I really loved the characters and the direction that the story went in in the second half of the book. The relationship between Able and Noemi was awesome. I think that the way things ended off it was left very open for the next book in terms of what was going on between them. I think that the mission they were on was very interesting and there weren't any dull moments in the plot. Things always seemed to be happening and the story always seemed to be moving forward. I have already picked up the second book and can't wait to see what happens next.

I am continually impressed by the science fiction books I read by Claudia Gray. Defy the Stars is just one more example why she is such a master of the genre. It’s a thrilling world with a fascinating world and has great characters.

The thing that impressed me initially about this book was the world. This is seriously such an amazing science fiction world. What the author does so well is make complex science accessible. She has created a world full of space travel, rocket ships, and artificial intelligence without overwhelming you with details and information. Instead it all worked together to create a truly fascinating world. It had this really great Battlestar Galactica feel to it. I really loved The world.

I also really loved the plot of this book. It was completely thrilling. I’m not sure that I would call it a space opera but it definitely had those kind of elements. Throughout the book the characters traveled through space in a mission to save their world. It was full of daring escapes and some pretty epic adventure scenes. Although if I’m being entirely honest, I was kind of hoping for more twists and turns. It definitely built to a thrilling conclusion but I wish there were more surprises. It was a really great plot though.

I also really loved the characters in this book. The book switches perspectives between Abel and Noemi. It was definitely a little jarring at first getting used to each of their voices but it helped that both of them were really great and complex characters. I think probably Abel was a little more interesting than Noemi. Because seriously, Abel was amazing. I always love books about AI and it’s always fun to be in the head in the AI. Plus you have the added bonus of his development throughout the book where he discovered his humanity. It was amazing! All the characters were really likable and interesting. In fact, I even think that the romance won me over in the end. I was incredibly reluctant at first but by the end I was into it. I think because I liked the characters that much that I wanted them to be happy.

I initially started reading this book but it wasn’t until I started listening to the audiobook that I really started loving the book. It had two different narrators and they both really got the characters. It made it easier to get into their heads this way. It also really played up the action. I love books like this in the audio format because everything is all the more thrilling and immersive when you listen to the books. If you are a fan of audiobooks I would definitely recommend this audio.

I really loved this book. It’s a fascinating and engaging read with a cool and complex science fiction world, a thrilling plot, and likable characters.

I grabbed Defy the Stars on a whim since I enjoyed Claudia Gray’s books. It had been a while since I read a book from her. When I saw this book on Netgalley up for grabs I just had to read it. I’m so glad I did because I may not have otherwise read this amazing freaking book.

This story is dual POV with Noemi and Abel. I loved both of these characters right from the get-go. Seriously, everything about this story drew me in. The writing is amazing, the plot is unique, the story is paced perfectly, and the story was just beyond engaging.

Noemi is a teenage soldier from the planet Genesis. She’s been training since a very young age to help defend Genesis against all threats. During the mission, her best-friend is injured and so Noemi abandons her team to save her. Taking her into a ship she runs into the very creature she’s been taught to fight against- an Earth mec/robot. The robot is question name is Abel, and he’s been alone a very long time. Having been abandoned by his creator he’s been hiding in the ship alone waiting to be saved. Instead, he’s faced with his enemy and forced to help her on a mission to have her planet from total annihilation.

Oh so dang good. I really wasn’t expecting to like this book as much as I did. The whole story just threw me. I was a tad weary when religion was brought up so much in the beginning because not being a religious person, this generally is a big turn off for me. Thankfully, I kept reading and was beyond impressed.

Noemi and Abel do not like each other at all in the beginning. I liked that it wasn’t like one of those stories where they secretly did like each other but wouldn’t admit it. No, this wasn’t like that at all. They seriously hated each other for a large part of the beginning and into the middle of this story. I loved that it turned into something else-a sort of budding romance, but Claudia Gray didn’t rush that. The story built up their relationship slowly and in a way that made sense. T

I loved the world building of this story. Everything was written so well I felt like I was walking with the characters and seeing what they were seeing. I also enjoyed that at the beginning the characters see the world as black and white and then when they begin to live and experience more they realize that everything they knew wasn’t quite as cut and dry as they would have liked.

