Author: Maria V Snyder
Genre: Science Fiction
Source: Harlequin
Goodreads
New York Times bestselling author Maria Snyder returns with a compelling new sci-fi series. Perfect for fans of Star Wars and Poison Study.Review by Nara
Year 2471. A new discovery. Those three words thrill my parents – the galaxy's leading archaeologists – but for me, it means another time jump to a different planet. One so big, my friends will be older than my dad when we arrive. And I'll still be seventeen. Thanks, Einstein. I really can't blame Einstein, though. No one expected to find life–sized terracotta warriors buried on other planets. So off we go to investigate, traveling through space and time. With my social life in ruins, I fill my days illegally worming into the quantum net – the invention that allows us to travel in space. Of course the only person close to my age is a hot–but–pain–in–the–neck security officer who threatens to throw me into the brig. But when one of the warrior planets goes silent, we have bigger problems on our hands. The planet's entire population might be dead. And now my worming skills, along with a translation of an ancient alien artefact, might be the key to finding out why. But my attempts to uncover the truth lead to the discovery of a deadly new alien phenomenon, and also alert those who wish to keep it quiet. The galaxy is in real danger and time is not on our side… A page–turning story of courage and determination in the face of the unknown.
Set in the future, Navigating the Stars revolves around main character Lyra, and her parents, who are basically space archeologists. I was expecting more of an adventure/Tomb Raider style novel, especially as it feels like there's a big focus on the terracotta warriors, but instead it felt more like a light sci-fi with more focus on romance and character than action/adventure.
I thought the book was a decent read, but it didn't hold up to the strength of her high fantasy novels. In particular, I felt that her world building was not up to the standard of many other science fiction novels I have read, leaving me wanting a little more foundation to the story. I was especially confused about some aspects of the VR-like technology and how Lyra used "worming" to somehow hack into other systems and repair broken files- this was never explained that well.
Overall, I think this would be an entry level YA science fiction novel.
Liked it
RatingsOverall: 6/10
Plot: 3/5
Romance: 2.5/5
Writing: 3/5
World Building: 2/5
Characters: 3/5
Cover: 4/5
