To Sleep in a Sea of Stars more accurately to sleep through the damn book. This was nothing like I had been expecting. It didn’t hold my attention and very much felt like a plot that is seen through -out the genre but without any aspect of originality. I know this is an unpopular opinion, but this nearly drove me to tears. The characterisation suffered for the plot and it was hugely disappointing. Although there is action within the first few chapters; it just lacked any punch or emotion, even at this point I wasn’t sure if I should plough forward.

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is very much pretty light on the science stuff. I have come to expect plenty descriptions of shape ships, the world and instruments in science fiction but there was a distinct lack of this. Paolini was great at giving us descriptions but it felt like a waste of words and it didn’t add to the scene. I think with Paolini’s work you come to get used to the descriptive writing, but it really didn’t work in this type of story.

The characterisation was very wooden, and I can hand on my heart declare that I didn’t feel an affinity towards any of them. The main character was very annoying and felt more like a cyborg rather than a person. Her character is centred around being enhanced but when something disastrous happens there is almost no emotion at all. The character just comes across as incredibly frustrating. Actions and behaviours make no sense and I spent more time cursing under my breath at the direction the plot was taking – or no direction at all. The inconsistences within the story is what had me nearly throwing it out the nearest window. Just disappointing.

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is centred around the protagonist, Kira. She falls into a what appears to be a cave and she is overtaken by an alien suit. She sleeps, she dreams and wakes up. Repeat this sequence over the course of nearly 900 pages long. The plot was neither obvious or straightforward. I was confused and wondered why the hell this book had to last nearly 900 pages. It was unwarranted. This would have been a DNF had I not received a copy from netgalley.

I spent most of the time reading it thinking about anything but the events within the book. How much washing I needed to complete, the weekly food shopping list, when was the last time I cleaned the toilet. Anything but what was in front of me. This book was a train wreck, for me anyway. This obviously is my subjective review and you may really love it but I’m very happy to be moving on to pastures new.

Paolini's Inheritance Cycle welcomed me into the fantasy genre with warm and hopeful hands, which led me to reading science fiction to, and so I was incredibly excited to read this one in a nice full circle kind of way. I need to read any book that goes into the complexities of human-alien organism symbiosis and this one was such a great take on that! Paolini's female protagonist was excellently written and although I found the plot itself to lack originality, this wasn't a bad thing. Sometimes you need to read something familiar and seeing what Paolini did with my expectations made me feel all the warm feels of discovering the Eragon books for the first time again as he ended up raising some of the same questions from later in that series.

Epic!! Outstanding!! Awesome!!

What is it about space operas that are just so fascinating and captivating??! I was a little daunted when I got my mitts on this beast of a book - 870 pages or so - and prepared myself for those normal 'filler' bits in a book of this size BUT found none!! It all just flowed so perfectly as you follow Kira and the crew of the Wallfish as they face up to alien wars and personal battles and I'm already itching to read it again just to soak up more of the atmosphere and pick up on extra little nuggets of info that I may have passed by on the first read through!

Kira is the female star of the show here. And what a fascinating character she is! She's all loved up with Alan and preparing for a new chapter in their lives together, but that's all about to change when she discovers an alien relic on an uncolonized planet - her initial joy of finding this rarity soon turns to terror and sets them all on a different course.

What follows is a rollercoaster ride as they encounter battles with aliens and fellow space travellers and it's a journey of chaos, emotions and humour as they search out the meaning of the changes that have happened to Kira and try to make sense of it all! And often none of it makes sense, and that's what makes it even more enthralling!! Any idea you think you have of how things may play out are always way off base and that's why I often couldn't put it down - despite the weight of the book giving my arms a rather decent workout!!

I also have to point out the stunning illustrations/artwork that is littered throughout - of planets, ships ... all the space vibes and info you need it is here and it really just added to the whole experience. Their quest evolves over many months and years so you really begin to understand their pain and suffering

This is all the good bits of science fiction and drama without all the pages of technical info that can often leave readers feeling cold! There's such an eclectic mix of characters throughout that you get to build up a rapport with thanks to the way they are written. You can see why it took the author so long to write - almost 10 years - as it is so involved and extravagant but it's always a triumph when it pays off in spectacular fashion like this story! It also has a wonderful change of gear throughout - sometimes you'll find yourself holding your breath at the action unfolding in front of you, other times the pace is much gentler allowing you to spend more time with each character to hear their thoughts and see them finding their feet once more.

