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All the Stars Left Behind
Relocating to Arctic Norway would put a freeze on anyone’s social life. For Leda Lindgren, with her crutches and a chip on her shoulder the size of her former Manhattan home, the frozen tundra is just as boring as it sounds. Until she meets her uncle’s gorgeous employee.
Unfortunately, no matter how smoking hot the guy is, Roar comes with secrets as unnerving as his moving tattoos. And Leda doesn’t trust him.
Roar shouldn’t be drawn to the moody human girl with eyes that leave him weak in the knees. But when Leda gets shot by one of his enemies and survives, Roar finally understands why he’s drawn to her: Leda is exactly what he was sent to Earth to find. A weapon of immense power capable of saving his planet.
She just doesn’t know it yet.
Unfortunately, no matter how smoking hot the guy is, Roar comes with secrets as unnerving as his moving tattoos. And Leda doesn’t trust him.
Roar shouldn’t be drawn to the moody human girl with eyes that leave him weak in the knees. But when Leda gets shot by one of his enemies and survives, Roar finally understands why he’s drawn to her: Leda is exactly what he was sent to Earth to find. A weapon of immense power capable of saving his planet.
She just doesn’t know it yet.
300 pages, Paperback
First published June 6, 2017
About the author
Ashley Graham
1 book10 followersAshley Graham was born in Ontario, Canada, and has since lived in five countries. Before writing her first manuscript in 2015, she worked as a clerical assistant, quality assurance officer, chef, and stay-at-home mom/homeschool teacher. When she isn’t writing or reading every book she gets her hands on, Ashley enjoys online window shopping, Netflix binges, and spends way too much time thinking about space travel. ALL THE STARS LEFT BEHIND is her debut novel.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews
May 27, 2017
Three and a half
I was really intruigued by the synopsis of this plus the cover was so eye catching. The idea of a heroine with spina bifida was a unique one for me and I really had no idea where the author was going to take this story.
Leda is struggling to come to terms with the loss of her father and thanks to her mothers complete lack of interest in her has been taken in by relatives in Norway that she didn't even know she had. In many ways she's just trading water until she meets Roar the peculiar boy who works for her uncle but Roar has secrets of his own . Roar is incredibly drawn to Leda and her attitude and behaviour completely blindside him . Then one night Leda follows him home with consequences that mean Leda has to be told exactly who and what Roar is .
This book really has two halves with initially the drama unfolding in Norway and then after the 'incident' everything else becomes firmly a sci fi piece. If blunt I'm still not sure exactly what I think. It's the authors debut with an awful lot going on and I wonder if perhaps too much transpired. It's instant love which didn't make sense as I wanted more development. Yet this couple might or might not be able to be together romantically which confused me as I was trying to work out if it was a Star Wars or a Twilight kind of thing. No spoilers but it wasn't truly really clear so I will let you ponder on that! Romance aside I enjoyed reading about Norway but would have liked a little more as it made it different. Yes there are aliens but again just why they are at war was very unclear but they look like humans although obviously their technology was very advanced. The author put a lot into just what they could do with it so if space ships and high tech equipment appeal to you then this had plenty of that.
This is fast paced although occasionally it seemed to stutter a bit. Yet the constant action particularly in the latter third kept me reading. I loved the diversity of supporting characters as not only do we have a heroine on crutches but also the author includes gay characters, a mute one and even touches on the subject of transgender. Not the normal fodder in YA but relevant to today's readers. I'm left struggling with how I feel about this book. The author clearly has good ideas and wanted to tell an action packed sci fi story but even when it ends and the weapon is used it still felt incomplete. Perhaps a different editor or even beta readers would have helped . Amazing premise, good execution and yet somehow it's left me wanting more . I'm not sure if this is a standalone book so perhaps that's why not everything felt finished.
This voluntary review is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts are I believe a fair expression of my opinion
I was really intruigued by the synopsis of this plus the cover was so eye catching. The idea of a heroine with spina bifida was a unique one for me and I really had no idea where the author was going to take this story.
Leda is struggling to come to terms with the loss of her father and thanks to her mothers complete lack of interest in her has been taken in by relatives in Norway that she didn't even know she had. In many ways she's just trading water until she meets Roar the peculiar boy who works for her uncle but Roar has secrets of his own . Roar is incredibly drawn to Leda and her attitude and behaviour completely blindside him . Then one night Leda follows him home with consequences that mean Leda has to be told exactly who and what Roar is .
This book really has two halves with initially the drama unfolding in Norway and then after the 'incident' everything else becomes firmly a sci fi piece. If blunt I'm still not sure exactly what I think. It's the authors debut with an awful lot going on and I wonder if perhaps too much transpired. It's instant love which didn't make sense as I wanted more development. Yet this couple might or might not be able to be together romantically which confused me as I was trying to work out if it was a Star Wars or a Twilight kind of thing. No spoilers but it wasn't truly really clear so I will let you ponder on that! Romance aside I enjoyed reading about Norway but would have liked a little more as it made it different. Yes there are aliens but again just why they are at war was very unclear but they look like humans although obviously their technology was very advanced. The author put a lot into just what they could do with it so if space ships and high tech equipment appeal to you then this had plenty of that.
This is fast paced although occasionally it seemed to stutter a bit. Yet the constant action particularly in the latter third kept me reading. I loved the diversity of supporting characters as not only do we have a heroine on crutches but also the author includes gay characters, a mute one and even touches on the subject of transgender. Not the normal fodder in YA but relevant to today's readers. I'm left struggling with how I feel about this book. The author clearly has good ideas and wanted to tell an action packed sci fi story but even when it ends and the weapon is used it still felt incomplete. Perhaps a different editor or even beta readers would have helped . Amazing premise, good execution and yet somehow it's left me wanting more . I'm not sure if this is a standalone book so perhaps that's why not everything felt finished.
This voluntary review is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts are I believe a fair expression of my opinion
June 12, 2017
***2.5/5 Stars***
All the Stars Left Behind had so much promise! The premise was uniquely fascinating, the characters stood out and were original, and the parts about space travel and science blew my mind. There was so much about this book that I loved. Yet there's a huge but. It felt as though I was reading a beta copy. Which means, I kept finding scenes that contradicted itself, moments where the ball was dropped, and things weren't always fleshed out or made sense. I don't think I've ever re-read so many scenes just to figure out what was going on. It was frustrating, because I wanted to enjoy the story. Yet I found myself making a huge list of notes in regards to all of the issues. And I've never done that before, unless I'm beta reading. So if you're not as picky as me, in regards to follow through and details, then you could have a lot of fun reading this book! But if you want to take a peek at the list of issues I had with this book, then you can continue on below. But be warned, there are spoilers since I talk about the problems in that corresponding chapter.
✩✮✩✮✩Spoilers Below✩✮✩✮✩
*ARC kindly provided by Entangled Publishing, LLC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
For more of my reviews, please visit:
All the Stars Left Behind had so much promise! The premise was uniquely fascinating, the characters stood out and were original, and the parts about space travel and science blew my mind. There was so much about this book that I loved. Yet there's a huge but. It felt as though I was reading a beta copy. Which means, I kept finding scenes that contradicted itself, moments where the ball was dropped, and things weren't always fleshed out or made sense. I don't think I've ever re-read so many scenes just to figure out what was going on. It was frustrating, because I wanted to enjoy the story. Yet I found myself making a huge list of notes in regards to all of the issues. And I've never done that before, unless I'm beta reading. So if you're not as picky as me, in regards to follow through and details, then you could have a lot of fun reading this book! But if you want to take a peek at the list of issues I had with this book, then you can continue on below. But be warned, there are spoilers since I talk about the problems in that corresponding chapter.
✩✮✩✮✩Spoilers Below✩✮✩✮✩
*ARC kindly provided by Entangled Publishing, LLC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
For more of my reviews, please visit:
May 28, 2017
I am sorry, but I hate instalove. Enough to be one of the main causes I stop reading sth, even more so if the plot is full of holes. We have Leda, with a disability and a mother who doesn't care for her, so she is closer to her dad. When he dies, Leda and her mother move to Norway. There she meets a guy called Roar, an alien who is sent to earth in search of a weapon to help his people. Here begins the instalove and the holes on the plot... More info on the aliens, please? Why it feels like some people know of them but not the rest? I mean, they try to kill another half alien living on Earth but they are stopped by someone. So... there's people who know about them and people who doesn't? Why? Is earth a safe haven for some aliens?
Also the action jumps from our place to another without making senss: now we are with Leda in the kitchen, Roars arrive, instalove, hearts beating, love music, all the magic... and then he runs away because one of his alien friends tried to kill someone... back to the instalove... back to some snippet of thing happening... very brusque and little continuity...
I am sorry, but this book wasn't for me.
Also the action jumps from our place to another without making senss: now we are with Leda in the kitchen, Roars arrive, instalove, hearts beating, love music, all the magic... and then he runs away because one of his alien friends tried to kill someone... back to the instalove... back to some snippet of thing happening... very brusque and little continuity...
I am sorry, but this book wasn't for me.
June 4, 2017
Thanks to Entangled Teen for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Leda has Spina Bifida with an L5 lesion thus she needs crutches to get around. This did not stop her cold and distant mother from moving her from her home in Manhattan and leaving her at her grandmother and uncle's house in arctic Norway. There she meets Roar, her uncle's new employee and the earth stops. As she gets entangled in her attraction for this suspicious man she learns there is more to her feelings than just chemistry.
I really wanted to like Leda. She can’t feel much in the muscles down her legs, and in her ankles and toes. She can walk without crutches but runs the risk of falling. She's a smart girl who was constantly tested by her father to be a mathematician. She is mourning her father's death, the parent she was close to and made her feel loved. She's a modern girl who wants to make decisions for herself and have no other input from anyone else. She speaks the language and is full Norwegian. There are some really nice details here.
Roar has tattoos that move and change. He is an alien the quasi-leader who was sent to find a weapon that he knows nothing about except that he will know it when he feels it. He was trained in modern earth vernacular and has a love for quirky earth t-shirts. Plus he can run really fast, like eye blurring fast. I liked him. It was hard not to when he didn't see Leda's crutches at all, only the girl using them.
The crew was an interesting mix, it came together really quickly and without drama of any kind. Stein has his own story arc and it was definitely a worthy attempt at adding some LGBT+ conflict. Oline had a conflictal arc near the end that I appreciated. Petrus is Roar's best friend and a love interest for Stein as well as having an empathetic ability that I didn't really understand. Then we have Leda's contribution. Her grandmother who we learn about the entire back history of the aliens on the planet from. Her uncle who represents the position of the elders and is in love with an earth doctor he brings with and is instrumental to Leda and Roar understanding what is going on with them. Then there is her cousin Nils and his mother, Eren, who are both Woede, of the alien race fighting Roar and his people. So much potential here and just so many things lightly touched on.
Basically Leda's life implodes and it all happens in that moment between her and Roar. This is a straight up romance, go past go and collect $200! I liked that it was really about aliens and how they live among us. The story does get a little contrived with Leda being a special snowflake as she is the weapon (we learn this in the blurb) but the setup won me over to keep reading despite the flaws. (Like the pacing being way, way off. It was super quick, too quick.) Once we moved from earth to space I wasn't such a fan of where the story went. I was rolling with the story fine at first but the more I read the shakier the story developed.
I was not a fan of the idea to enjoy the moment - that is constantly pushed... if life was just about enjoyment we'd lay in bed all day and not do a thing! It's not that it doesn't have its place but it didn't fit into the story well when Leda and Roar kept going on about it. I felt like 12 year olds had fallen in love. I think there was an attempt to make this a forbidden love romance and the writing just made it so tough to believe.
I think this was meant to be a theme through the book as it incorporated a couple characters. It just doesn't come through the story. I kept wondering why Leda felt this way as she was supported very lovingly by her father who never in fact told her who she was nor what she had to do or when. He left her totally in the dark about those things! As far as I know the only thing she had no choice about was moving to Manhattan and she was going away to college soon and that would become moot. This bugged me through the entire book! Why does she keep saying this? Explain it at least if you can't show me!
