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mysterious
I wish I could give this book a higher rating, but the flashbacks really interfered with the pacing and didn't contribute to the mystery. I can tell you this because after about five flashbacks I started skipping them and I didn't lack for any context. After that, the pacing on the mystery was great! With enough red herrings to make me second guess my suspicions. I also loved the inclusion of trans and nonbinary characters! I'll certainly be reading the next book by this author and crossing my fingers that it doesn't contain flashbacks.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infertility, Violence, Murder, Pregnancy
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
'The Deep Sky' by Yume Kitasei is an engaging sci-fi mystery set aboard a generation ship.
Asuka is one of the women flying aboard a space ship seeking out a new world for humanity. Having gone through a grueling set of trials to be picked for the mission, she and her fellow crew are giving it their all to make it to their new planet. But an explosion on the ship sets them off course and ends up killing some of the crew. Asuka is determined to figure out what happened and if one of their crew has turned against them.
Kitasei balances science fiction elements with mystery and character moments extremely well in this novel. I felt like I had a good grasp of the ship while also feeling each character was a living breathing person full of faults. The story shifts between present day dealing with the fallout of the explosion and Asuka on Earth preparing for the selection process for the mission. This does a lot to explore her character and her relationship with her mother, which is a key aspect of the story.
Kitasei weaves commentary on different topics within the larger story while also keeping the mystery a central tenet.
I am fascinated to see what she writes next because it is clear she has a real talent for genre fiction that blends plot and character elements.
Asuka is one of the women flying aboard a space ship seeking out a new world for humanity. Having gone through a grueling set of trials to be picked for the mission, she and her fellow crew are giving it their all to make it to their new planet. But an explosion on the ship sets them off course and ends up killing some of the crew. Asuka is determined to figure out what happened and if one of their crew has turned against them.
Kitasei balances science fiction elements with mystery and character moments extremely well in this novel. I felt like I had a good grasp of the ship while also feeling each character was a living breathing person full of faults. The story shifts between present day dealing with the fallout of the explosion and Asuka on Earth preparing for the selection process for the mission. This does a lot to explore her character and her relationship with her mother, which is a key aspect of the story.
Kitasei weaves commentary on different topics within the larger story while also keeping the mystery a central tenet.
I am fascinated to see what she writes next because it is clear she has a real talent for genre fiction that blends plot and character elements.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting
Minor: Misogyny
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
"A parent can't write the end of a child's story. That's for the child to figure out."
This book was a mix of everything that I love —sci-fi, mystery, and a good background story for the characters to get to understand their motivations from a young age. As a debut book, from idea to execution, this book was amazing.
Throughout the book we follow Asuka Hoshino-Silva, a biracial Japanese and American girl, who loves space and birds. When we first meet Asuka she is already over 10 years into an international space mission to find and settle on to Planet X as Earth is experiencing extreme weather due to climate change. However, someone has decided to throw the mission off track by bombing the ship, throwing the ship off its trajectory and killing three crew members — including the captain. From that point on, we're following Asuka to figure out who did it, how to get the mission back on track, and how did they even get on the ship to begin with. As the book switches timelines, we learn a lot about the mission, the characters and their reasons for joining the mission at young age.
This book was a mix of everything that I love —sci-fi, mystery, and a good background story for the characters to get to understand their motivations from a young age. As a debut book, from idea to execution, this book was amazing.
Throughout the book we follow Asuka Hoshino-Silva, a biracial Japanese and American girl, who loves space and birds. When we first meet Asuka she is already over 10 years into an international space mission to find and settle on to Planet X as Earth is experiencing extreme weather due to climate change. However, someone has decided to throw the mission off track by bombing the ship, throwing the ship off its trajectory and killing three crew members — including the captain. From that point on, we're following Asuka to figure out who did it, how to get the mission back on track, and how did they even get on the ship to begin with. As the book switches timelines, we learn a lot about the mission, the characters and their reasons for joining the mission at young age.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore
Moderate: Racism, Sexism
Minor: Gore, Sexism, Xenophobia, Murder, War
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Space mysteries, birds, and racial identity, once I started reading The Deep Sky I couldn't put in down, it absolutely blew me away!
Kitasei's writing and prose is the perfect balance of symbolism, bird facts, and flashbacks. Usually flashbacks can be hit or miss with me, often I just want to get on with the story and not focus on past events, sometimes it can feel jarring to bounce around the timeline. That is not the case in here, I really enjoyed seeing Asuka's past and getting to find out more about the complicated relationship she has with the crew. I won't lie, I cried multiple times reading this. It's hard not to feel attached to what she has gone through and experienced. I really like how she isn't a "perfect" main character. There is so much more to her then a one dimensional personality. She comes off as an asshole a lot especially in the beginning of the book, but as you discover why, it all just really reads as someone who feels so utterly alone and undeserving.
I love the bird facts and symbolism! I'll admit I was googling birds trying to figure out more hints and clues and it gave some delightful bread crumbs to what was going on. (You guys, I loved everything about this book, I'll admit it) Typically my biggest gripe with some mysteries is either there are no surprises, or there aren't enough hints to even figure out what is going on if you have a sense to. I don't want to spoil anything, but it was masterfully done, and I now I know more animal facts which is such a plus in my mind.
Space is always so fun to read about, and Kitasei perfectly toes the line between reality, physics, and fiction. The concept of virtual environments and altering how your clothes to appear is just honestly the coolest concept I've ever read in a science fiction book. I am so deeply impressed with all the science-y things that occur. It really made it all feel so real and and I was sorely disappointed to come back to reality and realise I had to look at my grey walls of my apartment. (I think my ideal virtual reality would be hmm..fantasy I think!)