Out of this world!!

I've read Paolini's Eragon before, and a lot of it didn't click for me. I will have to say that Paolini certainly have improved a lot since then, but I think To Sleep in a Sea of Stars was too long for its own good. Full review to come.

This was a great space opera epic, featuring well written characters and a compelling plot. It took me a couple of chapters to get into it, but after that I had settled into the flow of the writing.

This is a hard review to post, and I've been deliberating on it for a while now. I love Paolini's work, I absorbed the Eragon series in my youth and when I saw he was coming out with this book I got so excited. A Paolini book AND it's a space opera? That should be right up my alley! And I enjoyed what I read, his writing style is one that I can really get into, but unfortunately I just couldn't bring myself to keep reading and ultimately finish this book, despite how much I liked what I read. I'll definitely be giving it another chance at some point because it has all the making of a Max Favourite, but right now it just wasn't the book for me, I hate to say it.

I enjoyed this adventure and look forward to reading more from this world. It was a gripping story that kept my interest and made for a quick read .

There were times that I struggled to visualize what was being described which meant I was reading but kinda skimming over little bits here and there.

I would like to have read more about the relationships between the teammates , their backstories and the history of their missions and what lead them to explore in the way that they are .

It atmosphere in the book was intense. Having an intimate view of Kira's mind and internal monologue gave a chilling and unique element to the story. The book left me craving more and eagerly anticipating the next book in the ' fractalverse '.

Many thanks to Tor and Netgalley for providing me with a copy this book in return for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own and are in no way influenced by the nature in which I received it.

I received this book from the publisher via Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

I read part one (which is pretty big in it’s own right) as a sampler, and properly loved it. It was high octane and fascinating as a concept. Picking this up at part two, this was slightly less driven, but the concept still really worked for me.

I think honestly the middle sags a little, but we get some gorgeous exposition and background, so it’s hard to complain. The end really picks up again though - we learn so much more about the various alien species, and we see Kira go through a LOT. We also get something I love - a hard look at humanity and it’s flaws.

This is a properly epic space opera (both in sheer size and in story), and includes a lot of things I love about such stories - war, intrigue, first contact and space squids. :D Plus the Wallfish have a pet PIG. I loved that.

It also felt really good on the science of it all, and I loved that there was an entire huge section at the end going into what he’d chosen to include as fact and why. My little nerd heart is very happy!

Christopher Paolini is best known for the Eragon Inheritance Cycle fantasy book series, but with To Sleep in a Sea of Stars he makes his first attempt at sci-fi, and hard adult sci-fi at that—this is not a book for kids. Set about 300 years in the future when mankind has spread out across the Milky Way, the story follows Kira Navarez, a xenobiologist. While surveying a planet, Kira discovers an alien relic which bonds itself to her whole being, physically, mentally, and emotionally. This causes a cascade of catastrophes which impacts not only Kira and her colleagues but the whole human race to the point that extinction is a real and nightmarish possibility. Kira must travel light-years across space to save not only herself but the whole of humanity.

A number of reviews praise the book’s fast pace and described it as a “wild ride,” which made Scott wonder if the version he received to read was an early unedited draft. At 880 pages, this book never felt fast—in fact, it was ponderous to the point that he struggled to build up enthusiasm to pick up the book again and carry on reading. Most of the characters are well-rounded and likable enough and the attention to world-building, detail, and real-world physics is admirable, but these can’t overcome the glacially paced plot. Apparently, Paolini spent 10 years writing this book, but if a few days of that had been spent on editing down the story, the plot may have flowed better.

If you are looking for a sci-fi book with an epic scope and realistic physics but a flowing plot, then Scott recommends The Expanse series as an excellent example of how epic sci-fi can be done well.

I received a review copy from the publisher. All opinions are my own.

