Author: Brandon Sanderson
Genre: Science Fiction, Young Adult
Published on: November 26, 2019 by Delacorte Press
All her life, Spensa has dreamed of becoming a pilot. Of proving she's a hero like her father. She made it to the sky, but the truths she learned about her father were crushing. The rumors of his cowardice are true--he deserted his flight during battle against the Krell. Worse, though, he turned against his team and attacked them.
Spensa is sure there's more to the story. And she's sure that whatever happened to her father in his starship could happen to her. When she made it outside the protective shell of her planet, she heard the stars--and it was terrifying. Everything Spensa has been taught about her world is a lie.
But Spensa also discovered a few other things about herself--and she'll travel to the end of the galaxy to save humankind if she needs to.
After months of anticipation, I was at last able to read Starsight. The first book doesn’t end with a cliffhanger, but I was still piqued. The main character, fighter pilot Spensa Nightshade, is back for another adventure. Six months have passed since the final battle in Skyward. Spensa (callsign “Spin”) narrowly saved her people from an attack that would have been catastrophic. She’s now not only a full-fledged Defiant Defense Force pilot. Spensa is legit a lieutenant. That impressed me. Spensa's come a long way from the outcast daughter-of-a-coward she used to be.
A returning character has a new role as well. He’s Cobb (callsign “Mongrel”), Spensa’s old flight instructor. He got promoted to commander of the DDF. If you recall, the DDF’s raison d’etre is to fight the Krell. They’re an alien race that have been at war with humans for decades. The Krell have kept humans stuck on Detritus the whole time. Spensa recently found out why. Her ship has an AI called M-Bot, and he hacked into Krell databases at the end of Skyward. The intel was useful for the DDF, but now things have changed. It appears the Krell want to eradicate humans rather than keep them isolated.
Starsight gets right into the action when it starts. Spensa and her team, Skyward Flight, are in space battling the Krell. This was a nice change. Every battle in Skyward took place in Detritus, inside an atmosphere. The author (through Spensa) explains how different it is to fight in outer space. It’s nothing like Star Wars would have us believe. Space fights in this series are realistic, or as realistic as they can be when special tech is involved. It’s nothing magical; ships in this universe use a fictional material called “acclivity stone” to fly/glide.
After the battle, an unexpected visitor almost crash-lands into Detritus. Spensa discovers that this stranger is an alien woman like her, a cytonic. "Cytonics" in this world are beings with dimensional powers. The alien is badly injured but remains conscious long enough to give Spensa crucial info. This greatly changes the course of the story. Spensa goes on a surprise mission outside Detritus with M-Bot. There’s no time for planning, which raises the stakes. Spensa is the only cytonic in the DDF, so no one else could go.
At this point, the book expands Spensa’s world by introducing new alien species. I found most of them creative. One race, the diones, are among the strangest aliens I’ve ever heard about. I was a little apprehensive when they first appeared. I dislike it when sci-fi creators give weird features to aliens for no sake other than making it obvious that they’re not human. Like, the dude with ridges on his forehead from Star Trek or the women with tentacles for hair in Star Wars. What biological purpose could they conceivably have? But even Sanderson’s diones are the way they are for good reason. Spensa is lucky to have a dione on her side at one point in the book. That’s all I’ll say.
There is a drawback to Spensa’s departure. The rest of Skyward Flight show up much less in Starsight. If they grew on you, you’ll miss them. They still have adequate roles, particularly Kimmalyn (callsign “Quirk”) and Jorgen (callsign “Jerkface”). The latter goes on a mission of his own. He luckily doesn’t have to leave Detritus for it. Another character who returns is Rodge, Spensa’s best friend. He’s now one of the DDF’s mechanics. Rodge is quite skilled in tech and engineering. He’s mostly focused on taking control of Detritus’s semi-dormant orbital defense system.
Despite how different Starsight is from Skyward, it didn’t disappoint. I think it's a fabulous second entry in the Cytoverse series. If you’re reading these books, more than likely it’s for Spensa. She’s as charming (for the reader) and intriguing as in the first book. Spensa’s bravado is more restrained, though, which was needed because of what happens. Starsight also expands on the nature of some characters, mainly fan-favorites M-Bot and Doomslug. This book will definitely leave you eager to read the next entry. I can’t wait to see what’s next for Spensa and her friends.
My rating: ★★★★ 1/2
4.5 stars - A fantastic page-turner!
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