The mommy issues hit hard. I tend to avoid books with mommy issues because..well I'm sure you can guess, but the relationship between Asuka and her Mom is just *chefs kiss*. People are complex and imperfect and the way we all deal with our grief and our feelings of guilt/inadequacies manifest so differently and UGH I CRIED.
I really related to Asuka's struggle with her biracial identity, and not feeling "Japanese enough". (No sabo kids, where you at?) I can easily say this is the best depiction of what it is like to feel an outsider in your own culture. I've always felt such a disconnect with my heritage, and I really loved how beautifully it was shown.
This book filled the hole that The Expanse series left behind in my heart, BUT now I have a hole left behind by THIS book!! (The cycle never ends!)
I also loved the inclusion of queer characters, and disability rep! AND THE ENDING WAS PERFECT!
I could rant for 10 more paragraphs about how much I love this book but I'll stop here.
I HIGHLY recommend reading The Deep Sky! I can't wait to read her next book! No but seriously, Kitasei is now an author that I am going to be watching and waiting for news of her next book, I'm obsessed.
I lied one more part I loved: the depiction of racism, war, and the environment!
Kitasei's writing and prose is the perfect balance of symbolism, bird facts, and flashbacks. Usually flashbacks can be hit or miss with me, often I just want to get on with the story and not focus on past events, sometimes it can feel jarring to bounce around the timeline. That is not the case in here, I really enjoyed seeing Asuka's past and getting to find out more about the complicated relationship she has with the crew. I won't lie, I cried multiple times reading this. It's hard not to feel attached to what she has gone through and experienced. I really like how she isn't a "perfect" main character. There is so much more to her then a one dimensional personality. She comes off as an asshole a lot especially in the beginning of the book, but as you discover why, it all just really reads as someone who feels so utterly alone and undeserving.
I love the bird facts and symbolism! I'll admit I was googling birds trying to figure out more hints and clues and it gave some delightful bread crumbs to what was going on. (You guys, I loved everything about this book, I'll admit it) Typically my biggest gripe with some mysteries is either there are no surprises, or there aren't enough hints to even figure out what is going on if you have a sense to. I don't want to spoil anything, but it was masterfully done, and I now I know more animal facts which is such a plus in my mind.
Space is always so fun to read about, and Kitasei perfectly toes the line between reality, physics, and fiction. The concept of virtual environments and altering how your clothes to appear is just honestly the coolest concept I've ever read in a science fiction book. I am so deeply impressed with all the science-y things that occur. It really made it all feel so real and and I was sorely disappointed to come back to reality and realise I had to look at my grey walls of my apartment. (I think my ideal virtual reality would be hmm..fantasy I think!)
The mommy issues hit hard. I tend to avoid books with mommy issues because..well I'm sure you can guess, but the relationship between Asuka and her Mom is just *chefs kiss*. People are complex and imperfect and the way we all deal with our grief and our feelings of guilt/inadequacies manifest so differently and UGH I CRIED.
I really related to Asuka's struggle with her biracial identity, and not feeling "Japanese enough". (No sabo kids, where you at?) I can easily say this is the best depiction of what it is like to feel an outsider in your own culture. I've always felt such a disconnect with my heritage, and I really loved how beautifully it was shown.
This book filled the hole that The Expanse series left behind in my heart, BUT now I have a hole left behind by THIS book!! (The cycle never ends!)
I also loved the inclusion of queer characters, and disability rep! AND THE ENDING WAS PERFECT!
I could rant for 10 more paragraphs about how much I love this book but I'll stop here.
I HIGHLY recommend reading The Deep Sky! I can't wait to read her next book! No but seriously, Kitasei is now an author that I am going to be watching and waiting for news of her next book, I'm obsessed.
I lied one more part I loved: the depiction of racism, war, and the environment!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Murder, Pregnancy
Minor: Child death, Death of parent
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you, Flatiron and Net Galley for giving me the privilege of reading an advanced reader copy of the deep sky.
The Earth is dying and humanity built a generation ship. Asuka, half Japanese, half American, and 79 other people hurtle towards planet X taking Humanity's hope with them. After 10 years in stasis, the crew wakes up for the middle of the journey. When an explosion rocks the ship, kills the captain and 2 crew, Asuka struggles to solve the mystery.
I loved this book. I loved how human the characters are, and I adored the queer, trans, and disabled characters that fill the pages. I also enjoyed the bird imagery and the split timeline.
The AI is amazing, as is the virtual interface that lays over the top of the ship.
Occasionally, the otherwise tight plot wobbles..For example, the crew all having to have babies was an interesting plot point. The kids volunteered so young that I cannot imagine what consent looks like. I did feel like them making sure not all the senior leaders were pregnant at the same time would be baked into the mission.
It's a book about forgiveness, grief, loss, friendship, self doubt, and growing up, and I will read it again and again.
The Earth is dying and humanity built a generation ship. Asuka, half Japanese, half American, and 79 other people hurtle towards planet X taking Humanity's hope with them. After 10 years in stasis, the crew wakes up for the middle of the journey. When an explosion rocks the ship, kills the captain and 2 crew, Asuka struggles to solve the mystery.
I loved this book. I loved how human the characters are, and I adored the queer, trans, and disabled characters that fill the pages. I also enjoyed the bird imagery and the split timeline.
The AI is amazing, as is the virtual interface that lays over the top of the ship.
Occasionally, the otherwise tight plot wobbles..For example, the crew all having to have babies was an interesting plot point. The kids volunteered so young that I cannot imagine what consent looks like. I did feel like them making sure not all the senior leaders were pregnant at the same time would be baked into the mission.
It's a book about forgiveness, grief, loss, friendship, self doubt, and growing up, and I will read it again and again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Infertility, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War