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars opens strong, very strong, but then drags on for a long time. It feels like almost the entire first half of the book is more exposition and set-up than true story. There are some amazing moments in the book – I especially loved the punny jokes and the candid discussion of periods, but as a whole, I did feel let down. To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is at least a couple hundred pages too long and could have benefited from some ruthless editing and trimming down.

Other than that, the universe Paolini creates for To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is interesting and faceted. The book is set in a future where space travel and exploration is as common to humans as air travel once was to us (oh, pre-pandemic times…). Kira, the main character, is a xenobiologist on a colonising mission, when a routine task leads to contamination with an alien specimen. This turns out to be sentient, calls itself the Soft Blade, and bonds with her as a sort of skin suit.

Despite the many lengths of the novel, it feels like the emotional repercussions of much of what happens are not addressed enough and there is constant forward momentum, even when Kira ends up with ample time to ponder and evaluate. I feel like the book could have been so much more. That is not to say it is bad – it is unique, it is interesting, it is ambitious, and it has an ending that is ambiguous and open to interpretation. To Sleep in a Sea of Stars has a lot going for it. I just think it could have been better.

I was very excited for this book since I had read all of Paolini's books growing up. Science Fiction is a genre that is usually hit or miss for me and I feel like this book missed, just a little bit

My first concern with this book is the length. This book is obscenely longwinded and I felt myself getting very bored whilst reading most of this book. The first few chapters were stunning and kept me engaged but as soon as Kira lands on the Wallfish, I feel like there wasn't anything strong enough driving the plot forward. I struggled through the first 65% of this book. The battles were way too long which made me lose interest and there were too many unnecessary character interaction scenes in between that didn't impact the plot at all. It got better towards the end and I enjoyed reading the book again but the final climactic battle was so long that I kept zoning out whilst reading it and ended up skimming it by the end.

The world building is complex and sort of digestible yet I still don't really know what's going on most of the time. I felt a bit lost at times with the concepts thrown around (the staff of blue, the Nightmares etc). One thing that really made me shake my head is the fact that the Aliens were called Jellies. I just couldn't take it seriously at all. I thought that it made me feel silly reading it instead of it being a super serious threat.

One can't deny that Paolini is a gifted writer. I just wished that this book was divided into more manageable chunks. If this was a series of books, instead of one monster sized tome, I would have enjoyed it a lot more. I definitely also felt that there were a lot of missed opportunities in terms of writing in the 3rd person. I felt very bored only seeing things from Kira's perspective. I felt like a second or third POV would have made this book a lot more engaging and would break up the monotony of Kira's feelings and experiences.

All in all, I'm glad I read this but I'm not sure I'd ever pick it up again.

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is a story that leaves its mark on your soul.

After finishing To Sleep in a Sea of Stars the emotions that I felt lingered. As I tried to sleep that night the story continued to play in my mind.

Christopher Paolini has created this amazing and extensive world. The level of information never felt overwhelming either. The story is a masterpiece, I was never bored when reading To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. It builds and builds as we find out more about the Worlds, Aliens and the dangers out there in the stars. 

Kira is the leading lady in, To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. Kira as a character pulled out of my such a range of different emotions from laughter to crying. I became invested in her journey and her life. Also proud of the women she became throughout the story and how she deals with it all. 

One of my favourite elements is the fact that there is a pet pig on a spaceship. Also how protective the ship's captain is over the pig. One moment in particular made me laugh.  

Another aspect I enjoyed was the crew of the Wallfish. I loved how different they are but how well they have become a unit. 

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is a brilliantly written science fiction masterpiece that is a must-read. 

My Rating for To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is 5 out of 5.

I definitely enjoyed the writing, the story and the characters in this book. But, I can't help saying it's too long for what it was.
If it was shorter, it'd be sharper with a much better pace.
But, overall really attractive plot and well written.

Thanks a lot to NG nad the publisher for this copy.

Space, the setting for many a good book and many a bad book. To Sleep in a Sea of Stars has been much heralded, this hefty tome has a lot of hype to live up to, is it it worth it?

