Skyward (Skyward #1) by Brandon Sanderson

Published by Delacorte Press

Young Adult, Sci-Fi

Release Date : November 6th 2018

SYNOPSIS

Defeated, crushed, and driven almost to extinction, the remnants of the human race are trapped on a planet that is constantly attacked by mysterious alien starfighters. Spensa, a teenage girl living among them, longs to be a pilot. When she discovers the wreckage of an ancient ship, she realizes this dream might be possible—assuming she can repair the ship, navigate flight school, and (perhaps most importantly) persuade the strange machine to help her. Because this ship, uniquely, appears to have a soul.

“It has always seemed to me that a coward is a person who cares more about what people say than about what is right. Bravery isn’t about what people call you, Spensa. It’s about who you know yourself to be.”

A surviving colony of humans forced to flee and live on a deserted planet surrounded by a ring of giant floating space debris. The Krell, enemy to humanity threatening to destroy all human kind. Standing between human and The Krell is the starship pilots. After years of fighting one historical battle changed the circumstances for humans, but ended with one of the pilots fleeing and branded a coward.
Spensa Nightshade, daughter of the coward determined to clear her father’s name.

I had never feared the darkness … You couldn’t fear the dark if you were a fighter. And I was a fighter.

Starting this book I was skeptical because I’ve heard such good things about it and Brandon Sanderson. Prior to knowing his other books, I didn’t understand the hype for the man but after reading it I understood completely. Brandon’s writing is truly one of the best I’ve read this year. It was so easy to get sucked into the story. Every detail of the world was so intricate and was so immaculately written.

“Be different. Set your sights on something higher.”
“Something more grand.”
“Claim the stars.”

Spensa is such a strong protagonist, her presence and development in general throughout the story is realistic (to me). In my life, I definitely know a few people that are like her. Her confidence and the way she presents herself , not backing down or giving up from anything, and truly deadset on being a pilot is very admirable. It was a challenge for her to earn her spot as a pilot. Throughout the span of her training, she gradually matured with each chapter I read.

The world and all the other characters also helped her progress to be the girl she is by the end of the book. Without her piers, her trainer, and everyone else she interacted she could not become Spensa the pilot. Her interactions with the characters was so fun and witty. They also made their presence known even though they only appeared on a few pages, you can’t help getting attached to them. Plot wise it all transpired in a very entertaining way and presented so well to the readers. Everything was balanced very well between the world, the characters, and the story. Skyward (for me) is a good introduction to Brandon Sanderson. I am prepared to commit myself to reading all of his books. Some people would recommend Mistborn but I prefer for you to read this one first.