The Girl and the Stars

I loved the world and characters from The Book of the Ancestor so was excited when I heard Mark Lawrence was writing a second series set in Abbeth. Even more intriguing was that it was going to be set in the north where the world is entirely covered in ice and focus on a new cast of characters. The Girl and the Stars is the first in that series, The Book of the Ice.

Life on the ice is harsh. Only those with the right qualities can survive. Variation is dangerous and being different can be fatal for the whole tribe. Once every four years all of the ice Tribes gather at the Pit of the Missing where each of the children of a certain age group are judged by the priests. Those who are strong become adults that day. Those found broken, lacking show more what it will take to survive, are pushed into the Pit. Yaz has felt drawn to the place in the days leading up to judgement. When her brother Zeen judged as being different different and pushed into the pit, Yaz jumps in after him, surprised at what she discovers there.

My favorite thing about the story is the setting. The world under the ice is inspired. It feels at times dark, claustrophobic and menacing while at others it is beautiful and full of it's own kind of light. It's both alien and familiar. You never quite lose the sense that the characters are miles below the surface with unknown tons of ice above them adding another element of tension to an already perilous journey.

Where the story didn't work as well for me was just how YA the book felt. It came as a complete surprise as the book is being marketed as "adult" fantasy, which usually has a different tone entirely. The author's previous works which feature young protagonists are not YA at all so it's not just the age of the characters. I think it is this mismatched expectation that dampened my enjoyment of the story. I kept looking for something deeper that just wasn't there. This read more like a story aimed at teens.

Yaz is a typical YA heroine. She's likeable enough with some admirable qualities including bravery, determination and loyalty to her family. She's also the special chosen one, is able to master her special talent with no training and little practice, and is highly reckless in her pursuit of her goal, constantly endangering herself and others. I'm not sure why three of the other characters fell in love with her immediately - two were insta-love, the third was slightly more reasonable from having grown up with her, and all were jealous of each other to varying degrees.

The plot itself is fast paced and has a lot of action. There are many twists, turns and surprises around every corner.

You don't need to have read The Book of the Ancestor to enjoy The Girl and the Stars. Other than having a little more background, everything you need to know about the world is provided as part of the story. There aren't any character crossovers so far and it's unknown if we're even in the same time frame as Nona and friends.

Yaz's adventure ends in an action packed climax that leaves some of the characters literally hanging. I think now that I know this is more YA my expectations will be more in line for the rest of the series. I'm interested seeing what happens next. show less

Holy crap, that was a good read!
A coming of age story in a fantasy world covered in ice, with a indigenous Alaskan/Canadian inspired aesthetic.

Resources are...scarce, to say the least.
Those who are different--the Broken--are culled and thrown down the pit by the priesthood as the resources can't be spared on them; not just disfigurements and illnesses, but those who are growing too fast, or have a high metabolism as they require more food or can't withstand the cold. And potential magic users.

The world has a dying sun, and is covered with miles thick ice--underneath which is the remains of a long past and forgotten advanced civilization.

Strong notes of Horizon Zero Dawn, and some of the Northern Water Tribe. I recommend pairing with show more the video game soundtrack; it works well, and there's like 4 hours of music!

I highly recommend and need the sequel stat. show less

Päris kindlasti viimase aja suurim pettumus.
Käisin lugemise ajal kaksa korda veebis kontrollimas, et jah, see on ikka seesama Mark Lawrence, kes kirjutas Prince of Thorns sarja - on küll.
Absoluutselt ei sarnane eelmainitule. Ei pingelist sündmustikku, ega eneseiroonia tulevärki, ei külluslikku detailirohkust, mis kõik lõpus kenasti üheks effing üllatavaks rusikaks kokku surutakse, et anda sellega sulle kõikse magusam maksahaak, mida raamatult üldse tahta võib. Jah, detaile on, ja palju, aga liiga, asjad kuhjuvad, korduvad ja käivad ringiratast, tegevusliinid ei jõua kuhugi ja ja kuigi osa lõpuks justkui mingi lahendus selgub, eu tekita see mingit emotsiooni.
Tõenäoliselt ilmselt sellepärast, et tegelikult ei teki show more ühegi tegelasega erilist sidet. Pahad ikka kohe nõretavad pahadusest, head nõretavad headusest, ja kuigi kogu aeg toimub tohutu rapsimine ja midagi juhtub, käib see kõik kuidagi lakkamatult tuimalt ringiratast.
Ja mitte ühtki süžeekäiku, mille kõrvad juba kaugelt ära ei paistaks. Tahtmine teada saada, kuidas see kõik lõpeb, ületas täpselt kriipsuvõrra selle künnise, et pooleli ei jätnud. Aga kudias sinna jõutakse - see jättis paraku enamjaolt ükskõikseks.
Järgmine osa jääb minust paraku lugemata. show less

