I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review:

This was a fantastic read, exactly the kind of escapism I needed during lockdown! Set on Abeth, like the Book of the Ancestor trilogy, this book reveals what life is like on the ice. Yaz is a brilliant protagonist, one that is easy to become invested in. The array of characters, the twists and turns of the plot, and Lawrence’s gift for prose in general make this a thoroughly enjoyable book. Without revealing any spoilers, I will say that I spent a good two days after I finished it randomly muttering expletives. I cannot wait for the next instalment, and highly recommend reading this one!

Yaz is of the Ictha tribe, a tribe that endures. But she knows that next time they go to the gathering her fate will be to be cast down into the Pit of the Missing, for her difference. Because when she can't endure, Yaz has a secret that helps her to carry on, one that sets her apart and makes her different. But being different is dangerous when you live on the ice, so Yaz knows that she must go.
Down in the pit, Yaz learns a lot about her culture and also about what is wrong with it. She learns of her own abilities that set her apart from her tribe and yet give her the strength to bring change.
Others are in the pit, some to be feared, some to protect, some to fight for freedoms sake.
Yaz has to struggle for every bit of information that she gleans and is presented with difficult choices throughout her time in the pit.
I liked Yaz's independence and analytical approach to changing her circumstances. The story is well written.
This story would suit those who like futuristic or Dystopian style books.

Yaz is a girl of the ice and cold. Her people live in an eternal winter, where plants are virtually unknown and savage weather is the norm. It is all she has ever known. It is all she expects to know until the day she dies.

Once every four years her people gather with other tribes to meet at a sacred place. There, children are evaluated. Those deemed unfit to live on the ice are pushed down a hole, never to be seen again. That is simply the way of things. Yaz has already survived this once. She does not expect to survive again.

Somehow, though, she does survive. She is set aside to stand apart from the rest, not returned to her family or tribe and not cast into the pit. Right behind her in line is her younger brother. Zeen stands before the man for a moment. Then, with a sudden movement, Zeen is pushed into the pit.

And Yaz jumps in after him.

What follows is a thrilling fantasy adventure. Yaz faces cannibals, monsters beyond imagination, humans tainted by demons beyond recognition, and her own fears and weaknesses. She finds friends in unlikely places, gets help from surprising sources, and discovers powers within her she never imagined were possible. Throughout, her guiding star is rescuing Zeen. That goal shapes every decision and often leads her to try things that take her and her friends into harm’s way.

Lawrence does a great job balancing between white-knuckled adventure and beautiful scene-setting and informational sections. Rather than interrupt the flow of the action, I found that it served to heighten the anticipation. Yaz is a young woman coming of age through this novel. Like any teenager, sometimes her decisions are wise beyond her years and sometimes they are infuriatingly silly. As she matures, though, those impulsive and childish decisions become replaced by someone who embraces her role as a woman of power, a leader of others, a force to be feared and respected.

The Girl and the Stars is the first in a new fantasy series. Author Lawrence has laid an amazing foundation in this novel. There are plenty of threads to be woven into the future installments, but this novel ends on a cliffhanger that is both satisfying and frustrating. Satisfying, because the turn at the end tied up the action neatly in this book. Frustrating, because it’s a cliffhanger! I want to know what happens next! I suspect this book will find its way to the YA shelves, but this middle-aged reviewer is waiting impatiently as well.

Like everyone, I will have to wait for his next book to come out. I am very eager to find out what happens to Yaz and her friends.

DNF at 50%.

I've been looking to try a Mark Lawrence book for a while, having heard he does a nice line in gritty fantasy. So, when I had the chance to check out an ARC of his latest I jumped at it.

Unfortunately, the book just didn't click for me and I've decided to slop slogging through and put it aside.

Sometimes the connection between a particular author and reader just isn't there and that's the case this time. There were points the book almost grabbed me, but I never felt excited about picking the book up again.

I know this book is tangentially related to some other Mark Lawrence works, so I'm not sure if that was a factor in me finding it a slog. Certainly there were sections I found quite confusing.

Probably my main issue was that the book felt a little too pacy. There was very little breathing space, so our hero falls down a hole into a strange new world, then 5 minutes later falls into another strange place, etc, etc. It felt like plot developments were crashing down one on top of another without giving the reader time to absorb and reflect.

The world building was interesting and I'm sure the book will have lots of fans - happy reading to you but this one wasn't for me.

The Girl and the Stars is set in the same world as The Book of the Ancestor trilogy, but you do not have to read the previous series to fully appreciate this but you may love it just a bit more .

