by Diana Peterfreund
YA Dystopia
Published: June 12th 2012
Goodreads Link
Blurb:
It's been several generations since a genetic experiment gone wrong cause the Reduction, decimating humanity and giving rise to a Luddite nobility who outlawed most technology.
Elliot North has always known her place in this world. Four years ago Elliot refused to run away with her childhood sweetheart, the servant Kai, choosing duty to her family's estate over love. Since then the world has changed: a new class of Post-Reductionists is jumpstarting the wheel of progress, and Elliot's estate is foundering, forcing her to rent land to the mysterious Cloud Fleet, a group of shipbuilders that includes renowned explorer Captain Malakai Wentforth--an almost unrecognizable Kai. And while Elliot wonders if this could be their second chance, Kai seems determined to show Elliot exactly what she gave up when she let him go.
But Elliot soon discovers her old friend carries a secret--one that could change their society... or bring it to its knees. And again, she's faced with a choice: cling to what she's been raised to believe, or cast her lot with the only boy she's ever loved, even if she's lost him forever.
Inspired by Jane Austen's Persuasion, For Darkness Shows the Stars is a breathtaking romance about opening your mind to the future and your heart to the one person you know can break it.
My Review:
**3 Stars**
Even though I do not like Jane Austen's books (any of them), I decided to give For Darkness Shows the Stars a chance. Parts of it were better than expected, and parts were just as confusing and boring as any Austen novel I have read.
I couldn't tell if this dystopian society was formed from our world, or a magical made up land. I guess we will probably learn more in the next book, but it would have been nice to see in this one. I really don't understand how the Reduction really happened. It was very confusing to follow. I understand the Posts, but how the Lost became the Reduced (not why - I get that) in the first place was just confusing.
I like Elliot and I don't. She is a great character, but very stupid for most of the book. Also, how did she create the new wheat if there was no genetic instructions anywhere anymore? Did she figure it out herself? And if that is the case, wouldn't it have taken years and years, even if she was a genius? Kai... oh how I hate Kai. Yes, he comes around towards the end, but I still don't like him. He hates Elliot for making the right choice and he knows it was the right choice. He was just being selfish, childish, and stupid.
I was invested enough to want to continue the series. I am sure a lot of questions will be answered and we will see more inventions, lands, and exciting new adventures.
