These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner {Yomna's Review}

It's a night like any other on board the Icarus. Then, catastrophe strikes: the massive luxury spaceliner is yanked out of hyperspace and plummets into the nearest planet. Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen survive. And they seem to be alone.

Lilac is the daughter of the richest man in the universe. Tarver comes from nothing, a young war hero who learned long ago that girls like Lilac are more trouble than they’re worth. But with only each other to rely on, Lilac and Tarver must work together, making a tortuous journey across the eerie, deserted terrain to seek help.

Then, against all odds, Lilac and Tarver find a strange blessing in the tragedy that has thrown them into each other’s arms. Without the hope of a future together in their own world, they begin to wonder—would they be better off staying here forever?

Everything changes when they uncover the truth behind the chilling whispers that haunt their every step. Lilac and Tarver may find a way off this planet. But they won’t be the same people who landed on it.

The Starbound Trilogy: Three worlds. Three love stories. One enemy.

This review is spoiler free!

Hey guys,

    So this is actually a re-written review (in September 2022) after a recent re-read because I decided I wanted to continue this series since I liked this one so much but did not remember any of the events. The original review was published in February 2016, which is wow, like eons ago, and I'm going to incorporate teenage Yomna's fangirling and excitement from the original review. My first note is that teenage Yomna proclaims that this cover was a total draw for her and the reason for reading the book and I totally agree, this cover is so stunning. I love the vivid red, green, and blue colors.

    These Broken Stars is a Sci-Fi/Fantasy novel and is the first in a co-written trilogy by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner. Our hero and heroine, Tarver and Lilac, are voyaging faster than the speed of light across galaxies on a ship called the Icarus. Lilac is a rich socialite and heiress to the biggest planet-colonizing tycoon, while Tarver is a decorated soldier. On paper, Tarver and Lilac don't make sense together and Lilac's father is overprotective of her to the point of putting anyone who tries to be with her in mortal danger. While on the Icarus, the name of which foretells its fate, disaster strikes and our heroes find themselves ship-wrecked on a foreign planet trying to survive and work together to get help. However, this is more than just a regular survival story, there is something sinister in the wilderness, and I promise you there are some serious twists that you will not see coming at all. 

“You don’t sound like you believe me.”

“It’s our policy in such cases to maintain a certain amount of healthy skepticism.”

“You have a lot of precedent with survivors of serious trauma making things up as they go?”

“Considering the circumstances in which you were stranded and subsequently rescued, we don’t have a lot of precedent for anything.”

“What reason would I have to lie?”

“Now that, Major, is a very interesting question.”

    In fact, this book kept me up until 5AM and I COULD NOT STOP reading, no exaggeration here. I was also mildly terrified of some of the events which made me look around paranoid in the dark in my bedroom. Teenage Yomna says: "I actually ended up turning the lights on and sleeping like that. I just get so scared by these things. I think I actually started praying." So, there you go. Even though this book is heavy on the romance, it is surprisingly suspenseful and for me, it was an at-the-edge-of-the-seat read. Between chapters there are also short snapshots of Tarver being interrogated, so it's fun to read and think about what he might be hiding as the story unfolds. Teenage Yomna says, "I love those kinds of books with content between the chapters. It's so cool. It keeps you going because you want to find out how Tarver ended up having to answer all those questions." Exactly!

    Speaking of the romance, this book is perfect for those who love their Sci-Fi/Fantasy novels heavy on the romance, like me. The story gives a whole new meaning to star-crossed lovers (get it? because they're literally crossing stars) and I loved reading about the characters falling in love. Tarver is a confident hero with some soft spots and teenage Yomna says he's close to Peeta and Prince Maxon (who are the gold standard) on her book boyfriend scale, which is high praise. Lilac is no caricature of a rich popular girl, she has her own quirks and interests which make reading about them both so enjoyable. I was totally gushing and heart-eying the whole time.

“There are sheets, we can make a bed. A proper bed, imagine. We won’t know what to do with it.” She’s laughing as she speaks.

Oh, trust me, Miss LaRoux. I’d know what to do with it. I can think up a whole list of things, if you like.

    Overall, an enjoyable and easy read and I will be checking out the rest of the series ASAP.

Thanks,

Yomna