It is the 23rd century, Humanity has spread across the universe settling on planets and space stations, exploring and exploiting the new resources they find. Kira is a scientist, a xenobiologist to be exact, she spends her life surveying uncharted planets to see if they are safe enough to be colonised. A rogue organism on the wrong planet could be deadly. If you’ve watched Aliens you know that those xenomorphs can cause an immense amount of havoc, not something you’d wish on anyone.

Thankfully Kira does not have any worries about her current location, the planet of Adrasteia, the survey team are all packed and ready to leave. The planet is deemed safe for the impending colonists, but, and there is always a but, there is one blip that comes up and Kira is sent to check it out. She finds something unusual. Something that is definitely not human. It is an alien relic of unknown origin but just as she rejoices at this amazing discovery, the relic begins to move and attaches itself to her. What has she uncovered?

This is not a quick read, it comes in at 880 pages and quite frankly I am glad I have an e-galley of it as having seen the physical book in the flesh, it is a beast. It could also be about 400 pages shorter but lets get to that in a minute as this is still a four star read in my book.

Kira finds herself bound to the relic, like a skin suit (I pictured something along the lines of Venom but nicer) and she also finds herself smack bang in the middle of an interstellar war. Humans are no longer alone in the galaxy, two different races of aliens have arrived and it all seems to be linked to the suit that covers Kira’s body. This humble scientist is about to find herself tested to her physical and mental limits. Thankfully she wont be alone, she finds unlikely friends in the strangest of places and together they are going to figure out what the hell is going on.

TSIASOS is a good book, the world building is vast, the characters well thought out ranging from us plain old humans, to hive minded scientists and squishy aliens, oh I’d better mention the ships cat and pig too. I liked this book as it felt like reading about all of my favourite sci fi shows at the same time.

I can’t decide if this is a good thing or a bad thing, as I read I was drawn to comparisons to 2001 A Space Odyssey, Firefly, Aliens, Battlestar Galactica, The Illuminae Series and of course Venom, though possibly these are little nods, an homage possibly? Saying that it was all the good things I liked about these that I saw in this book, the friendships, the crazy ship computer, the misfit crews and the fact that space is so amazingly huge and deadly.

Negatives for me, like I said above it is big, too big, as the universe is explored there are at least three or four cases where entire crews go into cryo and after the second time it does get a bit repetitive. Also the naming of the aliens - the main ones are called the Jellies for their, you guessed it squidgy appearance, the Jellies does not say scary alien being to me.

But despite my niggles I kept reading and reading, it took me four nights to get through it and I am pleased I stuck with it as it is a good story, one you could see Netflix quite happily making a series out of as going by the descriptions in the book it would be visually stunning. Is it worth the hype? I’m not sure but it is an enjoyable blast through space.

Thanks to Net Galley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G - honestly I was completely drawn into the incredible world building (or universe building as it's set in space) and plot, which is just so engaging and powerful and fun and so many more superlatives.

I loved the Wallfish and its crew, I want a prequel about Mr Fuzzypants (ship's cat) and Runcible (ship's pig) as they spend a lot of the plot in stasis.

The concept of a ship brain was really fascinating and I wanted to know more about how that became a thing, and what happened to Gregorivich.

This book took the author almost a decade to write and I want more, I will even take the notes and dead end plot lines.

I haven't read any of Christopher Paolini's previous books, not sure why because dragons, but if they're anything half as good as TSiaSofS then I probably should get around to it.

This is genuinely a masterpiece and explores some fascinating themes and ideas. Absolutely incredible stuff.

DNF @ 27%

I tried so hard with this book, but I just had no desire to pick it up (it took me a month and a half to get through 20% which is a bit of a red flag for me, obviously there is nothing wrong if this is your normal reading pace, even if you only read one book a year you are still a reader!! but for me it is a sign of me not enjoying a book). It didn't feel like anything new to the sci-fi genre, rather an amlagamation of various other bits and bobs. From what I read so far this parts also felt slightly disjointed, almost like the author wanted to include all these bits but couldn't quite find a way to get them to flow smoothly. It is also far longer than it needs to be, which I think is partly why it feels like such a chore to get through.