This whole story was fantastic. Did I say that already? I feel like I did. It’s a must-read. Go pick it up.

I loved this book! The full review will be posted soon at kaitgoodwin.com/books! Thank you very much for this wonderful opportunity to connect books to their readers!

I enjoyed the question of what makes AI human? I also think the plot drags and gets bogged down in the middle. I liked the plot overall but it needs editing to have a more suspenseful pace.

I requested this one thinking I would immediately fall and love, and heard so many great things about it. Sadly, it just wasn’t for me. I enjoyed that there was alternating chapters that ended up meshing together, but I just had a hard time getting into the story through them. I’m thinking maybe I shouldn’t have read it right after the book I had just finished (Lifel1k3) because it just might have been too much of the same genre at once.


I didn’t really find myself loving any of the characters. They all had good qualities and I enjoyed Noemi overall, but just didn’t love her. The whole enemies turned friends thing was just too unrealistic for me in this book for some reason.

This book had immense potential in my opinion but just fell flat for me. I do think I will continue with the series because of the ending. I’m definitely wondering what is going to happen in book two, and felt the story picking up a lot toward the ending. If you are into the whole space, save the world, and semi ok characters, I would give this one a go.

Last year, I read Claudia Gray's Star Wars book Lost Stars and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I've also read two of her old paranormal books, both of which I enjoyed. But for whatever reason, I always forget that Gray's writing really works for me. I feel adequately chastised with this latest read.

Defy the Stars is probably the closest to Star Wars outside of Star Wars books that I've ever encountered. It has the same sprawling universe, complicated politics, and characters that crawl into your imagination and refuse to leave. I also spotted influences from Battlestar Galactica, and the Abel/mech element reminded me a lot of AMC's show Humans. That being said, the world (or I suppose I should say "galaxy") in Defy the Stars feels all its own. The planets are unique, and the war they're fighting feels both sympathetic and relevant to our own time.

To my surprise, I also enjoyed the plot quite a bit. As a general rule, I'm skeptical of journey plots, but I really enjoyed exploring the galaxy along with Noemi and Abel. It had the same feel as a new Star Wars movie's exploration of new planets.

But what really solidified my love for this book was the characters. (Read: mostly Abel) I'm a total sucker for philosophical sci-fi that explores questions of humanity and technology. The discussion here in Defy the Stars isn't new, but it was nuanced and interesting without ever feeling preachy. I also loved that Noemi comes from a religious background and how that plays into her personality and decision-making. That's very unusual in books, I find, and it was refreshing.

I think Claudia Gray's writing style also really enhanced the thematic and character explorations. She doesn't ever shy away from slowing the pace a little to dip deeper into character motivation - which totally works for me. I like room to breathe between space explosions and running for your life, thank you.

And I have to say it: I really liked this romance. I tend to consider myself a romance skeptic. So often, as I'm reading a book, I groan and think, 'This plot would be so much more interesting without this romance.' Such occurrences have led me to frequently think I'm just not that big of a romance reader. But books like this one convince me that I do, in fact, enjoy a good romance (emphasis on the *good*). The developing feelings between Noemi and Abel are so well-woven into the plot that it just flows seamlessly. And by the end, I was silently screaming, 'Just kiss already!'

Overall, this book just *really* worked for me. It's smart sci-fi with characters to root for. I went into Defy the Stars with hesitation, but I can confidently say that I'm incredibly excited about the future of this series.

This one sat on my shelf for awhile. And I'm so sad that it did, because it was a really, truly entertaining read.

I'm not always a fan of space-set stories. Defy the Stars just pulled me so deep into the story that I didn't even have a moment of disinterest. From page one, the story begins and continues with action and adventure, and--of course--some romance.