The worst was that the villains made absolutely no sense. We even got a little explanation or rather conclusions from Leda and Roar but it was so muddy and thin I just wasn't sure what they were saying. I am pretty good at reading into events that don't make sense to most people and I have to say I was getting very little from the mess of an ending. Worse it started to get boring even with twists and revelations happening left and right. Some I guessed and some I think I know what was meant and some was absolutely murky. The end is supposed to be a shining light and this cast what is barely a glow. There was so much potential in this book that I seriously believe it simply needs some more rewrites and editor guidance.
The hard science sounds factual so at least it makes sense from the way the ship uses dark matter to how the cloaking works as well as the cool chip and the way the ship interface is genetic. The hard science continued to be well developed through the story! What I understood about the Woede was cool, their weapon to attack ships especially and why Eren was so scared of her father but there is an aspect of Eren's explanation that went right over my head that I wish were restated better by the uncle or the doctor and what the implications are so that I can understand. The blood science also made sense to me from the beginning reaction to the concept at the end. The strength of this author is definitely the science.
BOTTOM LINE: Hard science space alien romance with tons of lost potential.
Leda has Spina Bifida with an L5 lesion thus she needs crutches to get around. This did not stop her cold and distant mother from moving her from her home in Manhattan and leaving her at her grandmother and uncle's house in arctic Norway. There she meets Roar, her uncle's new employee and the earth stops. As she gets entangled in her attraction for this suspicious man she learns there is more to her feelings than just chemistry.
I really wanted to like Leda. She can’t feel much in the muscles down her legs, and in her ankles and toes. She can walk without crutches but runs the risk of falling. She's a smart girl who was constantly tested by her father to be a mathematician. She is mourning her father's death, the parent she was close to and made her feel loved. She's a modern girl who wants to make decisions for herself and have no other input from anyone else. She speaks the language and is full Norwegian. There are some really nice details here.
Roar has tattoos that move and change. He is an alien the quasi-leader who was sent to find a weapon that he knows nothing about except that he will know it when he feels it. He was trained in modern earth vernacular and has a love for quirky earth t-shirts. Plus he can run really fast, like eye blurring fast. I liked him. It was hard not to when he didn't see Leda's crutches at all, only the girl using them.
The crew was an interesting mix, it came together really quickly and without drama of any kind. Stein has his own story arc and it was definitely a worthy attempt at adding some LGBT+ conflict. Oline had a conflictal arc near the end that I appreciated. Petrus is Roar's best friend and a love interest for Stein as well as having an empathetic ability that I didn't really understand. Then we have Leda's contribution. Her grandmother who we learn about the entire back history of the aliens on the planet from. Her uncle who represents the position of the elders and is in love with an earth doctor he brings with and is instrumental to Leda and Roar understanding what is going on with them. Then there is her cousin Nils and his mother, Eren, who are both Woede, of the alien race fighting Roar and his people. So much potential here and just so many things lightly touched on.
Basically Leda's life implodes and it all happens in that moment between her and Roar. This is a straight up romance, go past go and collect $200! I liked that it was really about aliens and how they live among us. The story does get a little contrived with Leda being a special snowflake as she is the weapon (we learn this in the blurb) but the setup won me over to keep reading despite the flaws. (Like the pacing being way, way off. It was super quick, too quick.) Once we moved from earth to space I wasn't such a fan of where the story went. I was rolling with the story fine at first but the more I read the shakier the story developed.
I was not a fan of the idea to enjoy the moment - that is constantly pushed... if life was just about enjoyment we'd lay in bed all day and not do a thing! It's not that it doesn't have its place but it didn't fit into the story well when Leda and Roar kept going on about it. I felt like 12 year olds had fallen in love. I think there was an attempt to make this a forbidden love romance and the writing just made it so tough to believe.
“All my life, people told me what I was, who I was, what I had to do and when. They told me I didn’t have a choice. And for a long time, I believed them. But you showed me it doesn’t have to be that way. You can be more than what other people say you are. You can be anything you want.”
I think this was meant to be a theme through the book as it incorporated a couple characters. It just doesn't come through the story. I kept wondering why Leda felt this way as she was supported very lovingly by her father who never in fact told her who she was nor what she had to do or when. He left her totally in the dark about those things! As far as I know the only thing she had no choice about was moving to Manhattan and she was going away to college soon and that would become moot. This bugged me through the entire book! Why does she keep saying this? Explain it at least if you can't show me!
The worst was that the villains made absolutely no sense. We even got a little explanation or rather conclusions from Leda and Roar but it was so muddy and thin I just wasn't sure what they were saying. I am pretty good at reading into events that don't make sense to most people and I have to say I was getting very little from the mess of an ending. Worse it started to get boring even with twists and revelations happening left and right. Some I guessed and some I think I know what was meant and some was absolutely murky. The end is supposed to be a shining light and this cast what is barely a glow. There was so much potential in this book that I seriously believe it simply needs some more rewrites and editor guidance.
The hard science sounds factual so at least it makes sense from the way the ship uses dark matter to how the cloaking works as well as the cool chip and the way the ship interface is genetic. The hard science continued to be well developed through the story! What I understood about the Woede was cool, their weapon to attack ships especially and why Eren was so scared of her father but there is an aspect of Eren's explanation that went right over my head that I wish were restated better by the uncle or the doctor and what the implications are so that I can understand. The blood science also made sense to me from the beginning reaction to the concept at the end. The strength of this author is definitely the science.
BOTTOM LINE: Hard science space alien romance with tons of lost potential.
August 2, 2020
Thank you NetGalley and Entangled for providing me with an ARC of All the Stars left Behind in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
The Gist
I was on a sci-fi binge when I came across this book. I tried to find as many books that had to do with space travel, strong female characters, exciting adventures and the word “stars” in the title.
A book with a heroine, who is a little different, set in a place that in mainstream North American young adult books usually doesn’t get much attention certainly piqued my interest.
Colour me intrigued.
The Details
I thought the story started out too depressing. The mood just sucked the happiness out of me.
I can tell what the author was trying to accomplish, but it came on a little strong in the somber mood department.
I would have liked to have gotten to know the protagonist a little more before the main squeeze of the story entered her life. It took away from establishing the character on her own, independently from the boy who is supposed to add the romance.
I found the beginning was too obscure. Crucial information was not given or only hints about important details were shared with the reader, which made for a very frustrating start to the story.
It didn’t give me much reason to invest a lot of my time in getting to know more about the characters or the plot.
Generally speaking; the writing was good. There were no major grammatical errors and the narration flowed well.
The Verdict
Overall, I got a weird, heavy feeling in the pit of my stomach while I was reading this story.
I’m not sure, if the depressing tone was supposed to have been this strong and overwhelming, but it took away from me enjoying the book.
Sadly, this one wasn’t for me.
ElliotScribbles
The Gist
I was on a sci-fi binge when I came across this book. I tried to find as many books that had to do with space travel, strong female characters, exciting adventures and the word “stars” in the title.
A book with a heroine, who is a little different, set in a place that in mainstream North American young adult books usually doesn’t get much attention certainly piqued my interest.
Colour me intrigued.
The Details
I thought the story started out too depressing. The mood just sucked the happiness out of me.
I can tell what the author was trying to accomplish, but it came on a little strong in the somber mood department.
I would have liked to have gotten to know the protagonist a little more before the main squeeze of the story entered her life. It took away from establishing the character on her own, independently from the boy who is supposed to add the romance.
I found the beginning was too obscure. Crucial information was not given or only hints about important details were shared with the reader, which made for a very frustrating start to the story.
It didn’t give me much reason to invest a lot of my time in getting to know more about the characters or the plot.
Generally speaking; the writing was good. There were no major grammatical errors and the narration flowed well.
The Verdict
Overall, I got a weird, heavy feeling in the pit of my stomach while I was reading this story.
I’m not sure, if the depressing tone was supposed to have been this strong and overwhelming, but it took away from me enjoying the book.
Sadly, this one wasn’t for me.
ElliotScribbles
May 15, 2017
Leda Lindgren has recently lost her father with whom she'd been very close to her whole life and with a mother that is never there Leda finds herself being relocated to Arctic Norway with a grandmother and uncle. Leda also suffers from spina bifida and uses crutches to get around due to her failing muscles which doesn't make the move and meeting new people any easier for her.
However when Leda meets her uncle's gorgeous assistant, Roar, she finds a strange pull towards him with things happening that Leda just can't explain. What Leda never expected was to find that there's an alien world that she is at the center of that she'd never known existed even though her father seemed to be grooming her for this day all her life in his secretive way.
There were some things I really enjoyed with All the Stars Left Behind but unfortunately there are also others that were not so great. The story felt very creative just starting off in Norway giving it a foreign feel which was nice change of pace along with having a main character with a disability seemed a bit out of the norm. Also the different versions of aliens and a plot of a takeover and needing to find a weapon to save a whole alien race was quite intriguing.
However, the book also follows the normal young adult tropes of the characters falling instantly in love without much reasoning or build up to it. Along with our main female character being special without knowing it her whole life. Now those things would not normally stand out as much if worked into a story well but that would be my major complaint with this read... the story often felt a bit jumpy and a bit all over the place. It keeps a fairly fast pace all throughout but maybe that is a bit of a downfall here as it really could have used a bit more explanation and focus in parts. In the end I just found this one an alright read that had potential to be better.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.wordpress....
However when Leda meets her uncle's gorgeous assistant, Roar, she finds a strange pull towards him with things happening that Leda just can't explain. What Leda never expected was to find that there's an alien world that she is at the center of that she'd never known existed even though her father seemed to be grooming her for this day all her life in his secretive way.
There were some things I really enjoyed with All the Stars Left Behind but unfortunately there are also others that were not so great. The story felt very creative just starting off in Norway giving it a foreign feel which was nice change of pace along with having a main character with a disability seemed a bit out of the norm. Also the different versions of aliens and a plot of a takeover and needing to find a weapon to save a whole alien race was quite intriguing.
However, the book also follows the normal young adult tropes of the characters falling instantly in love without much reasoning or build up to it. Along with our main female character being special without knowing it her whole life. Now those things would not normally stand out as much if worked into a story well but that would be my major complaint with this read... the story often felt a bit jumpy and a bit all over the place. It keeps a fairly fast pace all throughout but maybe that is a bit of a downfall here as it really could have used a bit more explanation and focus in parts. In the end I just found this one an alright read that had potential to be better.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.wordpress....
January 29, 2019
All the Stars Left Behind has an interesting premise--special destinies, aliens, and an Arctic Norway setting. Plus, Leda, the main character, has spina bifida, a condition not often found in fiction, and requires crutches to get around. I was excited to read what sounded like a unique YA novel.
All the Stars Left Behind didn’t immediately draw me in, but I continued to read on because I was curious. But the novel always felt a little disjointed, leaving me concerned that I had missed something. Plus, I couldn’t get behind the relationship between Roar and Leda, which is an instantaneous love connection with a literal spark between them.
Though All the Stars Left Behind features diverse characters and an interesting concept, the execution needed work. Readers looking for a light science fiction read who don’t mind characters instantly falling in love and other common tropes will enjoy All the Stars Left Behind.
All the Stars Left Behind didn’t immediately draw me in, but I continued to read on because I was curious. But the novel always felt a little disjointed, leaving me concerned that I had missed something. Plus, I couldn’t get behind the relationship between Roar and Leda, which is an instantaneous love connection with a literal spark between them.
Though All the Stars Left Behind features diverse characters and an interesting concept, the execution needed work. Readers looking for a light science fiction read who don’t mind characters instantly falling in love and other common tropes will enjoy All the Stars Left Behind.
May 24, 2017
Oh the predictability and the cliches. It was all too much.
After the death of her father, Leda moves to Norway to live with her uncle. When Leda meets Roar, their world is flipped upside down and the two feel a very strong attraction for one another, the only problem is that Roar is an alien sent to Earth to look for the secret weapon to save his home planet. Will Leda be a distraction to his mission or will their attraction prove to be useful in finding the secret weapon.
Leda was a very good main character. If the situation was different I could definitely see myself loving her. She's very strong, and she doesn't let having a disability slow her down. She's definitely got the right attitude and is willing to go down fighting for what she believes.
