Under the Never Sky [Book Review]

Stats:
#1 in Under the Never Sky series

Kindle Edition, 389 pages

Published January 3rd 2012 by HarperCollins

ASIN: B005HFNWJO 

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Synopsis:
Aria is a teenager in the enclosed city of Reverie. Like all Dwellers, she spends her time with friends in virtual environments, called Realms, accessed through an eyepiece called a Smarteye. Aria enjoys the Realms and the easy life in Reverie. When she is forced out of the pod for a crime she did not commit, she believes her death is imminent. The outside world is known as The Death Shop, with danger in every direction.

As an Outsider, Perry has always known hunger, vicious predators, and violent energy storms from the swirling electrified atmosphere called the Aether. A bit of an outcast even among his hunting tribe, Perry withstands these daily tests with his exceptional abilities, as he is gifted with powerful senses that enable him to scent danger, food and even human emotions.

They come together reluctantly, for Aria must depend on Perry, whom she considers a barbarian, to help her get back to Reverie, while Perry needs Aria to help unravel the mystery of his beloved nephew’s abduction by the Dwellers. Together they embark on a journey challenged as much by their prejudices as by encounters with cannibals and wolves. But to their surprise, Aria and Perry forge an unlikely love - one that will forever change the fate of all who live UNDER THE NEVER SKY

The first book in a captivating trilogy, Veronica Rossi’s enthralling debut sweeps you into an unforgettable adventure.


My Thoughts:
I highly recommend this to fans of A Million Suns - this book definitely reminded me a lot of it. :)

Aria has lived her whole live in a pod called Reverie that supplies safe food, water, and oxygen to it's 6,000 residents. The book starts right away with Aria, Paisley (her best friend), Soren (the Director of Security's son), and his two goons, Bane and Echo, breaking into the Agriculture service dome. Aria is trying to play Soren's testosterone-fueled side to get a hold of her mother who is in another pod called Bliss. The communication between pods has failed and it's been a while since she last spoke with her mom - rightfully so, Aria is worried. In the "abandoned" service dome, there is rotten fruit everywhere and Soren decides to make a fire, which is extremely forbidden in Reverie. Aria and Paisley try to discourage him and Soren basically goes off the deep end. He violently chases down Aria and Paisley - he ends up ripping off Aria's SmartEye (a device used to go to The Realms, a virtual reality world) and she passes out just as a boy around the same age shows up to stop Soren. The boy is not a resident of Reverie, but rather a "savage" who lives in the Real, in the Death Shop, outside the safety of the pods. Aria wakes up and is told by Soren's father that she is being kicked out of Reverie for a crime she didn't commit.

Right away UNTS started out with a bang. I mean it just was intense. I think that it did set up the parts right after Aria is put into the Real/the Death Shop to be a bit dry and boring, however, Peregrine (the savage who saved Aria) has a very interesting perspective and it definitely helped keep the story's head up over water, so to speak. I am excited for the next book because I think it will hold more depth to why there are aether storms (and a better explanation of what they are) and why society was split so extremely. I've heard from many that the second is so much better than the first.

Previous Review:
Poison by Bridget Zinn [here]

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