Magical Les.Mis retelling..highly recommend for fans of the Lunar Chronicles. Head.to.space with this unique retelling :)

the synopsis sounds nothing at all like les mis, so i had no idea this was a les mis retelling going into it. and honestly, i just wasnt feeling it. this story is soooo good on its own, so all of the little les mis shout outs are a massive eye roll. it took me out of the story each time and personally lessened my reading experience.

but everything else about this that isnt connected to les mis is really exceptional. i loved the unique sci-fi world, i thought the characters are compelling, and the writing and pacing make it sooo easy to binge read. it has all of the characteristics of book that really sucks you into the pages. so its unfortunate about the les mis references, because i honestly dont think the story needs them.

but based on how this ends, i have a feeling that the sequel will lean more into its own story and not rely on any les mis content. fingers crossed!

This reimagining of Les Miserable was pretty cool. Some parts were a bit weird & pulled me out of the story, but otherwise it was pretty good! I really enjoyed the writing style and the characters. The descriptions of this imagined world were vivid & gorgeous. Looking forward to the sequel!

I started reading this, and then I put it down. Three years later, I still haven't picked it up again and every time I see it, a sense of dread fills my stomach. It's just not for me - a shame really, because I did like the concept (and while intimidating, the whole series looks incredibly impressive).

This is a fantastic in depth retelling of Les Miserables! It is amazing how the authors changed this classic novel into a sci-fi rebellion. I loved all the characters and the ending was great. I will absolutely be picking up the rest of the series!

Sky Without Stars is an enjoyable book that kept me on the edge of my seat! I had very high expectations coming into it, so this did cause me to feel a small pang of disappointment. The characters are beautifully illustrated, and all have depth and unique qualities. The elements that I adore most about this book are the parallels and spins placed on Victor Hugo's Les Miserables. It was such a joy to see these well known scenes and characters in a wholly new light! I especially love the names of all the characters. Pure genius!

The only things I weren't very sold on were the progression of the romance, and the pacing of the story. At times, the plot drags, feeling as though its trying to juggle too many tropes at once. This all was a bit too disjointed for my liking. I might've been able to excuse this more if it were a shorter novel, but it soon grew wearisome in this 582-page-tome.

The vivid world building and steampunk-esque setting is also quite nice. I don't often read novels with atmosphere such as this, but it was absolutely fantastic! The world is rich in history, and feels more than tangible. Overall, this is a solid read that I would recommend for fans of Les Miserables and adventure-like stories.

I love retellings, and I don't think I've ever rad a les Mis retelling before, so I was super excited for this one. This was enjoyable, and different enough to stand on its one, but also some call backs that make fans of the previous work happy. This book followed a lot of typical YA rebellion angst plot books, but still was an enjoyable read.

I thoroughly enjoyed these stories! I've never read the original, but when I was in High School Les Mis was one of the plays that I was in for performing arts. So to have a sci fi retelling, I was really interested in this story!

The Thief, oh, man, just had me indignant on Chatine's behalf. Her family is terrible (though her sister is okay, if a little annoying) and I was so sorry she had to go through that. But what those officers did, taking all the money that she had legally earned, just because of her family's history? That was just awful!

Sky Without Stars follows 3 characters, which is not bad, considering how many lead characters that there are in the play. The story is familiar, but it does branch off a bit with the politics and the history, the characters and their motivations, and the setting was new and I loved learning about it!

Man, that ending though! It's so frustrating when the bad guys get away with it, even if it's temporary. That they got away with a child's murder, that's just horrible. I can't wait to see where things go from here, because I'm pretty sure that this has diverged enough/went past the ending of the original, that there's so much potential in where it can go from here!

These were both such great reads, and I can't wait to continue the series!

As a Les Miserables die-hard fan, I was so excited when I heard about this book! And luckily, it did not disappoint! It was quite lengthy (at a whopping 500+ pages), but I still really enjoyed it!

The file formatting made the book illegible. As that is no fault of the book's content, I'll rate a neutral 3 stars.

I received a copy from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

It took me awhile to read this but once I started I really enjoyed it. I haven’t read Les misérables but I have seen the musical so I can understand how it’s loosely based on it. I’m glad though that not everything was the same.
The world building and the political atmosphere in the story are great and the tensions keep ramping up. The plots, the intrigue, the mysteries, the different factions at war with one another, the struggle to survive and of course, the characters, all made this a great read.
I have my issues with some of the characters because I have become slightly attached, especially to Chatine. Marcellous needs to grow a pair, and Alouette, meh she’s Alouette (she can be irritating)..
Since this is part of a series I’m very curious to see where this goes next. What’s in store, what are their relationships going to look like, where will the story pick up, etc.
I’m definitely checking it out.