Yet, the reason I couldn't bring myself to love Leda, was because of the romance with Roar. I cannot tell you how much I hate insta love. The first time they meet you get the slow motion, no one else in the room but them moment, and when they hold hands their hearts flutter and they can't stop thinking about one another. Ugh the amount of eye rolls per chapter was on a new level for me. While this type of love may happen to some people, for 99% of the normal population, things like this don't happen. Then later in the story you get the, "Oh, it turns out we can't be together after all, but I still love you" type of thing. The romance is basically Twilight, but with aliens. Thank god there wasn't a love triangle, I'm pretty sure I would have DNF the book.
While this book is a fairly short read, the beginning dragged on so long that I couldn't get myself to pick up this book to keep reading, and I ended up dragging it out. There wasn't a lot of action or anything to keep the reader interested in the beginning of the story, unless you're really into aliens or insta-love. Around 70% the action started to pick up, but at this point the story became so predictable that you could tell exactly what was going to happen without having to finish the book.
This probably would have been a one star review, but I decided to go with two stars because I was really impressed with how well the author used diversity in her book. You have a main character with a disability, a transgender character, multiple gay characters, ect. Also I was extremely happy that the book was set in Norway and the author used terms and landscape from there, I would have loved to see more research, but I was happy with a book being set somewhere other than America.
Overall, I really would not recommend this book, unless you are into the cliche type of story or are really into aliens. The author put in a lot into this book but unfortunately the romance and the plot needed some more work. Hopefully her next one is better.
Happy Reading,
Aneta
After the death of her father, Leda moves to Norway to live with her uncle. When Leda meets Roar, their world is flipped upside down and the two feel a very strong attraction for one another, the only problem is that Roar is an alien sent to Earth to look for the secret weapon to save his home planet. Will Leda be a distraction to his mission or will their attraction prove to be useful in finding the secret weapon.
Leda was a very good main character. If the situation was different I could definitely see myself loving her. She's very strong, and she doesn't let having a disability slow her down. She's definitely got the right attitude and is willing to go down fighting for what she believes.
Yet, the reason I couldn't bring myself to love Leda, was because of the romance with Roar. I cannot tell you how much I hate insta love. The first time they meet you get the slow motion, no one else in the room but them moment, and when they hold hands their hearts flutter and they can't stop thinking about one another. Ugh the amount of eye rolls per chapter was on a new level for me. While this type of love may happen to some people, for 99% of the normal population, things like this don't happen. Then later in the story you get the, "Oh, it turns out we can't be together after all, but I still love you" type of thing. The romance is basically Twilight, but with aliens. Thank god there wasn't a love triangle, I'm pretty sure I would have DNF the book.
While this book is a fairly short read, the beginning dragged on so long that I couldn't get myself to pick up this book to keep reading, and I ended up dragging it out. There wasn't a lot of action or anything to keep the reader interested in the beginning of the story, unless you're really into aliens or insta-love. Around 70% the action started to pick up, but at this point the story became so predictable that you could tell exactly what was going to happen without having to finish the book.
This probably would have been a one star review, but I decided to go with two stars because I was really impressed with how well the author used diversity in her book. You have a main character with a disability, a transgender character, multiple gay characters, ect. Also I was extremely happy that the book was set in Norway and the author used terms and landscape from there, I would have loved to see more research, but I was happy with a book being set somewhere other than America.
Overall, I really would not recommend this book, unless you are into the cliche type of story or are really into aliens. The author put in a lot into this book but unfortunately the romance and the plot needed some more work. Hopefully her next one is better.
Happy Reading,
Aneta
September 19, 2017
This book was a good read and I enjoyed it even thoughI am no into the whole Sci Fi alien concept. The storyline was well written, but the characters were a little confusing at times. The ending was not really a surprise, but it was fairly written out.
Moved to Norway after her fathers death, Leda Lindgren meets Roar who worked at her uncles shop. Leda was crippled and her mother ignored her most of the time because she never really wanted her. Roar see's past Leda and eventually falls for Leda. Roar, who has moving tattoos on his body, is from another plant and is in Norway on a secret mission to find a weapon that can save his people. As the story unfolds, someone hurts Leda to get in the way of Roar and he knows he has to protect her from the evil persona. Leda is hurt and found out that her blood was a different color than normal humans. Leda finds out she is not human and Roar has found his weapon. Leda looks for answers, but consequences come with information and Roar realizes if he should leave Leda alone no matter how much love he has for her.
Moved to Norway after her fathers death, Leda Lindgren meets Roar who worked at her uncles shop. Leda was crippled and her mother ignored her most of the time because she never really wanted her. Roar see's past Leda and eventually falls for Leda. Roar, who has moving tattoos on his body, is from another plant and is in Norway on a secret mission to find a weapon that can save his people. As the story unfolds, someone hurts Leda to get in the way of Roar and he knows he has to protect her from the evil persona. Leda is hurt and found out that her blood was a different color than normal humans. Leda finds out she is not human and Roar has found his weapon. Leda looks for answers, but consequences come with information and Roar realizes if he should leave Leda alone no matter how much love he has for her.
June 4, 2017
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2.5 stars -- I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review/opinion.
OK, this was a frustrating read for me. And I'm having a hard time judging what all comes into play in my final assessment. There is definitely a component that is a bad match writing style for me I think. But there's also bits that were honest to goodness not written as well too. And this is where it gets complicated: the part that doesn't match with me style-wise is that things aren't spelled out for me in a clear manner, and I really really hate that (I'll explain in a second). But the problem with disliking that, is that I have a hard time judging what was bad writing versus just not a match, you know??
OK, I'll attempt to explain... Well, did anyone else see that movie The Arrival? My husband loved it, whereas that movie made me SOOOOO angry and annoyed and frustrated and mad. And while I could enjoy so many aspects of the movie, if I can't have my theories confirmed on what was happening, then I just don't like it. Like, I need things to be closer to black and white, I don't play well in gray area and subtlety. I'm probably not making any sense. *sigh* Regardless, this book was kind of like that. I'm left at the end of the book thinking I have a pretty good idea of what happened, but I'm not sure. And I want to be sure. I don't understand what the point is if I'm not sure. So was it bad writing, or style?? I DON'T KNOW!!
There were definitely parts of this book where I can categorically say that it needed better editing and needed to be cleaned up. There were quite a few TINY continuity issues (like the showers on the ship were supposed to be ionized air, but then Leda talks about her hair being wet from her shower; or the drug that was supposed to put that guy to sleep for about 40 hours, and less than 24 hours later he's wide awake; or how did the pain meds work on the tethered cord surgery, but not for the bullet wound?). See? Tiny, but I noticed them, and it annoyed me. But it probably only annoyed me because I was having other problems. The book just felt...for lack of a better word, fragmented. From individual sentences that were probably trying to be too pretty, but then I would have to read them over again to understand them; to the overall plot and the way I would feel like I missed something from one section to another. It was just kind of choppy in places, and didn't make for a nice read. And then there was the tiny plot thread that was completely dropped at the end of the book (what Enren said about Toovu and the Woede -- purposely being vague to avoid spoilers), which I suppose could have been ok if there was going to be a sequel or something and they'd tackle it there, but I don't get that impression.
So yeah, frustration. The book needed a bit more clean up and definitely needed to be smoothed over. Things happened so fast, I kind of couldn't follow what people were talking about sometimes, or the conclusions they were coming to.
And then there's the characters and chemistry. *sigh* This review could get so long if I really went into detail on those parts, but I'll try to keep it brief (*snort* yeah right). Quite honestly, I didn't dislike the characters, but I wasn't totally enamoured with them either. Like none of them. And hence I didn't find my emotions engaged at any of the potentially heartbreaking parts. It was a little bit insta-lovey between Leda and Roar, which I don't always mind if I get something else out of it. But there was so much else going on, I never really did understand why they were in love... I got the draw and the connection, but not the emotions I guess.
And there were a ton of potentially intriguing side characters with potential little side plots, but we never got to learn about them or dive into them. They were so many moments where the author could have delved deeper, but chose not to in favour of action I suppose. Which is not horrible, but I hate getting teased with depth and then not getting it. We could have learned so much about Aurelite society, how it was, how it affected people, how it shaped them. From Stein to Petrus to even Roar. And Nils!! What about Nils and his mom?? And why tease us with those things and not go into them? Why say them at all and make them part of the story and not go further? I think the author tried to do too much with the story, and had to cut back, and didn't really get the right focus back. Or not. Honestly, that's conjecture, I shouldn't say I know anything.
*sigh* So yeah. It had a lot of potential. And despite the way this review sounds, there were interesting moments! I even enjoyed the kisses between Roar and Leda. I loved the inclusion of some diverse elements, and how Leda always had Spina Bifida, regardless of whether she was some fabled weapon or not. But she pushed through it. And there were some really quotable pretty lines!! When the author hit her mark on those, they were really beautiful!
And that is that. I'm sad. Reading books that don't match me is really taxing on my reader's brain. Ah well. Onward and upward!
2.5 stars -- I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review/opinion.
OK, this was a frustrating read for me. And I'm having a hard time judging what all comes into play in my final assessment. There is definitely a component that is a bad match writing style for me I think. But there's also bits that were honest to goodness not written as well too. And this is where it gets complicated: the part that doesn't match with me style-wise is that things aren't spelled out for me in a clear manner, and I really really hate that (I'll explain in a second). But the problem with disliking that, is that I have a hard time judging what was bad writing versus just not a match, you know??
OK, I'll attempt to explain... Well, did anyone else see that movie The Arrival? My husband loved it, whereas that movie made me SOOOOO angry and annoyed and frustrated and mad. And while I could enjoy so many aspects of the movie, if I can't have my theories confirmed on what was happening, then I just don't like it. Like, I need things to be closer to black and white, I don't play well in gray area and subtlety. I'm probably not making any sense. *sigh* Regardless, this book was kind of like that. I'm left at the end of the book thinking I have a pretty good idea of what happened, but I'm not sure. And I want to be sure. I don't understand what the point is if I'm not sure. So was it bad writing, or style?? I DON'T KNOW!!
There were definitely parts of this book where I can categorically say that it needed better editing and needed to be cleaned up. There were quite a few TINY continuity issues (like the showers on the ship were supposed to be ionized air, but then Leda talks about her hair being wet from her shower; or the drug that was supposed to put that guy to sleep for about 40 hours, and less than 24 hours later he's wide awake; or how did the pain meds work on the tethered cord surgery, but not for the bullet wound?). See? Tiny, but I noticed them, and it annoyed me. But it probably only annoyed me because I was having other problems. The book just felt...for lack of a better word, fragmented. From individual sentences that were probably trying to be too pretty, but then I would have to read them over again to understand them; to the overall plot and the way I would feel like I missed something from one section to another. It was just kind of choppy in places, and didn't make for a nice read. And then there was the tiny plot thread that was completely dropped at the end of the book (what Enren said about Toovu and the Woede -- purposely being vague to avoid spoilers), which I suppose could have been ok if there was going to be a sequel or something and they'd tackle it there, but I don't get that impression.
So yeah, frustration. The book needed a bit more clean up and definitely needed to be smoothed over. Things happened so fast, I kind of couldn't follow what people were talking about sometimes, or the conclusions they were coming to.
And then there's the characters and chemistry. *sigh* This review could get so long if I really went into detail on those parts, but I'll try to keep it brief (*snort* yeah right). Quite honestly, I didn't dislike the characters, but I wasn't totally enamoured with them either. Like none of them. And hence I didn't find my emotions engaged at any of the potentially heartbreaking parts. It was a little bit insta-lovey between Leda and Roar, which I don't always mind if I get something else out of it. But there was so much else going on, I never really did understand why they were in love... I got the draw and the connection, but not the emotions I guess.
And there were a ton of potentially intriguing side characters with potential little side plots, but we never got to learn about them or dive into them. They were so many moments where the author could have delved deeper, but chose not to in favour of action I suppose. Which is not horrible, but I hate getting teased with depth and then not getting it. We could have learned so much about Aurelite society, how it was, how it affected people, how it shaped them. From Stein to Petrus to even Roar. And Nils!! What about Nils and his mom?? And why tease us with those things and not go into them? Why say them at all and make them part of the story and not go further? I think the author tried to do too much with the story, and had to cut back, and didn't really get the right focus back. Or not. Honestly, that's conjecture, I shouldn't say I know anything.