As this was the case for me, this story follows the story of Yaz who lives in a frozen land with the tribe of Ictha.

Before she’s allowed to reach adulthood she must be tested and if she fails she’ll be thrown into the Blackhole in the ground.

This book was magnificent and just kept getting better and better as it went on, it was a fantastic discovery of self strength and self-discovery, with the most beautiful worldbuilding and the story was amazing.

I honestly can’t wait to get started on the book of the ancestors series ,if its anything like this book i know ill be blown away by it .

Like the previous trilogy set in the same world the story opens with a shock that reorders the world around the heroine. From there the story is a little more picaresque than our previous visit to Abeth and though much of the world is familiar this tale is more of a journey of discovery compared to the violent Mallory Towers of the xSisters books. What is very much the same is the quality of both the story and the writing that delivers it. Lawrence has come a long way since his gut churning debut and is now easily in the top handful of fantastic fiction writers working today. Unmissable.

2 1/2 stars. The Girl and the Stars is a kind of spin-off series of The Book of the Ancestor trilogy, set in the same universe but years later and with a new cast of characters. You do not necessarily have to have read Red Sister to enjoy it, but it would make some parts of this world and story easier to understand.

I thought the world-building in this book was incredible. The fierce, icy landscape, the history and culture of the ice tribes, the tainted, and the world beneath the ice... I was very into this. I also liked how the book dived into the action and plot right away, unveiling background info alongside the fast-paced bloodshed and fight for survival. No lengthy infodumps to bore us right away.

Yaz interested me in the beginning, too. The book opens with the characters travelling to a ceremony where they will be viewed by a priest who will choose certain members of their tribe (the Ictha) who are deemed unworthy to push down an icy drop. Never to be seen again. Yaz is certain she will be picked, but when the time comes, it is her younger brother Zeen who is shoved into the 'Pit of the Missing'. In a moment of panic, she throws herself after him.

There is something very YA-like about this book, which I wasn't expecting. The young characters, the action-based plot, the motivations, moralizing, and "tone" of the novel, all feel like a book for teens. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but I did feel like I was always wanting something deeper; more character-driven. The characters felt a little stock and underdeveloped. Yaz seemed to fit too neatly into a badass YA heroine mold. And no other character was developed or interesting.

For this reason - my lack of connection to the characters - the second half became a bit of a slog for me. The action and world-building kept me turning pages in the first 50% or so, but when I made it halfway without really becoming invested in Yaz's story (and getting a bit annoyed with her, to be honest), no amount of action or fast-pacing could pull me back in.

I did make it to the end, though, and there is a cliffhanger for those who care about that. Maybe if I had adjusted my expectations some I might have enjoyed this more. I had settled in for some detailed, possibly dense, adult fantasy, and got an action-and-thrills YA instead. But I still think I would have needed better characters to fully love it.

The Girl and the Stars is the first book in Mark Lawrence's new epic fantasy series, Book of the Ice. As with his Book of the Ancestor trilogy, it's set in Abeth but (in this novel, at least) there is no crossover between characters and so it's not necessary to have read the previous series. However, I do feel that having read Red Sister helped anchor me into this world perhaps a little more quickly, particularly with regards to the various abilities and magics possessed by some of the characters.
The main character here is Yaz, a young woman on the brink of adulthood who is part of the Ictha tribe who live in the far North. This harshest of frozen landscapes means the tribe value strength and endurance, not individuality but even amongst the tribes who live on the slightly warmer parts of the ice, there is no room for weakness. Yaz should be looking forward to the future but she knows she is different and as the tribes head for the Pit of the Missing, she has accepted her fate as one of the broken children who will be thrown into a hole, sacrificed for the survival of their people.
The opening brilliantly sets the scene for what follows as Yaz and her younger brother Zeen are introduced alongside a riveting description of their surroundings and history. It means that by the time Yaz is facing her judgement, the tension is already high but what happens at the Pit proves to be shocking for everybody present and it's at this point that Yaz becomes not so much a character I pitied as somebody who I immediately became invested in. She is the sole focus of the story and in a book which features a significant amount of world-building, is absolutely engaging throughout - and crucially, somebody who I want to follow as the series progresses.
Most of the action takes place below the ice and the world Mark Lawrence has created here is breathtaking in terms of scope and imagination. Yaz soon joins forces with the Broken, first out of necessity but later as she discovers so much of what she thought was immutable may not be so, she forms important bonds with a small group of them. There are a number of characters introduced and while none are as well-formed as Yaz herself, there are a few who make an impression - most notably the troubled Thurin whose dark experiences are one of the most frightening aspects of the story, and the mysterious Erris whose presence brings an intriguing science-fiction element to this fantasy world. Much of the story revolves around Yaz having to search for someone or something and the nightmarish. labyrinthine city means parts of the novel could perhaps be considered a little repetitive - although I think it's fair to say that this is part of the scene setting which so vividly encapsulates the claustrophobic, terrifying darkness,
The Girl and the Stars is a book of layers and those layers are continually being stripped back to reveal more dark secrets, more astounding revelations and more painful dilemmas. From the elaborate descriptions of this fascinating, dangerous world, to Yaz's gradual discovery of her abilities which means she is almost recreated as a completely different person to the one she starts as, to the nuanced horrors behind the existence of the Broken; this is a fantastic opening to the Book of the Ice series. The combination of the immersive world-building and an engaging, empathetic protagonist in Yaz (whose motivations are refreshingly altruistic rather than in the pursuit of personal gain) ensured I was gripped throughout and am excited to read what comes next. Diverse, complex and provocative - this is why I love reading fantasy! Highly recommended.

