528 pages
English language
Published Jan. 1, 2019 by Orion Publishing Group, Limited.
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.
Satisfying coming of age and coming to terms with fraught systems of power, with an interesting world at war to make sense of and plenty of sarcasm. But, a lot of military and courage and fight filling in for connections.
This was a very enjoyable read. I approached it as a standalone novella, yet was surprised to see it's a full length novel (~500 pages) and the first in a series. This means there's more cool things to see in this world. It's among the few Sanderson sci-fi works I've read so it's good to see he can also excel here as he does in fantasy. The characters were cool (especially the ship!) and the plot, though at times predictable, is paced perfectly. This will be a series to look out for.
For a full review, check out my blog: strakul.blogspot.com/2018/12/book-review-skyward-by-brandon-sanderson.html
