A review by kathrynth
Starglass by Phoebe North

2.0

This book fell apart for me, which is why I ended up giving it two stars instead of one: it had something to fall apart from. The beginning of the book felt very much like The Giver, but the middle picked up, began to distinguish itself, etc. But then everything became predictable, and it was predictable because I could see the author manipulating Terra into not thinking things until the plot called for a realization. Things were so black and white, so obvious, that I lost all relation to Terra because she didn't seem stupid or silly enough to miss it. Point in case: when she goes to Rachel for help getting beautiful so that she can impress Silvan. Not once in that interaction does she have the slightest thought that going to that particular person for that particular reason might backfire. Or after finding out about Koen, she's shocked, says it's a childish thing, without ever thinking, wow, my great-great-great-great-whatever-mother was the same way, and she didn't seem childish. The gaps were glaring, and until the very last minutes, Terra is a passive player in a larger game when I think she's been written to be something more (I've seen Phoebe North speak, so I'm fairly confident in this). I did appreciate a new take on what makes a strong female character, but she, like most of the characters (all of them except for Mara) fell incredibly flat to me. Also, the dreams. My god the dreams...