Cover Image: Star Splitter

Star Splitter

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Member Reviews

I loved this book. It was well-written, engaging, and unlike any story, I'd read before. It was about questioning what makes someone human. I couldn't put the book down, and I have nothing but love for this book.
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Star Splitter is an interesting YA science fiction novel that touches on the Ship of Theseus thought experiment. Seventeen year old Jessica is moving to space to be with her parents after they’ve been gone doing research for 6 years. Typical travel isn’t viable since it takes too long, but the technology used here consists of scanning a person, and essentially reprinting their body in the location they need to be. This leaves the original body an empty shell. This also means that if you’ve been “teleported” somewhere and you die, you don't necessarily cease to exist, since your scan can be used to create a new body for you. But what happens when someone’s body exists twice because of a duplicate print? And once there’s two of the same person, are they really the same person? While I enjoyed this book, I thought there was some odd abortion allegory that was off-putting. I also didn’t find the characters that great. There was nothing to like about the majority of them. Despite these qualms, this was an alright read: easy to digest, slightly thought provoking, decent pacing. A solid 2.75 rounded up from me. Thanks for the read!
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Wow! This book completely surprised me in all the best ways and grabbed me from the first page and never let go. The futuristic setting and 3-D printing of humans kept me guessing the entire time; it was very well written so that I had no trouble understanding and accepting that the technologies were happening and being used by future generations.

The suspense kept me reading and wanting to get back to this book as soon as possible. The characters popped off the pages and had both good and questionable traits to make them feel real.

The events unfolding in the story made me question my own thoughts about human exploration into space and inhabiting other worlds. I questioned the morality of my own survival instincts--what would I have done in Jessica's place? Is self preservation more or less important knowing you can start over despite poor choices and possibly lose part of your memories in the process? Is abandoning other human beings just because they can be reprinted right to do?

Sci-fi fans are going to love reading this novel. The ending fit the questions raised by the plot and will stay with me for a long time.
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This is one of the best sci fi novels I’ve ever read! I’ve never felt tension and suspense like this save from watching things like Alien, and the way this went back and forth between past and present seriously amped up those feelings. Every chapter ended on a cliffhanger and I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. I loved Jessica and her story and the author did a great job establishing the differences between the past and present selves. I was racing to finish and my heart stopped more than once and I needed to know everything right away. This is one of my favorite books of all time now and I can't wait to read more from him.
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Thank you so much to Penguin Young Readers for sending me an early copy of this book! All opinions are my own!

OH MY where do I start with how much I loved this book!? It hooked me immediately and I absolutely needed to know what was going to happen next. It is such a wonderful mix of sci-fi and horror/thrillers, and I loved every second of trying to unfold the mystery and determine what was happening and what had already happened.

I loved the suspense of this, especially when it comes to the two different Jessicas and the way that her story evolves. It has such a deep message at the end, and it unfolded so well that it was made even more impactful. The plot twists kept me on my toes, and I loved the way that everything evolved and came to light. It still left questions, and I will definitely be thinking about it for a while after finishing it! 

This is such a familiar and yet unique story within sci-fi, and I was worried at first that the teleportation aspects were going to be too much for me to keep up with. But I ended up adoring that aspect and loved the story as a whole. It really gave so many emotions from elation, fear, intrigue, joy, desperation, to so much more. I can't explain how much I loved this book!

If you're a sci-fi fan, please make sure you pick this up when it releases!
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What if you could travel lightyears without fear? 

I absolutely loved the concept of this book. I mean, body writing in space? Wow--what a great idea! I was intrigued from the first page that sets up the book so well, giving you insight into Jessica, the main character. 

Or is she? 

The author took such a unique approach to the narration, splitting it into Before and After, showing Jessica two separate states and how those worlds collided. Plus it was set on a space ship and then an alien planet so my scifi heart was SO happy. 

I was really enjoying it at first, and then something happens and we also get to explore the new planet, and the solidified even more how much I enjoyed this book. It's a unique take on planetary exploration, how we see ourselves and how our experience shapes us, as well as the lengths to which humans will go. 

There are a few unanswered questions I would have liked some additional info about by the end, but I also felt like the ending was a nice way to wrap it up. 

I hope this author writes more YA scifi! 

To me, while it is scifi and involves space, it's not in the same way other popular books have done so. It's very accessible and would appeal to lovers of contemporary with a tinge of mystery/suspense. 

Note: There is a bit of language in this one. 

My rating: 4.4*

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Thanks to the publisher for gifting me a copy of this book. All opinions are my own.
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