To Sleep in a Sea of Stars (Fractalverse)

Reviews

1. 

   Guy Venturi – July 27, 2024

   You will not get any sleep once you start!
   I was not sure of what to expect from one of my favorite authors. I used to travel extensively and often brought back new books or new authors that looked good for my wife or our daughters. I would read as I travelled then pass the book on for the others to fight over. We were a book reading family. Grounding was not an effective punishment as both daughters had TVs in their rooms that they seldom watched, but both loved to read. They liked to be grounded.I picked up the first Harry Potter book in a UK bookstore as they were setting up a display to attract sales. I had spotted a couple copies being carried by YA and some adults. So after learning about the book, I bought one and read it before I got home. Then the fight began. Since it was not available in the US yet, they had to wait their turn. By the time the series was read by all, each had their own set of hardback books for the series and I had a complete set of audiobooks to play while driving. No complaints about long trips. But because of the long delays between next book availability, I searched for other YA writers. Christopher Paolini was one the I found that helped fill in the time gaps on Harry Potter books.We ended up with each having a set of hardbacks, plus a set of paperbacks for travel, and I had a set of audiobooks for travel. These are the only authors that accomplished this high standard. Plus many Christmas gifts to other family members that helped build almost book club discussions.Of course we added recordings of all the movies that are now spread to three different households. We could probably share more, but the cost was small compared to what we got from these stories as a family. The love of reading that our daughters gained and passed on to grandkids was well worth many times the cost. I no longer travel, but still read a lot. And so far I have said little about this book.”To Sleep in a Sea of Stars” is exactly what I was expecting from Christopher. He has matured even more since his earlier Inheritance series writing, but it still has the woven sense of knowledge and reality combined with the wonder of it all with this move from YA to mature adult themes, and from fantasy to science fiction. The story is different from most science fiction, but is still grounded in the reality of the Cosmos and the laws of science.It moves quickly most of the time, but slows a bit when needed to allow more description to keep the flow but explain the science of the scene or link the multiple events in an understandable way. A lot happens in each chapter, but the subchapters are short enough to feel accomplishment even with a short time to read.For younger readers or those who prefer understanding the meanings and background of the many unfamiliar words, I recommend reading the Appendix III in the back that provides some description or definition to help your reading. You may need to refer to it frequently if you are not an astrophysicist. You may be well on your way to changing your college major by the time you finish this book. It does not have spoilers, but will help with the understanding of the story.This is a single book for this story, but it also sets up the possibility of a series. If the author gets enough demand, he may add more adventures for Kira and the crew.Now for my spoiler: There are many subtle hints to other authors, books, and the Inheritance series hidden in names, places, and concepts that may surprise you if you are paying attention. If you miss them, it is not important to the story, but it does add another level of joy and understanding if you catch them as you read. But this is a dense story that you will want to read several times to wring the juicy stuff out of the shadows to feel the full affects of the storyline.This may be a great book to read in bed before sleeping if you can because it will inspire dreams but not put you to sleep. Just imagine all the stars that surround you as you magical dream world floats amid the stars….

2. 

   sjwthompson | Buttercup’s Book Blog – July 27, 2024

   A little on the long side but I loved it!
   This is fantastic, I’d give it 4.5 stars if I could! Why not 5 stars you ask? My only real issue is the length of the story. When the description says that this is an epic space opera, it means EPIC. This is vast and covers alot of ground, well space. The final version comes in around 900 pages depending on the format you choose. I swapped between print and audio because it is so long. I highly recommend the audiobook as well. Jennifer Hale is a fantastic narrator, it is hard to believe this is her debut as an audiobook narrator. There is artwork in the print version that you won’t get in the audiobook, but the narration really brings the book to life and with a long book like this sometimes you need that to keep you invested in such a long tome. Either format is great though!The characters and plot suck you in and keep you invested. I do feel like there were a few parts that could have been condensed or were a bit repetitive, but they were also necessary to transition the story or move a plot point forward. We almost get two endings in this book. I thought the book had ended and we’d get an epilogue, but it kept going with the promise of more potential books in this world, which I would happily devour. I highly recommend the appendix as it has tons of reference material to the science used in the creation of the book as well as a glossary that explains some of the characters, concepts, and terms used. I learned so much from this section and it is invaluable to readers, and makes for great reference material as you are reading. I also recommend reading the author’s note as it gives great insight into his process and creation of the book. It really helps the reader understand where the book started and why it ended where it did.If you are a fan of Paolini’s previous work in the Eragon series, as I am, you won’t be disappointed. This has his wonderful writing style and great world building. I loved all of the characters. He dreamt up this amazing sentient alien race and they all look a bit different though they feature qualities of earth’s sea life and have a unique way of communicating. He describes them in such detail that you can really begin to envision what they look like. The same goes for the spacecraft, the other characters, and the action scenes. The action scenes can get a little violent and gruesome, so reader be warned. He doesn’t hold back when it comes to the fighting, some of the scenes are like a horror novel. Because the book is lengthy we get tons of character development and backstory on all of the side characters, which is something often overlooked in books. I loved that the author took the time to give each of the characters personality, a backstory, and they all played a role in Kira’s journey. We get to watch Kira evolved from a human, to a human invaded by this xeno organism, to something else entirely.I really appreciate that Paolini tried to keep to actual science (he mentions this in his afterward). He had a vision for what he wanted the space travel to look like without breaking all of the rules of science to make it work. While he takes his liberties with the science to make it fit his vision, it isn’t all a figment of his imagination. You can tell that he really put time, research, and effort into the creation of his sci fi universe from the tech the humans use to assist in their day to day tasks and military efforts, the space travel, the religions, and the creatures. It makes for a really enjoyable journey.If you are a fan of space operas, sci-fi, or Paolini’s previous books, I 100% recommend this! I’m so honored to have gotten a chance to read this early. This will take you on quite the journey of unbelievable science, action, creatures, and emotions. I just finished it and I want to reread it because I miss the characters already.

3. 

   Christian Poulin – July 27, 2024

   I’ve read a lot of scifi, and it’s harder to find a gripping story, but this one was good. Tehre were a few unexpected plot twists I didn’t even see coming. A sequel would be nice, and an automatic buy on my part.

4. 

   Joss and Key – July 27, 2024

   Quiero admitir que no me esparaba tal maravilla de edición de libro, lo pedí hace poco y me fascinó, la edición es preciosa y el precio lo vale, en mi país el libro en español esta super caro y no vale la pena. Tiene 2 detallitos pero por Dios no se ven y si vale por el precio lo recomiendo MUCHO si lo quieres y estas dudando pidelo ya ¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡ THANK YOU AMAZON

5. 

   Seafire – July 27, 2024

   I’ve read the Eragon books including Murtagh, and I wasn’t certain what I’d think of it, but now, this in my opinion knocks socks off all of them. It takes effort, of course – I’m reading on Kindle so no idea how many pages – but it’s well worth it. I haven’t been able to stop reading after the first two days… The scope of the story, and its ending in particular, are astonishing. Paolini mentions he’s written another scifi so I’ll have a look for that.

6. 

   Daniel Laloyaux – July 27, 2024

   Magnifique roman de SF. Paolini s’essaye a la SF de façon éclatante.

7. 

   Kindle Customer – July 27, 2024

   I have rarely enjoyed a book mote than I have this. It is a perfect mix of exploration, science, battle, love and friendship. I cannot tecommend this book enough to anyone out there interested in scifi and fantasy.