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svjak's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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
5.0
I think I'm going to need a minute to recover after reading Skyward.
Is it weird that I kinda wanna go down in a blaze of glory fighting the krell just so Spensa can come give me a hero's funeral?
I love Sanderson's books so much. He's truly a master of storytelling. He's a world-builder at heart and he weaves details into a plot in a way that feels so effortless. All of these tiny, unassuming details stack on top of each other until you have this entire world with customs and ideas - you start to find yourself being able to anticipate reactions based on a shared history that you now know about, and he does that without going into long monologues on history or making it feel laborious to read.
And his characters are so lovable. Spensa is no different. I absolutely fell in love with her and doomslug. He has a way of making characters relatable even if you don't really have anything in common with them. It's not about the commonality, it's about telling the story in a way that makes you understand a character's reactions and even come to sympathize with them (even when they're wrong.) It makes the tough times hit harder and it makes you become invested in the outcome.
This is the most epic spin on the boy-and-his-dragon trope I've ever read and I'm fantastically in love with it. I'm just ashamed I didn't read this when I got it in a book subscription box a few years ago right after it was published.
Is it weird that I kinda wanna go down in a blaze of glory fighting the krell just so Spensa can come give me a hero's funeral?
I love Sanderson's books so much. He's truly a master of storytelling. He's a world-builder at heart and he weaves details into a plot in a way that feels so effortless. All of these tiny, unassuming details stack on top of each other until you have this entire world with customs and ideas - you start to find yourself being able to anticipate reactions based on a shared history that you now know about, and he does that without going into long monologues on history or making it feel laborious to read.
And his characters are so lovable. Spensa is no different. I absolutely fell in love with her and doomslug. He has a way of making characters relatable even if you don't really have anything in common with them. It's not about the commonality, it's about telling the story in a way that makes you understand a character's reactions and even come to sympathize with them (even when they're wrong.) It makes the tough times hit harder and it makes you become invested in the outcome.
This is the most epic spin on the boy-and-his-dragon trope I've ever read and I'm fantastically in love with it. I'm just ashamed I didn't read this when I got it in a book subscription box a few years ago right after it was published.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, and War
This entire book is about a young girl flying a spaceship and fighting against an enemy force. They are actively at war. Main characters die, the young girl and several other characters process their grief and guilt on page, and there are somewhat graphic descriptions of violence, hazing, and bullying.nightstitch96's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and War
pointlessmoss's review
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I do like most of the characters, but sometimes the way their conflicts were written -- and the story in general -- felt shallow. Getting to learn more about the space military and the alien attacks kept me interested, and I had a lot of fun with the climax! I have mixed feelings overall, but I want to read the next installment in the series! Mind-controlled spaceships and hateful eyes watching from the "nowhere." Those are the reasons I wanted to keep reading, and why I want to read the next book.
Sometimes Spensa would be a real asshole for no reason, but she was usually spared from facing any consequences, so her growth by the end of the novel seemed to only be in one direction and overlooked her other flaws. She makes some smart choices, and has nice moments too, but I would've liked to see her personality -- including her immaturity and impulsiveness -- explored more to better understand why she is the way she is. Lastly, I couldn't help but get tired of the cowardice theme by the end -- but that's just me.
Sometimes Spensa would be a real asshole for no reason, but she was usually spared from facing any consequences, so her growth by the end of the novel seemed to only be in one direction and overlooked her other flaws. She makes some smart choices, and has nice moments too, but I would've liked to see her personality -- including her immaturity and impulsiveness -- explored more to better understand why she is the way she is. Lastly, I couldn't help but get tired of the cowardice theme by the end -- but that's just me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Gore, Blood, and Grief
iono's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Death of parent, and War
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Bullying, Confinement, Genocide, Vomit, and Classism
bookcaptivated's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, and War
Moderate: Classism
Minor: Murder and Injury/Injury detail
mandaraffe's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Animal death, Genocide, and Fire/Fire injury
debdeb123's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Death, Violence, and War
Minor: Grief
jessiecakes's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and War
Moderate: Death of parent
stuckinatimeloop's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
brandon sanderson is a man who writes girl characters really well. spensa is funny, quite relatable (more than usual scif/fantasy mcs), a bit odd in the best way. it's probably the thing i loved the most in this book.
plot is awesome, space pilot academies are great. more development of side characters would have been nice though.
plot is awesome, space pilot academies are great. more development of side characters would have been nice though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Death of parent, and War
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Vomit
hlhayes7's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death