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unconditionallyjay 's review for:
Defy the Stars
by Claudia Gray
I highly enjoyed this. It’s action-packed, original, and as much as I love the characters and their development throughout the book, I appreciated that it didn’t come at the cost of the world-building. Space operas aren’t my favorite, I love me some well-established and -explained sci-fi setting and a plot that doesn’t revolve around another person or relationship.
I feared this would be too focused on the romance between the characters, given that some reviews on the back claim that the romance is a selling point, when I found that to not be the case (which I loved). The slow burn development of Abel and Noemi’s relationship made it even the more enjoyable, and I appreciated that they both stood on their own feet as individuals with sharply defined personalities, motivations and senses of purpose and duty. I hate books with poorly written love interests, who only serve as plot devices and only there to add drama.
However, I found the writing to be lackluster and almost too simplistic (and the incorrect overuse of em-dashes bothered me quite a bit, to be fair), which really shone in during the fast-paced scenes. I almost couldn’t feel any suspense or sense of urgency because the writing was so bland during such high action moments. On the plus side, the dialogue was the author’s strongest suit. I found it effective, and the use of modern-day slang was realistic and not trying too hard.
I also appreciated how organic the diversity was. Not that books should get brownie points for having a diverse cast of characters, but this one was authentically done and I liked that.
Another minor criticism, but this is more of a personal taste thing: I would’ve liked to see more exploration of Noemi’s thoughts and world views. I love it when authors do a deep dive into their character’s brain, and I felt like that was certainly the case with Abel, but not Noemi. Hopefully there’s more of that as the series goes on.
With all being said, this was a solid sci-fi book with a unique premise, exciting plot and well-written characters. Will pick up the sequel for sure.
I feared this would be too focused on the romance between the characters, given that some reviews on the back claim that the romance is a selling point, when I found that to not be the case (which I loved). The slow burn development of Abel and Noemi’s relationship made it even the more enjoyable, and I appreciated that they both stood on their own feet as individuals with sharply defined personalities, motivations and senses of purpose and duty. I hate books with poorly written love interests, who only serve as plot devices and only there to add drama.
However, I found the writing to be lackluster and almost too simplistic (and the incorrect overuse of em-dashes bothered me quite a bit, to be fair), which really shone in during the fast-paced scenes. I almost couldn’t feel any suspense or sense of urgency because the writing was so bland during such high action moments. On the plus side, the dialogue was the author’s strongest suit. I found it effective, and the use of modern-day slang was realistic and not trying too hard.
I also appreciated how organic the diversity was. Not that books should get brownie points for having a diverse cast of characters, but this one was authentically done and I liked that.
Another minor criticism, but this is more of a personal taste thing: I would’ve liked to see more exploration of Noemi’s thoughts and world views. I love it when authors do a deep dive into their character’s brain, and I felt like that was certainly the case with Abel, but not Noemi. Hopefully there’s more of that as the series goes on.
With all being said, this was a solid sci-fi book with a unique premise, exciting plot and well-written characters. Will pick up the sequel for sure.