These Broken Stars (Starbound, #1) in Casual Readers

Mar 26, 2014 Lola rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: books-that-i-own, paperback-hardcopy

I heard so many good things about this book, which made me excited to finally pick up this book. In some ways this book was like I expected and in other ways completely different. It was a very well written book and I found myself easily turning the pages and getting lost on this book. It's a weird mixture of genres, seeming sci-fi at first sight, but also containing survival, romance and even some horror elements. A big space ship crashes and Lilac and Tarver survive the crash and have to survi I heard so many good things about this book, which made me excited to finally pick up this book. In some ways this book was like I expected and in other ways completely different. It was a very well written book and I found myself easily turning the pages and getting lost on this book. It's a weird mixture of genres, seeming sci-fi at first sight, but also containing survival, romance and even some horror elements. A big space ship crashes and Lilac and Tarver survive the crash and have to survive on the planet. That's where the survival story starts. The story was slow paced at first and it is a mainly character driven book, there is also a strong plot, but it moves more slowly and I found the focus was on the characters.

There is a sense of wrongness that seems persistent through the book, it's obvious something is wrong with the planet. Some mystery that is only revealed towards the very end of the book. The wrongness and mysteriousness almost gave it a creepy feel at times. It made my skin crawl. It was very subtle, but present. there was a twist towards the end that I didn't like too much as it felt off and didn't make much sense. I did really like the ending and how it things got wrapped up.

At first I had a hard time with the characters. Lilac was a spoiled brat and that's putting it nicely. Her father is one of the richest and most powerful people in the universe and she's his daughter. That fame isn't all god, but it was hard to feel even remotely sorry for her when she was acting like a spoiled brat while being stubborn and refusing to listen to Tarver who knew what they where dealing with. Then again I also didn't like Tarver's attitude towards Lilac, sure she might act stupid and stubborn, but she was used to a life of luxury and now she has to survive on a wild planet. I mean that was obviously so out of her comfort zone I think he could've cut her some slack.

Like I mentioned this book is very character driven and it's all about the characters and while they might start out difficult to like that changes, they change a lot. It goes slowly, but we see how what they go through impacts them, brings them closer together, makes them understand each other. They are forced together through circumstances, but it's still great to see these go from almost adversaries to lovers. It goes slowly and the romance builds slowly, but it fit the book. And it kept my attention, so I don't think the slower pace is an issue, although there were a few chapters where I wished things would speed up a little.

It's hard to see Tarver and Lilac their romance separate from their situation and I still wonder if they would've connected without this experience, but then again you can't see them without it as this experience shapes them and changes them and makes them right for each other. I didn't really feel the romance at first, but it becomes clear how much they mean to each other and there are a few scenes which really makes it clear. Lilac might change even more than Tarver does and that might be my favourite part of this book, seeing her adapt to this situation and handling it better than i would've expected. She's stubborn and not giving up, she does what is necessary to survive and I really liked her for that.

I really felt like the author put a lot of effort and time into developing this world and it felt like there was a lot of world building behind it all, but we see very little of it at the same time. The story takes place on board of a ship and on the planet where they try to survive. We see very little from the world except for this tiny piece and while I liked it, I also wished to know ore as I was fascinated by this world and wanted to know how everything worked and what more there is to this world. So I am hoping the later books in this series provide some more pieces of world building.

To conclude: These Broken Stars is a character driven slow paced survival story. There is a sense of wrongness that stay with me most of the book and a mystery which we only understand towards the end of the book. It's a powerful and well written book, although there were some parts i liked less. There was a twist towards the end that felt off, but also one twist which really intrigued me and appalled me at the same time. Seeing Lilac change was one of my favourite parts of this book and it's amazing to see her change into a very different person. The romance is also well done, building slow, but eventually bringing them together. The world building felt well done, but we only get a small piece, I hope to see more of that in the next books. ...more

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Dec 06, 2012 Think rated it it was amazing

Shelves: own-e-book, netgalley-completed, books-loved, 2013-reads

This is now one of my favorite books! These Broken Stars was a beautiful, heart-touching novel that I absolutely loved. The story begins with the meeting of Tarver, a young military hero, and Lilac LaRoux, the daughter of the most powerful man in the universe. Tarver is a country boy at heart that has been thrust into the public limelight after becoming a military hero. Lilac is only sure of one thing in the beginning and that is that she can’t let anyone close to her because they will get hurt. ...more

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May 27, 2013 Lori rated it really liked it

Shelves: from-netgalley, romance, earc-have, read-in-2014, consider-me-swooned, sci-fi

This book was so great and so surprising. I wasn't sure if I would like it because I haven't read many space books that I really enjoyed but I had also seen lots of people talking about how much they liked this one. I finally gave it a try and I'm so glad I did. These Broken Stars is told in Dual POV with both Lilac and Tarver getting their chance to tell their stories. I've rarely seen dual POV work so well (this one was done by two authors and I'm sure that helped) and I loved it in this book. ...more

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Aug 01, 2013 Sandy rated it really liked it

Shelves: arcs, 2013, better-than-i-expected

I wasn't really sure what I was going to get into with These Broken Stars. I don't think of myself as being a big science fiction fan, but I've been surprised by enough books to be open to the genre. And well These Broken Stars lived up to everything I hoped it would.

These Broken Stars alternates POVs between Tarver and Lilac. And I have to say that right off I could tell I was reading from a male perspective even though none of the words specifically said...until well they did. I was immediatel I wasn't really sure what I was going to get into with These Broken Stars. I don't think of myself as being a big science fiction fan, but I've been surprised by enough books to be open to the genre. And well These Broken Stars lived up to everything I hoped it would.