A story of two people who shouldn't be. A story that had so much going on that I may, at times, had to reread a page or two--but, nonetheless, kept me riveted. But seeing two characters grow and become greater as the story goes on...It was amazing.

I am absolutely positively, eager to read the next in the series.

I am a fan of Claudia Gray. There hasn't been anything that Gray has written that I haven't enjoyed. Naturally, I was excited for Defy the Stars. Outer space adventures filled with angsty hate-to-love romance!

I enjoyed Noemi for her tenacity and determination. She had a mission and the drive to carry her duties out. Abel was interesting to get to know. He is absolutely adorable and so fun. Their story together was enjoyable. At times, I felt like the world-building and details of everything around the two kept me from focusing on them, but it could have been where my head was at the time of reading.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, the characters, and the overall theme.

Thank you Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I was super excited for this book when I requested it and somehow never got around to it. And then every time I would look at it, I wasn’t prepared to sit down with a 500+ page book.

I really liked Noemi and Abel. They’re so similar and yet so different and it was interesting to see how they learned about and from each other. There are loads of other characters, but the story is focused on these two. Although, I will say I need more Virginia.

Plot wise, it was so very dense. There are several planets and people at war and some rebels and one random pop star who keeps getting mentioned. At times it was a bit overwhelming and while things happened, it also felt like a lot of nothing happened. The last chunk of the book was amazing and angering and hopeful and did I mention infuriating?

Overall, it’s the characters that kept me reading. I definitely need more of them and I’m so happy I only have a couple of months to wait for the next book.

**Huge thanks to Little Brown Books for Young Readers for providing the arc free of charge**
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Defy the Stars is a good read for anyone waiting for the next Illuminae book to come out. It's got artificial intelligence, it's got space drama, a lot of action on different planets and space stations.

I love a book that has a kick-ass heroine who is willing to die for her people and what she believes. Has a moral compass that starts to go askew when she meets the enemy of her people. And has an internal battlefield going on inside her head to figure out what is right for her.

Super engaging, fun to read, comes with some crazy robots and the guy who makes them. So, for all the Illuminae Files junkies out there waiting for Obsidio, this one's for you.

I really enjoyed this book a lot. I don't know why I haven't caught on yet that Claudia Gray is hecka awesome, because every book I've read of hers has been good. (Remember that, brain!)

Abel and Noemi were such fun and interesting characters to read about and I loved watching the dynamics between them. I say "watching" because Claudia has a way of making me see the story like few others can. I thought this was a really great balance between being sciency and straightforward, in other words, it wasn't too complicated for my brain to handle.

Space, friendships, a super weird romance, and saving humanity from itself - this book is . . . wait for it . . . out of this world. (I'm sorry. Really)

It took awhile to get into, TBH. It was about 25% when it finally picked up, when they had a problem to overcome together and they stopped being as stiff and suspicious.

I picked this one up because it sounded different than most sci-fi with the religious aspect. However, the info dump about it in the beginning about it was part of my couldn't get into it problem. I probably should've known better...*shrug* It ends up being rather minor, with Noemi having her crisis of faith and praying for guidance.

I did see one major "twist" coming and Abel's abilities made things ridiculously easy at times. But at the same time, Noemi's ingenuity made up for it.

I love the ending, how it all came together. It was quick but satisfying and makes me want to read the next one. Gives off a Firefly vibe with Abel's epilogue.

Claudia Gray's novels are fantastic, and Defy the Stars is a compelling sci-fi novel that will appeal to teen readers and adults alike.

This is the first book by Claudia Gray I have ever read and I am KICKING myself for waiting this long. This book was amazing. Absolutely stunning. I have never wanted to 5 star a book so hard in my life. This is the best sci-fi book I have ever read. Ever. If you think I am overreacting just know I read this over three weeks ago and am still immensely excited from reading this book. For so long I felt burned by a lot of sci-fi as it was so… hoaky. After the very first chapter of this book I knew I was in love. And all other sci-fi books I thought were good paled in comparison.