4 of 5 stars
https://lynns-books.com/2020/05/11/the-girl-and-the-stars-book-of-the-ice-1-by-mark-lawrence/
The Girl and the Stars is the first Book of the Ice and a great start to series. In true Lawrence fashion it has incredible world building and I suspect, as with the rest of his books, is going to be something that has the ‘big picture’ in mind.

This is Abeth, the cold and the wind make for very uncomfortable living. Life on the ice is tough and life expectancy short for most and for those who are different, well, it’s really short. The tribes who live in these extremes can’t afford difference, they have to be tough, fast and resilient and for those who can’t fit in the prospects are harsh.

When we meet Yaz, she is travelling across the ice with her family. It is time for another meeting of the tribes and for the frightening initiation ritual that the children must face. Yaz is afraid. She knows she’s different and that this difference will lead to her being discarded and thrown into the bottomless pit where all outcasts end their days known as the ‘Broken’. And, this is when the story takes us, down into a dark pit.

I’m not going to elaborate on the plot, there are plenty of reviews that already do so very well and so it’s unnecessary. I would mention that if you’ve not read anything by Lawrence before, although this is set in the same cold world as the Book of the Ancestor series, it isn’t necessary to have read his previous books in order to pick this one up, although clearly there will be certain references that you may not pick up, but you won’t know that you’re not picking them up, so it’s all good. After all, if you’ve never eaten chocolate you don’t know that you’re missing out – but, wait, what? Why wouldn’t you eat chocolate!

I’m always excited to pick up a new Lawrence book, I can genuinely say that I’ve enjoyed everything of his that I’ve read so far and the expectation of reading a book set on the Ice – which is where a character that I particularly enjoyed from the previous series comes from – well, if anticipation could be measured you still wouldn’t be able to measure mine. And, this gets off to a great start. I loved the opening chapters. They delivered so much. I found myself, in short order, really liking Yaz and at the same time being very worried about what she was expecting to face. The reckoning that Yaz and her family are racing towards is no small threat and the tension that was evident in everyone came across so well. Like they were holding their breath, muscles tense, just waiting for everything to be over so they could breath out again and release those bunched up shoulders. And then the worst happens, it’s not a spoiler to mention here that Yaz ends up in the very place that she most dreads – but, what I will say, is that the way she came to be there was very much a surprise and also, once she is inside her own worst nightmare, It’s completely different than she expected.

The world building in TGatS is fantastic. The Pit of the Missing is deep. So deep that it seems to contain at least another world completely. Imagine an ice age, everything you know has been consumed, the ice has enveloped it and continued to grow. The survivors eek out an existence on the surface with little awareness of the history beneath their feet. Everything here speaks of an apocalypse, perhaps this is a future-earth and the worst has happened, the world being consumed in a dark age where few survived – I don’t know, I’m simply throwing random conjectures around to see if anything will stick. What I do know is that this is the same world as the Book of the Ancestor, although I’m not sure if events here take place before or after that series. I’m sure all will become clear eventually (did I mention ML and his long game?) Anyway, there are certain elements to the story that were familiar such as mention of Gerants (giants) and also the strange abilities and (river of) magic that Yaz is able to tap into.

So, Yaz. She’s an intriguing character to read. Her life has been mapped out before her, expectations of her future partner already planned, and yet, at the back of her mind she knows she doesn’t fit it and there’s the dilemma of desperately not wanting to be found to be different whilst at the same time yearning for something different from life than that which is planned. She loves her family and in fact this is what drives the plot and also gives her a desperate, running around like a headless chicken vibe at certain points, plus, she’s a young girl of little experience and sometimes that is very clear. But, even with her youth and naivety Yaz has inner strength and a certain gravitas and her emergence in the pit causes a stir and is probably a catalyst for events.

