emeliz558's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
fenrirworg's review
I was excited to read this book because the premise seemed interesting and the romance cute... but it was a struggle to read. Granted I'm not the target audience age-wise (I am 27) I think a 15-18 year old would enjoy it more. That being said, the magic in this world was hard to understand, at times a lot of information was given to us and at others nothing was said. As far as the romance goes, Then when it comes to just the "mysteries" and plot points of the book absolutely nothing is left to the imagination! Anyway, I don't think it's inherently a bad book, it's just not for me.
Spoiler
as soon as the two characters met they were in love at first sight and afraid the other would "get them in trouble" when these are two well behaved boys, almost too well behaved considering Caspers doing nothing to escape what is basically his imprisonment here.Spoiler
we are introduced to a mystery then it's solved the next chapter. We're not able to theorize or make any of our own assumptions at all. It's quite frustrating especially for people like me who enjoy theorizing about little detailsmaleesha's review
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5
silence_underrated's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Classism, Panic attacks/disorders, and Abandonment
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Homophobia, and Violence
Minor: Death of parent, Sexual assault, Drug abuse, Addiction, Religious bigotry, and Outing
nangears's review
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
mallorypen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Whelp. That was a thing that happened.
Okay, the concept was interesting. Yes, the Chosen One trope was boring, but a city built into a moon? Political scheming? It had the opportunity to be really cool, but the characterization issues and the absolute lack of anything that resembled pacing really just took this story downhill fast.
Casper’s character was nonexistent. He begins as an ostracized child of an abusive family who is told by the one friend he has left in the world that he tries too hard to be what everyone wants him to be. It’s a super strong start to a novel and to who I expected Casper to be: he’s going to be superb at code switching! He’s going to be very slow to trust, very eager to fit in, and he won’t rock the boat because he’s learned that doing anything outside of conformity is a recipe for violence. I was excited to see that kind of character approach a Chosen One scenario, but then … he sneaks out. He’s immediately a snarky little shit, even when he ought to be catatonic in terror at literally being kidnapped and sent across the universe. He questions authority, he acts without thinking, and he throws himself into a relationship with nary a wobble of doubt or hold ups from a strict religious upbringing.
Some of those characterizations could be attributed to the fact that he’s trying to process everything he’s ever known changing, and that he now has superpowers beyond those that even the people around him possess. But I never really got a sense of who Casper is, which made the opening salvo of “if you stopped trying to be someone different for everyone” a deeply ironic and self-fulfilling prophecy.
Helix was another character who seemed to struggle finding his voice, but not quite to the same level as Casper. He’s set up to be a deeply ambitious and singularly focused person, but his focus splits so quickly once he’s presented with Casper, and then with Peter’s illicit activities. I could see a growth arc for him as his beliefs are challenged, but his ambition/learning to grow past his selfish desire could have been a much stronger motivator for him.
And the pair of them together … blech. Instalove, followed by cringe.
And the PACING. For the freakin’ love, the story was all over the place. The multiple POV got clumsy really quickly; the time during which certain events took place was incredibly hard to follow, and apparently being the Telos means you can get abs in 30 days or less.
Finally, the villain kind of bothered me from an anti-Semitic perspective. You have a people who leave their home, guided by a mythic figure of great power who promises the people a new home; it takes them generations to find new home, only to have it be inhospitable. Then you have Jacob, our villain, constantly push for the people to make this promised land work as a settlement … it just had too many parallels to Jewish stories for me to be comfortable with the portray of Jacob.
I give this story points for creativity in the premise, clarity of writing action scenes where powers are involved, and the morally gray character of Breesa. Beyond that, this was a dumpster fire.
Okay, the concept was interesting. Yes, the Chosen One trope was boring, but a city built into a moon? Political scheming? It had the opportunity to be really cool, but the characterization issues and the absolute lack of anything that resembled pacing really just took this story downhill fast.
Casper’s character was nonexistent. He begins as an ostracized child of an abusive family who is told by the one friend he has left in the world that he tries too hard to be what everyone wants him to be. It’s a super strong start to a novel and to who I expected Casper to be: he’s going to be superb at code switching! He’s going to be very slow to trust, very eager to fit in, and he won’t rock the boat because he’s learned that doing anything outside of conformity is a recipe for violence. I was excited to see that kind of character approach a Chosen One scenario, but then … he sneaks out. He’s immediately a snarky little shit, even when he ought to be catatonic in terror at literally being kidnapped and sent across the universe. He questions authority, he acts without thinking, and he throws himself into a relationship with nary a wobble of doubt or hold ups from a strict religious upbringing.
