Published by Harlequin on February 25, 2020
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Science Fiction, Apocalyptic & Post-Apocalyptic, Fantasy, Contemporary, Diversity & Multicultural, Social Themes, Friendship
Pages: 304
Format: eBook
Source: ARC
Can a girl who risks her life for books and an alien who loves pop music work together to save humanity? A beautiful and thrilling debut novel for fans of Marie Lu and Veronica Roth.
Two years ago, a misunderstanding between the leaders of Earth and the invading Ilori resulted in the deaths of one-third of the world’s population.
Today, seventeen-year-old Ellie Baker survives in an Ilori-controlled center in New York City. With humans deemed dangerously volatile because of their initial reaction to the invasion, emotional expression can be grounds for execution. Music, art and books are illegal, but Ellie still keeps a secret library.
When young Ilori commander M0Rr1S finds Ellie’s library, he’s duty-bound to deliver her for execution. The trouble is, he finds himself drawn to human music and in desperate need of more.
Humanity’s fate rests in the hands of an alien Ellie should fear, but M0Rr1S has a potential solution—thousands of miles away. The two embark on a wild and dangerous journey with a bag of books and their favorite albums, all the while creating a story and a song of their own that just might save them both.
Dow as woven a particularly grim version of the future. In this post-invasion Earth, the author borrows a bit of that star-crossed love trope with her character Ellie (Janelle) and Morris. The most striking part of this debut novel has to be the intricate world-building that has gone into the Ilori invaders and the state of humanity both before and after their arrival. It is a grim picture that, horrifyingly, resonates with today’s current events. One thing that Dow does include is a diverse group of characters. Characters introduce themselves with gender (male, female, non-binary) and appropriate use of pronouns that I found refreshing! Our heroine Ellie, is a complicated young woman stuck in an impossible situation. At times I found her relatable, and others I was very confused and had to remind myself that teenagers think differently. Like A, B, Q… Cookie instead of A, B, C. Morris was my favorite character; his growth arc continued on a fun trajectory.
Even though I adored the world-building, the pacing was a bit of a mess. Readers would be moving along at a good clip and then all the sudden we would be halted by a new set of obstacles that didn’t really seem to have a purpose. This results in a trudge rather than the quick clip that the intense mission calls for. Along the same issue, the ending dragged for me. I think it could have been edited down to make more of an impact. The romance itself felt unbalanced. I wasn’t real convinced of Ellie’s love even though I could see the adoration on Morris’s part.
Overall, I’m left feeling a bit confused about my stance on this book, though it is a decent debut novel. On one hand, I loved the diversity and representation in the cast of characters and I really enjoyed the world building. And yet, the pacing issues and my lack of connection to Janelle and Morris made it really tough to feel invested in the story. Ultimately, I’m not the target age group for this book so I say if you enjoy YA and Sci-Fi then definitely give this one a try!
**I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. (Thank you NetGalley and the team at HQN Inkyard Press!)./
About Alechia Dow
Alechia Dow is a former pastry chef and librarian. When not writing, you can find her having epic dance parties with her daughter, baking, reading, or taking teeny adventures.