A different and dark world exists under the ice, think Journey to the Centre of the Earth meets Lord of the Flies and you might be onto something. Again, I don’t think it’s a spoiler to mention that a lot of the children thrown into the pit survive. Yaz survived after all so why shouldn’t others, and this is a strange community of children who have lived with horrors. It’s also a brutal world of dog eats dog and apart from the bickering and jousting for position that exists there are other threats from the Tainted and from Hunters from the underground city. Yaz could definitely be a leader here, she immediately gains the confidence and trust of others but she has her own mission and this comes first and foremost.

In terms of other characters, I didn’t really form an attachment to any at this point, they’re interesting to read but the story here takes place over a very short time span – I think maybe four or five days? It was difficult for the characters themselves to develop strong feelings towards each other during that time so it’s only natural that I would feel similarly. As it happens, I would very much have liked to spend more time under the ice and would have enjoyed this part of the story taking time to develop a little more slowly, but, and here I’m about to turn into Jekyll and Hyde, I can also see why the story had this breakneck pace. There’s an urgency to the plot that really drives the pace plus a twist that once revealed makes the need for swift action a necessity.

As with all my reviews for ML this is becoming ridiculously wordy and yet I feel I’ve barely scratched the surface of what I want to say. So I’m going to round things up.

This is an excellent start to series, the writing is simply superb and the crafting of a dark and claustrophobic world filled with unusual stars is absolutely excellent. I look forward to seeing what’s next in store for Yaz.

My rating 4 of 5 stars.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.

Let me start by saying I am a massive Fan of Mark Lawrence’s The Book of the Ancestor trilogy. Red Sister was the first book of his I picked up and I have been totally hooked on his writing ever since. When I heard he was writing a book set in the same world as Nona I was sold. This has easily been one of my most anticipated books of 2020 and I may or may not have pre ordered two copies. I will admit nothing!
Then I found myself in a slight quandary. Had I hyped this up too much? Would it disappoint me? I started with much trepidation but I needn’t have worried, once again the opening line drew me in and I turned the pages feverishly until the final sentence. And now I find myself trying to gather my thoughts enough to write a decent review.
Do you need to read The Book of the Ancestor first?
In short, no. You absolutely do not need to have read the previous trilogy to read and enjoy this story. Yes, it is set in the same world, but we are far away from Nona’s Abeth and Yaz’s story (our main protagonist) is set solely on the brutal world of the ice.
Those of us that have read the Ancestor books will recognize early on the magic style, as well as the stories of the Ice that we learn’t about through Nona’s journey with Zole. If you are new to this World however, don’t worry, Mark has your back. Everything is explained and we learn alongside Yaz.
The Story
Yaz lives in one of the ice clans. Every four years the clans gather to present their children to the Priest of Black Rock. Any child deemed ‘broken’, and unlikely to survive on the ice, is thrown into the pit of the broken. It is seen as a kindness and a way of ensuring the clans continued existence.
Of course, things are not that simple and Yaz really goes on quite the journey. The book itself actually only spans around a week in time. However, so much is discovered and learned it seems to be much longer. Such is the joy of the writing.
The Characters
Our main protagonist is Yaz of the Ictha, the northern most dwelling of the ice clans. They have to be strong, unbending, focused solely on survival of the ice. I loved how her notions of everything are challenged. She is thrown into a world few knew existed. There she learns the secrets of who she is and what she can do. She also finds friends for possibly the first time.
The story is told in first person, so we see everyone through Yaz’s eyes. Even so I formed opinions on who could be trusted and who might be playing a longer game. I didn’t get it all though and one character in particular really surprised me at the end.
There are a lot of characters and it did take a little time to get my head around who was who. As the story progresses though the focus becomes on a much smaller group and you begin to get to know them so much more. I fell in love with so many of these characters and formed attachments quickly, not advised in a Mark Lawrence novel – FYI!
The Writing and The Setting
If you haven’t already guessed I love Mark Lawrence’s writing style. He really pulls you into the story and creates such a believable atmosphere. In fact, in one part of the book there is a section that involves heights. I have a massive fear of falling, even if I see a high bridge or building on the telly I get the full-on fear. Never has that happened with a book until now. My toes were curling, palms sweaty, I had to put the book down and give myself a talking to. Such is the power of his words.
You are totally drawn into the story and the setting in places is breath taking. The way the stars are worked into the ice just presented some beautiful imagery. I totally fell in love with it. The hidden city, giant caverns under the ice, there is just so much to explore here and I felt that with every step Yaz took.
There are also the darker, more gory elements as well that I’ve come to associate with his novels. Everything was worked together so well.
Final Thoughts
I loved this book; the pacing is suburb and the story isn’t all neatly wrapped up. This is most definitely setting up for bigger things. The ending left me slightly frustrated but only because I’m going to have to wait to find out what happens. It is a true cliff hanger ending. Mark Lawrence is the master of a trilogy. I highly recommend this to any fantasy lover. Go buy it, you will not be disappointed.
Massive thank you to Anne to inviting me on to the blog tour and to the publishers for giving me a copy to review. Thankfully one of pre order copies did arrive in time.

