The Girl and the Stars by Mark Lawrence – a Review

Amazon / B&N / Kobo / BAM / Book Depository / Google Play / Apple

Description:
In the ice, east of the Black Rock, there is a hole into which broken children are thrown.

On Abeth the vastness of the ice holds no room for individuals. Survival together is barely possible. No one survives alone.

To resist the cold, to endure the months of night when even the air itself begins to freeze, requires a special breed. Variation is dangerous, difference is fatal. And Yaz is not the same.

Yaz is torn from the only life she’s ever known, away from her family, from the boy she thought she would spend her days with, and has to carve out a new path for herself in a world whose existence she never suspected. A world full of difference and mystery and danger.

Yaz learns that Abeth is older and stranger than she had ever imagined. She learns that her weaknesses are another kind of strength. And she learns to challenge the cruel arithmetic of survival that has always governed her people.

Only when it’s darkest you can see the stars.

Review:

The Girl and the Stars by Mark Lawrence is the 1^st book in his fantasy Book of Ice series. I have become a big fan of Mark Lawrence after I read and loved his Book of Ancestor series.  I did enjoy The Girl and the Stars, and though it was a good story, I felt this was totally a different kind of read, even if it does take place in the same world as Book of Ancestor. 

We meet Yaz, our heroine, at the start, as the clans, who live in a brutal cold ice-covered world, have to attend every few years a gathering run by the priest regulator.  Yaz fears that she will die, as the priests will push away the children who they consider broken (no ability, disabled, too small or big, etc) into a large hole in the ice never to be seen again.  To Yaz’s shock, the priest keeps her and pushes her younger brother down the black hole; she throws herself down the gap to try and save him. This was an amazing and shocking start that kept us enthralled, as Yaz lands in the dark, and is immediately attacked by a giant monster.  As she tries to run, she is helped by strangers who come to her rescue.

We get to meet many of the survivors (young and older) who live in the ‘Missing’ cities below.  Yaz will join with Arka (who has lived there for 20 years) and her team, who have to survive the dangers, such as Gerant (large beings), Tainted, Hunters (vicious creatures).    I really liked many of the secondary characters Lawrence created, such as Thurin, Erris, Arka, Maya, Quell, and even the bad ones such as Theus and Pome.

What follows is a nonstop action filled story, with everyone trying be a step ahead of the enemies, who are constantly trying to get them to join their team or kill them.  Yaz is determined to find her brother at any cost.  She is pulled away from her group many times along the way, and in doing so, learns about the powers she has with the stars, that will help her and her friends survive.   I loved Yaz, as she became such a great heroine, especially using her stars to guide her. 

The Girl and the Stars was a fantasy in a different kind of world that is beyond normal.  The cruel conditions, the dangerous people, the constant battles and the need to survive keeps us engrossed into this story. To tell too much more would be spoilers, as you really need to read this to understand all the factions involved.  I will say there is sort of a cliffhanger at the end.  If you enjoy fantasy, you can never go wrong with Mark Lawrence. I suggest you read The Girl and the Stars.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy provided by Publisher