I received my copy from the publisher.
By: Amy Kathleen Ryan
Waverley and Kieran are young, still teenagers, but having grown up on a space ship they are contemplating marriage. Fertility and the continuation of the species is of primary importance to those on the Empyrean. Then they come in contact with the New Horizon – a ship that had been sent out a year before theirs and one they should never have met up with. Now events are spiraling out of control and the young couple find themselves separated after a violent battle. It soon becomes obvious that both sides are lying to suit their own, less than honest, purposes.
Kieran finds himself struggling to make command decisions he simply isn’t equipped to make, and finds mutiny is a very real threat. Waverley finds herself struggling for survival and to uncover the truth in a strange environment surrounded by people who lie and hurt her. She is determined though to save all the girls from the Empyrean, but is she strong enough to convince others of the hidden truths?
This story twists and turns as these characters are thrust into a fight for their very survival. The central three; Kieran, Waverley and Seth, are complex and there is an uncertain dynamic between them. There are times when you find yourself not necessarily liking them. The relationship between the two boys is very interesting, they are both burdened by what they perceive as their duty; Kieran’s to command and Seth’s not to let a person like the previous captain take control of the ship.
This is a tensely woven drama in which society is shrunk to a microcosm of two space ships. On the Empyrean the story plays out as survival of the inexperienced, manifesting in the form of force. On board the New Horizon, manipulation is the means to an end with little regard to who suffers along the way, all of which is disguised under the costume of religion.
In the end the lines blur as brute force and religion fan into flames more than just the drive for survival.
As it all plays out it becomes obvious that the things Waverley thought were a good idea in the beginning may not be, and this is the start of what could turn out to be a complicated love triangle.
Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia
Published: 01 October 2011
Format: Paperback 320 pages
Categories: Science Fiction
ISBN 13: 9781742610320
Purchase: here or use Booktopia logo on side of page
TheKylieVerse 
Leave a Reply