*sigh* So yeah. It had a lot of potential. And despite the way this review sounds, there were interesting moments! I even enjoyed the kisses between Roar and Leda. I loved the inclusion of some diverse elements, and how Leda always had Spina Bifida, regardless of whether she was some fabled weapon or not. But she pushed through it. And there were some really quotable pretty lines!! When the author hit her mark on those, they were really beautiful!
And that is that. I'm sad. Reading books that don't match me is really taxing on my reader's brain. Ah well. Onward and upward!
June 5, 2017
Leda Lindgren’s father died two weeks ago, and her mother did not waste any time moving back to Vardø, Norway, where Leda’s parents were born. The Arctic is a long way from New York, and Leda is somewhat distraught, but she soon made a new friend in Nils, her odd neighbour. Her bombastic uncle Arne, a wood artist, is also a welcome presence, as Leda’s mother is cold, aloof, and always absent, and so is Leda’s grandmother. Leda is a great girl, outgoing and smart, but her Spina Bifida has made things awkward for her, as she must use crutches, and some people, even her own mother, find her lacking because of that. On day, Leda meets Uncle Arne’s assistant, Roar Bakke, and boom! He’s hot, nice, and that first contact was out of this world. Literally, it turns out.
I don’t read much sci-fi, but ALL THE STARS LEFT BEHIND has an interesting premise, a great title, and the Norwegian setting, so why not! And I’m glad I chose to read it because Ashley Graham is an astounding writer! I got a clear notion of the characters straight away, although there are many secrets to be revealed; the author got everything about Norway just right; the writing is dynamic and vibrant, with a strong impression of movement and colour. There is no mistaking that THE STARS LEFT BEHIND is a Young Adult book, however the teenagers feel like today’s teens, and not as if they spoke or acted as if they had popped out of the 1950s. There is mild swearing, desires of a sexual nature, and some violence as well, especially from the part of a rather spectacular villain. Ms. Graham kept me on my toes from the onset as a humungous plot twist happens very early on, and if there was one thing I did not expect, it was that.
I love how Ms. Graham ties in Norse mythology with Roar’s planet, Aurelis; it’s very clever, and the alien technology is futuristic, by our standards, but believable nonetheless. THE STARS LEFT BEHIND would be worth reading if only for Ashley Graham’s truly spectacular writing with its kaleidoscope of colours and emotions of every kind, but also for its very complex and engaging characters, natural and easy dialogues, a gripping plot and oodles of action.
See my review on:https://straightshootinbookreviews.co...
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book.
I give 4 ½ stars
I don’t read much sci-fi, but ALL THE STARS LEFT BEHIND has an interesting premise, a great title, and the Norwegian setting, so why not! And I’m glad I chose to read it because Ashley Graham is an astounding writer! I got a clear notion of the characters straight away, although there are many secrets to be revealed; the author got everything about Norway just right; the writing is dynamic and vibrant, with a strong impression of movement and colour. There is no mistaking that THE STARS LEFT BEHIND is a Young Adult book, however the teenagers feel like today’s teens, and not as if they spoke or acted as if they had popped out of the 1950s. There is mild swearing, desires of a sexual nature, and some violence as well, especially from the part of a rather spectacular villain. Ms. Graham kept me on my toes from the onset as a humungous plot twist happens very early on, and if there was one thing I did not expect, it was that.
I love how Ms. Graham ties in Norse mythology with Roar’s planet, Aurelis; it’s very clever, and the alien technology is futuristic, by our standards, but believable nonetheless. THE STARS LEFT BEHIND would be worth reading if only for Ashley Graham’s truly spectacular writing with its kaleidoscope of colours and emotions of every kind, but also for its very complex and engaging characters, natural and easy dialogues, a gripping plot and oodles of action.
See my review on:https://straightshootinbookreviews.co...
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book.
I give 4 ½ stars
June 6, 2017
ALL THE STARS LEFT BEHIND wasn't exactly the book I thought it was going to be and unfortunately in this case, that wasn't a good thing.
I was just plain bored, confused or felt like I was missing something through most of ALL THE STARS LEFT BEHIND. It was like the author was so busy trying to fit in as much diversity in the characters as possible that she forgot that the book also needed a plot. I did actually like the characters, but without a strong story they kinda just floundered to me.
There were a lot of things that weren't explained that seemed like big deals. Leda's necklace for instance. Her father gave it to her before he died and told her to never take it off. We never find out why. There are more, but the necklace was the first thing that popped up. There were also a lot of things that took place that didn't make sense or were contradicted by other events. We find out that Leda and Roar's blood supposedly turns into poison when mixed, but they gave Roar's blood to Leda earlier in the book to save her?
After all the other issues I had throughout ALL THE STARS LEFT BEHIND, there was the ending. I have no clue if a second book is planned, but if there isn't the less than satisfying ending was even less satisfying. I'm giving ALL THE STARS LEFT BEHIND 2 stars, because I did finish it, but it wasn't for me.
* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I was just plain bored, confused or felt like I was missing something through most of ALL THE STARS LEFT BEHIND. It was like the author was so busy trying to fit in as much diversity in the characters as possible that she forgot that the book also needed a plot. I did actually like the characters, but without a strong story they kinda just floundered to me.
There were a lot of things that weren't explained that seemed like big deals. Leda's necklace for instance. Her father gave it to her before he died and told her to never take it off. We never find out why. There are more, but the necklace was the first thing that popped up. There were also a lot of things that took place that didn't make sense or were contradicted by other events. We find out that Leda and Roar's blood supposedly turns into poison when mixed, but they gave Roar's blood to Leda earlier in the book to save her?
After all the other issues I had throughout ALL THE STARS LEFT BEHIND, there was the ending. I have no clue if a second book is planned, but if there isn't the less than satisfying ending was even less satisfying. I'm giving ALL THE STARS LEFT BEHIND 2 stars, because I did finish it, but it wasn't for me.
* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
April 29, 2017
I received this book from net galley for an honest review. Thank you!!
This novel was a good read. I enjoyed the plot and the characters. This story involves aliens, romance, action, adventure, and discovering one's self.
Leda Lindgren has relocated to Norway after the death of her father. She is a cripple and that people pity her. Her mother ignores her and never really wanted Leda. Leda learned a lot from her father.
Roar has a mission, to find the weapon that will save his people. He works at Leda's uncle's and sees Leda as more than just a cripple. Roar is from another planet, and has tattoos on his body that move.
Leda does not trust Roar and knows there is more to him than meets the eye. When someone uses Leda to get to Roar, he knows he needs to protect her. Leda is injured when trying to save Roar when they see her blood is silver, not red. Leda realizes she is not a human and Roar realizes he has found the weapon. Leda's family explains to her about how they came to earth and what Leda's purpose is.
As they prepare to leave earth, they are betrayed and someone has to make a costly choice to save their lives. As they travel, they discover something about Leda and Roar's blood samples. Both begin to have feelings for the other, but this new discovery changes things between them. Before than can talk about it, Leda is kidnapped and taken to another ship. Roar goes after her but eventually Leda is able to escape. However, the ship is under attack against their enemy, the Woede. Leda must use her abilities to save them and finds out some surprising secrets that will change everything. When Roar realizes what Leda needs to do, will he be able to let her go before they both realize the love developing between them?
This novel was a good read. I enjoyed the plot and the characters. This story involves aliens, romance, action, adventure, and discovering one's self.
Leda Lindgren has relocated to Norway after the death of her father. She is a cripple and that people pity her. Her mother ignores her and never really wanted Leda. Leda learned a lot from her father.
Roar has a mission, to find the weapon that will save his people. He works at Leda's uncle's and sees Leda as more than just a cripple. Roar is from another planet, and has tattoos on his body that move.
Leda does not trust Roar and knows there is more to him than meets the eye. When someone uses Leda to get to Roar, he knows he needs to protect her. Leda is injured when trying to save Roar when they see her blood is silver, not red. Leda realizes she is not a human and Roar realizes he has found the weapon. Leda's family explains to her about how they came to earth and what Leda's purpose is.
As they prepare to leave earth, they are betrayed and someone has to make a costly choice to save their lives. As they travel, they discover something about Leda and Roar's blood samples. Both begin to have feelings for the other, but this new discovery changes things between them. Before than can talk about it, Leda is kidnapped and taken to another ship. Roar goes after her but eventually Leda is able to escape. However, the ship is under attack against their enemy, the Woede. Leda must use her abilities to save them and finds out some surprising secrets that will change everything. When Roar realizes what Leda needs to do, will he be able to let her go before they both realize the love developing between them?
July 2, 2017
I have to be honest, when I first started reading this book I was expecting it to be a 3 star read. The first chapter didn't grab my attention, and it felt a bit rushed, but I am so glad I gave it a chance, because it soon morphed into one of the most exciting, intense and thrilling reads I have had the pleasure of stepping into.
Sci-fi enthusiasts will eat this book up. But even if you are not into aliens and interstellar wars, you'll love the book for its elements of romance, forbidden as they were, and you'll be cheering these amazing characters on with each flip of the page.
I liked how Leda was still so human, worrying about silly things like her hygiene etc. even while in the thick of things, but she was also prepared to step up to the plate every chance she got. Her strength stemmed from having to fight a disability that had been a bane in her existence for many years, and this gave her the courage to be more powerful and willing that even the strongest of her group.
I was excited to see how exactly the weapon worked, and what it was capable of, and I was expecting an all out battle to ensue, but Graham surprised me with the twist added near the end.
This book was a fast-paced, action-packed, adventure across the galaxy. It was a fantastic read that immersed me in an imaginative world; one that I would very much like to visit again...soon!!
Sci-fi enthusiasts will eat this book up. But even if you are not into aliens and interstellar wars, you'll love the book for its elements of romance, forbidden as they were, and you'll be cheering these amazing characters on with each flip of the page.
I liked how Leda was still so human, worrying about silly things like her hygiene etc. even while in the thick of things, but she was also prepared to step up to the plate every chance she got. Her strength stemmed from having to fight a disability that had been a bane in her existence for many years, and this gave her the courage to be more powerful and willing that even the strongest of her group.
I was excited to see how exactly the weapon worked, and what it was capable of, and I was expecting an all out battle to ensue, but Graham surprised me with the twist added near the end.
This book was a fast-paced, action-packed, adventure across the galaxy. It was a fantastic read that immersed me in an imaginative world; one that I would very much like to visit again...soon!!
Read
June 23, 2017I won't actually give this a rating because, for the moment, I'm going to shelve this under DNF. I just couldn't get past the Instalove and lack of compelling plot. Maybe in the future I'll come back and try again.
October 21, 2017
I really enjoyed this book. Insta-love is really not my favorite trope. Nor is the trope of a teen finding out about a mystery heritage, whether that be royalty, magical, or non-human. But!!--huge but here--these tropes did not bother me, because it was the first time I've seen them with a disabled main character in a sci-fi. To me, that was really special as someone who is also disabled. Representation of disabled characters is so, so behind, but we're already calling tropes dead before disabled characters get a chance to be magical or fall in insta-love? *hard side-eye, publishing*
I also enjoyed the setting. I read somewhere that the author lived there for several years and I suppose that's why it felt real. Oftentimes, when writers set their books in a place they've never lived, they layer it with so many cultural elements it starts to read like a Wikipedia page. *That* feels inauthentic to me, because when you live in a given place for a long period of time, you don't notice that surface culture. Instead you see deeper into the nuances of relationships and values.
I give this book 5 stars for these elements alone because it's so rare for me to see disability and setting done well. Aside from that, I found the plot to be really fast-paced and entertaining.
I also enjoyed the setting. I read somewhere that the author lived there for several years and I suppose that's why it felt real. Oftentimes, when writers set their books in a place they've never lived, they layer it with so many cultural elements it starts to read like a Wikipedia page. *That* feels inauthentic to me, because when you live in a given place for a long period of time, you don't notice that surface culture. Instead you see deeper into the nuances of relationships and values.