These Broken Stars alternates POVs between Tarver and Lilac. And I have to say that right off I could tell I was reading from a male perspective even though none of the words specifically said...until well they did. I was immediately impressed with the writing that could tell me without telling me that I was reading from a male's POV. One of the things I always look for when reading books with multiple POVs is whether or not the characters have a distinct voice. And they definitely do.

When we're first brought into this story, our characters are aboard a giant spaceship that I really looked at as kind of like a cruise ship--probably because of the reference to the Promenade deck. Where some people might turn their nose up, I found this helpful for picturing the characters' surroundings. Of course I wasn't picturing the 70s orange or red carpet often found on cruise ships but a much more black, silver...metal themed decor.

Of course, the Icarus doesn't stay in space through the whole book. As the description above states, the Icarus crashes onto a planet that appears no one really expected to be there. It would seem a little too odd and predictable that our two main characters are the only ones who survive this crash, but the authors did a great job formulating a feasible reason for this.

Speaking of characters, I guess I should really discuss them. Tarver's a war hero. He's young to be such, but he's proven himself in the field. We don't get as much of his military background story and I hope that this is fixed with the other installments in the series. Lilac's history is a little more flushed out. Her father happens to be the richest man in the entire universe. And because of this, Lilac faces the typical conflict of everyone wanting something from her. Men want her money. Women want her status. The poor want her to take their ideas to her father, and the rich want to parade her about. She hates this, but she doesn't quite know how to escape it either.

I didn't quite blow through this book. I had to stop and put it down for various reasons, but every time that I did I kept thinking about it and wanting to come back to it. The writing kept me intrigued. Twists and turns in the plot kept me guessing. Things really picked up in the last 25%. And events take place around the 75% mark that had me biting my nails. It was at this point I was completely unable to put These Broken Stars down until I devoured every page.

Ultimately, I really enjoyed this one. While reading it, I kept thinking that it kind of reminded me of Under the Never Sky. I can't quite point out why, but I think fans of Under the Never Sky will enjoy These Broken Stars as well. Definitely putting book 2 on my radar to pick up as soon as I can.

These Broken Stars gets 4 Stars from me. Have you read These Broken Stars? What did you think?

For more reviews, check out Somewhere Only We Know. ...more

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May 13, 2012 Kayla Beck Kalnasy rated it really liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, young-adult, mystery, romance, 2013-release, 2013-read, dac-2013, outer-space, arc-atw, debut

Would you like to know what makes me happy? Young adult science fiction does and These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner is a respectable addition to the genre. The book centers on heiress Lilac Laroux and Major Tarver Merendsen, who survive when the spaceliner, Icarus, crashes and are stranded on what appears to be an uninhabited planet. Throw in some mystery and science, and voila! These Broken Stars .

I think one of the first things that should be addressed in this review Would you like to know what makes me happy? Young adult science fiction does and These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner is a respectable addition to the genre. The book centers on heiress Lilac Laroux and Major Tarver Merendsen, who survive when the spaceliner, Icarus, crashes and are stranded on what appears to be an uninhabited planet. Throw in some mystery and science, and voila! These Broken Stars .

I think one of the first things that should be addressed in this review is all of the hype around These Broken Stars . According to Meagan Spooner and Amie Kaufman’s newsletter, their novel is the most requested book on Goodreads. That is a pretty high standard to live up to, but I feel like it takes away from this book. The hype monster builds, builds, builds These Broken Stars up, and it’s left a little bit shaky. Now don’t get me wrong, it’s not a bad book but not something that I would’ve knowledgeably spent a year on pins and needles waiting for.

I liked the characters in These Broken Stars quite a bit. Lilac is an über-rich debutante who is on a pleasure trip with her best friend and bodyguards-in-bodices on her daddy’s ship, the Icarus. Tarver Merendsen is a major at the ripe old age of nineteen-twentyish who comes from humble roots. Of course, they’re thrown in together at the start of the novel for a rocky start to build intrigue, and there is more to them than it would seem to one another. (It’s not a bad thing.) What I liked best is that there is an air of mystery about the “more”. Where did Lilac get those tricks up her sleeves? And how in the hell did Tarver Merendsen go from soldier to major on the battlefield?

The world-building is where I got a little hung up in These Broken Stars . I read and loved Skylark by Meagan Spooner, so my expectations were pretty astronomical (see what I did there?) of how the setting and plot unfolded together. I just had too many questions about how things worked. For instance – terraforming. If it was only partially terraformed because of the particular trees used, why were there animals. If there had to be a mirror moon thingy, then they could not occur naturally, right? Yes, I’m one of those weird people who wants to know how the science works. I wanted to pat Lilac and Tarver on the head, tell them they’re cute, and send them to make out in a cave so I could LEARN THINGS. And then again, I may’ve missed the forest in this book because of all the damned trees in the way.

The long and short of it is, These Broken Stars is a good book, but not what I thought it was hyped up to be. I will be rereading it when I get my finished copy, and maybe it will be All The Things for me like Skylark was. Or – more hopefully – I’ll be able to judge it against itself and not a book by one of the authors. If all else fails, I’ll have a pretty piece of literary artwork to face out on my bookshelf.

3.5/5 Stars
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Mar 23, 2013 Angie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: romance, favorites, ya, kindle-library, dystopia-and-sci-fi

Ok, wow. I had this HUGE, awesome review typed and somehow lost it. Can't believe I haven't learned my lesson on typing into web browsers. Let's see if I can salvage this...

I don't know what took me so long to read this book, probably the feeling that I haven't had the best of luck with space books of late. But, I am so glad I did and on the upside, now it's only a few months until the next book in the series will be released. This book was AMAZING and if you are looking for a book that can make ...more

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