A Million Suns: Review

Review:

I’ve never been a big sci-fi fan. Occasionally I’d watch a movie with sci-fi elements, but I’ve never been drawn to science fiction books. That all changed the day I reluctantly picked up Across the Universe, and it totally grabbed me.

When A Million Suns was released, I bought the book as well was the audiobook. My review pile was totally out of control and I wasn’t sure I could squeeze it in, but I knew I could listen to it while driving to and from work. Holy crap! I was so sucked in that I had to start carrying the book around with me so I could get my fix of Elder and Amy on my lunch break.

In the first book, Ms. Revis captivated us with the story of Godspeed, a ship traveling from Earth to a new planet called CentauriEarth — a planet that was discovered and is expected to have the ability to sustain human life. But, something happens to Godspeed, and, in the first book we learn that there is something wrong with the ship’s engines. They are traveling much slower than expected, and it’s not likely they’ll make it to their destination on the intended schedule. Amy (a girl from Earth, cryogenically frozen along with her parents and placed aboard Godspeed to be one of the first inhabitants of CentauriEarth) is woken early by someone and along with Elder — a ship-born young man, destined to be the leader of the ship — has to figure out why she was awoken. Who wanted her dead? What they uncovered was a conspiracy that turned their lives upside down.

In A Million Suns, Ms. Revis ups the adrenaline factor. After the events of the first book, the ship is in chaos, and Elder struggles to keep things running without resorting to the inhumane control of the previous Eldest. The entire time I was reading/listening to this book, I had to pause for minute. I’m a very immersive reader if given the proper setting and descriptive prose (which Ms. Revis gives in spades). Often times I felt myself getting claustrophobic as I would imagine what it would be like to be stuck inside a huge ship, in the middle of outer space, with no chance of getting out while all of this chaos is taking place. I mean, can you imagine being trapped inside a spaceship with no chance of escape? Not being able to go outside for fresh air, or just jump in the car and go somewhere to clear your head? Freaky!

I loved the mystery that Amy and Elder find themselves engaged in. It was exciting and not once did I completely figure everything out before it was finally revealed. There are also a lot of questions about human behavior and how far you can go when trying to control a society out of control. The line between right and wrong is often blurred and will definitely make you think.

This is an amazing read, and if you’ve not yet read the first book, I HIGHLY recommend this series. The ending was perfect and I can’t wait for the next book!