I am a huge Mark Lawrence fan so was so excited to be approved for this title. It starts slow with world building but then is utterly gripping and amazing characters.

The Girl And The Stars is certainly not Mark Lawrence’s first rodeo. However, It is the most poignant epic fantasy that I have experienced in a long time. The story envelops you like a long lost relative after decades apart…everything about it just feels right. This is the kind of story that leaves you grappling with the fight for cognitive cohesion. How on earth do you get your thoughts down in a review in regard to a book of this magnitude. The narrative took me hostage and posted my ransom. I didn’t want to be found, I wanted to be immersed in this world for the foreseeable future.

My kindle only made it through the read by the skin of its teeth. There are some elements of a story that just speak to you and The Girl And The Stars just had it all. it drew out unbreakable connections, the electricity snapping between us. The book quite simply felt like a living and breathing entity. You feel the emotion and the outpouring of love that Mark Lawrence has for this story and it spoke completely to the heart. It’s almost like the book knew how you tick and brought you everything you have been craving.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that this is a book that you can read a few chapters at a time. The Girl And The Stars will rapt your attention and the fight against it will be a futile struggle. Epic fantasy. Survival. Family. Unbreakable bonds and children of different abilities. The prose was like titanium – solid.

Mark Lawrence is an author that I have failed to get around to reading, I am ashamed to admit but now I have had a taste of his work, I will be seeking to change that immediately. He has brought The Girl and The Stars to life with such a glorious 8k dimension to it. He has created a fully immersive epic fantasy and surpassed all expectations – my brain wanted to explode. The world building was mind blowing and I was experiencing it in VR.

We meet Yaz, our sixteen-year-old female protagonist, a member of the ice tribe, the ictha. She knows that she cannot ascend to an adult member of the tribe without being judged by the regulator, Kazik. Yaz has known for many a year that she wasn’t normal, her abilities would be judged harshly and would end up being cast away into the pit of the missing, where all broken children end up.

Inadvertently or not Yaz ends up in the pit with her brother, Zeen. Her one and only mission is to save her brother, who in her mind, doesn’t deserve to be in the pit. After a considerable amount of time she comes face to face with a despicable giant – who just happens to gorge on the flesh of the broken. Yaz, however, is rescued by other members of the broken and she is introduced to a new clan that can survive below the ice. They have adapted to their new environment and Yaz has a whole lot of adapting to do.

The Girl And The Stars laser precise and hits its target every time. An intricate magical spell, you fall deep, and its rich narrative is a fresh take on a populated genre.

This book started out so strong and I was absolutely hooked! But then it went downhill from there. I lost interest in the characters and the plot. I can't explain why I lost interest - there was a decent pace to the plot and action. I think perhaps this just wasn't a book for me.

My Thoughts: I always love discovering a new author and this my first dive into one of Mark Lawrence’s books, and afternoon this one I will definitely be picking up more from him in the future.

We follow Yaz a member of the Ictha tribe who thrive in the cold, that’s their domain, it’s what they’re used to, the day has come to find out if the youngest members of the tribe have made it to adulthood, it’s a horrible tradition where they stand in front of the “pit of the missing” if the priest thinks you’re grown up you stay, if not you get pushed in!

The first book in this trilogy is all about Yaz’s journey in the pit (you’ll have to read the book to find out how she ends up down there, it’s not as straight forward as you think 😉) she soon discovers that the pit of the missing is not as it has been described from up top, there’s a whole civilisation down here! – can she integrate herself and find what she is looking for before it’s too late?

The story was absolutely magical and not just because our main character can control how bright the stars shine just by talking to them.

The world building was amazing, I was left feeling claustrophobic at times almost like I was actually down the pit with the characters of the story.

