Sunday, December 7, 2014

(Short) Review: This Night So Dark by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner



This review is intended for those who have already read These Broken Stars, book #1 in the Starbound series. I will do my best to avoid major spoilers, but this won't make much sense if you haven't read book #1. If you have not read These Broken Stars.... go read These Broken Stars! It is fabulous!

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This Night So Dark (Starbound #1.5) by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Format: eBook (free)
Where to get it: click here-authors' site
Goodreads link: (click here)

Before Tarver Merendsen was a passenger on the Icarus. Before Tarver met Lilac LaRoux. Before the Icarus crashed on a mysterious and dangerous planet. Before Tarver and Lilac fell in love. Before they discovered a conspiracy bigger than the galaxy they live in. Before all of this, Tarver became a war hero. This is the story of how he earned his medals, which is why he ended up on the Icarus. This is the beginning of Tarver's story.


I love reading anything set in this gorgeous world. This novella connects the books These Broken Stars and This Shattered World, but it is actually kind of a prequel to These Broken Stars. Stay with me on this one. It takes place after the events of book #1, but it is Tarver telling the story of how he became a decorated military hero, which happened before the events in book #1. Even though it is technically a prequel, it does give away some things about book #1, so it shouldn't be read before book #1. It is truly meant to be read between books #1 & #2. Still with me?

This Night So Dark is Tarver's action-packed adventure, in which he saves the lives of a group of scientists from dangerous mercenaries. It actually begins the uncovering of a greater conspiracy that spans this entire story. It is definitely a must read and a great primer for the next book, This Shattered World (which I read before This Night So Dark). I advise reading This Night So Dark before reading This Shattered World. It sets the mood for what's about to come since there is more action in both. These Broken Stars was part Titanic in Space and part Survivor with romance and head-spinning twists. This Shattered World is full of action, drama and romance, but there is a lot of plot going on, and it's important to understand how far the big conspiracy reaches. Tarver was involved in it long before he even realized it. Of course, he puts it all together eventually. I have a feeling that the events and possibly some characters in This Night So Dark will be very important at some point in this series. This novella also reveals what caused the Icarus to crash. It's definitely worth reading this, but just a warning, it isn't very long. It's quality, not quantity. Less than half of this download is the story. It is followed by a note from the authors and the first few chapters of both These Broken Stars and This Shattered World. If you're waiting for This Shattered World, you can get started reading it now. 


The Starbound series is a beautifully written, complex, ambitious, epic, sci-fi adventure. 
I highly recommend them.



I will post a review of This Shattered World soon.

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<3 Michelle



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