A Million Suns (Beth Revis)

****

Sequel to Across the Universe

         It has been three months since Amy woke up and almost died in the cargo hold of the spaceship, Godspeed.  In that time, she met a boy named Elder, stopped other "frozens" from being killed, and created a revolution on the ship.  Now, she's trying to keep her head down in a place where nearly everybody hates her.  Amy wishes she could go back to her old life - or at least wake up her parents, who are still cryogenically frozen - but she can't.  Her only hope is to figure out why Godspeed isn't approaching its final destination.  Meanwhile, Elder is leading the ship, but things aren't going half as well as he had hoped.  Amy is about to give up when she discovers a series of clues that promise to solve all of her problems.  As things on Godspeed spiral out of control, it is up to Amy to find a way off of the ship before everything collapses.

         A Million Suns was a satisfying sequel to Across the Universe.  I was a little worried that round two wouldn't be as good as round one, but luckily Beth Revis succeeded in writing another really good book.
The plot was interesting, and there were twists that I definitely did not expect.  Revis did a particularly good job of hiding the outcome - I had my guesses, but it wasn't so predictable that I could guess correctly.  The unpredictability made A Million Suns an enjoyable read for me.

Rating: 4/5
Completed: January 28, 2012

Chopsticks (Jessica Anthony and Rodrigo Corral)

****

         Chopsticks is not a novel in the usual sense.  The story is told through a collection of pictures, conversations, music, letters, and more.  I was surprised how few words were necessary to convey so much meaning; the images did most of the work.  As the reader follows the events leading up to the disappearance of teenaged piano prodigy Glory Fleming, he or she comes to understand why Glory decided to leave.

         I really liked the unique style of Chopsticks.  Though you could go through it in a matter of hours, there is enough hidden information to last much longer.  If you read this, look carefully for connections from picture to picture.  There are some clever links with interesting implied meaning.  I'm no photography expert, but I also thought that the pictures were great.  Definitely a worthwhile quick-read.

Rating: 4/5
Completed: February 17, 2012

Divergent (Veronica Roth)

*****

         In dystopian Chicago, Beatrice Prior is about to make a decision that will determine her future.  Every year, all of the sixteen-year-olds in the city must choose the faction that they wish to join.  Though most teens stick with the faction they were born into, some decide to join one of the other factions. To help decide their fate, Beatrice and her peers take an aptitude test that tells them the faction to which they are best suited.  The catch?  Beatrice's test is inconclusive, an outcome that is more dangerous than she might have guessed.  Now she has to choose her future faction on her own - and figure out how to hide the fact that she is Divergent.  

         

         This book was amazing!  I had heard great things about it, but I never guessed it would be this awesome.  It was fast-paced and full of action.  I read in all my free time and late into the night, always thinking "just one more page".  Roth gave just enough information that I could guess at what would happen next, but always added some unexpected element.  The characters were diverse and real.  I really connected to Beatrice - every time her adrenaline spiked, I could feel my heart pounding.  The whole book was fantastic and captivating.  It's a little early in the year to be saying this, but this will probably be one of the best books I read in 2012.  Divergent deserves a full five stars, and I can't wait until Insurgent is released!


Rating: 5/5
Completed: January 22, 2012