Seeing Yaz develop from a scared unsure ‘child’ into a woman who is not afraid to go after what she wants was so nice to see, who doesn’t love a bad ass female character?

It took me w while to be totally invested, adult fantasy series always start off slow because there is so much world building and character introducing to do, but by about 25% I was hooked and totally lost in the story.

Be prepared for long chapters, this isn’t something I’m used to, so was very strange to me, but it didn’t take away from the enjoyment of the story.

As with most first books, this one was left on one hell of a cliffhanger which has left me wanting book 2 now.

I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS!

https://theworldsofsff.com/2020/book-of-the-ice-01-the-girl-and-the-stars/

This was exactly the kind of book I needed to bring me out of my reading slump. It’s great.

I’ve read a few Mark Lawerence books recently. First, Red Sister, which is the first book in the Book of the Ancestor series and was looking forward to book 2. But then, Mark was kind enough to send me a short story which follows on from the Red Queen’s War trilogy—a trilogy I had yet to read. I’ve read the first two books in the past 6 weeks or so. I’ve really enjoyed them also. When I saw The Girl and the Stars appear on NetGalley, I requested it as Mark in now one of my favourite authors, and luckily my request was accepted. Receiving an ARC does not impact my reviews.

The Girl and the Stars is set in the same world as the Book of Ancestor series, though you do not need to have read it t read this book, and this book contains no spoilers for the Book of the Ancestor series. They are totally different stories. The world of Abeth is a frozen planet, very very thickly covered in ice, except for the ‘corridor’ which is also known as the ‘green belt’. This belt is where the Book of the Ancestor series takes place. The Girl and the Stars takes place on the ice.

"Many babies have killed, but it is very rare that the victim is not their mother.”

We follow sixteen-year-old Yaz throughout the entire story, however, this does not take away how great some of the other characters are. This book is wonderfully written, and the story masterfully told. Yaz is a member of the Ictha tribe, the physically strongest of the ice tribes—the only tribe able to survive in the coldest regions on the ice. She is fiercely loyal to her friends and family. A protector. Somebody willing to make sacrifices. She’s relatable as a young person going through changes in her life, emotionally. She tries to do what’s right. She also happens to be incredibly powerful. She’s a quantal, which if you’ve read the Book of the Ancestor series you’ll understand.

Similarly, there are others who are Marjal, Hunska or Gerant. Again, you’ll already know these if you’ve read Book of the Ancestor. Don’t worry if f you haven’t, as I have already said, they are not linked, other than the world and you’ll learn about each in this book.

Every four years the ice tribes come together at the place where there is a large hole in the ice created by heat from below. Children are assessed by the Regulator, if he deems them broken, he throws them down the hole. Among the tribes, it is believed that the broken children cannot survive on the ice. Therefore, for the good of the tribes they are thrown down the hole, presumably to their death. Children need to be at least eight (from memory) before they can be tested and must pass two tests, four years apart, before they are accepted as adults and permanent members of their tribe.

“In the ice, east of the Black Rock, there is a hole into which broken children are thrown.”

However, the children don’t die, there is a whole world at the bottom of the hole. Filled with factions, evils, machines, and a rich history. Plus, plenty of twists and turns in the plot all the way to the end… cliffhanger anyone?

One thing I really love about this book is how Lawerence introduces lore so naturally. It isn’t weighty. It isn’t unnatural. It’s isn’t forced. It’s done beautifully and it was wonderful to learn more about the world of Abeth and the Missing. There are some ‘drops’ about the gods but these are then referred to in the story too. One-character who is key to learning the lore is Erris, who is thousands of years old, but I’ll leave it at that as I don’t want to give any spoilers. Another is the ‘evil’ Theus who helps drive some of the lore. While on the topic of ‘evil’, there are a few villains of varying degrees in this book, and all are well-written. They are not just evil and that is that. There is reason and meaning. And, in the case of Theus, he’s one of those who you begin to wonder about, is he really evil? Is it his fault?

The dialogue throughout is meaningful, I didn’t feel there were words wasted. And the story is great. It’s the trials of life in almost inhospitable conditions. The challenges of a society so pressured by their environment. The haunting remnants of the past. It’s a story filled with injustices and obstacles to be overcome. I was fully engrossed in a way I haven’t been since reading Mistborn 1-3 and the Kingkiller Chronicle. I’d still put those books slightly ahead of this, but this trilogy could be truly magical. It was so easy to visualise the world and I kept thinking how great this would look on TV.

I have yet to read all of Mark’s book, but I will do in the coming months, but from what I have read so far, this is his best work yet. I cannot wait for the second book.

