Book Thoughts: Across the Universe

Title: Across the Universe

Author: Beth Revis

Series: Across the Universe #1
*Imported from tumblr*

Okay so let’s talk about Across the Universe by Beth Revis. I’ve had this one sitting on my bookshelf for a couple of years now and just never got around to actually reading it until this week — and now I’m kicking myself for waiting so long.

It’s basically an intergalactic, high-technology dystopian murder mystery. Sort of. Amy, along with her parents and several others, has been cryogenically frozen and is to be one of the new inhabitants of “Centauri-Earth," a distant planet that should take 300 years to reach. But she is woken 50 years before the ship Godspeed reaches Centauri-Earth, almost the victim of a murder. Working with the ship’s future leader, Elder, she must try to find the killer before he kills again.

So yeah, it’s a murder mystery set on a spaceship several hundred years in the future. And there is some seriously great discussion of the nature of dystopias, the meaning of family, what it takes to be a true leader, all kinds of stuff. It’s excellent. I’m kind of mad at myself for not reading this sooner. The plus side? The sequels are already out, so I don’t have to wait for them.

(Also, a side note! I got the chance to meet Beth at a signing and she is SUPER NICE and also a fan of Doctor Who, Sherlock, and Firefly like me! So that was super cool.)

Book Thoughts: Linked

Title: Linked
Author: Imogen Howson
Series: Linked #1
*Imported from tumblr.*

Elissa used to have a pretty normal life. But that was before she started getting bursts of horrible pain and flashes of another girl’s life. When she finds the girl whose mind she’s been seeing and learns an astonishing secret about her family, Elissa’s life is turned upside-down. But she will do whatever it takes to protect this girl who is linked to her soul.

Set in a futuristic (and interplanetary) society, Linked manages to be a thrilling sci-fi space adventure while at the same time challenging how far humanity is willing to go for science and examining the way mental health is handled with high school students. I really loved the way the interplanetary society was written -- it's part of Elissa's life, so it's just the way things are, but enough is explained that the reader can completely grasp the way things work. The romantic subplot was kind of predictable but I definitely still enjoyed it. (Plus, is this cover cool or what?) I devoured this book in one sitting and would recommend it to all sci-fi lovers and others as well.