Book Review: Across the Universe

 

*SPOILER ALERT*

 Rating: 8 out of 10 stars

Beth Revis' debut novel Across the Universe combines equal parts mystery, sci-fi, romance, and dystopia to weave an amazing story. The 81 chapter odyssey (to use a cliche) begins with a choice. Amy, one of the main characters and the narrator of every other chapter, must decide whether she, like her parents, will be cryogenically frozen (and along with many others travel frozen for 300 years until they reach a life-supporting planet), or if she will remain on Earth and choose to live her life as a normal girl. She chooses the former, and is therefore placed on board the ship Godspeed. But, when she is unfrozen 50 years too early, Amy must adapt to life aboard the Godspeed, befriending Elder, the future leader of the ship and the narrator of the other half of the book. But, the two quickly discover that Godspeed is not what they thought it was, and as they delve deeper into the lies the ship is built on, more and more of the "frozens" are unfrozen. But, unlike Amy, they are not lucky enough to survive, and to save the lives of the innocent, Amy and Elder must discover who, or what, is killing the frozens.

Across the Universe is one of the best books I have read. Revis' writing is superb, and her alternating narrators (Amy and Elder) help make the book interesting and quick-paced. Normally, I'm opposed to paranormal-romances (you can thank Stephenie Meyer for that), but Revis intertwines the Amy/Elder love story perfectly with the rest of the plot, so neither get old. It should be noted that this is definitely a book for a more mature audience (there's a mass mating time on the ship called "The Season" and an attempted rape), but it's still a young adult/teenage novel.

This book definitely deserves its 8 star rating, and if what I hear is correct, Revis plans on writing two more books in series to this one thus making a trilogy, so keep your eyes open for more by her.