Some of those characterizations could be attributed to the fact that he’s trying to process everything he’s ever known changing, and that he now has superpowers beyond those that even the people around him possess. But I never really got a sense of who Casper is, which made the opening salvo of “if you stopped trying to be someone different for everyone” a deeply ironic and self-fulfilling prophecy.
Helix was another character who seemed to struggle finding his voice, but not quite to the same level as Casper. He’s set up to be a deeply ambitious and singularly focused person, but his focus splits so quickly once he’s presented with Casper, and then with Peter’s illicit activities. I could see a growth arc for him as his beliefs are challenged, but his ambition/learning to grow past his selfish desire could have been a much stronger motivator for him.
And the pair of them together … blech. Instalove, followed by cringe.
Spoiler
The scene on the surface of the planet was awkward and awful and just about made me DNF. It’s really hard to like Casper when he’s being a selfish little shit while his maybe-boyfriend is actively grieving his grandmother’s grisly murder. As someone who had to code switch his entire life, it would have made so much sense for Casper to be more sensitive to the emotions of people around him; that strength would have been an excellent foil for a more ambitious/single-focused Helix, but nope. Helix got the emotional intelligence, and Casper got to whine a bunch and then have Helix apologize for upsetting him too.And the PACING. For the freakin’ love, the story was all over the place. The multiple POV got clumsy really quickly; the time during which certain events took place was incredibly hard to follow, and apparently being the Telos means you can get abs in 30 days or less.
Finally, the villain kind of bothered me from an anti-Semitic perspective. You have a people who leave their home, guided by a mythic figure of great power who promises the people a new home; it takes them generations to find new home, only to have it be inhospitable. Then you have Jacob, our villain, constantly push for the people to make this promised land work as a settlement … it just had too many parallels to Jewish stories for me to be comfortable with the portray of Jacob.
I give this story points for creativity in the premise, clarity of writing action scenes where powers are involved, and the morally gray character of Breesa. Beyond that, this was a dumpster fire.
tara_g's review against another edition
5.0
This ARC was kindly provided to me by the Author and I am writing this honest review after reading it. (In 2 sittings, by the way!!)
What an incredible read! The world building in this novel is absolutely breathtaking, and I feel like I just went on such a personal journey with Cas! The intricacies are so well thought out and the characters all have depth. I am so impressed. I couldn’t put it down. Highly recommend, and I cannot wait to purchase my physical copy, and as a personal note to the Author, hurry up and write book 2! I’m ready!
What an incredible read! The world building in this novel is absolutely breathtaking, and I feel like I just went on such a personal journey with Cas! The intricacies are so well thought out and the characters all have depth. I am so impressed. I couldn’t put it down. Highly recommend, and I cannot wait to purchase my physical copy, and as a personal note to the Author, hurry up and write book 2! I’m ready!
suzreadsalot's review
5.0
Now that i’m getting older, sometimes YA novels don’t hit the same but this one hit and it hit HARD.
ACOS brought a queer normative world, solid mental health rep, a society INSIDE of a moon, and some really cool zodiac based magic. We get to see Casper deconstructing the views he was taught to believe, a freaking adorable romance blooming, and so many twists and turns. I’m excited to read more from Craig in the future!
ACOS brought a queer normative world, solid mental health rep, a society INSIDE of a moon, and some really cool zodiac based magic. We get to see Casper deconstructing the views he was taught to believe, a freaking adorable romance blooming, and so many twists and turns. I’m excited to read more from Craig in the future!
griffyndog626's review against another edition
4.0
Dystopian Chosen One to Save the Stars
This is a YA dystopian novel following Casper as he is ripped from his life on Earth to save the people of Novilem. While he is there he meets so many people, but not everyone is to be trusted. Casper has to figure out his new role as the Telos and find out who he can trust to help him save their world. I really loved the relationship development and how Casper has to grow in his beliefs in order to truly save the people of Novilem. The characters get a HFN ending with a slight cliffhanger. This book is a great read for someone who likes dystopian worlds, a chosen one hero, fish out of water and found family tropes. Please check your triggers, this book deals with forced outing, betrayed and disowned by family and friends for who you love.
This is a YA dystopian novel following Casper as he is ripped from his life on Earth to save the people of Novilem. While he is there he meets so many people, but not everyone is to be trusted. Casper has to figure out his new role as the Telos and find out who he can trust to help him save their world. I really loved the relationship development and how Casper has to grow in his beliefs in order to truly save the people of Novilem. The characters get a HFN ending with a slight cliffhanger. This book is a great read for someone who likes dystopian worlds, a chosen one hero, fish out of water and found family tropes. Please check your triggers, this book deals with forced outing, betrayed and disowned by family and friends for who you love.
satrayreads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5