A Million Suns: An Across the Universe Novel (edition 2012)

This is the second book in the Across the Universe trilogy and picks up only weeks after the end of the last book and there is some grumbling among the residents of the ship after Elder took everyone off the mind-control drug. This book involved more of a mystery with clues hidden around the ship for Amy. I didn't find the mystery to be very interesting so this book took quite a bit longer to get going. About halfway through, things start to pick up and the last third is action packed and full of twists. The ending allows for a good starting point for book #3.

I think that I liked this more than the first book. Though it is a cliffhanger! ( )

Originally reviewed on A Reader of Fictions.

Before I talk about the book itself, which is pretty awesome, can I talk about how much I hate the whole 'ship fueled by lies' business? That is such an absurd way to describe Godspeed. Actually, if they could figure out how to use lies as fuel, Godspeed really wouldn't be having any troubles, because they'd be moving a long at a nice clip. Oh well, that was Across the Universe. Apparently, now the ship is 'ruled by chaos.' That's a definite step up, phrase-wise.

Speaking of steps up, I liked A Million Suns better than its predecessor. I know lots of people will judge me when I say this, but I was bored through the first half of Across the Universe. For a while there, it came close to being a DNF. I put it down for a while, came back to it, and then enjoyed it. With A Million Suns, there was no boredom. I was totally caught up in the book from the beginning to the end. I thought this one had much more consistent action and less of Amy whining about the, admittedly unfortunate, situation in which she has found herself. Don't you just love when a series doesn't peak with book one?

In fact, now that Amy is somewhat resigned to her fate here on Godspeed, I found her a much stronger, more likable character. She's still grumpier than the average heroine, but is down to a level that I can stand reading about. It helps, too, that she has a purpose now, in the form of a mystery to solve. Of course, it also helps that the other characters are more interesting now too, since they're off of Phydus. There's more life in this book.

While I'm talking about Amy, I also want to discuss the romance between Elder and Amy. I was expecting it to be cheesy and awful, because that's one of the aspects I barely remember about the first book. Thankfully, though, Amy actually has the kind of attitude towards romance that I always hope to see from YA books. To get the gist, see my favorite quote at the bottom. Also, I totally loved that, though the romance was here, it was not at all the main focus. The most important thing was saving the ship and its people in whatever way necessary.

At the end of Across the Universe, power-hungry Eldest died and insane Orion was frozen. Now Eldest (Elder in the last book has now taken over the title, though I will call him Elder for the rest of the review for clarity's sake) is leading Godspeed. However, his youth, inexperience and kindness all run against him. So, too, does his desire to keep the ship off of Phydus. Without it, people have minds and opinions, and they're extra pissed off because they now know what was happening to them for generations. Elder helped them by removing it, but he's also the representative for why they were turned into brainless sheep. Some are mad because they were ever drugged, others are mad because they want Phydus back, but they're all mad.

Elder wants to focus on the important thing: fixing the ship and finishing the mission. The Shippers (those responsible for ship maintenance) tell him they can't fix the engine, because they're too busy keeping the ship in working order otherwise. This was one of the things that didn't make sense. The Shippers don't have time to work on the engine, yet, when Elder decides he needs a police force to help get the population under control, they volunteer. I thought they were busy? Shouldn't he choose people who don't need to be, you know, making sure the bits of metal keeping you from death in space don't FALL APART.

Elder tries really hard, poor dear. He does. Honestly, though, I'm kind of on the side of the people considering revolution. He has his heart and intentions in the right place, but I don't feel like he really knows what he's doing. Then again, Elder has never been my favorite hero. He's a bit stodgy most of the time; it's hard to fathom how he was such good friends with Harley and the rest.

I really loved the plot line with Orion and the clues he left behind for Amy. Having a task made Amy more fun. He hid a bunch of clues in literary references, so that was awesome. Plus, I got to see a different side of him than I ever had before. The problem here is that this Orion seems fairly stable. I mean, a little bit crazy, but he sure seems incredibly smart and as though he has plans. Elder would never have figured all of that stuff out on his own. Maybe it's because I read the first book two years ago, but I felt like it wouldn't be that bad if Orion were to be the leader of the ship. Yes, he killed people, but Eldest drugged them and he didn't really get hatred for that.

