This book is the best of two worlds: a sci-fi heroine trapped in a fantasy. Andra wakes from cryogenic sleep nearly 1000 years too late. What she finds is a society utterly unlike the one she left behind. She is now considered a goddess, and she is expected to save the world using powers she doesn't think she possesses. Guided by a bastard prince, Andra must figure out where she is, just how she got there, and who she has become.
I was instantly intrigued by the premise of this novel when I heard about it in late 2019. I expected, and was given, all the best parts of science fiction and fantasy rolled into one YA novel. Andra is from a world of technology, where a simple thought can turn on a light or perform a task. The tech she uses is similar to many of the usual tropes, but it is described and used in ways I have never seen before. Nanobots swirl in the air, latching on to technological impulses and orders. Bots can do everything from serve tea to create a spaceship from scratch.
The fantasy aspect of this novel comes from the people of the world in which Andra wakes. They do not see technology as science, but as magic that few have learned to wield. Zhade, the bastard prince who wakes Andra, is a sorcer, one of the people trained to handle magic. He has his own motivations for waking the "goddess," only some of which involve saving the planet. Through his eyes, we are able to understand more about the world we have been thrust into, and we also get glimpses of some of what has happened before Andra wakes up.
My major complaint with this book, if it can be called major, is actually something I also admire about it. The author has created a sort of pidgin English that the inhabitants of the world speak, although we mainly see what they call "High Goddess" and not much of what typical people speak. It was entertaining and informative to pick out the patterns in the language, to see which word or phrase evolved into what the author created. However, I did find that the way Zhade used the language often made him feel younger than he was meant to be. I enjoyed his character for the most part, but I had a difficult time believing in him as a love interest for Andra. She often seemed older than him (mentally, not physically; I know she has been around 1000 years), and I wasn't completely sold. I wouldn't have noticed as much, I don't think, if it was not contrasted with the way Guv Maret speaks. Somehow, he still had gravitas and depth even within the more casual (to my ears) speech.
Overall, though, this was a solid series opener. I'm not sure if this is a duology or trilogy, but I am looking forward to the next installment. I was a little thrown by the ending, but I trust the author to get us where we are going with style, action, and excitement!
I was instantly intrigued by the premise of this novel when I heard about it in late 2019. I expected, and was given, all the best parts of science fiction and fantasy rolled into one YA novel. Andra is from a world of technology, where a simple thought can turn on a light or perform a task. The tech she uses is similar to many of the usual tropes, but it is described and used in ways I have never seen before. Nanobots swirl in the air, latching on to technological impulses and orders. Bots can do everything from serve tea to create a spaceship from scratch.
The fantasy aspect of this novel comes from the people of the world in which Andra wakes. They do not see technology as science, but as magic that few have learned to wield. Zhade, the bastard prince who wakes Andra, is a sorcer, one of the people trained to handle magic. He has his own motivations for waking the "goddess," only some of which involve saving the planet. Through his eyes, we are able to understand more about the world we have been thrust into, and we also get glimpses of some of what has happened before Andra wakes up.
My major complaint with this book, if it can be called major, is actually something I also admire about it. The author has created a sort of pidgin English that the inhabitants of the world speak, although we mainly see what they call "High Goddess" and not much of what typical people speak. It was entertaining and informative to pick out the patterns in the language, to see which word or phrase evolved into what the author created. However, I did find that the way Zhade used the language often made him feel younger than he was meant to be. I enjoyed his character for the most part, but I had a difficult time believing in him as a love interest for Andra. She often seemed older than him (mentally, not physically; I know she has been around 1000 years), and I wasn't completely sold. I wouldn't have noticed as much, I don't think, if it was not contrasted with the way Guv Maret speaks. Somehow, he still had gravitas and depth even within the more casual (to my ears) speech.
Overall, though, this was a solid series opener. I'm not sure if this is a duology or trilogy, but I am looking forward to the next installment. I was a little thrown by the ending, but I trust the author to get us where we are going with style, action, and excitement!