Book Nook - Secret Sky: The Young Universe

 I recently had a chance to review a book that is both incredibly intriguing and frustrating at the same time - Secret Sky: The Young Universe. The book starts the story of Skylar, who loses his village and winds up journeying to a far off land with some pretty unbelievable experiences.

I like the narration style. It's written in a very conversational style, as if someone was alongside you telling you the tale. There are a few illustrations in the book to help anchor certain scenes, all beautifully done. There's mystery and adventure, hope and loss - this book really has a lot to offer.

What makes it frustrating is that, like the main character, the reader really doesn't get much in the way of explanation. While there are a few things the reader knows that Skylar doesn't, the reader will have many of the same questions that he does - even when the book ends. In fact, when my daughter asked what the book was about, I couldn't really tell her!

But what makes it frustrating makes it just as intriguing. I am glad that this is part of a series, because I honestly can't wait until book two comes out, so I can (hopefully) get some of those questions answered. I highly recommend this book to any middle grade reader or anyone who likes young adult literature. Even though it's a long book, the easy conversational style and the puzzle of the storyline will keep even reluctant readers engaged.

Bonus - the author bio in the back is really fun to read.

Synopsis:

Billions of years ago, on one of the first-ever Earths, a boy named Skylar will walk away from his home for the last time. Beset by dreams where he flies through the early universe as a sentient starship, he will never be safe if his secret gets out. His only chance to stay alive is to fall in with the same knights who destroyed his peasant village and live under the shadow of the king who sent them to exterminate Skylar’s people.   But powerful dreams have a way of shaping reality, and with each midnight flight across the cosmos, Skylar finds his world—and himself—changing. Magic is another thing which should only exist in dreams, yet Skylar has it—one more secret that needs keeping.   Against a waking life full of monsters, warriors, swords, sorcery, treasure, and ancient mysteries, Skylar has only one key for putting all the pieces together: the Secret Sky that haunts his sleeping mind. T. Alan Horne is a writer of science fiction, fantasy, and tales of high adventure. He specializes in taking familiar genres to new places and creating characters that readers get to keep forever as souvenirs to live in their imaginations. His first book, Advent 9, garnered high praise, and was called “Absolutely Brilliant!” by bestselling author David Farland—the writing teacher and mentor of Brandon Sanderson, Brandon Mull, Stephenie Meyer, and James Dashner.