In all honesty, I don't know why these books are not more popular. This series ought to have the fandom that Divergent has: they're accessible, but much better written and plotted. I am super stoked about Shades of Earth in a few months, guys! I feel like it might be EVEN BETTER. ( )

I’ve had Things to Say about trilogies. Mostly, that I think they’re becoming overused and frankly unnecessary. Why split up a story that can be easily told in one book? Beth Revis’s Across the Universe is not one of those trilogies. While the first book was excellent and can largely stand on its own, A Million Suns is a fantastic follow-up that’s as every bit as good as the original novel and brings a new eye to the original universe.



Picking up three months after the end of Across the Universe, the first thing that grabbed me was the different atmosphere on board Godspeed. Everything’s not hunky-dory and happy; the freedom that Elder gave its residents from Phydus doesn’t lead to a perfect utopia. There’s massive conflict, as well as grumblings of mutiny and revolution from the residents. I love that there’s no right or wrong answer to the situation—Elder could be a good leader, but then there’s a case for a strong democracy on the ship. And then there’s those who believe that having freedom means that they can do just about anything. Add to the increasing paranoia with the “follow the leader” slogan, and the political atmosphere is just as fraught with danger as the increasing idea that the ship is dead in the water.



Amy and Elder have one of the better written relationships that I’ve read. They care for one another, but that doesn’t mean they necessarily lovey-dovey or codependent. They get frustrated, they mess up, and hurt one another’s feelings. I love that they don’t have all the answers to the situation, and the more that they uncover, the more it strains their relationship. But they’re left to figure things out on their own, and just try to make the best of their situation.



The thing I love about Amy is that she’s a lot stronger than she initially appears. There are moments where she doubts herself or feels weak, but she manages to overcome those moments. (Especially when she has to confront Luthe.) One of her big internal struggles in this is trying not to forget her old life and Earth, and I love how subtly Revis works this in. I love that while Amy does like some aspects of being on Godspeed, she doesn’t like the claustrophobic sensation that she knows that she’s just on a spaceship. I loved the opening of her narration, with looking at her parents’ frozen bodies. And again, I like that her reasons for wanting to change things aren’t generally accepted by everyone else, including Elder. I like that she has to reconcile her personal feelings with the rest of the residents.



There was a maturity and frustration that made me like Elder more in this book. Obviously, this is the first we’ve seen him assume his duties as ship leader, and I liked that it’s illustrated that he’s really not prepared for the decisions made in the previous installment. I like that he has to deal with the idea that maybe putting the ship back on drugs is a good idea, at least to avoid crisis, and that he has to constantly struggle with that temptation. There’s also the fact that he’s now going up against people he once considered friends, and I liked that we see Elder break down from all of the stress.



If there’s one thing that I would have liked to see more of in this, it’s the expanded cast. I loved the inclusion of the Shipper crew—their loyalty may have been a little too one-note. But I like the different personalities in the crew and their approaches to fixing the engine problem. I did like Bartie, who’s presented as the opposition leader, if mainly because he’s not treated like a horrible person for wanting to overthrow Elder. (I would have liked a little more expansion into his backstory and friendship with Elder, though.) Victria seems like she’s going to start off as a bitchy foil to Amy, but I liked their growing friendship and respect, especially when you discover what happened to her. And her reasons for not liking Amy make sense too. [spoilers removed] I liked the addition of the nurse’s aide, Kit, and I want to see more of her in the next book. The revelation of who’s behind the new set of deaths does come out of left field, but it makes sense taking parts of the first book into context.