At the half-way point I was pretty optimistic about this, but unfortunately this ended up being a disappointment. Still a four stars, but only barely.

I liked the world-building and I really enjoy the way Lawrence writes fantasy (namely the lack of the ye olden days language). The premise was also very intriguing, and it was nice to go back to the world of one of my favorite fantasy series. It just didn't pull through.

First off, there wasn't enough ground work to make me invested in the characters, of whom there were a plenty. Second, I really disliked the main character's inclination to view all of age male characters as potential love interests, especially considering she spent most of the book at the brink of sudden and violent death. show more Another thing I disliked was the pacing, which was good in the beginning, but got all over the place in the second half. The ups and downs were so frequent that nothing came as a surprise, because you knew shit was going to be going down and nothing would go right no matter how things seemed. I also didn't understand half of the main characters choices or motivations for that matter, and mostly I would have been a lot more interested in a story from Erris's point of view (and history).

Over all the book was just way too rushed. I feel like Lawrence is trying to pack a longer series into a trilogy and the whole thing suffers for it. Considering what a great female lead Nona was, Yaz just seems like your typical "badass YA heroine" that doesn't feel at all real.

I'm obviously going to read the sequel, but I'll definitely be anticipating it a lot less than this one. show less

I’m a Mark Lawrence virgin. There, I said it. But The Girl and the Stars caught my attention as it has a similar setting to Megan Lindholm’s (Robin Hobb’s) amazing Reindeer People duology, and I only have two regrets. The first, that I left it so darn long to pick up one of Lawrence’s books. The second, that I finished this one early on and now I have to wait impatiently for the next instalment!

The Girl and the Stars is a dark and thrilling story that had me biting my nails into the very last pages and beyond. It follows Yaz of the stoic Ictha, one of four clans fighting for survival in a frozen land. Yaz travels south with her clan to participate in a harrowing ceremony where any child of the four tribes judged weak or broken show more is cast into a hole dubbed the Pit of the Missing. When Yaz finds herself beneath the ice she sets out on a journey that takes her deeper than she thought possible, uncovering secrets as she battles for survival.

This book is an unpredictable and non-stop ride; just when I thought Lawrence had hit the climax of the story and fallen into a rhythm, new plot developments left both Yaz and I stunned. I think I’ve read entire trilogies that contain less imagination and worldbuilding than The Girl and the Stars. But that doesn’t mean this book is just a superficial fantasy adventure - Lawrence doesn’t shy away from the characters’ trauma or the inner conflict of cold decisions made in hard circumstances.

If you’re looking for a fantasy adventure on par with that of Brandon Sanderson or Brent Weeks, or if you’ve climbed the Tower of Babel with Senlin and now you’re not sure which direction to go, the dark, icy depths of The Girl and The Stars is the place for you. show less

This one took a little while to get up to speed but then enjoyed the series. Definitely different than the normal fantasy in a medieval forest type setting you think of with a lot of fantasy. Not my favorite of Mark Lawrence's books but still very good and definitely different than anything else you will read.

Dear Mr Lawrence,

That ending!
I am dead.

Kind regards
Claude

You know when you pick up a book by this remarkable author you will read dramatic writing that can contain both spare and lyrical prose. The world-building will blow your mind with its rich complexity, and it is inevitable you will fall in love with characters that are both fierce and fragile. All these elements were in The Girl and the Stars. However there were also some pacing issues in this book. It was chaotic one moment then very flat the next. Obviously it can’t be hectic the whole time, however the lulls were very...well...‘lullish’. Other than that I am all in and excited for what will be another amazing journey!