Empress of a Thousand Skies (Empress of a Thousand Skies #1)

There are some books with loads of potential that never seem to find their footing and then there are the ones that you wholeheartedly believe in despite their shortcomings. For me, Rhoda Bellazas Empress of a Thousand Skies falls into the latter category. Little spoiler here to open this review, please skip the rest of the paragraph if you do not wish to see. I want to start off by saying that the synopsis is very misleading when it comes to how the two lead characters converge. Their individual arcs do not directly intersect, but their stories do. I want to put that out there because I spent a large majority of my time while reading, wondering when these characters would actually meet and was really disappointed to see that they never did. With that being said, I do need to read a sequel soon because Id love to see these characters in the same room together.

There are so many layers to Bellazas universe and this is one of the main reasons why I enjoyed this debut so much. Interplanetary politics plays a large part. From Rhees home planet Kalu to Wraeta, a planet destroyed during the Great War and Alys birthplace, this world is populated by a variety of individuals who have all be impacted by this war. The peace treaty currently in place was Rhees fathers greatest accomplishment, but it has not erased the bad blood between the planets. The war itself created a population of refugees who continuously face discrimination. Technology plays a really interesting role in this world. Most people have what are called cubes installed that make it easy to access information as well as store important memories. Seeing how the characters relied so heavily on this form of technology and how disconcerting it was for them to power down reminded me of how often we rely on our phones for information and how eager we are to take a picture or video of an important event, not realizing that this can sometimes hinder the experience.

At the beginning of the story, Rhee is determined to avenge her family. I liked Rhee for the most part, but there were times when I was puzzled by her decision making. Shed been training for years, but when it came to her plan for revenge, she hadnt thought much further than getting close enough to the person she believes is responsible in order to stab them in the heart. I mostly chalk up this lack of preparation to her youth and inexperience. She is the kind of character who is motivated more by emotion than reason. I believe Rhee had a lot more influence than she realized and wondered why she didnt just come out of hiding, take the throne, and then enact her revenge. I loved Alys character, flaws and all. As a Wraetan refugee from a once-hostile planet, Aly carries around a lot of weight on his shoulders. He is judged more harshly and seen as untrustworthy by a lot of people. He struggles with living in a world that can be unfriendly and unfair, wanting to prove to everyone that he is worth more their prejudice views would dictate. Like Rhee, he has lost his entire family and is still searching for his place in the world.

Empress of a Thousand Skies has plenty of elements that are relevant to our current political climate, is multi-layered when it comes to its world-building, and introduces two very different and engaging characters that Im dying to learn more about. It isnt often that I say this, but I wish this novel had been longer, so I could get a chance to spend more time with both Rhee and Aly.

This book was not what I expected. Like most YA, I figured the two main characters would fall in love and save the galaxy together, hand in hand. I. WAS. SO. WRONG. So, if that is what youre looking for, then this book is probably not for you. But if youre looking for a fast paced fun read, insane world building, conspiracies, diverse characters, and a true scifi where romance doesnt dominate the story, then please please PLEASE read this book!

The author basically gives us a metaphor for whats happening in our country today. A leader who uses fear to manipulate others into racial profiling? An entire race of people who want to be seen as humans and not religious freaks? Innocent refugees trying to escape their past and prove they arent dangerous? Throw in two kick ass characters on a roller coaster ride through this new galaxy and youve got a super fun and engaging debut!

I selected this book randomly from a YA rec list and I was not disappointed.

Empress of a Thousand Skies focuses on Rhee, the heir to the Kalusian dynasty, with her heart set on avenging her murdered family and usurping the murder suspect on her throne. Meanwhile, Wraetan refugee Alyosha, a DroneVision reality show, is framed as the assassin of Rhee.

Rhoda Belleza has masterfully crafted a universe with a grand design that withholds its narrative questions and possibilities for maximum suspense. The population in her world have a device, known as the “cube,” which stores and playbacks memories and becomes a pivotal attribute to the mechanics of the plot. The book has a solid political foundation in its world-building: The climate of Belleza’s galaxy very much uncannily reflects upon real-life politics, such as the refugee crisis, discrimination, a rhetoric-figure who plays to the basest fears of citizens to gain an iron fist over the world.

Empress of a Thousand Skies calculates its familiar sci-fic pulp beats, not unlike the whimsy of Star Wars or the intellectual ethical dynamic of Star Trek, toward page-turning dramatic payoffs.

My favorite character is Rhee. I really enjoy her spirit and drive. She cares about the people in her life, even when they betray her. Plus, she a bad*ss! I like that Rhoda put an image of the solar system in the front so that you can see where the characters are. She also included a major characters, planets and other information to help you while reading the story which I appreciate. She has created this entire new solar system and has brilliantly made it all come to life. If you are a fan of sci-fi, action packed adventures, then stop what you are doing and go check out this book

It’s been an entire year since I’ve read this book, and I still can’t get over how much I hated it….

It just wasn’t done well at all. The travel time between the plants didn’t make any sense. And I felt like it often jumped scenes and that there were sentences missing. Because one minute everything is fine and the next thing you know disaster. But how??? It could have been done a lot better and I was very disappointed in it.

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