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A review by ninegladiolus
The Darkness Outside Us by Eliot Schrefer
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
“I think love and science fiction are perfect companions.”
This quote from the ARC foreword sums Eliot Schrefer’s The Darkness Outside Us up quite nicely. Sci-fi is without a doubt my favourite genre, so when I first heard of this queer YA sci-fi thriller, I was stoked. I mean, pretty much as soon you mention sentient space ships I’m in anyway, so it didn’t take much convincing. What I thought I would get was romance with a backdrop of sci-fi, and what I got was a story with heavy emphasis placed on the sci-fi and thriller elements with a significant side of romance—which was a pleasant surprise that worked to the benefit of the novel.
The story focuses on Ambrose, who wakes up without his memories in the care of Endeavor, a spaceship possessed of a sentient operating system. Ambrose’s mission—and the mission of the spacefarer whose ship is connected with his to form the Coordinated Endeavor—is to rescue his sister Minerva, who has sent a distress signal from Jupiter’s moon, Titan. He must cooperate with Kodiak, a spacefarer from a rival nation back on Earth, to accomplish a list of tasks given to them by the operating system, or OS for short. Saying much more than this would start to give away the plot, but suffice to say this novel can definitely be described as a page turner. As more and more things start not adding up, Ambrose and Kodiak are forced to work together.
I wasn’t expecting this novel to have as many darker twists and turns as it did. Stay for the mystery above all; the process of Ambrose and Kodiak unraveling the secrets of the Endeavor together kept me captivated, and amongst some terrifying and heart pounding moments, it was interwoven with love and surprisingly poignant feels. Again, as stressed above, this is not a particularly light and breezy read. Major content warnings for: violence, blood, death, and medical trauma.
Overall, The Darkness Outside Us hit on several of my favourite themes in sci-fi and provided a thrilling journey that took me to unexpected places from beginning to end. I’d absolutely recommend it to those looking for a more serious queer YA sci-fi read.
Thank you to Katherine Tegen Books and Edelweiss for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
This quote from the ARC foreword sums Eliot Schrefer’s The Darkness Outside Us up quite nicely. Sci-fi is without a doubt my favourite genre, so when I first heard of this queer YA sci-fi thriller, I was stoked. I mean, pretty much as soon you mention sentient space ships I’m in anyway, so it didn’t take much convincing. What I thought I would get was romance with a backdrop of sci-fi, and what I got was a story with heavy emphasis placed on the sci-fi and thriller elements with a significant side of romance—which was a pleasant surprise that worked to the benefit of the novel.
The story focuses on Ambrose, who wakes up without his memories in the care of Endeavor, a spaceship possessed of a sentient operating system. Ambrose’s mission—and the mission of the spacefarer whose ship is connected with his to form the Coordinated Endeavor—is to rescue his sister Minerva, who has sent a distress signal from Jupiter’s moon, Titan. He must cooperate with Kodiak, a spacefarer from a rival nation back on Earth, to accomplish a list of tasks given to them by the operating system, or OS for short. Saying much more than this would start to give away the plot, but suffice to say this novel can definitely be described as a page turner. As more and more things start not adding up, Ambrose and Kodiak are forced to work together.
I wasn’t expecting this novel to have as many darker twists and turns as it did. Stay for the mystery above all; the process of Ambrose and Kodiak unraveling the secrets of the Endeavor together kept me captivated, and amongst some terrifying and heart pounding moments, it was interwoven with love and surprisingly poignant feels. Again, as stressed above, this is not a particularly light and breezy read. Major content warnings for: violence, blood, death, and medical trauma.
Overall, The Darkness Outside Us hit on several of my favourite themes in sci-fi and provided a thrilling journey that took me to unexpected places from beginning to end. I’d absolutely recommend it to those looking for a more serious queer YA sci-fi read.
Thank you to Katherine Tegen Books and Edelweiss for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Medical trauma, and Violence
Minor: Homophobia and Terminal illness