Glow (Sky Chasers #1), Amy Kathleen RyanRating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: Science Fiction/Dystopian, Young Adult
Format: Audiobook
Source: Received audiobook from Macmillan Audio in exchange for a thoughtful and honest review.
Publication: 9/13/2011, St. Martin's Griffin
Synopsis from Goodreads: What if you were bound for a new world, about to pledge your life to someone you'd been promised to since birth, and one unexpected violent attack made survival—not love—the issue?
Out in the murky nebula lurks an unseen enemy: the New Horizon. On its way to populate a distant planet in the wake of Earth's collapse, the ship's crew has been unable to conceive a generation to continue its mission. They need young girls desperately, or their zealous leader's efforts will fail. Onboard their sister ship, the Empyrean, the unsuspecting families don't know an attack is being mounted that could claim the most important among them...
Fifteen-year-old Waverly is part of the first generation to be successfully conceived in deep space; she was born on the Empyrean, and the large farming vessel is all she knows. Her concerns are those of any teenager—until Kieran Alden proposes to her. The handsome captain-to-be has everything Waverly could ever want in a husband, and with the pressure to start having children, everyone is sure he's the best choice. Except for Waverly, who wants more from life than marriage—and is secretly intrigued by the shy, darkly brilliant Seth.
But when the Empyrean faces sudden attack by their assumed allies, they quickly find out that the enemies aren't all from the outside.
Out in the murky nebula lurks an unseen enemy: the New Horizon. On its way to populate a distant planet in the wake of Earth's collapse, the ship's crew has been unable to conceive a generation to continue its mission. They need young girls desperately, or their zealous leader's efforts will fail. Onboard their sister ship, the Empyrean, the unsuspecting families don't know an attack is being mounted that could claim the most important among them...
Fifteen-year-old Waverly is part of the first generation to be successfully conceived in deep space; she was born on the Empyrean, and the large farming vessel is all she knows. Her concerns are those of any teenager—until Kieran Alden proposes to her. The handsome captain-to-be has everything Waverly could ever want in a husband, and with the pressure to start having children, everyone is sure he's the best choice. Except for Waverly, who wants more from life than marriage—and is secretly intrigued by the shy, darkly brilliant Seth.
But when the Empyrean faces sudden attack by their assumed allies, they quickly find out that the enemies aren't all from the outside.
My Review: The Empyrean and the New Horizon were sent from Earth following its collapse to populate a distant planet. They are identical in every way, except for the fact that the passengers of the New Horizon are religious and those on the Empyrean are not. At some point during their journey, the females on the New Horizon discover that they are infertile and they will be unable to create the next generation required. This, among other things, leads them to attack the Empyrean and kidnap the female children, including Waverly.
Waverly seemed a little passive at first, going along with whatever is expected of her. You can't blame her really. It's how she was raised. It's the only way she knows how to be. But she shows great strength of character once the Empyrean is attacked. She's determined and she doesn't cower even when instinct tells her she should.
I wasn't too thrilled with either Seth or Keiran, though I have to give them both credit for trying to do what they believed was right given the impossible situation they found themselves in. Still, I think it will be interesting to see how these characters develop.
Glow is a wonderful start to what is sure to be a spectacular series. It's wholly engrossing and the themes addressed in this novel will certainly give the reader a lot to ponder.
It was my first audiobook experience and, I have to be honest, I loved it! I didn't realize that there was so much wasted time in my day when I could have been listening to books. Mostly this was my commute to/from work. Of course, I found myself so enthralled by the story that I brought the discs in with me each night to listen to.
I always thought that audiobooks would be weird, the voices monotonous. You know how when you're reading, you get a sense of the character voices in your head? I was afraid that would be missing from an audiobook. It's not like a movie where different people play different characters. But Glow was narrated by Matthew Brown & Ilyana Kadushin and they did an absolutely fantastic job of differentiating the voices of the characters. Matching each personality and making me feel as if I could really hear these people.
My life has been changed for the better with the introduction of audiobooks into my TBR pile. It's so amazing to be able to get lost in a great book, even when my eyes are too tired to read.
The sequel Spark will be released on July 17th of this year. Make sure you put both on your TBR list!
And now, thanks to the awesome folks at Macmillan Audio, I have an audiobook clip to share with you. Give it a listen. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
Glow, Audiobook Clip
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