I give this book 5 stars for these elements alone because it's so rare for me to see disability and setting done well. Aside from that, I found the plot to be really fast-paced and entertaining.
June 17, 2017
I received an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. Review can be found on *Milky Way of Books*
Although the book was something I've read before in other series, I liked how strong Leda was. She has the attitude of a strong-willed character and does not back down easily. The missing star goes to the insta-love. I like the theme of aliens in YA when used good but I couldn't help but get Twilight vibes with this one.
If you like a good alien type book with some action and romance, then this is the book for you.
Although the book was something I've read before in other series, I liked how strong Leda was. She has the attitude of a strong-willed character and does not back down easily. The missing star goes to the insta-love. I like the theme of aliens in YA when used good but I couldn't help but get Twilight vibes with this one.
If you like a good alien type book with some action and romance, then this is the book for you.
June 17, 2018
Leda moves to Norway after her father's death. Roar is an alien looking for a weapon to stop the destruction of his world.
Aliens in this setting are basically human. There's a reference to humans being "almost another species" compared to Aurelites (Roar's people). So there are differences, but they're not that huge. The only oddity is blood colour changes depending on where someone is born. It's probably best not to worry about the science of that too closely.
The early part of the novel had some odd jumps and inconsistencies. My guess would be there were some heavy cuts in the beginning during editing and the rest wasn't changed to match up, but it means it's a little confusing at times. Things settle out when the space elements gets going.
The book has instalove, which is not really my thing. I did like that Leda and Roar have to consider life beyond instalove. I wasn't so fond of the idea that sex is mandatory for relationships (this comes mainly from Leda). I also don't like over-protective and controlling behaviour from love interests. Roar does this less often than some, but he still ends up climbing into her bed and hugging her without asking, not letting goes when she struggles, and it's fine because that's what she wants after all. This is scary, not romantic.
There's a fair bit of representation in this book, but some of it is rocky. Early on, there's a microaggression about a woman having shoulders that are too broad for a woman, which sets the tone. There are a lot of little things and some big things. I'll discuss a few of them, but it's not a complete list.
Leda has spina bifida and uses crutches. The good sides are that she isn't magically cured when the alien stuff gets going and she can't suddenly run around without crutches when the plot demands it. There is also a mention of having limited energy, such as walking without crutches for a short distance making it hard to walk at all. However, I wasn't fond of her constant self-hatred. She's internalised a lot ableism, which may well be realistic, but it is somewhat constant during the story. She wants people to see past her disability, as though it's a negative thing that overlays the real person inside.
Leda appears to be non-white. She's described as having light brown skin and black hair. Roar considers that she looks "Spanish-meets-Arabic". So she's likely someone who has ancestry that is not clear. I didn't like that Roar considers her "beautiful in an exotic kind of way". This is not a compliment. Worded another way, this is saying she's pretty for someone of her race, not properly pretty like all the pale blondes.
Roar's friend Petrus is mute and uses sign language. Both norsk tegnspråk and Aurelis's sign language. It's unclear how he became mute, though it's implied that he hasn't always been.
One of the characters is a trans boy. The reveal was through misgendering and deadnaming the character, which is repeated several times. Also, it avoided any issues that would be specific to Aurelites. Namely that males have living tattoos that develop at birth. There is a brief mention of the trans boy having tattoos, but it's something I'd have expected to be much more of a big deal in this context.
Some of the supporting characters are either gay or bi/pan. There's not a lot to say on that, as not a lot happened, but they're there.
The central issue is that this book copies some tropes that are popular in mainstream books, without critically looking at those tropes. It's great to have a more diverse cast, but not so great to copy harmful tropes relating to that diverse cast. It's painful because a lot of these things were on the surface. They could have been sorted without changing the main plot. It did feel like the author was trying, but wasn't able to get there.
All this aside, I thought the book was reasonable. It passed the time and there were some bits I liked. The concept of aliens hiding out in a remote part of Norway was an interesting idea. The space conflicts make it clear that there's more going on. There's the potential for a series tackling some colonial political issues. Note that the book does have an ending, but it's written as though it is the first in a series rather than a true standalone.
Review from: https://blog.polenthblake.com/2018/06/all-the-stars-left-behind/
Aliens in this setting are basically human. There's a reference to humans being "almost another species" compared to Aurelites (Roar's people). So there are differences, but they're not that huge. The only oddity is blood colour changes depending on where someone is born. It's probably best not to worry about the science of that too closely.
The early part of the novel had some odd jumps and inconsistencies. My guess would be there were some heavy cuts in the beginning during editing and the rest wasn't changed to match up, but it means it's a little confusing at times. Things settle out when the space elements gets going.
The book has instalove, which is not really my thing. I did like that Leda and Roar have to consider life beyond instalove. I wasn't so fond of the idea that sex is mandatory for relationships (this comes mainly from Leda). I also don't like over-protective and controlling behaviour from love interests. Roar does this less often than some, but he still ends up climbing into her bed and hugging her without asking, not letting goes when she struggles, and it's fine because that's what she wants after all. This is scary, not romantic.
There's a fair bit of representation in this book, but some of it is rocky. Early on, there's a microaggression about a woman having shoulders that are too broad for a woman, which sets the tone. There are a lot of little things and some big things. I'll discuss a few of them, but it's not a complete list.
Leda has spina bifida and uses crutches. The good sides are that she isn't magically cured when the alien stuff gets going and she can't suddenly run around without crutches when the plot demands it. There is also a mention of having limited energy, such as walking without crutches for a short distance making it hard to walk at all. However, I wasn't fond of her constant self-hatred. She's internalised a lot ableism, which may well be realistic, but it is somewhat constant during the story. She wants people to see past her disability, as though it's a negative thing that overlays the real person inside.
Leda appears to be non-white. She's described as having light brown skin and black hair. Roar considers that she looks "Spanish-meets-Arabic". So she's likely someone who has ancestry that is not clear. I didn't like that Roar considers her "beautiful in an exotic kind of way". This is not a compliment. Worded another way, this is saying she's pretty for someone of her race, not properly pretty like all the pale blondes.
Roar's friend Petrus is mute and uses sign language. Both norsk tegnspråk and Aurelis's sign language. It's unclear how he became mute, though it's implied that he hasn't always been.
One of the characters is a trans boy. The reveal was through misgendering and deadnaming the character, which is repeated several times. Also, it avoided any issues that would be specific to Aurelites. Namely that males have living tattoos that develop at birth. There is a brief mention of the trans boy having tattoos, but it's something I'd have expected to be much more of a big deal in this context.
Some of the supporting characters are either gay or bi/pan. There's not a lot to say on that, as not a lot happened, but they're there.
The central issue is that this book copies some tropes that are popular in mainstream books, without critically looking at those tropes. It's great to have a more diverse cast, but not so great to copy harmful tropes relating to that diverse cast. It's painful because a lot of these things were on the surface. They could have been sorted without changing the main plot. It did feel like the author was trying, but wasn't able to get there.
All this aside, I thought the book was reasonable. It passed the time and there were some bits I liked. The concept of aliens hiding out in a remote part of Norway was an interesting idea. The space conflicts make it clear that there's more going on. There's the potential for a series tackling some colonial political issues. Note that the book does have an ending, but it's written as though it is the first in a series rather than a true standalone.
Review from: https://blog.polenthblake.com/2018/06/all-the-stars-left-behind/
May 31, 2017
When I read the blurb, I was non-committal about it. When I started I thought - Oh, this book had so much promise! An alien story with a disable MC, and an intergalactic war - it had some good components, but the writing failed it. So, you have these two species - Aurelite and Weodes - both at war with each other, with the latter having an upper hand, and the former a hidden weapon that was to be retrieved from Earth. So Aurelia sends Roar, who is basically a genetic bloodhound, to get the weapon back, who is Leda, our MC. On the way to the planet they are meant to save, though, they come across many obstacles like a kidnapping, space attacks, and their ill-fated love (eyeroll for the last one).
I'm going to start with what I like first, because if I started with the opposite, this review will go on and on. I liked that it has a diverse set of characters - disabled POC (in human sense, not alien, but she is not white, basically) main character, a transgender character, (at least) two gay characters, and possibly an alien-human romance. The story is novel, in a way, utilizing the diverse cast in the plot structure. It also takes unexpected twists, which kept me on my toes, sort of. And it has a fast pace, so you are not bored if you are looking for a space adventure. It is also good on details, when it came to the science and the action.
However, this book had many problems, starting with plotholes that I was getting exponentially enraged by. I'll list out a few but it's not a complete list. It is never mentioned how long Roar and his squad were on Earth before he found her - when it is clear that he has an instant connection to her like a beacon. And when he found her, it still takes some time for her guardians to reveal her to him, which considering they are raising her for, didn't sit with the adults-hiding-the-truth cliche that somehow all YA novels have; wasn't the war in Aurelia time sensitive enough for them to not waste time dawdling on Earth. And then when they finally decide to go? They waste days fixing the spaceship's cloaking system which is useless BECAUSE THEY GET ATTACKED MULTIPLE TIMES IN SPACE ANYWAY SO THAT CLOAKING SYSTEM CLEARLY WAS USELESS TO WASTE PRECIOUS TIME ON! Where is the urgency in returning the weapon back to the planet they are meant to save? And how did Leda survive in space without a suit during that climactic scene (last I heard, vacuum was still a thing)? *screams in frustration*
Another grievance I had was the characters - sure, they are diverse, but there is barely any development between them. Nils (a half-Weode) and Leda - instant friends and days later, Nils is friends with the Roar and his crew as well, though they all have a war between them. He even asks to come along with them as a hostage, because what? He suddenly feels a strong friendship with them or Leda? It is never shown how they become friends; everything just falls into place a few pages later and we are supposed to go along with that. And lets not even start with the instalove between Leda and Roar. Even with their supposed genetic connection, which also becomes a hindrance to them, these two had no chemistry. And speaking of that hindrance, since when is blood being incompatible equals to them not being able to bone? They kiss quite fine - without any energy explosions, so what gives with, um, other kinds of fluids to mingle? Even if they did bump uglies, how would they blood reacting to each other be a problem unless they have some sort of weird sex involving bleeding?
And lastly, what is with these villains popping out of freaking nowhere? You can't sacrifice logic for cheap twists in plot! Where did that other bounty hunter come from? How is Aurelian society a capitalistic utopia that still has equal rights for all citizens but still they have a big economic divide? World-building seems to the weak point of this book. Anyway, so I was pretty much infuriated by the end, because I could see how the book had good components, but it had all been arranged so badly or not utilized well enough. Instead, we get three very detailed kissing scenes, and endless angst over a sexual relationship.
Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review from
Entangled Publishing, LLC, via Netgalley.
I'm going to start with what I like first, because if I started with the opposite, this review will go on and on. I liked that it has a diverse set of characters - disabled POC (in human sense, not alien, but she is not white, basically) main character, a transgender character, (at least) two gay characters, and possibly an alien-human romance. The story is novel, in a way, utilizing the diverse cast in the plot structure. It also takes unexpected twists, which kept me on my toes, sort of. And it has a fast pace, so you are not bored if you are looking for a space adventure. It is also good on details, when it came to the science and the action.
However, this book had many problems, starting with plotholes that I was getting exponentially enraged by. I'll list out a few but it's not a complete list. It is never mentioned how long Roar and his squad were on Earth before he found her - when it is clear that he has an instant connection to her like a beacon. And when he found her, it still takes some time for her guardians to reveal her to him, which considering they are raising her for, didn't sit with the adults-hiding-the-truth cliche that somehow all YA novels have; wasn't the war in Aurelia time sensitive enough for them to not waste time dawdling on Earth. And then when they finally decide to go? They waste days fixing the spaceship's cloaking system which is useless BECAUSE THEY GET ATTACKED MULTIPLE TIMES IN SPACE ANYWAY SO THAT CLOAKING SYSTEM CLEARLY WAS USELESS TO WASTE PRECIOUS TIME ON! Where is the urgency in returning the weapon back to the planet they are meant to save? And how did Leda survive in space without a suit during that climactic scene (last I heard, vacuum was still a thing)? *screams in frustration*
Another grievance I had was the characters - sure, they are diverse, but there is barely any development between them. Nils (a half-Weode) and Leda - instant friends and days later, Nils is friends with the Roar and his crew as well, though they all have a war between them. He even asks to come along with them as a hostage, because what? He suddenly feels a strong friendship with them or Leda? It is never shown how they become friends; everything just falls into place a few pages later and we are supposed to go along with that. And lets not even start with the instalove between Leda and Roar. Even with their supposed genetic connection, which also becomes a hindrance to them, these two had no chemistry. And speaking of that hindrance, since when is blood being incompatible equals to them not being able to bone? They kiss quite fine - without any energy explosions, so what gives with, um, other kinds of fluids to mingle? Even if they did bump uglies, how would they blood reacting to each other be a problem unless they have some sort of weird sex involving bleeding?
