Across the Universe Review (Spoiler-Free!)

Title: Across the Universe
Author: Beth Revis
Publisher: Razorbill
Published: January 11, 2011
Genre: YA, Dystopian, Sci-Fi
Pages: 398
Source: Personal Copy

A love out of time. A spaceship built of secrets and murder.

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone-one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship-tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

Amy is just a mere piece of the puzzle and cargo on board the Godspeed, a ship of hundreds of people held in a cryostatic sleep until they reach a new planet for their new lives 300 years in the future. Something goes wrong though, and Amy wakes up, far earlier than she should have. It’s supposedly a computer malfunction, but it becomes apparent that someone was actually behind it. She wasn’t meant to live. She was supposed to die. Now Amy’s on a ship of thousands of inhabitants with a life or death mystery on her hands. Someone’s after her, and they might be after her next. Who can she trust, and how will she know she can trust them?

Across the Universe is one of those books that has been hyped from day one. I’ve heard SO much about it, and part of the reason I held off reading it was because I didn’t want it to fall short of the rave reviews. Beth Revis has created a gorgeous, haunting and oddly beautiful and terrifying world within Across the Universe. She has a flowing writing voice – easy to follow and fluid, taking you from event to event in a harrowing plot filled with twists and turns that kept me guessing the whole time.

While I definitely agree that the world within Across the Universe is incredible, weaving an amazing background into the forefront of the story, even though it’s in a future and somewhat sci-fi realm. I felt like I was onboard the Godspeed with Amy, and I loved that I could put myself in her shoes. She’s definitely a relatable character. I also really enjoyed the dual perspectives between Elder and Amy. It let me so the story from two angles, providing more depth and adding tension to the mystery. I also really appreciated a hint of humour that was added by Harley, adding a nice lighthearted touch. That said though, I guess I was expecting a little more romance in Across the Universe, and I felt that it was pretty flat in that department. I also felt a little unsatisfied with the end – in fact, I kind of felt hollow when it was done.

All in all, Across the Universe is a well-written debut with great characters and a plot that moves well – all of which temper the pretty significant flaws. I enjoyed it for the most part, and I give it a high 3.5 out of 5. I’d recommend Across the Universe to fans of YA, sci-fi and dystopian stories.