“Now though, with darkness and despair literally reaching out to engulf her, she knew how cruel and fragile a thing hope is, and how sharp the edges of new forged dreams can be once shattered.”

Honestly anything I write here will never encompass how much I enjoyed - no slash that, absolutely bloody adored this book I totally fell in love with Yaz from the first page and I'm 100% biting at the bit to get cracking and read all of Mark Lawrence's back catalogue now if this is anything to go by I'm in for one hell of a reading treat!

We follow Yaz on her way to the pit of the missing to be judged along with other children by the regulator Kazik to ascend to adulthood you must first be judged anyone who shows weakness, strangeness or unexplained qualities are deemed the broken unable to survive in the the ice and thrown into the pit, Yaz knows she's different and is expecting to be thrown in but something unexpected happens and Yas must venture into the unknown.

Following Yaz throughout this was just so fantastic she is such an amazing character strong willed, extremely powerful, caring and just totally a character that you 100% route for, the cast of characters that are in this with her are also so amazing mark Lawrence knows how to write a belter of a character, characters you really love and some you hate, Yaz and Thurin being my total favourite.

Along with the absolutely terrific characters there is also the nail biting awesomeness that is the setting the tension that I felt reading while everyone is either running for there lives in the caves or trying to find people in the caves was seriously epic, totally reminds me of the Lord of the rings but instead of one chapter in a cave it's the whole book bloody excellent, and absolute cracker of a fantasy, this honesty blew me away and I cannot recommend this enough I also cannot wait for book 2!


Thank you so much to the publishers and Anne from #randomthingtours for allowing me to take part in the blog tour

I have yet to read The Book of the Ancestor, which is set in the same world as this book, although Red Sister is sat on my shelf staring at me accusingly. However, that did not detract from my understanding, enjoyment and love for this new book (and has bumped the other series right up my TBR pile).
What a fantastic book.
To be honest, I am still unpacking everything that happened in the Girl and the Stars, and I feel that I probably will for a while. That is not a bad thing, as I love books that stay with me. That leaves me gnawing at the details, finding new aspects, and I suspect that I will be rereading this quite soon, chasing down those questions and answers.
However, I do know what I enjoyed about this book -admittedly most of it – but in particular, it was the worldbuilding that drew me into this book. I fell in love with the Ithca, and the icy world that tribe inhabited, and how it had shaped them and the tribes around them. The myth and history, the way survival had been built into their culture and even their relationships with one another. To the point, where adulthood hinged on being judged for your ability to survive, weaknesses – differences – setting you apart, marking you as impure, broken. Someone who had no place on the ice, because they would not survive. It was harsh, and from the beginning ‘The Pit of the Missing’ was there, in Yaz’s thoughts, in the conversations.
It became so much more.
I fell in love with the ice-covered world above, but it was what lay under the ice that truly made this book spectacular. Beneath the surface, Lawrence mapped out an entire world where past and present collided, trapped together, in an environment that was every bit as harsh as the ice above. Everything is still about survival, but of a different sort. Here being ‘broken’ is a strength, the differences that brought Yaz and the other characters to this place now the key to their survival, but the dangers are vastly different – from the Hunters to the Tainted (who I loved, because although they were the ‘bad’, it was far more complicated than that), to political and personal conflicts that could spell life and death. All of this wrapped into an oppressive atmosphere that was a threat in and of itself, the dark, the tunnels and the dangers that lay within all felt vividly real, and I found myself holding my breath more than once, expecting the threat to reach for me too.
In terms of the characters, Yaz was a fantastic protagonist, and following her from the beginning above the ice, before the fall into the world below and everything that followed, you can see how she develops and grows. How she questions everything, herself and her choices, the people around her, and even the world that she was raised to believe in. She isn’t perfect by any means – and there were times when I found myself annoyed not so much with her decisions, but with her distractions. At times, she seemed to drift, caught too much by the world around her rather than standing on her own two feet. Still, that is a minor complaint, because for the most part, I loved how she grew, how she redefined her world and what it was to be ‘broken’ and human, and learned to use that as a strength that was as strong as the magic she used.
That cast of characters around her was just as interesting and diverse, and there were twists and turns, developments that left me unable to look away for fear of missing a single moment. I was as invested in their stories, secrets and fate as I was Yaz, and I felt that each one added a different facet to the Broken, and to being human in a world where humanity itself can be a weakness.
The plot is fast-paced, and so much happened – twists and turns, secrets revealed, and more questions asked – that you couldn’t help but be swept along, and there were moments where I had to stop and go back because I had missed something. There is a lot in this book, and it was a journey, to say the least. A fantastic blending of worldbuilding, characters and action, with sci-fi elements woven seamlessly with the fantasy, and with so many threads leading on into the next book.
The Girl and the Stars blew me away from start to finish, and that ending has left me reeling and desperately in need of the second book. I honestly can’t recommend this book highly enough. I don’t have the words to describe just how much I loved this book, and I know that I will be filling the time between now and then, catching up with Lawrence’s other books that I haven’t yet had time to get to.