And lastly, what is with these villains popping out of freaking nowhere? You can't sacrifice logic for cheap twists in plot! Where did that other bounty hunter come from? How is Aurelian society a capitalistic utopia that still has equal rights for all citizens but still they have a big economic divide? World-building seems to the weak point of this book. Anyway, so I was pretty much infuriated by the end, because I could see how the book had good components, but it had all been arranged so badly or not utilized well enough. Instead, we get three very detailed kissing scenes, and endless angst over a sexual relationship.
Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review from
Entangled Publishing, LLC, via Netgalley.
May 31, 2017
There are a lot of YA books that can be enjoyed by any age group. There are even a few out there that have become some of my favorites. But this is not one of them. This was a very cookie cutter teenage story that strongly pandered to being politically correct. Which is always so annoying. It has an interesting premise, but a boring execution and average characters. Cool things were mentioned but never explained. Like Roar's tattoos. I was dying to know what they stood for and why they moved. Or the pendant from her father. Why was it so important for her to have and why was it always so warm? Don't include something if it doesn't go anywhere. The only thing it had going for it was that it was fast paced. All the alien technology was pretty cool too.
After her father died, Leda is forced to move to the middle of frozen nowhere to live with her aunt and uncle. Her mother has never been around and definitely doesn't care about her. Leda is not happy to be there but at least she has one friend. The moment she meets her uncle's assistant, Roar, she can't help the pull to him or stop thinking about him. When they make eye contact, they world around them seems to disappear. But Leda is disabled and can't walk much without her crutches, so she has become jaded toward guys who are nice to her thinking it's pity for her. But she knows Roar is different. Just how different she finds out soon enough.
Roar and a few other teenagers with him have come to Earth to seek out this weapon that could save them. They look human but have silver blood and greater abilities. Apparently, there are aliens all over the world and the governments know about them. Oh, and being sent to America is used as a threat against them acting out. Thanks for that by the way. Roar and his crew are living with guardians of a sort and when Roar's holds Leda hostage after seeing how he acts with her, all sorts of truths are about to come out.
Leda finds out that Roar and his friends are aliens, her other friend is one too, and so is she. But she is also this weapon that could save Roar's planet. It's quickly decided that she needs to get there as soon as possible. At first she's not so on board with all this, but then she realizes that this can be a greater purpose for her. Things go wrong before they can even get started and a traitor is revealed. We get past that though, but things just keep going wrong. Roar and Leda want nothing more than to spend time together but their roles aren't the only thing keeping them apart. Apparently when their blood comes together it turns into a sort of poison. Which makes no sense considering that it was Roar's blood they used when Leda needed it. At one point they get attacked thanks to another traitor in their midst and Leda is taken. And tortured. Which surprised me a great deal. But lucky her, the traitor changes their mind and the two of them easily make their escape. Even managing to arrive in time and save the others. Leda ends up learning more truths and more about her power, essentially saving the day. But it's Roar that comes up with a plan that could let them possibly stay together despite their roles.
I was annoyed with the fact that Leda was vegan and forced it on others. You wanna be that? Great. To each their own. But I hate it when those people or authors push it others. Robot Chicken season 6 episode 1 covers this perfectly. You should check it out. The other PC thing that annoyed me was the character that was a girl, turned into a boy, who's in love with a boy. Really??? What the hell was the point of including this and making it such a big deal? It added nothing to the story.
Overall, it just wasn't a great book to me. It wasn't bad. But I will easily forget about it.
ARC provided by publisher via Netgalley.
After her father died, Leda is forced to move to the middle of frozen nowhere to live with her aunt and uncle. Her mother has never been around and definitely doesn't care about her. Leda is not happy to be there but at least she has one friend. The moment she meets her uncle's assistant, Roar, she can't help the pull to him or stop thinking about him. When they make eye contact, they world around them seems to disappear. But Leda is disabled and can't walk much without her crutches, so she has become jaded toward guys who are nice to her thinking it's pity for her. But she knows Roar is different. Just how different she finds out soon enough.
Roar and a few other teenagers with him have come to Earth to seek out this weapon that could save them. They look human but have silver blood and greater abilities. Apparently, there are aliens all over the world and the governments know about them. Oh, and being sent to America is used as a threat against them acting out. Thanks for that by the way. Roar and his crew are living with guardians of a sort and when Roar's holds Leda hostage after seeing how he acts with her, all sorts of truths are about to come out.
Leda finds out that Roar and his friends are aliens, her other friend is one too, and so is she. But she is also this weapon that could save Roar's planet. It's quickly decided that she needs to get there as soon as possible. At first she's not so on board with all this, but then she realizes that this can be a greater purpose for her. Things go wrong before they can even get started and a traitor is revealed. We get past that though, but things just keep going wrong. Roar and Leda want nothing more than to spend time together but their roles aren't the only thing keeping them apart. Apparently when their blood comes together it turns into a sort of poison. Which makes no sense considering that it was Roar's blood they used when Leda needed it. At one point they get attacked thanks to another traitor in their midst and Leda is taken. And tortured. Which surprised me a great deal. But lucky her, the traitor changes their mind and the two of them easily make their escape. Even managing to arrive in time and save the others. Leda ends up learning more truths and more about her power, essentially saving the day. But it's Roar that comes up with a plan that could let them possibly stay together despite their roles.
I was annoyed with the fact that Leda was vegan and forced it on others. You wanna be that? Great. To each their own. But I hate it when those people or authors push it others. Robot Chicken season 6 episode 1 covers this perfectly. You should check it out. The other PC thing that annoyed me was the character that was a girl, turned into a boy, who's in love with a boy. Really??? What the hell was the point of including this and making it such a big deal? It added nothing to the story.
Overall, it just wasn't a great book to me. It wasn't bad. But I will easily forget about it.
ARC provided by publisher via Netgalley.
May 26, 2017
Leda Lindgren has never had it easy in life. Born with spina bifida, she is no stranger to struggling in life and certainly has no shortage in courage. With a mother who wants little to nothing to do with her, Leda has always been extremely close to her father. When her father dies, Leda moves in with her uncle and grandmother in Norway, wanting nothing to do with her new frozen home. But when she meets her uncle’s new gorgeous employee Roar, Leda is instantly attracted to him—in more ways than one. It’s not long before Leda learns that nothing in her life is what she thought it was. Her new crush is actually an alien; her father biologically engineered her birth; and she’s actually a weapon made to destroy the enemies of Roar’s home planet. After learning that Roar has been sent to find her to help end the long-raging war of his world, Leda soon embarks on a journey to help save Roar’s planet, and nothing is going to stop her—not even her crutches.
The premise of this book sounded so incredibly cool that I knew I had to read it. I’ve never read a book that took place in Norway and it was so cool to be able to read the names and places of the country in YA book. I’ve also not read many alien books which made this book even more appealing to me. However, I just could not get on with this book overall.
Firstly, the characters in this book are so unique! Disregarding that they are aliens, this book holds a ton of diverse characters so if that is something you love, you will definitely find it in this book. I really liked Leda as a main character. She isn’t like many YA protagonists, not only because she has a disability, but because of her personality. She is an extremely strong yet kindhearted character and those are some of my favorite types to read about. This book also has dual point of views so I loved getting to read from Roar’s perspective as well. I loved that Roar was characterized the way most guys probably feel at 17—awkward and shy—rather than being some bigshot, overly-confident love interest as is typical in YA. It was incredibly refreshing to read. The supporting characters are all diverse and interesting as well.
The worldbuilding was fairly well done. I felt some parts were explained well while others weren’t. The aliens and their planet and technology were really neat to learn about and I really loved the way that their technology works through mind control. Shooting through space while reading this book was also a cool aspect of it and I loved getting to picture how their spaceships look.
My main issue with this book however was the plot. The plot was incredibly difficult for me to follow at times. I’ve never struggled with reading comprehension, even as a kid, yet I found myself having to reread scenes and dialogue over and over again to try to figure out what was going on. Not only did I struggle with this during the action scenes but even in the backstory of the book. I constantly felt like there was a piece of the puzzle missing that my brain just could not find while reading this. Furthermore, the plot was a bit repetitive for me—I got tired of reading about the same character undergoing surgeries throughout the course of the book and the aliens arguing about what they should do. And I also have absolutely no clue what happened in the ending of the book. I know that it was meant to have some kind of whiplash effect based on how the characters acted but it was so muddy and hard to follow that I am still completely confused about all of it. Some of the mystery air about this book should’ve been done away with in the editing process. With it being a standalone, the confusion I’m sure many readers will experience is not going to do this book any favors or earn it any high stars.
*I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review*
The premise of this book sounded so incredibly cool that I knew I had to read it. I’ve never read a book that took place in Norway and it was so cool to be able to read the names and places of the country in YA book. I’ve also not read many alien books which made this book even more appealing to me. However, I just could not get on with this book overall.
Firstly, the characters in this book are so unique! Disregarding that they are aliens, this book holds a ton of diverse characters so if that is something you love, you will definitely find it in this book. I really liked Leda as a main character. She isn’t like many YA protagonists, not only because she has a disability, but because of her personality. She is an extremely strong yet kindhearted character and those are some of my favorite types to read about. This book also has dual point of views so I loved getting to read from Roar’s perspective as well. I loved that Roar was characterized the way most guys probably feel at 17—awkward and shy—rather than being some bigshot, overly-confident love interest as is typical in YA. It was incredibly refreshing to read. The supporting characters are all diverse and interesting as well.
The worldbuilding was fairly well done. I felt some parts were explained well while others weren’t. The aliens and their planet and technology were really neat to learn about and I really loved the way that their technology works through mind control. Shooting through space while reading this book was also a cool aspect of it and I loved getting to picture how their spaceships look.
My main issue with this book however was the plot. The plot was incredibly difficult for me to follow at times. I’ve never struggled with reading comprehension, even as a kid, yet I found myself having to reread scenes and dialogue over and over again to try to figure out what was going on. Not only did I struggle with this during the action scenes but even in the backstory of the book. I constantly felt like there was a piece of the puzzle missing that my brain just could not find while reading this. Furthermore, the plot was a bit repetitive for me—I got tired of reading about the same character undergoing surgeries throughout the course of the book and the aliens arguing about what they should do. And I also have absolutely no clue what happened in the ending of the book. I know that it was meant to have some kind of whiplash effect based on how the characters acted but it was so muddy and hard to follow that I am still completely confused about all of it. Some of the mystery air about this book should’ve been done away with in the editing process. With it being a standalone, the confusion I’m sure many readers will experience is not going to do this book any favors or earn it any high stars.
*I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review*
July 8, 2017
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ecopy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Find this review and more on my blog The Rest Is Still Unwritten!
All the Stars Left Behind is Ashley Graham’s debut novel and is a rich intergalactic sci-fi novel that will appeal to fans of Jennifer L. Armentrout’s Lux series with its romance, action and characterisation.
After the recent loss of her father, Leda Lindgren finds herself relocating to Norway to live with her estranged uncle and grandmother. Starting over in a new country would be hard for anyone, but with Leda suffering from spina bifida and a chip on her shoulder, this icy Arctic is far from a winter wonderland. Miserable and still grieving, everything changes for Leda when she meets her uncle’s gorgeous and mysterious employee, Roar. Entranced by Roar’s moving tattoos and drawn to him for reasons she can’t understand, Leda knows there’s more to Roar than meets the eye. Roar knows the last thing he should be thinking about is the beautiful but sad human girl he can’t seem to get out of his head. Part of a small group sent from his home planet of Aurelis to Earth in an effort to find a weapon capable of saving his people from a relentless enemy, Roar has a duty to his crew and his mission to find the weapon whatever the cost. Yet when it comes to light that Leda is the weapon Roar has been searching for, will his desire to be with her stop him from doing what has to be done? And Leda be able to accept her destiny to save an entire alien race?
