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A review by heiroffire1989
Defy the Stars by Claudia Gray
5.0
I've read this book for the first time in April earlier this year and wanted to review the book as well back then, but never got around to actually write the review. I was talking about this author with a friend of mine recently and it got me instantly excited to finally write the review. I've come to love YA Science Fiction books so much lately and especially the ones that also contain some romance. This book gave me everything I wanted and more.
Sacrifice your lives, they say.
A Sci-fi setting - meaning outer space, whoop whoop -, Robots/AI, action, lovable characters and a slow-burning romance!!! What more is there for me to want??? This book exceeded my expectations and I'm so happy I bought it and got to read it - and that I'm able to reread it in the future as well.This is definitely one of my favorite sci-fi books I've read so far and I now, finally, get to tell you guys WHY I think it's so insanely good! Read on for my non-spoiler review of DEFY THE STARS by CLAUDIA GRAY.
In the first part of the book, Noemi and her fellow soldiers go out on a practice run for the Masada Run that takes place in three weeks where they end up in an unexpected fight with Earth. Noemi's friend Esther gets hurt during this and Noemi saves her and takes her to this abandoned ship that they've only just noticed, in order to save her. On this ship, they meet Abel - an Earth mech who has been trapped aboard for thirty years when everyone up and left, leaving him stuck in outer space. Noemi finds out that the ship - called the Daedalus - was Burton Mansfield's, who created these mechs like Abel. Mechs are made ranging from B-Z and they all have certain capabilities whereas Abel is superior and utterly unique in his kind because he has all the capabilities of B-Z mechs.
The universe of Defy the Stars - of which you can read more specific details about if you click on the image on the left - is one I fell in love with immediately. I fell really hard for the Young Adult sci-fi genre after reading Illuminae and have been craving to read more books ever since. Not many books have made such an awesome impact on me after Illuminae though, but this one DID. I've gobbled up everything about the worldbuilding in this book. I LOVED traveling throughout this universe and can't wait to see what more we'll see in the follow-up book(s). It's something that can't be thoroughly explained in a review I think; you need to read and experience it for yourself!
"And more than just the awesome worldbuilding, though,
I really, really loved the Mechs this Burton Mansfield created, especially the one called Abel hehe. Abel's become so much more than a robotic AI character. He had such a great development throughout this book and I loved reading from his POV. When we first meet him, he's trapped in this Earth vessel, where he's been for the past thirty years as you read before. In this time, he has learned a few new surprising things–he can dream, though sleep isn’t required for his kind, and he feels emotions the likes of which he’s never felt before, which also isn't something the Mechs are capable of in this intensity. But well, Abel's a one of a kind for a reason and we'll soon find out more about him and his background. I LOVED everything about Abel right from the start and everything that followed after. He's so incredibly well written and feels so alive and realistic. And he has such incredible humor!! I loved reading about the way he 'battles' with himself while he tries to understand all these emotions building inside him and other developments he's had in the past 30 years. And when he meets Noemi he's not gonna know what hit him. She's gonna shake his whole 'world' upside down!
When Noemi boards his vessel, Abel is finally freed from his prison of solitude–and, per his programming, becomes the mostly-willing tool of his new human commander. Together, Noemi and Abel will fight to find a way to destroy the Genesis gate that allows Earth to send forces to invade Genesis before it’s too late. Their journey will take them to other worlds and outposts, where they will find other rebels and the secret to Abel’s past. PREPARE YOURSELF FOR MAJOR FEELS!
Noemi was another great character and I loved her right from the start as well. She's strong, brave and bad-ass. She's not afraid to fight for what she believes is right and I really loved the way Claudia portrayed Noemi. Noemi is driven and thinks of herself as abrasive (though she’s really not), as well a strong commander with a good sense of intuition–her emotional sensitivity and ability to quickly adapt to situations make her not only a believable and invaluable fighter but also an awesome heroine. Just as Abel's character, there's more then enough character development in this first installment around Noemi and I loved experiencing this journey through her eyes as well!
"I think this is my favorite sci-fi romance
At first, I was hesitant about a developing romance within this world and this story-line, but I was also really intrigued at the same time. As with Illuminae; beforehand I'd never guessed it was possible to combine such intense and real emotions with a lot of feels and a great developed romance within a sci-fi setting, but it definitely Was possible. And Claudia has done such a freaking amazing job as well with this sci-fi book. I think this is my favorite sci-fi romance out of everything I've read so far in the past couple of years. It was truly amazing. It was slow-burning and therefore it really made a HUGE impact on my Feels.
"EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS BOOK IS AMAZING, ADDICTIVE
This book was unputdownable right from the start and If I could've, I'd have finished it in one-sitting - unfortunately, life got in the way so I had to take care of my family and such, lol. But every free second, I immediately picked up this book and devoured every page I was able to read. It was a PERFECT blend of Sci-fi elements, really awesome and lovable characters, a great story-line with some romance blended in and this utterly amazing writing by the author. This was my first Claudia Gray read and I already can't wait for 1. THE SEQUEL TO DEFY THE STARS and 2. READ MORE OF HER OTHER BOOKS. I'm so glad I got to read this story so I could fall in love with everything this book has to offer. It ends with an open ending, so I've been going mental about having to wait for the release of the second book. This is that kind of book you can't forget about and makes waiting for a sequel/follow up book just excruciating, lol.
This is a book for anyone looking for a sci-fi read within the Young Adult genre, anyone who wants a great first introduction in YA sci-fi and anyone who's just looking for a wicked and awesome reading experience in a setting you'll fall in love with right from the start and just can't put down once you've started reading!
Sacrifice your lives, they say.
