Light Years by Kass Morgan Series: Light Years #1
Published by Little Brown Books for Young Readers in October 2018
Format: ebook
Source: Purchased
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Reeling from the latest attack by a mysterious enemy, the Quatra Fleet Academy is finally admitting students from every planet in the solar system after centuries of exclusivity.
Hotshot pilot Vesper, an ambitious Tridian citizen, dreams of becoming a captain--but when she loses her spot to a brilliant, wisecracking boy from the wrong side of the asteroid belt, it makes her question everything she thought she knew. Growing up on the toxic planet Deva, Cormak will take any chance he can get to escape his dead-end life and join the Academy--even if he has to steal someone's identity to do it. Arran was always considered an outsider on icy Chetire, always dreaming of something more than a life working in the mines. Now an incoming cadet, Arran is looking for a place to belong--he just never thought that place would be in the arms of a Tridian boy. And Orelia is hiding a dark secret--she's infiltrated the Academy to complete a mission, one that threatens the security of everyone there. But if anyone finds out who she really is, it'll be her life on the line.
These cadets will have to put their differences aside and become a team if they want to defend their world from a cunning enemy--and they might even fall in love in the process.
Light Years is the first book in a thrilling and romantic new sci-fi series from the bestselling author of The 100.
Light Years by Kass Morgan was great! I loved the idea of the story and the synopsis. However, I’ll admit, I was skeptical that the story would work with four points of view. Morgan surprised me and interwove the POVs in a way that smoothly propels the plot. She also created a diverse group of characters, which I truly appreciated.
Light Years follows the story of four cadets from various walks of life. The story mainly focuses on the competition between first-year cadets as they are grouped into squadrons of four. Winning the tournament secures your spot to continue in the academy. However, there are also some underlying political issues, which are lightly touched upon in Light Years. Vesper, Cormak, Arran, and Orelia end up in a squadron together, and it was enjoyable watching these four come together despite their different backgrounds. Because you get chapters in POVs of all the characters, you really get to see a glimpse into everyone’s motivations, which I found interesting. & The plot truly progresses seamlessly despite the changing POVs.
Light Years also had some diversity and hit on some issues that can resonate within our own society. There is an LGBTQ+ relationship in the story, which was a really sweet relationship between Arran and a Tridian boy. There is tension between the cadets from Tridian and the cadets from the other settler planets. There are also questions about the war that they are being trained to fight. It seems that the Quatrans and Specters don’t know very much about each other, and perhaps there’s more to the story that isn’t being told.
While I did enjoy Light Years a lot, the story felt a bit short. I felt like I didn’t see much in terms of character growth on the page. It was mostly implied. Perhaps if the story was a bit longer and more developed, we could have possibly seen more character growth on the page. Also, none of the underlying political issues really went anywhere in Light Years. I assume it will be issues addressed in following books, but I would have enjoyed more than simply seeing the result of the tournament and the result of Orelia’s actions infiltrating the academy.
Light Years does end on a cliffhanger. The cliffhanger itself doesn’t scream “I need the next book now!” for me. Instead, the collective lack of closure for all of the political issues has me dying for the next book. I can’t wait to see what happens next for Vesper, Cormak, Arran, and Orelia! Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, if you happen to have an extra ARC when they’re available, feel free to contact me! 😉
Have you read Light Years or are you thinking about it? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
