Mini review | Skyhunter by Marie Lu

Skyhunter (Skyhunter #1) by Marie Lu

“It is always the gentle ones I fear for the most, those willing to bare their hearts, who grieve for others and feel happy for others’ happiness.”

As expected from a Marie Lu book, this was awesome

I didn’t know what to expect from Skyhunter. I feel like the dystopian era is kind of over but then you have Marie Lu releasing a sci fi/apocalyptic/dystopian novel. And of course I needed to read it. Skyhunter reminded me a bit of The Maze Runner, which definitely isn’t a bad thing. As for Lu’s writing, it was immaculate. I really enjoyed this book!

Synopsis

In a world broken by war, a team of young warriors is willing to sacrifice everything to save what they love.

The Karensa Federation has conquered a dozen countries, leaving Mara as one of the last free nations in the world. Refugees flee to its borders to escape a fate worse than death—transformation into mutant war beasts known as Ghosts, creatures the Federation then sends to attack Mara.

The legendary Strikers, Mara’s elite fighting force, are trained to stop them. But as the number of Ghosts grows and Karensa closes in, defeat seems inevitable.

Still, one Striker refuses to give up hope.

Robbed of her voice and home, Talin Kanami knows firsthand the brutality of the Federation. Their cruelty forced her and her mother to seek asylum in a country that considers their people repugnant. She finds comfort only with a handful of fellow Strikers who have pledged their lives to one another and who are determined to push Karensa back at all costs.

When a mysterious prisoner is brought from the front, Talin senses there’s more to him than meets the eye. Is he a spy from the Federation? Or could he be the weapon that will save them all?

---

Review

Let’s firstly talk about this cover because it is stunning. I love the colours so much. I’m also a huge fan of the print on the edges.

Skyhunter follows Talin Kanami, who is mute. She lost her vocal chords during a chemical attack and communicates through sign language. She is a Basean striker who’s helping Mara fight The Karensa Federation.

The story reminded me a lot of The Maze Runner. The ghosts were zombie-like, but it definitely worked for me. I was a little surprised when I found out this was going to be a dystopian novel, but I actually really liked it. The story was interesting and the characters, world-building and writing were phenomenal as usual.

These characters were definitely my favourite thing about this book. They were all so complex and beautiful. I loved everything about them. Talin’s relationship with her mother (who was based on Marie Lu’s mother) was so honest and beautiful, you can just feel the love between them. The friendships between Talin, Adena and Jeran were also amazing and pure.

The writing was, as to be expected from Lu, amazing. I finished Skyhunter in a few days. I would’ve finished it sooner if I didn’t have to work for school.

That ending was quite predictable but I still gasped. I can’t wait for the second and last book – Steelstriker – to come out.

Would I recommend it?

Yes! All hail queen Marie Lu and her amazing books.

goodreads

---

Details

Trigger warnings
Death, death of a loved one, zombies

Representation
Asian main characters, black side character, gay side character
Genre
Science fiction, dystopian (young adult)
Pages
371
Publication
September 29th, 2020
About the author
Marie Lu is the #1 New York Times–bestselling author of the Legend series, The Young Elites trilogy, the Warcross series. the Skyhunter series, Batman: Nightwalker, and The Kingdom of Back. She graduated from the University of Southern California and jumped into the video game industry, where she worked as an artist. A full-time writer, she spends her spare hours reading, drawing, playing games, and getting stuck in traffic. She lives in the traffic-jam capital, Los Angeles, with her illustrator/author husband, Primo Gallanosa, and their son.