The Sound of Stars
Once again I am grateful to the Almighty Twitter for always putting me in contact with people who talk about books and love books as much as I do. Twitter is one of the places that I always hear about the best books! Often I hear about them months in advance and am always looking forward to them. This year I built my Most Anticipated Reads of 2020 list from many of the books I had heard about. One of the novels I was most looking forward to was The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow.
The science-fiction world of The Sound of Stars quickly introduces us to a dystopian Earth where aliens (the "Ilori") have invaded and enslaved the human race. Janelle Baker (Ellie) lives in a center controlled by the Ilori in New York City. Humans have been labeled as too emotional and dangerous because of their initial reaction to the invasion and any artistic expression has been banned. This means no music, art, or books. But of course, these are the things humans cling to during tough times. Ellie has established a secret library--risking her life for the books she loves so much. When she realizes that a book is missing from her collection, she is scared that it will be traced back to her and she will be executed.
M0Rr1S is one of the Ilori but he is different from the rest because he was raised in a lab. He is the one that discovers Ellie's illegal library. Despite knowing that his orders are to immediately report her and deliver her to her death, he can't do it. He finds himself inexplicably interested in the music of humans and wants to understand why Ellie values these books above her life. He desperately wants to know more about the things that draw him in--music, books, and Ellie herself.
Ellie knows that she should fear M0Rr1s but her fate rests in his hands. So might the fates of the rest of humankind. M0Rr1s has a lot of secrets and reveals that he might have a potential solution to stop the Ilori from eliminating all the people Ellie cares about. Ellie and M0Rr1s have to travel across the United States to enact his plan and save the human race while embracing the music and words that connect them to each other.
I feel like romance between an alien and a human is a trope as old as science fiction itself but there's a reason it is that way. I think that it has something to do with the fact that we are attracted to the strange and unfamiliar...and we cling on to the slightly human aspects of them. M0Rr1s shares Ellie's great love of music and books and that's what ultimately brings them together. With everything that seems to be pushing them apart, they somehow manage to push it aside and their relationship blossoms in spite of it all. And who doesn't love a romance that overcomes all odds?
I absolutely loved the quotes that began each chapter...each highlighting quotes from literature or music that tie so well with the story! I thought it was a great touch that made the book even more enjoyable.
I also felt like the science-fiction dystopian setting was fairly easy for me to fall into. It's only set 2 years after the invasion of the Ilori so there is a lot of normal daily life that is incorporated into the setting and allusions to pop culture that the reader can connect to. The additions to the world I think are believable and easy to understand--not confusing for the audience at all. I think this can be tricky for some sci-fi books so I think praise is deserved.
Ellie and M0Rr1s are also pretty lovable characters. You get to hear about their romance and adventure from both perspectives so I feel like I grew connected to both characters. You get to see the humanity that exists in M0Rr1s and how Ellie grows to trust him. I definitely found myself hoping that they would continue to trust each other and fall in love more and more as the story progressed.
I will definitely not give away the ending but I have to say that I was pretty satisfied with how things ended. I'm not sure if a sequel is planned or not (I hope so...) but I wouldn't be too disappointed if this book was the end of their story. The story was left open in a way that allowed for a sequel but gave me enough answers that I felt it was complete.
I would highly recommend this book to sci-fi and romance lovers both. This book falls solidly in the YA fiction category so keep that in mind as well. If you're looking for a book about books or music, I'd also recommend this novel as a great read! You can purchase a copy here or from your local indie bookstore.
M0Rr1S is one of the Ilori but he is different from the rest because he was raised in a lab. He is the one that discovers Ellie's illegal library. Despite knowing that his orders are to immediately report her and deliver her to her death, he can't do it. He finds himself inexplicably interested in the music of humans and wants to understand why Ellie values these books above her life. He desperately wants to know more about the things that draw him in--music, books, and Ellie herself.
Ellie knows that she should fear M0Rr1s but her fate rests in his hands. So might the fates of the rest of humankind. M0Rr1s has a lot of secrets and reveals that he might have a potential solution to stop the Ilori from eliminating all the people Ellie cares about. Ellie and M0Rr1s have to travel across the United States to enact his plan and save the human race while embracing the music and words that connect them to each other.
I feel like romance between an alien and a human is a trope as old as science fiction itself but there's a reason it is that way. I think that it has something to do with the fact that we are attracted to the strange and unfamiliar...and we cling on to the slightly human aspects of them. M0Rr1s shares Ellie's great love of music and books and that's what ultimately brings them together. With everything that seems to be pushing them apart, they somehow manage to push it aside and their relationship blossoms in spite of it all. And who doesn't love a romance that overcomes all odds?
I also felt like the science-fiction dystopian setting was fairly easy for me to fall into. It's only set 2 years after the invasion of the Ilori so there is a lot of normal daily life that is incorporated into the setting and allusions to pop culture that the reader can connect to. The additions to the world I think are believable and easy to understand--not confusing for the audience at all. I think this can be tricky for some sci-fi books so I think praise is deserved.
Ellie and M0Rr1s are also pretty lovable characters. You get to hear about their romance and adventure from both perspectives so I feel like I grew connected to both characters. You get to see the humanity that exists in M0Rr1s and how Ellie grows to trust him. I definitely found myself hoping that they would continue to trust each other and fall in love more and more as the story progressed.
I will definitely not give away the ending but I have to say that I was pretty satisfied with how things ended. I'm not sure if a sequel is planned or not (I hope so...) but I wouldn't be too disappointed if this book was the end of their story. The story was left open in a way that allowed for a sequel but gave me enough answers that I felt it was complete.
I would highly recommend this book to sci-fi and romance lovers both. This book falls solidly in the YA fiction category so keep that in mind as well. If you're looking for a book about books or music, I'd also recommend this novel as a great read! You can purchase a copy here or from your local indie bookstore.
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