Well, I've spent a couple of days thinking about this book and putting off the review because ... this is one of those books that I have mixed feelings about so it's going to be a loooong review. WOOHOO!Let me start off by saying, I liked it. I liked it quite a bit. So despite all the criticisms I have, I just want to say it's worth the read. I was on the fence about whether to read it or not, but I'm glad I did!The best part about Across the Universe is that it's a good page-turner. From the first page to the last, I was extremely engaged. Is the plot the most original thing ever? No, not really. But it's very exciting! Beth Revis does a great job of building up the suspense.I mean, imagine you're on a journey to a planet 300 years away and you're frozen in a fish tank the whole time … and if that wasn't terrifying enough, you wake up 50 years too early, to discover that a) everyone on the spaceship is brainwashed and living in a creepy dystopian society, and b) there's a murderer loose who's killing all of your frozen comrades off one by one! YIKES. The tension! It's awesome! Plus, there were quite a few interesting plot twists that I didn't see coming. I also really liked the world-building in this book. Dystopias are pretty hot nowadays, but they're all pretty much the same ... The fact that this one took place on a giant spaceship was quite refreshing. The whole brain-washing thing wasn't particularly original, and at times I thought it was trying a little too hard. But there were more original aspects ... like the Season. Heh heh. *coughs* Anyway. Over all, the details were good but not overbearing.The most major problem I had with this book was the characters. Well, I did like the choice in perspective Beth Revis made, where one main character is a stranger to the spaceship, while the other is training to be the leader on the ship. Pretty cool. But the characters themselves were just kinda ... dull.Amy was kind of a Mary Sue––appearance-wise, anyway. Like, the flaming red hair is kind of a cliché. And then her personality was a bit flat. She always just wants to run and run and run, because, you know, she's a runner! So whenever she's upset, she just … runs. Gets a bit repetitive. Either that, or she's whining about her boyfriend, Jason, who she left behind on "Sol-Earth" (as the ship's residents refer to our planet)––which I understand, since it sucks and all. But what I didn't like about it was, the author didn't establish much of a strong relationship between Amy and Jason. Occasionally there'd be, like, a second-long flashback, but I honestly couldn't tell you a thing about Jason's personality that made him so great ... so I didn't really care when Amy was upset about him. And then at one point, Amy spontaneously revealed that Jason may have been cheating on her, which made me care even less. Although maybe that was the author's intention?Then Elder … Well. I didn't like him much at all. He struck me as being a bit of a jerk. I liked him okay for most of the book, but he just seemed so … shallow. As soon as he sees Amy, he's like, "Yeah. I want to make out with her. I want to have sex with her." And that's pretty much the only thing on his mind throughout the entire book. He just objectifies Amy, which I hate––not that there's much else to do with her I suppose, since her personality isn't all that unique. He does seem to care about the pain she's going through and whatnot, but what he seems to care about more is having a relationship with her. And then what REALLY pissed me off ... was that it turns out he was the one who unfroze Amy and nearly killed her. Why? Well, he says because he wants to talk to someone his own age, talk to someone who knows about Sol-Earth, etc. Which I guess makes sense. And I also thought it was a shocking and interesting plot twist. But it's just so selfish of him! And then the fact that throughout the rest of the book, the main thing he keeps thinking about her is that he wants to make out with her ... GAH. IT DRIVES ME NUTS. (Gosh, I love this new spoiler thingie.)Lastly, I thought the ending left quite a lot to be desired. Everything seemed to get tied up a little too easily ... the whole explanation about the murders didn't make a lot of sense to me. And then, it was like .... Wait, that's it? Do they ever get to Centauri-Earth? Does Amy have to live the rest of her life without her parents (and sleeping with a guy who a) almost killed her and b) ruined her life because he "just wanted someone to talk to"?)? Also, why did they even leave Sol-Earth in the first place? How far in the future is this supposed to be, anyway? A lot of things––especially backstory-wise––went unexplained, which irked me. I wanted to know some more details. But, I dunno. Maybe there will be a sequel? (UPDATE: I have been informed that there will be a sequel, A Million Suns. Yay!)Anyway, like I said ... it's worth the read. There were a couple of aspects I didn't like, but over all, it was very suspenseful and exciting.
Flying Kick-a-pow!
Hi people! I'm Brigid, a college student and lover of all things book-related--writing them, reading them, reviewing them, biting them ... Yeah. I mostly read YA but I'm open to pretty much everything.
