fourth Wing” I was super excited and thrilled for this series, which the author has said will consist of five books. I loved the main characters, and I really enjoyed spending time in this world. When I started “Iron Flame” my expectations were high. However, after the first third of the book, I began to lose interest. Halfway through the book, which is longer than the first book, I began to get bored. While there are interesting aspects in the sequel “Iron Flame”, overall, it gets weighed down by its multiple story plots.

The beginning of this book starts with the main character Violet returning to her second year at Basgiath War College. We get a sense of what is expected of second year students, and how Violet and Xadan’s relationship changes now that he has graduated. Everything that takes place at the college is great and engaging. However, about a third of the way through the book, the story shifts and we are removed from the college until the very end.

The other two-thirds of the book takes place in a few different locations, the story starts to literally jump around from place to place. We learn more about the griffin riders, we learn more about Xadan and we even redeem a character. There are also a few surprises that I won’t spoil, but it all plays into the ending of the book.

The main plot of this book is restarting the magic shield wards to fight off the enemy. However, I feel that some scenes are repetitive and the story meanders around the plot, introducing points that don’t focus on the main story. I feel that this book should have either been condensed or split into two books. It simply takes too long to get to the last act of the story. It becomes too drawn out and the side plots could either be saved for the next book or scrapped altogether. It took me a long time to finish this book, because I had just lost interest in reading it.

There are a few good things about this book. The opening at the college is wonderful, the reveals and twists are shocking and well done. I like continuing to build the relationship between Violet and Xadan, as well as her family. Unfortunately, most of the book was less interesting and I can’t recommend reading this one. That said, I will still look forward to reading the third book in the series. 

Review of “Fourth Wing” by Rebecca Yarros

Review of “Fourth Wing” by Rebecca Yarros

“Fourth Wing” is a fantasy book that focuses on a young woman entering her first year at a battle college, hoping to become a dragon rider. Violet Sorrengail wanted to be a scribe like her father but her mother, the commanding general, forces her to join the rider’s quadrant, like her older sister Mira. At the college Violet runs into her childhood friend, Dain, as well as the son of the man who is responsible for her brother’s death, Xadan Riorson. The book follows Violet’s first year as she survives the many grueling and dangerous challenges the riders must face, including bonding to a dragon.

“Fourth Wing” is the first pure fantasy novel for Yarros, whose main body of work consists of romance novels. Yarros does a great job creating a world that feels familiar to fans of fantasy, yet unique in its own right. The one thing that I love about this book is that the main character is thrown into a situation where everyone expects her to fail. Violet was trained as a scribe and is constantly being told that she is too weak to be a dragon rider. Because of this, Violet has to work hard and use her intelligence to overcome physical challenges in new ways.

One of the things that I enjoy most is the relationships that Violet has with her family, friends, and enemies. Violet has unique dynamics between different people and her relationships evolve or devolve as the story goes on. I also really like the aspect that it takes place at a college, which sort of reminds me of Hogwarts in Harry Potter.

For some unknown reason, I was enthralled reading this book and couldn’t get enough. It’s the first book in a while that I just cannot put down. I really like how easy it is to read, and the author keeps the story flowing and moving forward. Each chapter starts with an excerpt from a letter or piece of literature that builds the history of the world while also applying to the current situation of the character. There is just enough detail and description without weighing down the narrative or overusing exposition to convey information.

As for the dragons, I haven’t read too many stories about dragons, but I really like this portrayal. The dragons can communicate telepathically and have their own society and sets of rules. I imagine these dragons to look like the dragons for Game of Thrones, but each dragon has a different tail that is shaped like a weapon, i.e. dagger-tail or morningstar-tail. The use of magic is also an interesting aspect, because the riders gain their magic through the bond with their dragon. It’s a soft magic system but it works within the context of the story.

There are a few things that I don’t love about this book, but I don’t want to give away too many spoilers. There is a sort of classic “toxic” relationship that is viewed as being okay and lusty. It’s NOT okay to be in a toxic relationship just because you can’t keep your hands off each other. However, it’s only slightly toxic in the sense that they play mind games with each other and don’t trust each other, but their sex is so amazing that they don’t care.

There is also a character that is just overly aggressive and eager to kill. It’s a ridiculous character that makes no sense. One thing I do like is there is a side character that uses sign language to communicate and it’s a great way to add diversity to a fantasy novel.

Overall, if you are someone that loves fantasy stories with dragons and a female protagonist, then I highly recommend reading this book. The book has a fairly interesting plot that uses familiar story beats but doesn’t fall into “generic” plot tropes and takes a surprising turn at the end. I look forward to reading the next book, and continuing the series.

My new book now on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Chimera-Prophecies.../dp/B0C4QX4RZW/

"The Chimera Prophecies" consists of eight short science fiction/dark fantasy short stories. Themes of how reality and identity shape our journey and humanity.