I don’t give spoilers (if I do it’s very rarely) but this is one of the few times I can say a bittersweet ending did it justice. Of course at the end of this book I was screaming for more and praying to the book gods for a series so I can have more of all the witty and amazingly complex characters Claudia stuffed this book with but the ending was great either way. I am 100% pro Abel and will never be able to think about Mech’s the same now. I also got confirmation via twitter from Claudia herself that this will be a series! (I am screaming into the void in happiness.) I am also quickly realizing this is less of a review than a rant on how amazing this book is. Sorry not sorry.

OK, real review time. I swear.

First of all Earth is dying. In this book we see the future as bleak and cold and full of war. Genesis a once Earth colony is fighting for their independence from Earth. Earth at this point has been searching the vast galaxies for a planet suitable for inhabiting all 8+ billion people on Earth. While they have found a few planets none are as perfect as Genesis. The hows and whys I will leave blank as you need to read them to really grasp what is going on.

As for characters Noemi is one of the best broken, flawed, under estimated characters I have ever read. She is a true soldier willing to put her planet above all else. Including her life. Abel is the perfect mech, the type A. He has surpassed every mech law put into place and transcended being a mere robot. Together they travel the length of the known universe in search for a way to save Genesis. Along the way they meet amazing people, see breathtaking planets, and witness devastating loss. If that hasn’t sold you yet then I don’t know what will.

I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH. Easily one of my favorite reads of 2017! Science Fiction is not usually my go-to genre, but I decided to pick this one up since author Claudia Gray is one of the first YA authors I read as a teen so I obviously had to give it a try. I'm glad to say it did not disappoint. Defy the Stars is electrifying and one epic space adventure!

What I Liked:

Claudia Gray is hands down one of the best at world-building (or is it space-exploring?) and storytelling. It's almost unbelievable how quickly I was drawn towards the different worlds and their fights for survival against the domineering, dying Earth. I could almost touch the stars, meteors, black holes, and gates to enter different galaxies. The book became my own spaceship and it was a joy to ride alongside the main characters, Noemi and Abel.

The characters are indeed my favorite aspect of Defy the Stars and you are completely missing out if you haven't met Noemi and Abel yet. This unlikely enemy duo made me laugh so hard and overall feel extremely happy while in their company. Noemi is a soldier set on protecting her planet from Earth while Abel is a mech with developing human emotions. They begin on different sides, but slowly begin to lean on each other in order to survive and protect what they love. In the end, their friendship and interactions are so pure and lovely that it hurt to say goodbye to them for the moment while I wait for the sequel to come out.

Oh, but I just have to fangirl over Abel for a second longer because who would have thought a robot could be so terribly cute and swoony? Definitely did not think it possible and I'm super curious to learn how Abel continues to develop as a mech with a human soul and how he continues to battle with his inner conflicts and the danger he represents to the rest of humanity. I just cannot imagine him staying safe for long and this hurts me so much!

Final Verdict:

Defy the Stars is exciting and heart-warming and I cannot wait to read more! There is a whole lot of universe to explore and my heart quickens at the thought of learning what Noemi and Abel will have to face next. One can only hope they come out of it unscathed! In other words, Defy the Stars is an unputdownable must read!

Such an interesting concept. Totally something I'd recommend to my students. Neat take on sci-fi

I have been really struggling lately to get into a book...until this one. I love books that question what it means to be human. I also love books about space. So here we are.

Noemi Vidal is a soldier of Genesis, a planet that seceded from Earth's colonies in hopes of protecting their world. Now Genesis is at war with Earth and times are desperate. Abel is a machine, abandoned by his creator in the Genesis system, he spent 30 years alone until Noemi boards his ship. The two then set off on a romp around the galaxy on a mission to save Noemi's planet.

I love Claudia Gray's books. Defy the Stars is so entertaining. I can't seem to get enough of the the sentient AI motif, and Gray's book is a great addition to this subgenre. I also love that Ms Gray handled religion and the idea of souls with so much respect and honesty.

Claudia Grey writes a solid fantasy/sci-fi Young Adult novel and I recommend for all fans of this genre.