Yet again Mark Lawrence has written a beautiful book. It’s not often you can deceive a book as beautiful, but Lawrence’s divine prose deserves to be described as such.

As you would expect from the author, this is a dark tale, yet it offers hints of redemption and resilience in a very bleak world. Set on Abeth, from the Red Sister series, this book further explores the magics and mysteries that already played a part in the previous series. With a new cast of characters, all of whom are broken in their own way, Mark Lawrence weaves a story that is gripping and enthralling.

The man is a master. His books are so clever, they really are a joy to read.

In the same world as the Red Sister Trilogy,I was excited to red this new book! But I just couldn't get into it at all. The characters didnt have much personality and I found it really hard to feel anything or connect with them.

Yaz knows that she is going to get thrown down the pit, a sacrifice to keep her clan strong and healthy. She soon discovers a whole new world beneath the ice.

I received a free copy from Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Yaz is part of the Ichta, one of the four clans who live on the ice, who are renowned for their stamina.
She is weaker than the others, and although she tries to hide this weakness, she knows what will happen in the end.
Every few years, there is a reckoning, where all the tribes gather, and children are assessed. Those that are strong, are returned to their tribes as adults. Those that are weak, and will be an increasing strain on their tribe, are sacrificed for the good of the group.
They are thrown into the pit. As far as everyone is concerned, this is a death sentence.
What they don't know, is that their Broken children have their own community under the ice, where they mine for metal and stars, in return for food and supplies from the priests.
Of course, they aren't the only things down there.

I loved the world that Lawrence has created.
All Yaz and her kin have ever known is the world of ice they live on. It's ice as far as you can travel, eventually meeting the sea. Their whole existence is about survival; working together, and pouring every ounce of effort into staying alive. Their survival is precarious, and no one questions the need to throw weak children down the pit.
But they're not necessarily weak, they are just different. With traits that might be the next step in evolution, but unfortunately don't work well on the ice. Some are super-fast but can't keep warm; others are extra tall and strong, but need too much food.
Yaz is different, she's a quantal, someone who can control things with her mind. Just as her new friend Thurin can control water, Yaz learns that she can control the stars (spherical chunks of glowing rock that provide energy, but can also drive people insane).

I enjoyed following Yaz, as she discovered just how big the world was. She had always accepted the old stories, that the four tribes arrived from over the sea, and there was no other life than the ice.
She has never seen soil or rocks. She doesn't know what mushrooms are, nor has she any idea that plants grow.
She's warm, and for the first time in her life, she is free to make her own choices. She's not limited by merely staying alive.

Not everything is for the better. Not all the children that are thrown down make it to the relative safety of the Broken community. Some die from the fall; or are killed by cannibals. Some are possessed by demons that linger in the black ice, always hunting for their next victim.
There are unstoppable hunters, powered by stars, that roam the caves.

The setting was A-MA-ZING.

The not-so-good.
Yaz was an OK main character, and this was super-promising for the first third. She jumps into the pit to save her brother; discovers she has this awesome ability to control the stars (which means she's the only person amongst the Broken that has a chance to drive back the demons etc); and she's heralded as the bringer of change. She's all set to be a kick-ass heroine.
Then... she spends an awful lot of time drifting about with various people in her wake. Her goals constantly seem to be moving, and her drive seems completely selfish.
One moment she's giving a big speech to the Broken, promising to lead them to freedom; and the next, she's leaving them all to die under Pome's attack, with absolutely no shits given.
There are other hints along the way of saving the city, or saving the possessed; but these wither and die.
The key group that Yaz is willing to protect constantly changes. It doesn't seem to matter who she saves, as long as a couple survive at the end of the story.

There are various characters that pop up and are super-important for a brief moment, but once the aide to the plot is done, Yaz doesn't spare them any thought. As such, it was hard to keep track of all the characters that were introduced. On the conveyor-belt, none of them particularly stood out or had any real depth, except from ex-possessed-Thurin and cute-assassin-Maya.

Overall, the writing and world-building was great. I don't think I'll continue with this series, but I'll definitely look into the rest of Lawrence's work.