And the plot and writing just keeps you hooked. A lesser writer would use the alternating narration as cheap way to put in cliffhangers, but Revis manages it so that you keep wanting to read what’s going to happen with both Amy and Elder as different threads are revealed. It’s never written as repeating information, either. There’s several big reveals in this that had me keep guessing about what’s going to happen next. And the ending sets up the third book with a big question, but it doesn’t feel like the book just ends with no resolution.



This is another one of those series that I find fantastic and it’s well-written, and it’s imaginative, and while it’s got strong support and reviews, it doesn’t have the popularity that it deserves. It’s a YA romance that defies the expectations found in so many other books, and the sci-fi backdrop isn’t as intimidating as most people think. It’s suspenseful without resorting to cheap gimmicks, the world-building is great, and the cliffhangers linger in the reader’s mind, without copping out on a big question. I highly recommend reading the whole series, and I cannot wait for Shades of Earth to come out.

( )

It's been a while since I finished [b:Across the Universe|8235178|Across the Universe (Across the Universe, #1)|Beth Revis|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1301828495s/8235178.jpg|13082532] and gave it a mostly positive review. Since then, I have changed a lot, read many more books, and my expectations and standards have become higher. As more and more time has been put between my finishing [b:Across the Universe|8235178|Across the Universe (Across the Universe, #1)|Beth Revis|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1301828495s/8235178.jpg|13082532] and starting [b:A Million Suns|10345927|A Million Suns (Across the Universe, #2)|Beth Revis|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1330214586s/10345927.jpg|15248718], I've been wondering if I would be quite so forgiving of some of the issues I had in the first book if I were to read it again now. You see, despite the pretty sparkly covers, it is the characters and relationships that are lacking for me. In terms of sci-fi, I actually think these books are really good.

When it comes to proper science fiction - space, aliens, etc. - I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with it. I'm fascinated by the idea of life on other planets, of exploring the universe and discovering all its secrets... but most of it feels a little cold and emotionless. Forgive me, but one theory I have is that a large portion of it is written by men - as two sci-fi authors I do love are [a:Margaret Atwood|3472|Margaret Atwood|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1282859073p2/3472.jpg] and [a:Ursula K. Le Guin|874602|Ursula K. Le Guin|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1244291425p2/874602.jpg] - and quite a few of them (yes, I know, not all of them) tend to write your typical boy sci-fi: scary aliens, big guns, and intergalactic battles. There's not enough exploration of ideas that could happen in humanity's future.

This is the side of Revis' series that I love. Imagine being a part of the human race a few centuries into the future, imagine that we've discovered a planet that could sustain life, and imagine that there's a plan to get there on a huge ship where certain individuals will be frozen until arrival, and others will live on the ship and reproduce for the several hundred years it would take to get there. Imagine that things don't go quite to plan and those living on the ship start to find the dark secrets locked away behind hidden doors. This is the story being told here and I love love love this idea. There's mysteries that kept me guessing, moral and ethical dilemmas that tear friendships apart, and there is hardly any romance. I know, it's hard to believe. Look at the covers, look at the taglines, the blurb describing how Amy is torn between her feelings for Elder and the chaos that's pulling everything apart - this is such bad marketing when these books are 100% sci-fi with the barest suggestion of romance between the two main characters.

And yes, the characters. They are what stops this book and the one before it from being excellent. Elder and Amy have flat, drab personalities that I can't even find words to describe - because how do you describe nothing? Okay, maybe that's a slight exaggeration. But I should be inside Elder's head feeling his frustration over what's happening to the ship, his anger, his worry... he has so much going on his life that it's impossible for him not to be experiencing some severe emotional turmoil, and yet I never got that. Same with Amy - she is battling between the desire to wake her frozen parents up and the knowledge that if she does they won't have a chance of getting to the planet and starting a new life. I should feel her sadness, but I don't. It's really bad when a novel is written in 1st person from two points of view and I feel disconnected from both of them.

If you're wondering whether you should read this series or not, you need to ask yourself what's most important - good characters or an action-packed and thought-provoking plot? If you said the latter, you'll probably love it. If you need a strong connection to the characters, you may struggle with this. ( )