We follow Kira, a xenobiologist, who is on a mission with her crew when she falls down a chasm and essentially makes first contact with an alien species which then kicks off a whole intergalactic war. Kira is also imbued with a mysterious skin suit made from the alien materials that protects her from harm, I'm not entirely clear on th purpose of this suit yet but I sure it will play a role later in the book.

Kira is by no means a bad character, however there is nothing about her that really stands out and I could connect to that would make me want to keep reading.

I will probably pick this back up at some point in the future but for now I'm going to put it down becuas eit is just not appealing to me. I'm including a star rating because netgalley is making me, and this reflects my thoughts on the book so far, but obviously not the whole book.

What. A. Ride. This is definitely a 4.5 star book for me, if I was being really pedantic probably 4.8, mainly because the sense of accomplishment I have at finishing this beast of a book is insane.

I’m not normally a big fan of sci fi, but the world that Paolini has created feels unparalleled. Space is immense, and the world (even worlds) within this book is just as huge. There is such detail, unbelievable history and attention to even the most minuscule fact all woven into the book. As the plot advances, you learn more and more about the universe without realising it.

Then there is the plot itself, as far sweeping as the world building and fast paced enough to keep your attention - which is necessary for a book of this size. I took much longer reading this than I usually do with books, and for once that is a compliment. I needed the time to savour and digest everything I was being told, take in the story to fully appreciate its depth. And the characters - the characters! I loved each and every one of them, and whilst I can’t say I could read another 800 pages about them right now, I would definitely be keen to return to them and their world in future.

As I said before, all I can continue to say is this. What. A. Ride.

Kira Navárez and her crew-mates are nearly at the end of a mission to survey an uncolonised planet. Everything changes when Kira discovers an alien artefact and humanity finds itself fighting for survival.
Kira must do what she can to help and her journey will span different galaxies as well as put her and the people around her in great peril.
Can the humans win the war?
How will Kira's journey change her?

As a fan of sci-fi and the author's previous series, I was excited to read To Sleep in a Sea of Stars.
Kira was a likeable and relatable protagonist who was certainly put through the mill. I thought her reactions were believeable and liked reading her interactions with other characters.
I liked most of the characters and enjoyed getting to know them, but I don't feel that I really connected with any of them, even Kira.
The scope of this book was truly epic, as was the setting which spanned several galaxies. There weren't as many planets featured in the book as I expected, but most of the book was set on a spaceship.
The plot was pretty good overall - there was a mix of action and slower moments. It was a little repetitive at times, but that was due to the novel being set in space. I stayed interested in what was going on, which can sometimes be difficult with a novel this length, and I didn't feel that it dragged or was overly long. There were some good twists that I didn't see coming, and I didn't know what was going to happen next.
The aliens were interesting and I enjoyed finding out more about them.
One thing that I found odd was when Kira and the other characters didn't talk about something that happened and it was quite a big thing that impacted what happened next.
While this was an enjoyable sci-fi read, it didn't grip me and I'm disappointed that I didn't like it more as it was one of my most anticipated releases of 2020.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read.

Paolini has written, quite frankly, an astounding novel. The level of detail that has gone into this story is mind blowing. Everything is written well and clearly researched thoroughly. It seems as if Paolini has thrown everything they have at this story and not does it pay off!

The story itself is original and everything I can see the science fiction genre moving toward. The dedication to this book and their craft only heightens the experience and the imagery painted throughout the pages to create a gripping, strong and exciting space adventure. The Fractalverse was out of this world, pun clearly intended and every page is brimming with world building and idyllic scenery. Ultimately, this novel is truly transportive and I don’t think I was able to put the book down despite it being almost 900 pages. I managed to finish it within days as it held me in it’s claws and would not release me until I had reached its conclusion. An ending that left me waiting impatiently for more...

Thankyou to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me an ARC of this amazing novel in exchange for an honest review.

To be honest had this book not had Paolini's name on it I wouldn't have picked it up because sci-fi isn't really my genre. But I would have missed out! Although intimidatingly long, the plot doesn't really drag, there is a lot going on and nothing is predictable.