Launching readers into a sci-fi YA full of aliens, romance and action, All the Stars Left Behind was an easy to read tale that unfolded well and managed to tick all the boxes. Ashley Graham won me over with the intriguing space world she created and the way she wove the characters and their relationships with each together.
I liked the characters within the story from Leda and Roar to Leda’s uncle and grandmother to Roar’s teammates Oline, Petrus and Stein. They complimented each other well and supported the story. Without giving away any spoilers, I have to say I was really surprised and intrigued by one revelation revolving one of Roar’s teammates and am keen to see what Ashley Graham does with this in the future.
Admittedly I did struggle early on with the fast, intense way that Leda and Roar fell for one another and the power behind their feelings. It just seemed to come on too fast, too strong for my likings to be believable. That being said, there was a reason behind this intensity that was explained by Graham as the novel progressed. Who and what they were had an impact on the attraction they felt and as such it went a long way to support the intensity of their feelings. Personally I’m just over insta-love and can’t stand to see these in books nowadays as I feel it cheapens and lessens the romance.
The ending of All the Stars Let Behind seemed a little anti-climactic and forced for my taste—too easy if I’m being honest. I’m not sure if this tale is meant to be a standalone or part of a series as All the Stars Left Behind ended in a way that could have been either. Personally I think Ashley Graham should explore the world a bit more and I’ll be looking for updates on future books.
Overall, for a few issues I had with All the Stars Left Behind, I did enjoy it. It was a solid read with a beautiful cover that entranced and entertained. I’m keen to see what Ashley Graham does next and will be keeping my eye out!
Find this review and more on my blog The Rest Is Still Unwritten!
All the Stars Left Behind is Ashley Graham’s debut novel and is a rich intergalactic sci-fi novel that will appeal to fans of Jennifer L. Armentrout’s Lux series with its romance, action and characterisation.
After the recent loss of her father, Leda Lindgren finds herself relocating to Norway to live with her estranged uncle and grandmother. Starting over in a new country would be hard for anyone, but with Leda suffering from spina bifida and a chip on her shoulder, this icy Arctic is far from a winter wonderland. Miserable and still grieving, everything changes for Leda when she meets her uncle’s gorgeous and mysterious employee, Roar. Entranced by Roar’s moving tattoos and drawn to him for reasons she can’t understand, Leda knows there’s more to Roar than meets the eye. Roar knows the last thing he should be thinking about is the beautiful but sad human girl he can’t seem to get out of his head. Part of a small group sent from his home planet of Aurelis to Earth in an effort to find a weapon capable of saving his people from a relentless enemy, Roar has a duty to his crew and his mission to find the weapon whatever the cost. Yet when it comes to light that Leda is the weapon Roar has been searching for, will his desire to be with her stop him from doing what has to be done? And Leda be able to accept her destiny to save an entire alien race?
Launching readers into a sci-fi YA full of aliens, romance and action, All the Stars Left Behind was an easy to read tale that unfolded well and managed to tick all the boxes. Ashley Graham won me over with the intriguing space world she created and the way she wove the characters and their relationships with each together.
I liked the characters within the story from Leda and Roar to Leda’s uncle and grandmother to Roar’s teammates Oline, Petrus and Stein. They complimented each other well and supported the story. Without giving away any spoilers, I have to say I was really surprised and intrigued by one revelation revolving one of Roar’s teammates and am keen to see what Ashley Graham does with this in the future.
Admittedly I did struggle early on with the fast, intense way that Leda and Roar fell for one another and the power behind their feelings. It just seemed to come on too fast, too strong for my likings to be believable. That being said, there was a reason behind this intensity that was explained by Graham as the novel progressed. Who and what they were had an impact on the attraction they felt and as such it went a long way to support the intensity of their feelings. Personally I’m just over insta-love and can’t stand to see these in books nowadays as I feel it cheapens and lessens the romance.
The ending of All the Stars Let Behind seemed a little anti-climactic and forced for my taste—too easy if I’m being honest. I’m not sure if this tale is meant to be a standalone or part of a series as All the Stars Left Behind ended in a way that could have been either. Personally I think Ashley Graham should explore the world a bit more and I’ll be looking for updates on future books.
Overall, for a few issues I had with All the Stars Left Behind, I did enjoy it. It was a solid read with a beautiful cover that entranced and entertained. I’m keen to see what Ashley Graham does next and will be keeping my eye out!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 11, 2017
“All the Stars Left Behind” had a really interesting premise but fell a little short while reading. Leda has spina bifida and has to use crutches to get around (this was probably the best part of the book- Leda is a pretty unique heroine). Seemingly due to her disability, her mother has abandoned her. After her father with whom she was very close dies, Leda goes to Norway to live with her extended family. There, she meets Roar, an alien with moving tattoos who works for her uncle. Roar was sent to Earth to find a weapon- he is supposed to have the ability to locate it, but it’s unclear what he’s looking for and where it might be. Roar and Leda are drawn together with a heavy dose of instalove right from the get-go. It turns out what makes them appealing to each other is that Leda is the weapon (not a spoiler since it’s in the book description).
Roar’s planet has been under attack from the Woede, another race of aliens, some of whom are on Earth also. The weapon is the only thing that can stop the Woede. Cue the race to save the planet! The plot was fascinating, and I loved the idea. I don’t mind instalove if it’s followed up by some actual getting-to-know-you and care-about-you scenes. In this case, they never came. Their knowledge about the other remains surface deep, and I really couldn’t understand or cheer for their relationship.
It’s rare that I say a book moves too fast, but this book moved way too fast. The scenes jump around a lot so you have to go back and reread. I thought I might be missing whole chapters, but it appears that this is just the fragmented style. Another thing I found odd is that Roar and his people were pretty much hanging out on Earth while he “looked” for the weapon- no rush- but then as soon as they find Leda, the race is on- and then, when the weapon is lost, most people suddenly want to just leave it behind- even though this was the whole mission in the first place. There were a few odd gaps in logic like this that I found hard to understand/follow.
I really wish this was more fleshed out and we had better ideas about the characters, their motivations, and what was really going on. It almost felt more like an outline than a full novel. There was a lot that was happening- so much so that it may have been better to carry this into a few books rather than be a stand-alone. While the premise was really fascinating, I found the actual novel to be disappointing. That being said, I read the whole book (and several sections multiple times to try to figure out what was happening) so I am a bit conflicted about rating. I’d give it an OK which equals different stars on different sites.
Please note that I received an ARC from the publishers through netgalley. All opinions are my own.
Roar’s planet has been under attack from the Woede, another race of aliens, some of whom are on Earth also. The weapon is the only thing that can stop the Woede. Cue the race to save the planet! The plot was fascinating, and I loved the idea. I don’t mind instalove if it’s followed up by some actual getting-to-know-you and care-about-you scenes. In this case, they never came. Their knowledge about the other remains surface deep, and I really couldn’t understand or cheer for their relationship.
It’s rare that I say a book moves too fast, but this book moved way too fast. The scenes jump around a lot so you have to go back and reread. I thought I might be missing whole chapters, but it appears that this is just the fragmented style. Another thing I found odd is that Roar and his people were pretty much hanging out on Earth while he “looked” for the weapon- no rush- but then as soon as they find Leda, the race is on- and then, when the weapon is lost, most people suddenly want to just leave it behind- even though this was the whole mission in the first place. There were a few odd gaps in logic like this that I found hard to understand/follow.
I really wish this was more fleshed out and we had better ideas about the characters, their motivations, and what was really going on. It almost felt more like an outline than a full novel. There was a lot that was happening- so much so that it may have been better to carry this into a few books rather than be a stand-alone. While the premise was really fascinating, I found the actual novel to be disappointing. That being said, I read the whole book (and several sections multiple times to try to figure out what was happening) so I am a bit conflicted about rating. I’d give it an OK which equals different stars on different sites.
Please note that I received an ARC from the publishers through netgalley. All opinions are my own.
June 9, 2017
3.5 out of 5 stars
All The Stars Left Behind by Ashley Graham is a YA Sci-Fi story filled with aliens, mystery, adventure and romance.
The novel is about Leda Lindgren who has moved to Norway to live with her uncle and grandmother after her father passes away and her mother decides she doesn't want anything to do with her.
Born with spina bifida, Leda already has insecurities and now with her mother sending her to her only family in Vardø, Norway, she has a major chip on her shoulder. Luckily, when she moves to Norway, she ends up making friends with Nils and has an instant attraction to her uncle's gorgeous and mysterious employee, Roar.
Roar is an Aurelite. An alien from Aurelis sent to Earth with three others to look for the weapon that can save their planet that is under attack by the Woede. He can't afford distractions especially in the form of a human he can't help but be drawn to.
When danger arises and Leda is caught in the crosshairs, Roar finally realizes that Leda is the weapon he has been searching for all along. Now he has to protect her and get her to Aurelis before his enemies get to them first.
I love alien stories and tv shows like Roswell, Star-Crossed, or Colony. So when I first read the synopsis for All the Stars Left Behind, the idea of an ordinary human girl finding out that she is the weapon an alien race needed to save their planet sounded interesting and caught my attention. As a debut sci-fi YA novel about aliens, spaceships, and out of this world creatures, Ms. Graham's novel hit its marks and with the mix of action and moments of suspense, the story of Leda and Roar moved right along.
Where I think All The Stars Left Behind may have fell short, at least for me, is from trying to do too much, in a way. This is especially seen amongst the characters and turning points within the story. Nevertheless, Ms. Graham kept my interest throughout and there were scenes that I enjoyed.
Overall, All the Stars Left Behind by Ashley Graham is a good novel that I recommend based on it's potential and its simple enjoyability as a sci-fi romance.
(I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book I received for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my open and honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.)
All The Stars Left Behind by Ashley Graham is a YA Sci-Fi story filled with aliens, mystery, adventure and romance.
The novel is about Leda Lindgren who has moved to Norway to live with her uncle and grandmother after her father passes away and her mother decides she doesn't want anything to do with her.
Born with spina bifida, Leda already has insecurities and now with her mother sending her to her only family in Vardø, Norway, she has a major chip on her shoulder. Luckily, when she moves to Norway, she ends up making friends with Nils and has an instant attraction to her uncle's gorgeous and mysterious employee, Roar.
Roar is an Aurelite. An alien from Aurelis sent to Earth with three others to look for the weapon that can save their planet that is under attack by the Woede. He can't afford distractions especially in the form of a human he can't help but be drawn to.
When danger arises and Leda is caught in the crosshairs, Roar finally realizes that Leda is the weapon he has been searching for all along. Now he has to protect her and get her to Aurelis before his enemies get to them first.
I love alien stories and tv shows like Roswell, Star-Crossed, or Colony. So when I first read the synopsis for All the Stars Left Behind, the idea of an ordinary human girl finding out that she is the weapon an alien race needed to save their planet sounded interesting and caught my attention. As a debut sci-fi YA novel about aliens, spaceships, and out of this world creatures, Ms. Graham's novel hit its marks and with the mix of action and moments of suspense, the story of Leda and Roar moved right along.
Where I think All The Stars Left Behind may have fell short, at least for me, is from trying to do too much, in a way. This is especially seen amongst the characters and turning points within the story. Nevertheless, Ms. Graham kept my interest throughout and there were scenes that I enjoyed.
Overall, All the Stars Left Behind by Ashley Graham is a good novel that I recommend based on it's potential and its simple enjoyability as a sci-fi romance.
(I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book I received for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my open and honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.)