I've been trying to read this book on./off for over a year, and every time I can't get to it. I'm going to stop trying now.

when I first read this book I just couldn't get into it so I put it aside for a few months.
I picked it up again last month and I couldn't put it down. I liked the story very much. It is very well written.

I do recommend.

This is one of those books where you can still follow along even if you are someone like me who has never seen or read "Les Miserables." The only funny thing for me about this book was I loved all the characters except for Allouette, and near the end, I started to despise all the characters and their whininess. Although in a way I guess you could say I began to love Allouette near the end because she was probably the only decent person in the book who could love someone even when they are not who they appear to be.
I still don't quite know what to make of the book, but it is something people should read.

4.5 out of 5 stars.

For my full review check out my blog at https://bookgirlreviewsbooks.blogspot.com

I dragged my feet <b>so hard</b> through this one. I put it off, put it off, and then after finally picking it up, it just seemed to last forever. It <b>is</b> long, clocking in at close to six hundred pages, but wow. Finishing this feels like winning an award.

I requested SKY WITHOUT STARS mostly because a) sci-fi, b) YA, and c) I figured my lack of familiarity with the source material of the retelling would make for more enjoyment as I wouldn't be constantly comparing it to the original. But I think I was just a bit <b>too</b> unfamiliar because I wasn't invested enough to keep from being bored.

There's some really interesting elements at play here but overall some bits I just didn't like, I question the total belief some people in this world seem to have in order to accept their circumstances, and the dialogue would occasionally lean towards OTT in some of the dramatic scenes. But, ultimately, I'm just confused (which is weird because it was fairly predictable) and, again, bored. And not sure where we're going now.

From what I can tell this is a duology and I will read in on my ever-failing attempt to complete series that I start. But I can only hope it'll be shorter and a lot more entertaining than this one.

2.5 stars

This new YA series follows the new trend in YA Fantasy books which have French settings. I really like these settings, because most of the cities are lavish and extravagant, but they also have secret societies and criminals.

The story followed three characters: Chatine, Marcellus, and Alouette. They all come from different levels in society, but they become mixed up in each other’s lives. Since there were three different perspectives, the different areas that they come from were explored, giving a complete image of the world they live in.

This story is a retelling of Les Misérables by Victor Hugo. I also love adaptations. However, I’ve never read or watched Les Misérables, so this story was very new to me. I read a graphic novel adaptation last year, so I know the general story, but this story is a unique take on the original. I really liked how it was adapted to a futuristic setting on a different planet.

There were lots of twists that kept me guessing throughout the story. The ending was so good. Each character’s story had a bit of a cliffhanger, which made me wonder what was going to happen next. I can’t wait to read the next book when it comes out!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Really enjoyed this one! Sky Without Stars is a highly entertaining mix of Les Miserables meets The Lunar Chronicles. It was well paced, containing lots of action mixed with mystery, romance, and good world building. I'm interested to see where this story and these characters go so I'll be picking up the sequel next year.

*I received a free copy of this for review from Netgalley **

Really really enjoyed this story. Don’t know much about Les Miserables so I couldn’t draw any parallels there but regardless I was hooked right from the beginning. Definitely looking forward to the sequel

I want to start by thanking NetGalley for this eARC for my honest review. Jessica Brody and Joanne Rendell have taken a classic and produced a classic! Having read Les Miserables, yes this is based upon the classic, yet what Ms. Brody and Rendell have done is pure wonder. I could go on and on but I have always refused to make my reviews a synopsis. Needless to say this is the best YA book I have read in some time!

Many thank to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy. This did not affect my rating.

*3.5/5*

In the future, when the world is no longer habitable, people fled to the stars.
On the planet Laterre, people were promised hope. A new life. For those among the elite, they rule supreme, in comfortable conditions. There are three classes of people.. and down in the streets where people are starving, rumours of a revolution have begun. A rebel group, long thought gone, is resurfacing.

We follow three very different characters.

Chatine (Theo) lives in the bottom tier. Pretending to be a boy.. lives with her evil parents. Her dad threatens to reveal who she really is when she doesn't share her largs.

Marcellus is an officer. The grandson of the general, and the son of a traitor. Marcellus instantly gets caught up in Chatines life and the rebellion.

Alouette lives with her father, and the sisters. Women who are protecting the written word of days long gone. She sees Marcellus on a security camera and her fate becomes entangled with him and eventually Chatine.

Lies, spies, and deceit are the name of the game here. And I wanted to love this book. It was one of my most anticipated of the year.. but with instalove(lust), and a love(lust) triangle.. I just couldn't get myself to care about. Marcellus can't make up his mind about anything and its annoying.

The mythos of the world is super cool, and the ending is what will get me to read book 2.