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A review by queer_bookwyrm
Steelstriker by Marie Lu
adventurous
dark
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
3.5 ⭐ CW: Violence, torture, descriptions of blood, medical trauma
"May there be future dawns."
Steelstriker by Marie Lu is book two in the Skyhunter duology. This book picks up where the end of the first book left it, so this is your warning for spoilers ahead.
<Spoiler>We pick up with Talin after she has been captured and turned into a Skyhunter, like Red. She is now mentally connected to her enemy, the Premier of the Karensa Federation, and we see her suffer through doing the his bidding and killing in order to keep her mother alive. We also follow an injured Red, who is with the rest of the surviving Strikers trying to figure out a plan to stop the Federation. We see Red's yearning for Talin.
These books are pretty dark for YA. Lu writes about challenging themes around corrupt regimes and imperialism. There is exploration of trauma and what power and control can do to a person. I can definitely see why Lu wrote these books during the Trump presidency and the pandemic, but she wrote us a revolution and gave us a happy ending.
I'm not gonna lie, although I enjoyed this book, I felt it was a bit underwhelming. There were so many things about the world building I wanted to see more of that we didn't get, or exploration of the Old Ones. This was pretty plot heavy and straightforward. I thought the stakes needed to be raised in a major way in this book and they just weren't. No one important even died! I just wanted a bit more out of those 400 pages. </Spoiler>
I still recommend giving this series a read, Skyhunter was a great book.
"May there be future dawns."
Steelstriker by Marie Lu is book two in the Skyhunter duology. This book picks up where the end of the first book left it, so this is your warning for spoilers ahead.
<Spoiler>We pick up with Talin after she has been captured and turned into a Skyhunter, like Red. She is now mentally connected to her enemy, the Premier of the Karensa Federation, and we see her suffer through doing the his bidding and killing in order to keep her mother alive. We also follow an injured Red, who is with the rest of the surviving Strikers trying to figure out a plan to stop the Federation. We see Red's yearning for Talin.
These books are pretty dark for YA. Lu writes about challenging themes around corrupt regimes and imperialism. There is exploration of trauma and what power and control can do to a person. I can definitely see why Lu wrote these books during the Trump presidency and the pandemic, but she wrote us a revolution and gave us a happy ending.
I'm not gonna lie, although I enjoyed this book, I felt it was a bit underwhelming. There were so many things about the world building I wanted to see more of that we didn't get, or exploration of the Old Ones. This was pretty plot heavy and straightforward. I thought the stakes needed to be raised in a major way in this book and they just weren't. No one important even died! I just wanted a bit more out of those 400 pages. </Spoiler>
I still recommend giving this series a read, Skyhunter was a great book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical trauma, Torture, Violence, and Blood