Review: The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow

Genre: alien, dystopian, young adult

Pages: 400 pages

Expected publication: February 25th 2020 by Inkyard Press

Synopsis:

Two years ago, a misunderstanding between the leaders of Earth and the invading Ilori resulted in the deaths of one-third of the world’s population.

Seventeen-year-old Janelle “Ellie” Baker survives in an Ilori-controlled center in New York City. Deemed dangerously volatile because of their initial reaction to the invasion, humanity’s emotional transgressions are now grounds for execution. All art, books and creative expression are illegal, but Ellie breaks the rules by keeping a secret library. When a book goes missing, Ellie is terrified that the Ilori will track it back to her and kill her.

Born in a lab, M0Rr1S (Morris) was raised to be emotionless. When he finds Ellie’s illegal library, he’s duty-bound to deliver her for execution. The trouble is, he finds himself drawn to human music and in desperate need of more. They’re both breaking the rules for love of art—and Ellie inspires the same feelings in him that music does.

Ellie’s—and humanity’s—fate rests in the hands of an alien she should fear. M0Rr1S has a lot of secrets, but also a potential solution—thousands of miles away. The two embark on a wild and dangerous road trip with a bag of books and their favorite albums, all the while making a story and a song of their own that just might save them both.

My Thoughts

Picture this: Equilibrium meets War of the Worlds. That’s what this book is!

I enjoyed the idea of this book. Aliens have taken over a sick Earth with the mindset of restoring it and basically turning it into a vacation home while chilling out in their human hosts. Yep. They’re going to steal the bodies while they’re on vacay. But somehow music and books actually inadvertently save the world. The unique part is they’re forbidden [see equilibrium likeness here.]

I liked the characters but didn’t feel they had chemistry. It was a little one-sided to me but separately they were each likable.

The overall plot was interesting and I’d give it a solid 3.8 savvy crowns which is rounded up to 4 on goodreads. 🙂