Scan barcode
A review by wordsofapaige
Skyward Inn by Aliya Whiteley
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
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
5.0
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is your heads-up that it's incredibly hard to talk about this book without spoiling some important things, so if I'm pretty vague that's why.
Skyward Inn has introduced me to an entire sub-genre of Sci-Fi that I'd never considered reading. After this one though, I want nothing more than to buy as much speculative sci-fi as possible and devour them all. Skyward Inn is quiet, and peaceful and yet somehow entirely unnerving, and the last part of the book seriously ramps up the weird. But it's bought to you from such a place of peace and understanding that I didn't find myself freaked out, instead I was intrigued, and gripped by it all.
Skyward Inn follows a group of characters whose histories intertwine and shift around each other. Jem and Isley are a human-Qitan pairing with an entirely unique relationship, and while Isley makes for a very quiet character, more a watcher of the story than a participant. There's still something about their relationship that holds everything in place. Jem's son has arguably the most interesting and action-based story in the book, and he gives us a look into things that was needed and fascinating.
Whiteley blends the weird with the normal, pitting daily struggles of the Protectorate against the intensity of Qita and it's people. They seamlessly run together, until a serene life is created with just an undercurrent of worry and fear. Until the end of the book, which I won't spoil because you need to experience it yourself.
Do not come to this book looking for answers, come looking for a journey.
This is your heads-up that it's incredibly hard to talk about this book without spoiling some important things, so if I'm pretty vague that's why.
Skyward Inn has introduced me to an entire sub-genre of Sci-Fi that I'd never considered reading. After this one though, I want nothing more than to buy as much speculative sci-fi as possible and devour them all. Skyward Inn is quiet, and peaceful and yet somehow entirely unnerving, and the last part of the book seriously ramps up the weird. But it's bought to you from such a place of peace and understanding that I didn't find myself freaked out, instead I was intrigued, and gripped by it all.
Skyward Inn follows a group of characters whose histories intertwine and shift around each other. Jem and Isley are a human-Qitan pairing with an entirely unique relationship, and while Isley makes for a very quiet character, more a watcher of the story than a participant. There's still something about their relationship that holds everything in place. Jem's son has arguably the most interesting and action-based story in the book, and he gives us a look into things that was needed and fascinating.
Whiteley blends the weird with the normal, pitting daily struggles of the Protectorate against the intensity of Qita and it's people. They seamlessly run together, until a serene life is created with just an undercurrent of worry and fear. Until the end of the book, which I won't spoil because you need to experience it yourself.
Do not come to this book looking for answers, come looking for a journey.