June 6, 2017
ashley graham's debut, all the stars left behind, introduces us to leda lindgren. she's recently moved to norway to live with her uncle and grandmother after her father died and her mother went awol. she's not all that excited about living in a new place. and meeting new people. especially since she can expect awkward stares and teasing once she explains her medical condition of spina bifida.
when she meets roar, it's like time stands still.
roar isn't like other boys. he's not from planet earth for one thing. he's been sent to find a weapon for another. and when leda turns out to be the weapon he's looking for all bets are off. it appears that his elders and hers have left a whole lot of information out of their stories. and as drawn as roar and leda are to one another, not just romantically, but genetically, being together could kill them. it could destroy entire species of aliens.
as leda and roar race against time, the woede, the different government agencies who want to conduct interrogation and experiments on them, and the traitors in their midst, their connection deepens and grows beyond anything either of them ever expected. leda always imagined that the only thing people could see when they saw her were her crutches. but roar sees beyond that. he sees her beauty and her intelligence and the light that glows within. that light sets him aglow too.
so they have battles to fight, a war to win, peace to broker. not a big ask for two teenagers in crazy love with each other and forbidden from consummating it. the book doesn't solve every one of their problems. in fact, one thing i liked about the book is how it didn't take easy shortcuts when it came to fixing things. there are a couple of opportunities where the author could have given leda an easy out as to her disability. even though life isn't like that, this is science fiction. the impossible should be possible. in this case though, it means something that it's not.
**all the stars left behind will publish on june 6, 2017. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/entangled publishing (entangled: teen) in exchange for my honest review.
when she meets roar, it's like time stands still.
roar isn't like other boys. he's not from planet earth for one thing. he's been sent to find a weapon for another. and when leda turns out to be the weapon he's looking for all bets are off. it appears that his elders and hers have left a whole lot of information out of their stories. and as drawn as roar and leda are to one another, not just romantically, but genetically, being together could kill them. it could destroy entire species of aliens.
as leda and roar race against time, the woede, the different government agencies who want to conduct interrogation and experiments on them, and the traitors in their midst, their connection deepens and grows beyond anything either of them ever expected. leda always imagined that the only thing people could see when they saw her were her crutches. but roar sees beyond that. he sees her beauty and her intelligence and the light that glows within. that light sets him aglow too.
so they have battles to fight, a war to win, peace to broker. not a big ask for two teenagers in crazy love with each other and forbidden from consummating it. the book doesn't solve every one of their problems. in fact, one thing i liked about the book is how it didn't take easy shortcuts when it came to fixing things. there are a couple of opportunities where the author could have given leda an easy out as to her disability. even though life isn't like that, this is science fiction. the impossible should be possible. in this case though, it means something that it's not.
**all the stars left behind will publish on june 6, 2017. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/entangled publishing (entangled: teen) in exchange for my honest review.
June 6, 2017
First off, I have to applaud Ashley Graham for including a heroine, who has a disability, into a Sci-Fi novel. More times than not, disabilities are only included in books where they are the central focus, and so they are usually dramas/tear jerkers. There were times I wasn't sure if it was realistic or not (like guys only showed interest in the main character, Leda, until they saw her crutches), but I've never had a physical disability, so I'm not one to talk. Maybe guys are really that shallow (though, I would like to think that they aren't.)
As for the story itself. I liked the premise. I like the idea of a normal, every-day, person secretly harboring the ability to be a weapon strong enough to save an entire planet--and not even knowing it. That is such an awesome idea. Unfortunately, it was better in theory, than in practice.
The plot was ok, though the ending was quite confusing for me. What really made this novel hard to read, though, was the relationship between Leda and Roar ( I love his name, by the way). The first time they meet, Roar catches Leda before she falls and he holds her while they stare into each other's eyes--for a ridiculously long time. And it only gets worse from there. There is no build up to this relationship, they are just automatically all over each other, all the time. I get it, she's the weapon and he's genetically made to be drawn to the weapon. But whether or not they are drawn to each other through no fault of their own...it needed to be done differently. And because the story seems to hinge around their relationship and not as much around the 'save the world' premise, it made me feel like everything else fell a part because of it.
I really liked the supporting characters, for the most part, and they added a lot to the story. One of my favorites is deaf, so kudos to Ashley for bringing in more diversity, but they are overshadowed by Leda and Roar and lose the effectiveness they could have brought to the story.
So, even though I feel like it had potential to be good, I'm going to have to give it 2 out of 5 Stars
*Has some sexual innuendos, and some vulgarity*
As for the story itself. I liked the premise. I like the idea of a normal, every-day, person secretly harboring the ability to be a weapon strong enough to save an entire planet--and not even knowing it. That is such an awesome idea. Unfortunately, it was better in theory, than in practice.
The plot was ok, though the ending was quite confusing for me. What really made this novel hard to read, though, was the relationship between Leda and Roar ( I love his name, by the way). The first time they meet, Roar catches Leda before she falls and he holds her while they stare into each other's eyes--for a ridiculously long time. And it only gets worse from there. There is no build up to this relationship, they are just automatically all over each other, all the time. I get it, she's the weapon and he's genetically made to be drawn to the weapon. But whether or not they are drawn to each other through no fault of their own...it needed to be done differently. And because the story seems to hinge around their relationship and not as much around the 'save the world' premise, it made me feel like everything else fell a part because of it.
I really liked the supporting characters, for the most part, and they added a lot to the story. One of my favorites is deaf, so kudos to Ashley for bringing in more diversity, but they are overshadowed by Leda and Roar and lose the effectiveness they could have brought to the story.
So, even though I feel like it had potential to be good, I'm going to have to give it 2 out of 5 Stars
*Has some sexual innuendos, and some vulgarity*
June 9, 2017
2 Stars
This is a genre (YA/Sci-fi) that I don't read often, but truly enjoy when I do. Unfortunately, All the Stars Left Behind was an exception and a difficult read for me. The story had a great premise and potential, but I struggled with various points in the execution. Throughout the story, I felt like there could have been more details or detailed writing. In the first few chapters, especially, there were whiplash inducing scene changes where I was left feeling lost and confused. Many times I had to re-read the previous paragraph to check if I had missed something vital. The lack of details created choppy transitions in the story and disrupted the entire reading flow. Also, while the book was an unusually slow read for me, the story's time frame was lightning fast. I'm not bothered by the insta-love between the two main characters, but with the pacing, some statements and actions didn't make sense to the time that they occurred. This pacing also made it difficult for me to connect with the characters and the story overall. After the 50% mark the story picked up exponentially. Personally, I didn't care for the direction and how it played out, but the story and flow improved.
Since this is clearly my subjective opinion, I was vague with my own details so not to spoil anything for the next reader. (I voluntarily read an advanced copy of All the Stars Left Behind via Entangled Teen/Netgalley. This review was my honest and unbiased opinion)
This is a genre (YA/Sci-fi) that I don't read often, but truly enjoy when I do. Unfortunately, All the Stars Left Behind was an exception and a difficult read for me. The story had a great premise and potential, but I struggled with various points in the execution. Throughout the story, I felt like there could have been more details or detailed writing. In the first few chapters, especially, there were whiplash inducing scene changes where I was left feeling lost and confused. Many times I had to re-read the previous paragraph to check if I had missed something vital. The lack of details created choppy transitions in the story and disrupted the entire reading flow. Also, while the book was an unusually slow read for me, the story's time frame was lightning fast. I'm not bothered by the insta-love between the two main characters, but with the pacing, some statements and actions didn't make sense to the time that they occurred. This pacing also made it difficult for me to connect with the characters and the story overall. After the 50% mark the story picked up exponentially. Personally, I didn't care for the direction and how it played out, but the story and flow improved.
Since this is clearly my subjective opinion, I was vague with my own details so not to spoil anything for the next reader. (I voluntarily read an advanced copy of All the Stars Left Behind via Entangled Teen/Netgalley. This review was my honest and unbiased opinion)
May 28, 2017
**Book provided through NetGalley for an honest review.
Wow this book!
I have to say I was very impressed by the storyline and how things sort of developed and the little twists and turns!!!
When I requested this book I had high expectations because not only is the cover amazing, the description of the book just makes you want to read it instantly.
I couldn't really read it right away as much as I wanted because my life is just crazy right now and it's taking forever to get through books nowadays, but gosh was it hard to stop reading and go to work or bed? I really liked the story, and where I think it might be going, I sure hope there is more books to come because the end is kind of uncertain, but good at the same time if that makes any sense?
I would definitely recommend this story!
The only reason it doesn't get a five out of five stars is just because there were just some things that I totally missed or just didn't understand I guess and it all just might be because I could not read it all at once like I would have like to. But it's an amazing book!
Here it's my favorite line:
It's not the most romantic thing in the world, but it still made my heart swoon a little bit!
Wow this book!
I have to say I was very impressed by the storyline and how things sort of developed and the little twists and turns!!!
When I requested this book I had high expectations because not only is the cover amazing, the description of the book just makes you want to read it instantly.
I couldn't really read it right away as much as I wanted because my life is just crazy right now and it's taking forever to get through books nowadays, but gosh was it hard to stop reading and go to work or bed? I really liked the story, and where I think it might be going, I sure hope there is more books to come because the end is kind of uncertain, but good at the same time if that makes any sense?
I would definitely recommend this story!
The only reason it doesn't get a five out of five stars is just because there were just some things that I totally missed or just didn't understand I guess and it all just might be because I could not read it all at once like I would have like to. But it's an amazing book!
Here it's my favorite line:
"We can still love each other in the ways that matter."
It's not the most romantic thing in the world, but it still made my heart swoon a little bit!
May 4, 2017
I receive this book from NetGalley and Entangled Publishing, LLC in exchange for my honest review.
Leda has spina bifida and lives with her Grandmother and uncle. Her mother has never really cared for her and her loving and supportive father has recently past away. Life is boring until the day she meets Roar and his moving tattoos. She feels drawn to him and wants to figure out why. From there she is thrown into a wild ride of secrets, adventure and finding out her life purpose.
When I read the synopsis I really thought I would love this book. However, it lacked fluidity and made it hard to follow at times. The characters seemed to appear within a scene suddenly and the locations changed abruptly. I had to re-read a lot to be able to follow what was happening and even then it was confusing at times.
The storyline was very predictable, as was the ending. There were a few twists that were randomly thrown in there that were abrupt. They had a place in the story, as they gave reasons for why everything was happening but it didn't flow well. I have never had to re-read a book more than this one.
Leda has spina bifida and lives with her Grandmother and uncle. Her mother has never really cared for her and her loving and supportive father has recently past away. Life is boring until the day she meets Roar and his moving tattoos. She feels drawn to him and wants to figure out why. From there she is thrown into a wild ride of secrets, adventure and finding out her life purpose.
When I read the synopsis I really thought I would love this book. However, it lacked fluidity and made it hard to follow at times. The characters seemed to appear within a scene suddenly and the locations changed abruptly. I had to re-read a lot to be able to follow what was happening and even then it was confusing at times.
The storyline was very predictable, as was the ending. There were a few twists that were randomly thrown in there that were abrupt. They had a place in the story, as they gave reasons for why everything was happening but it didn't flow well. I have never had to re-read a book more than this one.
May 9, 2017
This book was not terrible with an interesting plot that had the normal themes of romance, adventure and action but with aliens. Some of the writing seemed jagged as if the author started to go one way then got lost in thought, forgot where she was going and decided to just try to keep going. Sometimes I had to reread sections to understand what she was trying to convey.
It actually reminded me a bit of Men In Black 2 with the idea of a long lost girl who didn’t know she was an ‘alien’ as she was sent to live among humans for her own safety. The ending I kind of saw coming because the storyline was a bit on the predictable side and this kind of plot has been done before but it was still written in a logical manner so everything made sense.
Even with some bumps here and there I still came away feeling like it was a good use of my time because the plot was interesting, besides I loved the MIB franchise and this just kept reminding me of those movies thanks to some great action scenes.
It actually reminded me a bit of Men In Black 2 with the idea of a long lost girl who didn’t know she was an ‘alien’ as she was sent to live among humans for her own safety. The ending I kind of saw coming because the storyline was a bit on the predictable side and this kind of plot has been done before but it was still written in a logical manner so everything made sense.
Even with some bumps here and there I still came away feeling like it was a good use of my time because the plot was interesting, besides I loved the MIB franchise and this just kept reminding me of those movies thanks to some great action scenes.
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