Sacrifice your children.
Only through sacrifice can Genesis survive.
A Sci-fi setting - meaning outer space, whoop whoop -, Robots/AI, action, lovable characters and a slow-burning romance!!! What more is there for me to want??? This book exceeded my expectations and I'm so happy I bought it and got to read it - and that I'm able to reread it in the future as well.This is definitely one of my favorite sci-fi books I've read so far and I now, finally, get to tell you guys WHY I think it's so insanely good! Read on for my non-spoiler review of DEFY THE STARS by CLAUDIA GRAY.
"If you like reading about an awesome sci-fi worldbuilding with some really awesome AI-robots, a great developing romance, and top-notch written characters, you are going to devour this book!"
In the first part of the book, Noemi and her fellow soldiers go out on a practice run for the Masada Run that takes place in three weeks where they end up in an unexpected fight with Earth. Noemi's friend Esther gets hurt during this and Noemi saves her and takes her to this abandoned ship that they've only just noticed, in order to save her. On this ship, they meet Abel - an Earth mech who has been trapped aboard for thirty years when everyone up and left, leaving him stuck in outer space. Noemi finds out that the ship - called the Daedalus - was Burton Mansfield's, who created these mechs like Abel. Mechs are made ranging from B-Z and they all have certain capabilities whereas Abel is superior and utterly unique in his kind because he has all the capabilities of B-Z mechs.
The universe of Defy the Stars - of which you can read more specific details about if you click on the image on the left - is one I fell in love with immediately. I fell really hard for the Young Adult sci-fi genre after reading Illuminae and have been craving to read more books ever since. Not many books have made such an awesome impact on me after Illuminae though, but this one DID. I've gobbled up everything about the worldbuilding in this book. I LOVED traveling throughout this universe and can't wait to see what more we'll see in the follow-up book(s). It's something that can't be thoroughly explained in a review I think; you need to read and experience it for yourself!
"And more than just the awesome worldbuilding, though,
it’s the characters that are at the heart of this book..."
I really, really loved the Mechs this Burton Mansfield created, especially the one called Abel hehe. Abel's become so much more than a robotic AI character. He had such a great development throughout this book and I loved reading from his POV. When we first meet him, he's trapped in this Earth vessel, where he's been for the past thirty years as you read before. In this time, he has learned a few new surprising things–he can dream, though sleep isn’t required for his kind, and he feels emotions the likes of which he’s never felt before, which also isn't something the Mechs are capable of in this intensity. But well, Abel's a one of a kind for a reason and we'll soon find out more about him and his background. I LOVED everything about Abel right from the start and everything that followed after. He's so incredibly well written and feels so alive and realistic. And he has such incredible humor!! I loved reading about the way he 'battles' with himself while he tries to understand all these emotions building inside him and other developments he's had in the past 30 years. And when he meets Noemi he's not gonna know what hit him. She's gonna shake his whole 'world' upside down!
When Noemi boards his vessel, Abel is finally freed from his prison of solitude–and, per his programming, becomes the mostly-willing tool of his new human commander. Together, Noemi and Abel will fight to find a way to destroy the Genesis gate that allows Earth to send forces to invade Genesis before it’s too late. Their journey will take them to other worlds and outposts, where they will find other rebels and the secret to Abel’s past. PREPARE YOURSELF FOR MAJOR FEELS!
Noemi was another great character and I loved her right from the start as well. She's strong, brave and bad-ass. She's not afraid to fight for what she believes is right and I really loved the way Claudia portrayed Noemi. Noemi is driven and thinks of herself as abrasive (though she’s really not), as well a strong commander with a good sense of intuition–her emotional sensitivity and ability to quickly adapt to situations make her not only a believable and invaluable fighter but also an awesome heroine. Just as Abel's character, there's more then enough character development in this first installment around Noemi and I loved experiencing this journey through her eyes as well!
"I think this is my favorite sci-fi romance
out of everything I've read so far!"
At first, I was hesitant about a developing romance within this world and this story-line, but I was also really intrigued at the same time. As with Illuminae; beforehand I'd never guessed it was possible to combine such intense and real emotions with a lot of feels and a great developed romance within a sci-fi setting, but it definitely Was possible. And Claudia has done such a freaking amazing job as well with this sci-fi book. I think this is my favorite sci-fi romance out of everything I've read so far in the past couple of years. It was truly amazing. It was slow-burning and therefore it really made a HUGE impact on my Feels.
"EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS BOOK IS AMAZING, ADDICTIVE
AND IT'S JUST AN UNPUTDOWNABLE READ!"
This book was unputdownable right from the start and If I could've, I'd have finished it in one-sitting - unfortunately, life got in the way so I had to take care of my family and such, lol. But every free second, I immediately picked up this book and devoured every page I was able to read. It was a PERFECT blend of Sci-fi elements, really awesome and lovable characters, a great story-line with some romance blended in and this utterly amazing writing by the author. This was my first Claudia Gray read and I already can't wait for 1. THE SEQUEL TO DEFY THE STARS and 2. READ MORE OF HER OTHER BOOKS. I'm so glad I got to read this story so I could fall in love with everything this book has to offer. It ends with an open ending, so I've been going mental about having to wait for the release of the second book. This is that kind of book you can't forget about and makes waiting for a sequel/follow up book just excruciating, lol.
This is a book for anyone looking for a sci-fi read within the Young Adult genre, anyone who wants a great first introduction in YA sci-fi and anyone who's just looking for a wicked and awesome reading experience in a setting you'll fall in love with right from the start and just can't put down once you've started reading!
DON'T DOUBT FOR ONE SECOND; BUY THIS AMAZING BOOK!