Well, I've spent a couple of days thinking about this book and putting off the review because ... this is one of those books that I have mixed feelings about so it's going to be a loooong review. WOOHOO!Let me start off by saying, I liked it. I liked it quite a bit. So despite all the criticisms I have, I just want to say it's worth the read. I was on the fence about whether to read it or not, but I'm glad I did!The best part about Across the Universe is that it's a good page-turner. From the first page to the last, I was extremely engaged. Is the plot the most original thing ever? No, not really. But it's very exciting! Beth Revis does a great job of building up the suspense.I mean, imagine you're on a journey to a planet 300 years away and you're frozen in a fish tank the whole time … and if that wasn't terrifying enough, you wake up 50 years too early, to discover that a) everyone on the spaceship is brainwashed and living in a creepy dystopian society, and b) there's a murderer loose who's killing all of your frozen comrades off one by one! YIKES. The tension! It's awesome! Plus, there were quite a few interesting plot twists that I didn't see coming. I also really liked the world-building in this book. Dystopias are pretty hot nowadays, but they're all pretty much the same ... The fact that this one took place on a giant spaceship was quite refreshing. The whole brain-washing thing wasn't particularly original, and at times I thought it was trying a little too hard. But there were more original aspects ... like the Season. Heh heh. *coughs* Anyway. Over all, the details were good but not overbearing.The most major problem I had with this book was the characters. Well, I did like the choice in perspective Beth Revis made, where one main character is a stranger to the spaceship, while the other is training to be the leader on the ship. Pretty cool. But the characters themselves were just kinda ... dull.Amy was kind of a Mary Sue––appearance-wise, anyway. Like, the flaming red hair is kind of a cliché. And then her personality was a bit flat. She always just wants to run and run and run, because, you know, she's a runner! So whenever she's upset, she just … runs. Gets a bit repetitive. Either that, or she's whining about her boyfriend, Jason, who she left behind on "Sol-Earth" (as the ship's residents refer to our planet)––which I understand, since it sucks and all. But what I didn't like about it was, the author didn't establish much of a strong relationship between Amy and Jason. Occasionally there'd be, like, a second-long flashback, but I honestly couldn't tell you a thing about Jason's personality that made him so great ... so I didn't really care when Amy was upset about him. And then at one point, Amy spontaneously revealed that Jason may have been cheating on her, which made me care even less. Although maybe that was the author's intention?Then Elder … Well. I didn't like him much at all. He struck me as being a bit of a jerk. I liked him okay for most of the book, but he just seemed so … shallow. As soon as he sees Amy, he's like, "Yeah. I want to make out with her. I want to have sex with her." And that's pretty much the only thing on his mind throughout the entire book. He just objectifies Amy, which I hate––not that there's much else to do with her I suppose, since her personality isn't all that unique. He does seem to care about the pain she's going through and whatnot, but what he seems to care about more is having a relationship with her. And then what REALLY pissed me off ... was that it turns out he was the one who unfroze Amy and nearly killed her. Why? Well, he says because he wants to talk to someone his own age, talk to someone who knows about Sol-Earth, etc. Which I guess makes sense. And I also thought it was a shocking and interesting plot twist. But it's just so selfish of him! And then the fact that throughout the rest of the book, the main thing he keeps thinking about her is that he wants to make out with her ... GAH. IT DRIVES ME NUTS. (Gosh, I love this new spoiler thingie.)Lastly, I thought the ending left quite a lot to be desired. Everything seemed to get tied up a little too easily ... the whole explanation about the murders didn't make a lot of sense to me. And then, it was like .... Wait, that's it? Do they ever get to Centauri-Earth? Does Amy have to live the rest of her life without her parents (and sleeping with a guy who a) almost killed her and b) ruined her life because he "just wanted someone to talk to"?)? Also, why did they even leave Sol-Earth in the first place? How far in the future is this supposed to be, anyway? A lot of things––especially backstory-wise––went unexplained, which irked me. I wanted to know some more details. But, I dunno. Maybe there will be a sequel? (UPDATE: I have been informed that there will be a sequel, A Million Suns. Yay!)Anyway, like I said ... it's worth the read. There were a couple of aspects I didn't like, but over all, it was very suspenseful and exciting.
Currently reading
Iliad
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
A Clash of Kings
Les Misérables
The Once and Future King
Fire and Ash
