Under The Never Sky: Under the Never Sky : Book 01 [Paperback]

For the first 50 pages of this book I was fully prepared to give up on it. I was beyond confused at the new world we are dropped into with very little explanation and didn't have a clue what was going on. But then it all clicked into place and from then on I was hooked.

The book begins with Aria. Her world in the pod is alien and complex and at first I really struggled to get to grips with it. Veronica Rossi doesn't ease the reader in slowly, more plonks them right in and I truley felt I was in another world. Once I got my head round the ideas though I absolutely loved it. It doesn't take too much to imagine a world where people live in a virtual reality. Where Aria's world is futuristic, on the outside Perry's is primeval. The people on the outside live in clans and at the mercy of the elements. I loved the contrast between the two, though immediatly preffered Perry's. Despite the dangers the outsiders faced I'd take that over a life stuck in a pod where you have everything you wanted or could imagine, though none of it is real. The aether itself is a constant, threatening presence and is described so vividly I could see it in my mind, despite the fact I had no idea what it was to begin with.

Told in a switching third person narrative by both Aria and Perry, Veronica Rossie ensures we really get to know both of these characters very well. I didn't like Aria to begin with, but throughout the book she developes into a strong heroine. There isn't a pivitol moment where this happens, she doesn't suddenly turn from protected weakling to kick-ass. It's a quiet and believable progression. Perry on the otherhand was fascinating from the start (and also particularly swoon worthy!). If I'm ever stuck in a post apocalyptic world, he's the guy I want with me. As with Aria's developement, Rossi takes a slow approach to the romance in this book. And wow, did I get fully caught up with it. There's no instant attraction here, the pair connect through need rather than want and the chemistry between the pair is as electrifying as the aether that constantly threatens them.

Despite the slow start, Under The Never Sky turned into a fast paced, thrilling ride which had me hooked. It's tough, bloody and action packed at times with some heart stopping moments that kept me turning pages as fast as I could. Although I was baffled with the world to begin with, Rossi captures it so well that once you get it, it becomes believable, detailed and developed, so much so that while reading it I felt I was actually there. I would like to know what happened to make the world how it is in Under the Never Sky, as this isn't covered. Maybe that will come in following books in this series, which judging by the ending of this one promise to be every bit as good. If you like your dystopia worlds bleak and ruthless with an action packed and fast paced plot, then I recommend Under The Never Sky.

I have been waiting for this book for what seems like an age. The ideas behind it sounded awesome and I literally couldn't wait to get stuck in.

I must admit up until about 100 pages in I was fully prepared to give up on this book. I was bored and I was struggling to keep on top of what was happening because I found the story telling clunky, the ideas hard to get my head around and the voices between the split narrative not distinct enough. That said once I got a bit further I started to get into it a bit more and by the end I had enjoyed what I had read so while I'm not convinced this was a great standalone novel I have high hopes the series as a whole could be good.

In the end the thing that kept me reading was the relationship between the two main characters Aria and Perry. After a while of being together they both soften towards one another and start working as a team. It is then through this working together you start to see their different worlds through the other one's eyes and it starts to make sense. You also start to root for them as a couple and that makes the story much more interesting to follow. Once you get into that you start to understand a bit more of the whole world set up and start to unravel all the little details that build up the world they are in and understand why things as they are.

All in all not my favourite book of the year but a series I hope will be awesome.

If you've read some of my reviews before then you'll have noticed that I struggle when writing reviews on books that I love. So please don't expect this review to be a work of art, because it won't be. It's recommended that you expect tonnes of gushing and squee-ing, just to be prepared!

Under the Never Sky is told in third person, from alternating points of view, which I wasn't expecting! It was a great wait to get inside the characters' heads whilst still being able to differentiate between them easily, rather than having to go back to the first page of each chapter just to check. NOT that you would have to do that anyway, because Aria and Perry are totally different!

The world that Veronica Rossi has created is unlike anything I have ever read before. I love dystopian novels but I have to say that sometimes they can become very repetitive as a lot are very similar. This world, however, is outstanding! I can't describe my love for everything in this world, from the Pods which the people who rely on technology live in to the tribes that live on the complete other side of the spectrum.

Aria is one of the Dwellers that live in the Pods, and Perry is an Outsider whose brother is a Blood Lord for the Tides tribe. They lived completely different lives until Aria was forced away from her home, and they already had opinions on each other due to how they lived. Both of them are likable - or loveable, depending - and I loved reading from each of their points of views to read about the way they felt about things and each other. Both characters were wonderfully developed, and went through lots of character growth throughout the novel. I particularly liked Perry, but I think he's my favourite of the pair because I am in love with him. That's fair, though, right?

There was no insta-love between Perry and Aria, which was most excellent. You know how I hate it when characters experience love at first sight. Perry and Aria pretty much despised each other to begin with, and I loved reading about their growing relationship throughout the course of the story.
The plot is fast paced and gripping, and I could not put this book down once I started reading. I read it through the night, and when it ended I was left wanting more, but that's not a fault. It's because I'm in love with these characters and this world! I hope to see a lot more of Perry and Aria in the sequel, as well as Roar because I loved him too. He is awesome. *hugs*

I would have liked a bit more fighting at the end, but that's just because I am strange and like lots of blood and killing. I'm perfectly happy with what I got, so there's no way I'm rating the book down because of that.

I told you there would be some rambling, sorry! Regardless of how bad my review is, Under the Never Sky is a beautifully written debut that I could not put down, even for a second. I highly recommend this to people who enjoy dystopias, and to those who like a smidge of science fiction.